Does A Performance Pack Add More GTI?
Volkswagen has added the option of a Performance Pack to the Golf GTI. How is this different to the Golf GTI? If the standard Volkswagen Golf GTI is already so good, how can it be improved? Is the Volkswagen Golf GTI Performance Pack better than the car on which it is based? More power. Not that the GTI in generation 7 has a shortage thereof. The Performance Pack is only coupled to the DSG auto gearbox, so no manual available as per the standard GTI. Most buyers go for DSG anyway - this makes a good combination. More red. A quick tell-tale (appreciated by GTI aficionados) is the GTI lettering which changes from chrome to red - these red badges on the grille and tailgate signify this car as the Performance Pack GTI. Some owners will probably paint or replace their standard GTI badges to red, so don鈥檛 be fooled by a fake.
The red badges add a touch of aggression, and with the trademark Golf 7 GTI red pinstripe through the grille and headlights, the red GTI logo compliments well. The Performance Pack also adds red brake calipers, with GTI logo on the front calipers. DCC (Dynamic Chassis Control) with Driver Profile Selection is a standard feature - basically adaptive suspension and driving modes. It actively regulates damper valves to give a softer or firmer ride, and affects the engine response and DSG shift points. This system is operated through the touch-screen system rather than through a dedicated button, which can be annoying at times when you are busy in, say, the audio screen menu and wants to quickly move between modes. More diff. The newly-engineered Front Differential Lock is being used exclusively by the GTI Performance Pack. Without getting technical, this differential makes a difference by giving more front-wheel grip when accelerating in a straight line (important for any GTI enthusiast) and in bends. Basically it makes the car faster.
Essentially the GTI Performance Pack is said to perform better thanks to a little more power, better brakes, adaptive suspension and clever diff鈥?but the diff is too harsh. The rest still GTI familiar? No need to change anything in the pleasant GTI interior. Quality materials, superb finish and a general sense of calm confidence with red stitching throughout make up the GTI cabin. But the feeling is very restrained, whereas the previous generation GTI had more of a premium feel. One of the problems with new technology is that it does not always work as expected, and needs to be perfected. The GTI comes with a fake engine sound played through the speakers - when selecting Sport mode, a more sporty gravelly engine note is meant to be played鈥?not by the engine or exhaust, but through speakers. Purists are frowning in unison. On the test car, after one short green-light sprint in Sport mode to feel the added speed, this engine speaker sound started distorting, just like a normal speaker would when its diaphragm breaks. This meant the Normal and Eco modes were quiet, but Sport mode, which you like in a GTI, only irriatated. The DSG gearbox is as quick and willing as ever. If you want to step away from the default white, red or black GTI, the navy blue colour (off-setting the red badges, lines, brakes and wheels very well) of the test car is called Night Blue. This Performance Pack costs exactly R 20 000, which includes the DCC (Dynamic Chassis Control) with Driver Profile Selection (otherwise an option costing R 11 500 on GTI). Add the extra performance and distinction of the red GTI badges and extra go-faster tech bits, and this seems a reasonable upgrade price. Does a Performance Pack add more GTI?
As per tradition, I鈥檒l start with a warm welcome to our newest follower, Burnmay. Enjoy your stay here! Fifteen years after the Beetle鈥檚 introduction, Volkswagen鈥檚 little car has never been so popular. After its native Germany, it had penetrated most European markets, then become the first widely successful import on American soil. Its replacement wasn鈥檛 seriously considered yet, but Volkswagen was already willing to diversify its range. Therefore, the Typ 3 was introduced as a 鈥渟uper-Beetle鈥?of sorts in August 1961 during the Frankfurt motor show. Though initially available as the sole 鈥?500鈥?two-door saloon, the Typ 3 was soon supplemented by new models. If you read carefully you noticed that I mentioned an estate version. Quite unusual for a rear-engined car, isn鈥檛 it? Volkswagen engineers made a wonderful job with the Typ 3, the boxer architecture of the engine and a revised air-cooling system allowing the very slim block to fit under the rear cargo compartment of all models, saloons and coupes included.
