VW Golf GTI Touring Car Racing: Driven
Despite VW's claims, there really doesn't feel to be much motorsport influence in the Golf GTI TCR. No great surprise, really, because all Golf GTIs have made something of a virtue of, well, being a Golf. That doesn't stop there being some mild disappointment, though, especially after driving the actual Golf GTI TCR seen here. Because, spoiler alert: it's awesome. For those unfamiliar with TCR - or, quite literally, Touring Car Racing - it's a form of tin-top competition that's spread rapidly across the globe since its 2015 introduction, now forming the basis of World Touring Cars. The idea, as is often the way with motorsport nowadays, is to reduce costs, to get more manufacturers involved and thus promote larger, more diverse grids. Now the TCR regulations underpin series in a host of Asian and European countries (including the UK), with eligible cars from VW, Ford, Peugeot, Renault, Honda and more. Interestingly, while there are control parts for every vehicle, the engines are carried over from the road car, giving each model some crucial variation and something for the fans to get behind. Anyway, back to driving this one. So, the actual drive.
On a slightly damp track early in the morning, there's no doubt the TCR requires some attention. But we all like a challenge, right? The wheels can spin (sorry VW), the brakes can lock (also sorry VW) and the rear tyres take a lot longer to warm up than the fronts - you can use your imagination for that one. Road cars should never be compared to race cars, really, but there we are - fact is that, on a circuit, this 2.0-litre, front-wheel drive Golf is more exciting than a lot of supercars. It certainly makes you realise how track-focused some of the very best road cars actually are, this TCR lapping (no pun intended) up all you can throw at it and eminently capable of taking very much more. Front-wheel drive and automatic it may well be, but there's clearly plentiful challenge and reward here - which is, surely, what we're all after from a great driving experience. It's a racing car and a track experience made accessible, yet no less exciting. A grid of them must be a right giggle. But back to the point. Of course - just to make the point really clear - a Golf couldn't be sold with a sequential gearbox, no brake servo and a cage fit to contain a bear. But surely there could be one with a bit more race car in, even if it was just down to that wheel and paddles. Those TCR and Golf fans dedicated enough to buy the special edition deserve a better idea of what their car's namesake is really like - because it's absolutely fantastic fun.
More substantial changes lie underneath the steel skin. VW has introduced an all-new body structure with revised suspension tuning to give the GTI more athletic handling this time around (albeit with an unfortunate decline in ride quality this year). Hit the gas and the new GTI moves faster, too. The turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine now generates 210 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque, gains of 10 hp and 51 lb-ft compared to the outgoing model. An optional package adds 10 more hp along with larger front and rear brakes and an electronically controlled mechanical limited-slip front differential -- a GTI first -- that can help the hatch power out of turns more quickly. An optional adaptive suspension is another new addition. Put it together and you've got the GTI's traditional strengths of refinement, practicality and quality, but now with enhanced agility and performance. VW isn't the only brand vying for your hot hatch dollars, of course. For rowdier acceleration and handling, the Ford Focus ST sets the standard. It's noticeably less expensive, too. We're also fond of the smaller but highly customizable 2015 Mini Cooper S, which was recently redesigned and offers tech-oriented features you can't get on the GTI. The 2015 Subaru WRX is a good option if you want all-wheel drive.
A university student who walked straight out court with a driving ban only to get into his car and drive off minutes later has been jailed for 12 weeks. Saif Shaikh, 20, was photographed by press driving off in his black VW golf GTi just minutes after he was disqualified from driving at a hearing at Manchester Crown Court on Wednesday. He had just pleaded guilty to causing serious injury by dangerous driving and was handed a verbal interim disqualification to ban him from the road ahead of the hearing. Shaikh's case was adjourned by Judge Timothy Smith for a report to be prepared ahead of sentencing. The Manchester Metropolitan University nodded to the judge before leaving court but ignored the order. He was seen walking to his car - parked around 50 yards away from the court on Bridge Street - before driving away. Appearing at Salford Magistrates' Court Shaikh admitted to driving without insurance while under a driving ban. Sentencing him to 12 weeks in jail, District Judge James Hatton told him: 'Probation have told me you have expressed remorse but at the same time you have sought to blame others and sought to avoid culpability.
You were well aware you were disqualified from driving. You were given that indication by a crown court judge but you chose for reasons best known to yourself to immediately leave the court building and get into your car and drive the not inconsiderable distance to your home address. Adding: 'You seem to come from a good, supportive family. Greater Manchester Police said journalists had contacted them regarding Shaikh's ignorance of the order on Wednesday and the information had been passed onto relevant officers - he was arrested shortly after the images were published. Shaikh drove the same black Golf when he crashed into the woman on Upper Brook Street on November 18 last year. Manchester Crown Court heard the woman was visiting her son, who is in permanent care at Manchester Royal Infirmary. At the plea and trial preparation hearing, Shaikh's lawyer asked the judge to postpone sentencing until he had finished his first-year exams. Shaikh, originally from Bradford, West Yorkshire, had no previous convictions prior to the collision.
