The latest edition of this legendary model balances nicely between suave and savage.

Base price: $61,490.

Powertrain and economy: 2.0-litre turbo-petrol inline four, 180kW/370Nm, 7-speed dual-clutch automatic, FWD, combined economy 6.9L/100km, CO2 158g/km 

Vital statistics: 4394mm long, 1789mm wide, 1491mm high, 2619mm wheelbase, luggage capacity 381 litres, 18-inch alloy wheels.

We like: Highly-polished presentation; great driving position; begs to be driven with enthusiasm.

We don't like: Some sub-menus a bit too deep-dive; could be less straight-laced in rsspect to engine and exhaust note.

 ADMITTEDLY it was but a quick Google search so I could be wrong, but if not then something needs to be done.

See, from what I can discover, while New Zealand supports clubs supporting the Volkswagen brand, there seems to be no movement specifically glorifying the Golf in performance tune.

Astounding, right?

The Golf in its GTI and ‘R’ guises are cars that Kiwis have particular affection for; that there are thousands of them here basically representing in all generations and special guises reminds it’s no recent romance.

We’ve been getting go-faster Golfs pretty much since the first of the breed rocketed onto the scene. Which was – can you believe? - in 1976.

To give some perspective about how different things were then, a very good Top Gear online piece reminds that this was “the same year as the first commercial Concorde flight and three American nerds joined forces to create something called the Apple Computer Company.”

It’s quite amazing for any kind of product to remain in vogue for so long; Apple made it, commercial supersonic passenger flight came and went and let’s assume the last time anyone alive in that era dusted off those polyester suits and played ‘Saturday Night Fever’ on their … well, it probably wouldn’t be a stereo any more … would be doing so only because someone has daftly decided to hold a 1970s’ retro party. Which I, personally, would feign death to avoid.

On the other hand, I’d love to drive an original Golf GTI, simply because it’s one of the few I haven’t experienced. But I’ve been writing about cars for long enough to say I’ve driven more versions than I can remember.

Some were better than others, none really bad; a couple exceptionally good. But I’ve always had a thing for performance hatches – owning a series of 4AGE-engined Corolla GTs when they were new was a proud moment (I should have kept that Amon one, but never mind) – and, anyway, the GTi has always seemed on top of its game. It is truly the king of reinventing itself, staying relevant, and building a fanbase. 

Club (see what I did there?) all those Golfs from the ages together and you’ll see there’s been a lot of change over the year, including even the smallest things – the badge design has subtly altered, so too the tartan seat pattern – and certainly the biggest. Quite literally.

Golf has grown considerably in size and is throwing around more weight literally - due to it bringing on a lot of additional safety and assistance features that simply couldn’t even be imagined in the early years and cannot be begrudged now – and figuratively, with price creep. It’s gained a few more comforts, too, of course. Three doors to five, bigger capacity engines with more horsepower and torque. And, of course, the transmission. Once, GTIs were purely manual. Now it’s a special-order choice. The whole DSG (direct shift) saga has been interesting, but it’s a decent transmission now and, in my mind utterly befitting the type.

Some will wonder if it’s shifted away from being an everyman fun fling; it’s definitely a more sophisticated car than once was the case. For all that, it’s always consistently been a terrifically fulfilling car to know and drive; though not always the loudest in this category, it trades on quality and having an enduring ability to accomplish great things with style and subtlety. It’s not as overt in its sportiness as, say, a Renault Megane RS, yet there’s sense it nails everything down so well that you’d always be daft to under-estimate it.

That reinforces from having just had the latest. The unusual climate of Covid meant I had much more time with it than is often the case, but achieved less driving time than I might have in normal circumstances. 

For several weeks it was used for the occasional supermarket sortie only.  When my region went to Level Three, better opportunity arose but, basically, the only chance to accomplish all I usually want to do restricted to a 48-hour period right at the end. As I write this, our most populated region is doing it way tougher in hope of better days ahead for all, so I’m not complaining. 

Even when the restrictions were tightest and it would have been insensitive to go anywhere, I could still learn something. The latest Golf’s delivers a digital cockpit that brings two screens; a 10.25-inch display ahead of the driver and a larger touch item in the centre display.

Both are smartly upmarket in appearance and offer fulsome interaction to refine operability, but the larger in particular does ask for a degree of acquaintance time. Occasional dalliance on days when we were home-restricted was time well-spend; my confidence is lifted, though I’d suggest still that there are good points and bad.

That central instrument display is brilliant in offering several views, and I suspect the large central red tachometer is the one most drivers will like most, but the menu system on both has some annoying features. Having to pass through several menu pages to get to specific functions, such as activating the ESC Sport mode, is one ‘for instance’. The system’s reactivity also seems to dull a little when it is prioritising the navigation.

