Boxy Golf knocked out

VOLKSWAGEN has confirmed that the Golf Plus is a minus for Australia.

Unveiled last week in its second-generation at the Bolognia motor show, the slightly larger and boxier version of the upcoming, MkVI Golf will once again be barred from our borders.

This is according to Volkswagen Group Australia spokesman Karl Gehling, who told GoAuto this week that the latest Golf Plus is not being considered for Australia for the time being.

In Europe, lovers of high-roofed five-seater hatchbacks that look like mini MPVs in the vein of the short-wheelbase Renault Scenic will have to wait until the second quarter of next year to sample the delights of Volkswagen’s latest family car.

Yet the 2009 Golf Plus is little more than a top and tail facelift of the first-generation model unveiled just four years ago and released at the Geneva motor show in March 2005.

Not to be confused with the seven-seater Touran that is also derived from the PQ35 Golf V platform but about 150mm longer, the ‘Plus’ is some 95mm taller than the standard Golf.

Compared to the current car, the new version features a redesigned nose boasting different headlights with daytime running lights incorporated within them, as well as changes to the front and rear bumpers, tail-lights, wheel designs and tailgate.

Inside there fresh materials and trim surrounding the revised audio and climate control switches, as well as a new-look steering wheel, in order to give the Plus a posher appearance.

Among the many options available is Park Assist, which ‘reads’ a parking space and then helps the driver manoeuvre the vehicle inside the spot automatically.

On the mechanical front, Volkswagen’s new direct-injection turbo-diesel engines are now available, as well as a range of TSI turbocharged and supercharged four-cylinder engines in 1.4 and 1.8-litre petrol formats.

Volkswagen is also believed to be preparing a 1.2-litre TSI unit for release sometime over the next 18 months. The regular Golf series will also get this engine, as well as a range of other VW, Skoda and Seat models, to replace the ancient 1.4-litre petrol powerplant in the Group’s line-up.

There is no word as to whether Volkswagen will release a CrossGolf version of the new model - the jacked-up SUV version based on the outgoing Golf Plus.

Read more:

First look: Golf SUV may Crossover

First look: VW adds Golf Plus

Diesel do for VW