The Volkswagen Golf GTE is available to order from today [published 14 January], costing £28,035* RRP.

And unlike Volkswagen’s other electric vehicles (the e-up! and e-Golf) which are sold through a network of 25 e-Retailers, the GTE will be available through all of the company’s franchised sales outlets.

The name of Golf GTE reflects its standing in the line-up alongside the petrol-powered GTI and diesel GTD, while its pricing also reinforces this position. The new car is driven by two engines: a 1.4-litre 150 PS TSI direct-injection petrol engine and a 102 PS electric motor. Together, they produce a maximum power of 204 PS and a theoretical range of 580 miles, while maximum torque is 350 Nm (258 lbs ft). A six-speed DSG gearbox developed for hybrid vehicles is standard.

The electric motor is integrated into the gearbox housing, while further hybrid components include power electronics and a charger. An electro-mechanical brake servo and an electric air conditioning compressor make for energy-efficient braking and air conditioning. There are five operating modes: ‘E-mode’, ‘GTE mode’, ‘Battery Hold’, ‘Battery charge’ and ‘Hybrid Auto’. In pure electric mode (activated at the press of a button), the Golf GTE can travel up to 31 miles. Electric power can also be saved – for example when driving to a zero-emissions zone – and in electric mode, the GTE is capable of speeds of up to 81 mph.

With the TSI engine engaged as well, the Golf GTE can sprint from zero to 62 mph in 7.6 seconds and on to 138 mph, yet returns a combined cycle figure of 166 mpg and CO2 emissions of 39 g/km. As such it is expected to be exempt from VED and the Congestion Charge.

The Golf GTE’s 8.8 kWh lithium-ion battery can be charged in 3.75 hours from a domestic mains outlet, or 2.25 hours from a domestic wallbox.

The Golf GTE is available in five-door bodystyle only and in one highly-specified trim level. Visually, it combines elements of the e-Golf and Golf GTI, with C-shaped LED daytime running lights (e-Golf) and aerodynamic horizontal ‘fins’ (GTI). Where the GTI features red, the GTE has blue accents, including across the radiator grille and into the headlights (which as on the e-Golf are LED), while 18-inch ‘Serron’ alloy wheels are fitted as standard.

Inside too, the GTI’s red highlights are turned to blue – including the stitching on the steering wheel, gear lever gaiter and seats, and a blue stripe in the tartan pattern on the sports seats. Touchscreen infotainment system with DAB radio and Bluetooth is standard, while optional navigation includes bespoke EV features such as the ability to identify potential destinations on electric range, and charging points.

The GTE also has an e-manager which allows the driver to preset vehicle charging, as well as interior cooling or heating and these functions can be operated remotely using the Car-Net app on a smartphone; a three-year subscription is standard in the UK. The speedometer and tachometer are familiar, and the latter is supplemented by a power meter in the central display, which shows the status of the battery, whether or not power is being used and the intensity of any regeneration.

(*RRP OTR after £5,000 Government plug-in car grant has been deducted)

Source: Diesel Car Magazine

Volkswagen says its Golf GTE plug-in hybrid offers eco-friendly buyers the “best of both worlds” — a compact hatchback that can be driven up to 50km in cities using electric power or up to 940km on highways with additional power from its gasoline engine.

The Golf GTE is VW’s second plug-hybrid after the low-volume XL1. Others will follow, including a Passat plug-in hybrid. VW is touting the Golf GTE’s sportiness. The plug-in has the same performance as a Golf GTI and is “both eco-friendly and sporty,” said Hans-Jacob Neusser, VW brand’s r&d head.

VW says the Golf GTE will complement the all-electric e-Golf, which went on sale in February. The e-Golf has a maximum range of 190km so it is more suited to urban driving than long distances, VW says. The Golf GTE costs 2,000 euros more than the 34,900 euro e-Golf in Germany. VW is not disclosing any production or sales forecasts for the Golf GTE.

