2025 Volkswagen Golf launch review

Not many automotive nameplates can lay claim to having celebrated a 50th birthday, however the Volkswagen Golf reached the milestone in 2024.

Arriving in Australian showrooms this year, the eighth generation of the iconic model gets a facelift (now dubbed the ‘Mk 8.5’), a trimmed-down entry-level variant, increased standard inclusions across the range, and more performance packed into flagship trims.

How much does the 2025 Volkswagen Golf cost?

Life trim – which replaced the 110TSI Life entry-level variant late in the pre-facelift model’s cycle – kicks off the line-up again in 2025. Some once-standard kit has been shaved to get its price down to just $38,690 before on-roads, $500 less than its predecessor.

Newly introduced Style trim brings luxury, raising the price to $43,690, while returning R-Line grade adds sportiness for $47,990, up a considerable $5700.

Performance front-wheel drive flagship GTI comes in at $58,990 for 2025, up $2900 on the model it replaces.

All-wheel drive hot hatch R returns at $70,990 (up $400), with a new R Black Edition starting from $72,490. We’ll be getting behind the wheel of these variants in the coming weeks, so keep eyes peeled for our thoughts on those soon.

What is the 2025 Volkswagen Golf like inside?

The update doesn’t majorly overhaul the Golf’s interior, instead making subtle tweaks by way of more standard tech and reception to customer feedback.

Horizontal lines and an overall minimalist design keep the Golf classy and understated. All variants below R regain physical buttons on leather steering wheels, following complaints about the finnicky nature of previously fit touch-sensitive controls – a change we approve of wholeheartedly.

Seats provide good comfort and support across the range. Life gets black cloth on its, while stepping up to Style sees microfleece-wrapped 14-way electrically adjustable units with a massage feature fitted for drivers.

Leather-appointed black and grey sports seats come in R-Line, with heating and ventilation for both front-seated passengers and a memory function gained for drivers. Classic-design cloth seats or grey leather-accented seats can be fitted to the GTI’s bucket seats, but both are only mechanically adjustable as standard, which begins to feel a bit out of place in a car nudging $60k.

As expected, the GTI is a more theatrical thing to be inside. Red stitching and lashings throughout, and a pulsating engine start/stop button, make the GTI feel a little bit special.

Larger centre touchscreens come fitted to all grades. For Life, this measures 10.3 inches, while Style and up score 12.9-inch units. A 10.9-inch customisable driver display and ambient interior lighting come standard across the range.

What equipment does the 2025 Volkswagen Golf come with?

A rich offering of standard equipment comes fitted to the 2025 Volkswagen Golf, even with the base Life variant undergoing some cost-cutting.

Over the 2024 model, Life loses tri-zone climate control and sat nav but gains more powerful wireless phone charging.

As standard, it also scores 17-inch alloy wheels, LED head and tail lights, a park assist function, keyless entry, rear seat vents, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, DAB+ radio, 10-colour ambient lighting, power folding mirrors and a rear-view camera.

Style grade adds 18-inch alloys, tri-zone climate, voice recognition, privacy glass, uprated LED headlights and 30-colour ambient lighting. A Sound & Vision Package can be optioned on Style and up for $2000, adding a 360-degree camera, 480W Harmon Kardon sound system, and head-up display. A sunroof can also be had on Style and up for $1900.

Sportiness is added in R-Line grade, with 18-inch alloys, selectable driving profiles, progressive steering, a heating steering wheel and exterior trimmings.

Moving to GTI gets buyers metallic paint, 19-inch alloys, tuneable chassis profiles, fog lights and GTI-specific bumper trims. A $3900 Leather Package adds Vienna leather upholstery, heating, ventilation, and electrical adjustment with memory to front seats, the 480W Harmon Kardon sound system and a head-up display.

How safe is the 2025 Volkswagen Golf?

The Golf badge has been built on strong fundamentals of safety, and 50 years later, the story is no different.

