Volkswagen had already initiated this transition shortly before with the Scirocco and Passat. With the Golf, the highest-volume class now also used this new technology. Volkswagen reinvents itself. As the successor to the legendary Beetle that had been produced more than 21.5 million times, the Golf developed by Giorgio Giugiaro and Volkswagen Design had to live up to high expectations in order to continue the success story of the most successful car of all time up to that point. And it did so in every way: customers were so impressed by the modern drive concept, variable interior and new design that the Golf had already hit the one million mark by October 1976. The Golf principle. In 1974, Volkswagen wrote the following about the new vehicle with its large tailgate: “The Golf offers maximum space and safety. It is uncompromisingly geared towards practicality. The low beltline gives drivers a clear overview, and the sloping bonnet ensures that the road right in front of the vehicle is visible. The rear window extends well down, making reversing much easier.” And this all still applies up to the present day for every Golf ever built. The Golf and the factory. From the very beginning, the Volkswagen plant in Wolfsburg and its employees also benefited from the successful start of the Golf I. To date, more than 20 million Golfs have been built in Wolfsburg alone. The 17 million Golfs built so far outside Wolfsburg have been produced in other German plants as well as in Belgium, Brazil, China, Malaysia, Mexico, Slovakia and South Africa. In this sense too, the Golf is a world car. However, its technologies have always been typical examples of progressive German engineering.
Golf I – A reflection of progress. Just like all following Golf generations, the first generation was also a reflection of the technical state-of-the-art and current automotive trends.