Other useful screen time was looking up minutae about certain GTI elements that I’ve always wondered about. Why the exact rationale behind the signature tartan remains a mystery to me, I do know this car has a fresh take on the design, called 'Scalepaper'. I’m also cognisant that the small badge on the front wing is called a ‘flitzer’ and that the design team having dared, with this generation, to place a GTI inscription beneath the bootlid’s VW logo, which houses the hatch release and reversing camera, has become a bone of contention for enthusiasts. Personally, I cannot see the need for it; the car has enough traditional badges – plus all the usual type-specific styling cues – to tell its story. Perhaps that one will settle down in time; all of Volkswagen's models are now shifting to this style, after all.

In respect to how the car presents overall? Well, it’s another fine job. Golfs are Golfs and as derivative as the latest is, there’s still nicely defined street appeal. And it has a quality air.

GTIs do not sustain metalwork alteration, yet it’s never challenging to pick them. The honeycomb mesh is a signature enhanced by now achieving five-cluster LED fog lights and the GTI also gains an LED daytime running light strip across both headlights and the grille, just below the signature red stripe. At the back the bumper carries over from the regular Golf but achieves gets a different lower section to facilitate the two exhaust pipes, which are the real deal.  GTI also sits 15mm lower than the regular Golf. The only option requiring consideration is whether to take it with 19-inch wheels, rather than the standard 18s.

 That seven-speed DSG is as per the general issue car, meaning a stubby rocker switch for selecting drive and plastic paddles on the back of the wheel for manual gear shifting should you desire. Which you will more often because, well, it’s a GTI … doh. 

The steering wheel is new, and it gets a sporty shape with a flattish bottom. It feels good in your hands and looks great, with a wee GTI logo on the bottom spoke. The new capacitive buttons do take some getting used to, as they seem to be overly sensitive. The front sports-styled bucket seats are also pukka in look and feel; you can chuck the car into a corner and stay firmly in place. Your phone will, as well, as VW – in provisioning an inductive phone charging pad at the base of the centre stack - has a cool cubby with a closed door around it; just perfect to keep everything in place when you’re pushing the envelope. 

About that. Fans hoping for a leap forward in power may be disappointed, as the latest 'evo4' version of the 'EA888' engine has the same output as the previous GTI Performance and it’s become a shade slower in the sprint to 100kmh due to tightened emissions regulations.

Maybe those same rules are why it doesn’t sound quite as rorty, either; the engine tone just isn’t as bullish as I recall from past installations. I cannot imagine why VW would wish to quieten this model down. Yet, fact is, while you can still provoke burble and backchat from the GTI’s pipes, it’s not as raspy as it used to be. Funny thing is, the Skoda Octavia vRS with this same engine, in identical tune, has exactly the right aural character now absent from the Golf.

Even though it’s not as outright loud, it is still loutish in performance terms and very involving. As much as it delivers, in normal driving, as a GTI that is more refined, more grown up; take it out for a good run and you’ll find the original spirit survives. The delight is in how freely it revs and there’s certainly decent pull; with maximum power high up the rev range, it’s a mill that delights in being thrashed.

The DSG transmission is a terrific accomplice, though not with a few small flaws. For one, even in Sport mode there are occasions when it delays in kicking down to allow full acceleration. And at slow speed it can sometimes be a touch lumpy on the downshifts. Yet, again, when it’s in the right zone, it’s largely everything you would want it to be; none of the shifts are fully whip-crack, but there is pleasing precision.

This Mk 8 has such a solid look you will wonder if it will deliver a light and balanced feel. Well, don’t worry about that. It’s a nimble and nippy thing, this car. A new suspension setup includes an aluminium subframe that saves 3kg on the front, with revised wishbones, springs and dampers results in a five percent stiffer front end. At the rear, there are similar changes to the springs and dampers that add a 15 percent increase in stiffness.

Enhancing this is the electronically controlled XDS front differential that appeared in the previous Golf GTI Performance and GTI TCR. New software that strives to eliminate any sense of torque steer - even during launches - and allows a small bit of wheel spin is effective even on wet surfaces. The steering is crisp, sharp and near-perfectly weighted. In hindsight I should have messed around more with the ESC Sport setting, as it allows for a bit more slip before intervening.

All in all? No argument, there are others that are rougher edged, throatier and naughtier. Yet there’s something that really engages here; it’s very much the right kind of car in which to lift your spirits after having to endure several weeks of enforced home stay. As different as it is, it’s still a GTI with all the elements that have made it an iconic stalwart.