VW unleashes fastest ever Golf R

IT MIGHT be hard to believe that 20 years have passed since Volkswagen launched its cracking Golf R32 – a V6-powered rocketship that at the time was the fastest production car VW had ever built.

But 20 years it is, and to celebrate, the German manufacturer has unleashed a commemorative model is says is the hottest and fastest ever – the Golf R 20 Years.

On sale from July 13, and priced from $77,490 plus on-road costs, the special edition R will be available to just 50 Aussie customers, and includes what Volkswagen Australia says are “significant design and engineering enhancements over the series production Golf R”.

Those upgrades include a titanium Akrapovic exhaust, power and torque upgrades courtesy of an enhanced turbocharger, sharper-shifting dual-clutch transmission, carbon-fibre trim inserts, premium paint, a panoramic sunroof and a harman/kardon premium audio system.

Volkswagen Australia will offer 32 examples of the Golf R 20 Years in Lapiz Blue and 18 in Pure White, all riding on black 19-inch Estoril alloy wheels.

All examples feature a 245kW (+10kW) and 420Nm (+20Nm) engine tune to dispatch the 0-100km/h standard in just 4.6 seconds.

“The original Mark 4 and Mark 5 Volkswagen Golf R32 introduced the pioneering DSG and were renowned for their sonorous acoustics and compact agility,” said Volkswagen Passenger Vehicles director, Michal Szaniecki.

“As our flagship hot hatchback evolved to become the Mark 6 and Mark 7 Golf R they led the segment for all-wheel drive traction and performance at a time when rally-bred sedan rivals departed the segment or simply didn't evolve.

“Now, the Mark 8 Golf R moves onto another level with its torque-vectoring all-wheel drive system fused with incredible technology. It is fitting that this 20 Years special edition is about both enhanced styling, more power and torque, sharper responses from the transmission and an even more expressive sound.”

Volkswagen introduced the original Mk4 Golf R32 in 2002, the ‘R’ in Golf R standing for the German word “rennen”, or “racing”. It featured a 3.2-litre six-cylinder engine producing 177kW and offered all-wheel drive for a 0-100km/h time of 6.6 seconds. The model was the first VW to be offered from mid-2003 with a dual-clutch transmission. Just 200 examples were sold in Australia.

In 2006, the Mk5 Golf R32 upped the ante with a 184kW 3.2-litre V6 and a whole new look. It offered a crackling central-exit exhaust system, all-wheel drive, and the availability of three- and five-door body styles.

The Mk5 was followed in 2010 by the Mk6 which dropped the ‘32’ and gained a 188kW four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine. It quickly added 50 per cent to the sales totals of the preceding generation locally, VW selling 3276 examples of the Mk6 R, 2041 examples of the Mk5 and 195 Mk4s.

From 2014 the MQB platform-based Mk7 and Mk7.5 Golf R raised the bar yet again with a 213kW output, quick-acting 4Motion all-wheel drive system and impressive sales of 13.864 units. It was replaced in 2022 with the Mk8 Golf R which offered a stunning 235kW, torque vectoring-enabled 4Motion system, and even Drift Mode.

To the first quarter of 2023, a total of 19,833 Golf R32 and R hatchbacks and wagons have been sold in Australia across 20 years, meaning the 20,000^th example of the car is likely to be sold in its 20^th year. Fitting, don’t you think?