It’s a high bar, but the VW Golf GTI Edition 50 might just be the best GTI in the model’s illustrious history. In this episode of The Driver’s Seat, Henry Catchpole bounces a ball on a pitching wedge and tests the latest (and greatest?) GTI on some spectacular moorland roads as well as heading to Bedford Autodrome for a track day. Henry also looks back at some of Volkswagen’s wilder GTI concepts and discusses whether the mk8.5 has fixed any or all of the mk8’s litany of issues.
One thing that should be made clear straight away is that the Golf GTI Edition 50 needs the optional Performance Pack. Without it, there are still the celebratory stickers and bumps in power and torque up to 321bhp and 310lb ft – 59bhp and 37lb ft more than the standard GTI and 25bhp and 15lb ft more than a Clubsport – however, the Performance Pack brings myriad chassis changes which take inspiration from the legendary Clubsport S, dropping the ride height and increasing the camber, amongst other things.
The ride is noticeably firm (it can be slackened off just enough with the DCC) but the extra level of involvement is well worth any small sacrifice in comfort. The sense of connection with the front end and that brilliant VAQ diff are a fabulous combination. The GTI feels genuinely quick across the ground too, even when pitched against all sorts of machinery on track.
We snuck into an evo Magazine track evening (thank you, evo) and the GTI Edition 50 felt right at home. There was no sense that it couldn’t cope with the extra power going to the front wheels from the EA888 engine and in its Special Nürburgring setting it felt set up perfectly for bouncing over kerbs. That setting is no idle boast either as this is now the fastest front wheel-drive production car around the Nordschleife with a 7.44.523 on the full 20.832km lap, pipping the Honda Civic Type R by three tenths of a second.
