Is the Volkswagen Golf a Good Car? Yes, the Volkswagen Golf is a good car. It handles well, rides smoothly, and accelerates quickly. Its quiet cabin uses plenty of top-notch materials, and both rows of seats have ample space. The Golf’s cargo hold outpaces many rivals in terms of space, and its user-friendly infotainment system headlines the model’s tech features. However, the system does feel outdated compared to rival setups, and some other compact cars get better gas mileage. Should I Buy the Volkswagen Golf? The Golf is definitely a worthwhile choice in this class. However, considering its above-average starting price, you’ll likely find a better value by shopping around. Competitors like the Kia Soul, Honda Civic, and Mazda3 all make fine choices. Should I Buy a New or Used Volkswagen Golf? The 2018 Volkswagen Golf is part of a generation that began with the 2015 model year. The 2016 model received a redesigned infotainment system that includes Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
It also added several active safety features, including automatic braking, lane departure warning, blind spot monitoring, and active parallel park assist. The 2017 model dropped the two-door body style and replaced the SE and SEL trims with the Wolfsburg Edition trim. It also offered fewer driver assistance features, dropping adaptive cruise control and park assist from the list of options. The Golf sees a light refresh for 2018 that includes exterior styling updates, a larger available touch screen (8 inches), and a longer new-car warranty than VW previously offered. You can potentially save thousands of dollars by buying a used vehicle, but be aware that you may miss out on some features. If you're interested in a used model, be sure to visit our overviews of the 2016 Volkswagen Golf and 2017 Volkswagen Golf. Also, check out our Used Car Deals page to learn about savings and discounts on used vehicles. Our car reviews include everything you need to know before heading to the dealership.
We combine the opinions of the automotive press with quantifiable data like crash test results and reliability ratings to form a complete picture of every vehicle we rank. This review uses research and data from the 2015 through 2018 model years, which are all the years of the current Golf generation. VW makes a performance-tuned version of the Golf - the Golf GTI - that slots between the base model and the high-performance Golf R. There are also two wagon variants, the Golf SportWagen and the Alltrack. These vehicles are covered in separate reviews on our site. U.S. News Best Cars has been ranking vehicles since 2007, and our team has more than 75 years’ worth of combined experience in the automotive industry. Our car reviews are objective. To keep them that way, our editorial staff doesn’t accept expensive gifts or trips from automakers, and a third party handles all the advertising on our site.
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How Much Does the Volkswagen Golf Cost? 21,000. That’s higher than the starting price of many compact cars, and the Golf can get a lot more expensive if you want a top trim. 30,000s, which is more than you’d pay for many fully loaded rivals (though in fairness, only a few rivals' top trims are as performance-focused as the Golf R, and those that are have similar pricing). Check out our U.S. News Best Price Program for great savings at your local Volkswagen dealer. You can also find excellent manufacturer incentives on our Volkswagen deals page. Which Is Better: Volkswagen Golf or Kia Soul? The Kia Soul is another compact hatchback. Its base engine feels a bit weak, but an available turbocharged engine turns the Soul into a fun-to-drive little vehicle. Both cars have two rows of spacious seats, but the Soul has more cargo space than the Golf. A five-out-of-five predicted reliability rating helps vault the Soul to the top of the class. On top of all that, you can pay less for the Kia and still get its midlevel engine and more features than the base Golf.