Neusser said the car can be built on the same production lines as other Golfs so the company can react very flexibly to demand. IHS Automotive forecasts that VW will sell 24,233 Golf GTEs next year, with volume reaching a peak of 52,356 in 2021. VW says the Golf compact family now has the widest choice of powertrains in the segment with the GTE adding to the gasoline, diesel, CNG and EV versions.

Read more: AutoNews

What is it?

The Volkswagen Golf GTE is a plug-in hybrid version of the perenially popular family hatchback. As the badging suggests though, this is no hair-shirt rival to cars like the Toyota Prius Plug-In.

Volkswagen instead bills the GTE as the third member of its Golf GT family, joining the petrol Golf GTI and diesel Golf GTD. Knowing what we do about those models, that billing suggests this new car will be a keen performer and a fun, engaging hot hatch in a demonstrably grown-up sort of way.

Technical highlights?

The internal combustion engine is a 1.4-litre, four-cylinder turbo petrol unit, good for 148bhp, and the gearbox is a six-speed DSG. The 75kW (101bhp) electric motor sits between the two and drives through the gearbox. The hybrid drivetrain, which sends power to the front wheels only, delivers a peak output of 201bhp rather than the theoretical combined maximum of 249bhp because the power curves don’t quite converge at their peaks.

What’s it like to drive?

According to Volkswagen’s own figures, the Golf GTE is 173kg heavier than the GTI. It’ll sprint to 62mph in 7.6 seconds and top out at 138mph; those performance figures are more closely aligned to that of the 1.4 TSI model than the GTI. In its electric-only mode, it’ll cover 31 miles on a full charge.

It must be said that the hybrid drivetrain does work very well. Urban driving and electric motors, with their near-silent operation and instant torque hit, are so well matched that it’s easy to buy into the Golf GTE as a town car.

The powertrain also offers a switchable mode that ramps the energy harvesting up by such a degree that the driver needn’t bother with the brake pedal in town, although that mode is more off-putting than it is useful out on the open road. There’s a sharp edge to the way the GTE rides on city streets, which is just enough to hint at some degree of athleticism without ruining the ride comfort.

The true depth of the Golf GTE’s sporting merit depends entirely on perspective. If the point of reference is a conventional plug-in hybrid or full electric car there’ll be much to commend about the way the GTE grips securely with solid body control and good agility.

Judged as a traditional hot hatch, however, the GTE is unexciting, unrewarding and possessed of a benign chassis that collapses into understeer rather early – almost every component in the drivetrain is located ahead of the front axle line, after all.

How does it compare?

On paper it’s a deeply compelling package, but the reality is that the parsimonious fuel economy figures can only be repeated in quite particular circumstances, and in dynamic and performance terms it’s simply not in the same league as its stablemates, the Golf GTI and GTD.

It is, however, the only plug-in hybrid at this price point that holds driving enjoyment in any regard, which puts the GTE at the very top of a class of one. A Prius Plug-In is nothing like as entertaining, and Volvo’s V60 Plug-In Hybrid is more expensive and less dynamic.

Perhaps closest in spirit is the BMW i3 with the optional range-extender engine. It’s similarly priced – £33,830 before the government’s £5,000 plug-in car grant – and has similar performance with a 7.9sec sprint to the legal limit. It’s more technologically (and stylistically) interesting than the Golf, but the tall body and skinny tyres result in very different dynamics to the more conventional Volkswagen.

Anything else I need to know?

The headline 188mpg figure was achieved on the official New European Driving Cycle (NEDC) test for plug-in hybrid cars. The test is structured so that for two-thirds of its duration the subject is run in electric mode, then in hybrid mode for the remaining third of the test.

That means, then, that the Golf GTE’s petrol engine was only running for one third of the test. By extension, the owner will only replicate that 188mpg figure by running in electric mode for two-thirds of his or her overall mileage. In short, the Golf GTE will only deliver on its grand promises if the owner can plug in regularly and tends only to cover relatively short distances.

Source: Evo