The 2025 Volkswagen Golf scores a five-star safety rating from ANCAP, carrying over its pre-facelift version’s score.

Drive safety aids are extensive, including front assist with pedestrian and cyclist detection, side and lane assist, park assist, rear-view camera and a proactive occupant protection function are complemented by nine airbags as standard equipment.

What powers the 2025 Volkswagen Golf?

Well known powertrains carry over. From Life to R-Line variants, a 1.4-litre four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine sends 100kW and 250Nm to the front wheels through an eight-speed torque converter automatic. Volkswagen claims a fuel consumption of 6.3L/100 for the 1.4-litre unit.

The GTI is powered by the same 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine as before, but power has jumped by 15kW for a total output of 195kW and 370Nm. This is bolted to a seven-speed dual-clutch auto driving the front wheels. Consumption for this engine is claimed at 7.2L/100km.

What is the 2025 Volkswagen Golf like to drive?

Stability and poise remain pillars of the Golf experience. The chassis is taut and deals drivers comfort and directness in healthy portions.

Driver positioning strikes a good balance between visibility and being low enough in the cabin to retain a feeling of connectedness. Steering weight suits the limberness of the handling however, in typical Golf fashion, the brake pedal errs on touchy.

Acceleration in 1.4-litre engine-fitted variants is adequate but seems underwhelming compared to the spec sheet. The eight-speed auto doesn’t trip over itself though, and thanks to plentiful ratios and the engine’s wide torque band, it doesn’t need to aggressively intervene very often.

The GTI’s 2.0-litre donk feels better than ever. Thanks to not picking up any additional torque, its 15 extra kilowatts all come towards redline, creating a revy and rewarding engine for drivers. It’s also not overwhelmed for traction either, and the new GTI feels noticeably faster building speed out of bends than its predecessor.

Its seven-speed dual-clutch auto grabs the right gear quickly, hesitating very little when drivers manually intervene with the paddles, however its eagerness to get moving when the car is put in its sportier settings leads to much unwanted lunging from a standstill.

Ascending wheel diameters – and thus descending tyre sidewall heights – don’t just make for an improved aesthetic: the move from 17- to 18-inch wheels removes a sizeable amount of flex and appreciably allows the Golf’s suspension tuning to go to work.

This is taken too far in the GTI, however, now fitted as standard with once-optional 19-inch wheels. Drivers can select from 15 suspension stiffness settings on the fly in the tuning menu but, even on the softest of these, the transition from a firm to jarring ride on imperfect surfaces can be sudden and unforgiving.

Forgiven to an extent on windy roads however, revised differential tuning in the GTI – combined with an ‘extended electronic differential lock’ (that can brake individual wheels to simulate a differential), standard on all grades – makes for an accomplished handling machine. Add revised steering and suspension tuning to the mix and the amount of rotation this four-door, front-wheel drive hatch is capable of becomes supremely impressive.

The driving experience does feel a tad artificial though, thanks to all this active chassis control, but you’d be hard pressed to find a better car for the average driver to hop into and effortlessly drive at beyond average speeds.

After time behind the wheel, it’s hard not to step away from the new GTI thinking it’s all gone a little too far. The focus on gaining heat in the hot hatch segment seems to have forced a bit of its famed refinement to take a backseat, and not for the betterment of the overall package.

Open Road’s take on the 2025 Volkswagen Golf

Badges don’t celebrate 50th birthdays by chance. The Golf has been around this long thanks to constant improving of a formula, and the Mk 8.5 is by and large no exception.

The net for potential Golf buyers has been cast wider than ever before with a cheaper entry variant and more expensive GTI; however, solid driving fundamentals and a strong tech-to-cost ratio will likely keep the Golf competitive in its segment.

Pros: great handling and poise; more standard tech kit; greater choice in line-up.

Cons: takes a styling backstep; GTI getting a tad too hot; big price hikes on some variants.