Yahoo Autos 16 thoughts about the 2024 Volkswagen Golf R
The Volkswagen Golf R should’ve been a new car I was giddily waiting for the second it was available for testing. Both it and the GTI have long been on the short list of the cars I’d actually buy, even with price as no issue. I’m not alone around here. “You should buy a GTI” was basically a running joke during the Autoblog Podcast’s “Spend my Money” segment. But then something happened with the latest-generation Golf R and GTI: The interior became infuriating.
While most of the rightly deserved vitriol for Volkswagen’s new interior layout/controls/concept was directed at the ID.4 that got it first, the GTI and Golf R got the same convoluted touchscreen interface and unlit slider controls replacing perfectly usable previous-generation screens and buttons. True, there are still rear window switches on the driver door, and the mirror knob markings don’t disappear in sunlight, so hey, totally better. This interior annoyed me so much in the ID.4 that I was uninterested in driving the Golf R and GTI because, quite frankly, it was going to make me angry. And then sad.
But then things got sadder when Volkswagen announced it would no longer offer the GTI and Golf R with a manual transmission come 2025. Well, now they’re just trying to piss me off. Fine, so if this is going to be the last hurrah, I’d better get a final test before it’s too late.
Here are my thoughts …
1. The touchscreen is still bad
It may not suffer from the same lagging as earlier versions, but it’s still bad. Here are my three main beefs … The multi-menu heated seat process with too small buttons. No permanently docked menu shortcut icons. The radio that doesn’t show your favorites list and song info at the same time.
I have other beefs, and I originally devoted 500 words to them, but you don’t want to read that. So moving on …
2. That said, the touch sliders are also still bad
It’s not just that they’re not illuminated, especially since VW is adding illumination for 2025, just as it did for the 2024 ID.4. You still won’t be able to see them often in the daytime because of glare off the piano black trim. There also still won’t be haptic feedback. And you’ll also still be likely to accidentally press one of them while resting your hand on the ledge they reside in while using the touchscreen. Other car companies literally put a ledge in the same place for this very purpose. They’re just smart enough not to put touch-sensitive controls on it.
3. And yeah, the touch buttons on the steering wheel are also still bad
The volume control is just awful. A slider is even worse on a steering wheel, and pressing it is just so imprecise. Thankfully, this nonsense will be swapped out for one with real buttons, much like the 2024 Atlas.
4. The digital instruments have three useless view choices
To be clear, I’m not against view/layout options for digital instruments. The more the merrier. I’m not even against these particular view/layout options. It’s just that three of them are missing a key element: a tachometer! Clearly, these were not designed with a manual transmission in mind. Which I guess won’t be a problem much longer. There is one with a big-old tach front-and-center, as well as a specific R gauge layout. That, however, has radio information just as prominently displayed as the bar-type tach and your speed is in, like, 14-point font down in the lower right-hand corner. I’m not sure it’s as performance-oriented as its designer intended.
5. Right, so this is skewing awfully negative …
… and I actually enjoyed my time with the Golf R. I eventually made peace with the touchscreen and I don’t think it would be a dealbreaker for me. That’s because there’s still so much that’s right about this car.
6. The adjustable suspension has 15 settings!
In cars that offer an adjustable suspension and a custom/individual drive mode, it’s commonplace to make everything Sport except for the suspension, which goes to Comfort or maybe Normal. This is for two possible reasons. First, the car’s Normal or Comfort settings for steering, throttle and transmission are numb, lazy slop I don’t want to deal with, but also don’t want some firm Sport ride while driving around town. Second, the Sport suspension setting is too firm for mountain roads with imperfect pavement, where mid-corner bumps can upset the chassis. More suspension compliance is good in this scenario.
The Golf R has a Custom setting to go with Comfort, Sport, Race, Drift and Nurburgring. Let’s just put those last two aside. Interestingly, the car actually defaults to Sport, which is commendable, and different than the norm. To be clear, I’m totally OK with this and the Sport setting in general. Definitely not slop. But! Take a look at all those DCC adjustments, aka DCC, aka adjustable dampers. Not only can I select the Comfort suspension with everything else being in Sport, I can go three clicks below Comfort!
I did just that during a three-hour drive down to San Diego (and back), thoroughly enjoying this unique combination of sharp throttle response, spot-on steering and a ride that subtly wafted over bigger bumps. Fantastic! Plus, since the car has a manual, I didn’t have to worry about the Sport Drivetrain setting blocking out top gear and hampering fuel economy.
