VW Golf asks for your love

Volkswagen's new corporate catchphrase is Aus Liebe zum Automobil - for the love of the car. It's warmer and fuzzier than stablemate Audi's Vorsprung Durch Tecknik - advancement through technology. Whatever, the love-line will appear in advertising for the five-door Golf GTi, launched on roads north of Auckland on Monday and on sale in April at $49,990 and $52,990.

Advertising people say an obvious spinoff from the catchphrase is an addition to the "Love is ... " cartoons, in this case "Love is ... a VW Golf GTi".

Watch for bumper stickers on the 100 or so GTIs that importers European Motor Distributors expect to sell before Christmas.

The overall advertising campaign is called the Fifth Coming, because the latest GTi is the fifth-generation model. The television ad is pretty much the same as VW is using in Germany, starting with a spirited young fella misbehaving and ending with a GTi doing the same. The idea is that the GTi defies convention, too.

But VW's ad agency in New Zealand has played with the catchphrase. Television, print and billboard ads will include the line: "It'll be here before you can say Aus Liebe zum Automobil."

The agency figured that the German phrase is such a mouthful that by the time average New Zilunders get their tongue around it, the GTi will indeed be here.

The Mk V GTi has what the Mk II, III and IV didn't have: the sassiness of the bare-boned 1976 original Mk I, now wrapped in a high-tech electronic package with engine componentry, brakes, safety and dynamic aids unheard of 30 years ago.

That's one of the reasons why it weighs about 1300kg, 500kg more than the original. VW says it had to balance the desire for a lightweight car against the requirements of modern design.

The Mk V GTi is powered by a turbocharged 2-litre FSI direct injection petrol engine producing 147kW (200bhp) between 5100-6000rpm and 280Nm of torque between 1800-5000rpm, mated to either a six-speed manual, at $49,990, or six-speed DSG (direct shift gearbox) at $52,990. The DSG unit, already available in the mainstream Golf range, combines the advantages of a conventional six-speed manual with the qualities of modern automatic transmission. Basically, DSG allows two gears to be engaged at the same time, a pre-selection process that cuts shift times and provides an almost uninterrupted flow of power - unlike a conventional automatic where power is lost through the torque converter.

VW says the manual GTi sprints from zero to 100km/h in 7.2sec and on to a top speed of 235km/h (146mph). The DSG, it says, gets to 100km/h in 6.9sec. There is some dispute here, with independent tests overseas favouring the manual in a sprint.

Regardless of sprint times, the extra 500kg hasn't blunted the turbocharged urge, audible from the twin exhaust pipes.

Throttle response is sharp through the slick manual or DSG ratios and the spread of torque delivers power smoothly.

Torque steer - where the driven front wheels get a mind of their own - is negligible, even on the worst corners and surfaces between Helensville and Wellsford. The car remained balanced and nimble throughout, the front and aft stabiliser bars working in unison with accurate steering and plenty of grip from the 225/45 tyres. The brakes and their bright red calipers behind the 17-in alloy wheels set a performance hatchback benchmark.

The GTI sits a full 15mm lower than the standard car and stands out from mainstream models with its full-length honeycomb grille, roof spoiler and GTI badges.

The car is just as appealing on the inside, complete with supportive bucket seats sporting a GTi logo and Mk I lookalike checkered cloth. A leather steering wheel - squared off at the bottom - and alloy pedals and driver's foot-rest add to the quality feel.

Standard equipment includes electronic climate control, 10-speaker CD player, multifunction computer, electronic stabilisation, dual front, side and curtain airbags, and automatic driving lights. Options include leather ($4000), xenon lamps ($2200), sunroof ($2500) and 18in alloys ($2000). The three-door GTi is not available.

* VW also launched its luxury limousine, the $199,990 Phaeton, on Monday. But a fuel problem with the V10 turbodiesel engine spoiled its debut when the computer mixed up the air/fuel ratio. VW blamed the problem on the battery being disconnected too often in transit. This confused the computer, which "eventually would have re-calibrated"

Back in the 70s

Back in the early 1970s Volkswagen executives were split over the idea of a sports version of the first-generation Golf hatchback.

It was to be a lightweight (810kg) hatchback with a 81kW (110bhp), four-cylinder 1.6-litre fuel-injected engine and go-fast intentions: a top speed of 182km/h (112mph) and a zero to 100km/h sprint of around 9 seconds.

Pessimists in the VW boardroom asked who would buy such a car. One research and development executive said of the project: "It's far too expensive - you're all mad."

Optimists under the same ceiling told them to wait and see, that there was still much development work to be done.

Both parties agreed to disagree and see how things panned out, but only if the project was kept under wraps.

The handful of visionaries who had spawned the Golf GTi idea over beer and sandwiches kept beavering away in private. Tests continued, professional drivers' opinions were canvassed.

In the end, opponents' numbers dwindled. The VW board agreed: the GTi was a cracker. The executive who said the project was too expensive became one of its main supporters.

The GTi was unveiled at the Frankfurt motor show in September 1975 under the banner "The fastest Volkswagen ever". Reaction was such that VW decided to build a special series of 5000 cars. The GTi went on sale in Germany around June, 1976. Dealers were deluged with orders and VW had to boost production.

Since the original production run of 5000, more than 1.5 million GTi units - Mk I, II, III, IV generations - have been sold in 148 countries.

"Never has there been so many GTi derivatives from the one product," said Uwe Cohrs, VW's chief of product marketing.