The Volkswagen GTI belongs to a much larger clan of models in Europe than it does in the United States. On the other side of the Atlantic, the GTI sits above the workaday Golf that we no longer get and below the latest all-wheel-drive Golf R that we’re anxiously awaiting to hit our shores later this year. There also are electric GTE and diesel GTD models. More interesting, though, is another higher-performance Golf positioned in the narrow gap between the GTI and the R, one that’s closer in spirit to the Honda Civic Type R: the GTI Clubsport.
Both Volkswagen and Porsche have used Clubsport and Club Sport monikers over the years, generally for more athletic models intended for semi-regular track use. In the case of the latest GTI Clubsport, that means a significant bump in performance over the standard GTI, with a new turbocharger upping the output of its 2.0-liter inline-four to 296 horsepower. That places the Clubsport much closer to the new Golf R’s 316 horses than the regular GTI’s 241 as well as not far off the 306-hp Type R. As with that Honda, the Clubsport’s output reaches the road exclusively through the front wheels. VW also fits larger brakes, shorter gear ratios for the standard seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission, revised suspension settings, and some subtle visual distinctions to proclaim the car’s specialness. We drove a right-hand-drive example in England to see just how hot these updates make VW’s hot hatch.
Aesthetic changes versus garden-variety GTIs are subtle but present if you know what to look for. While Volkswagen doesn’t add any Clubsport badging, there is a model-specific front bumper and lower grille, plus a rear spoiler, plastic sill extensions, and striped graphics on the lower edge of the front doors. Updates to the cabin are less obvious and include unique fabric upholstery on the seats, but the interior is pretty much identical to the regular GTI’s. That means the same abundance of dark plastic trim and a rather slow, unintuitive central touchscreen. However, buried deep within the Clubsport’s interface is one key difference versus regular GTIs: an additional drive mode beyond Sport that’s simply labeled Nürburgring.
Select ‘Ring mode and the Clubsport adopts the same dynamic settings that VW used to set a 7:55 lap around the 12.9-mile Nordschliefe last year. That time makes the new model just five seconds slower than what the previous-generation Clubsport S managed in 2016 when it set a front-drive record at the track. On the road, the hot setup actually softens the car’s optional adaptive dampers slightly from their firmest Sport position, but keeps the engine, gearbox, and steering in their most aggressive modes. It quickly proved to be ideal for dealing with bumpy British backroads.
Not that the Clubsport feels substantially different from the regular GTI in normal use. It sounds louder under acceleration, although much of that is the result of tweaks to the cabin’s sound augmentation system. The shorter gearing and snappier mapping for both the transmission and throttle sharpen reactions and give a sense of fiercer acceleration. With adequate traction, the Clubsport surely will beat the 5.1-second 60-mph time we recorded for the normal GTI. The electrically boosted brake pedal also feels better than it does in the regular car, feeling firmer under gentle use. The steering has more weight as well, if no obvious improvement over the limited feedback of the standard model.
Pressing the Clubsport harder reveals that the most significant difference is a greater degree of front-end bite when turning into corners. It doesn’t take much enthusiasm to get the regular GTI washing wide in tighter turns, but the Clubsport grips harder and is far better at finding traction, thanks to both its revised suspension and an aggressive electronic limited-slip differential. Understeer is kept in better check and the car is easy to place and hold on a chosen line, even when approaching the tires’ grip limits—perfect qualities for a fast Nürburgring lap. Still, the car’s rear end doesn’t rotate as easily as the Civic Type R’s when you pitch it into corners. This is a car that feels very quick and secure, but its thrills come from raw velocity rather than intimate feedback. Other nitpicks include the Clubsport’s insubstantial plastic paddle shifters on its steering wheel that it shares with the regular GTI. And given the car’s more aggressive character, we wish the dual-clutch transmission would hold gears up to the engine’s rev limiter, yet it upshifts early even in full manual mode.
But it’s hard to be overly critical about a slightly faster and more agile GTI that doesn’t require any significant sacrifices over the basic car. Even the price premium is pretty modest. The GTI Clubsport costs the equivalent of about $ 42,500 in the United Kingdom when the punitive 20 percent VAT sales tax and registration charges are removed, which is roughly $5K more than the price of an automatic-equipped GTI. That makes the Clubsport an awfully tempting proposition, even from across the Atlantic.
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