A world bestseller celebrates its 50th birthday – Volkswagen started production of the first Golf on 29 March 1974
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. And that was not just true of the ingenious use of space for the time and the vehicle’s front-wheel drive.With the first Golf GTI (1976), Volkswagen initiated the dynamic development of the compact class. The Golf D (1976) and the later Golf GTD (1982) ensured the breakthrough of diesel in the compact segment.
World premiere to mark the 50th anniversary: the new Golf is more attractive, intelligent and efficient than ever before
The Golf is celebrating its 50th birthday this year – and Volkswagen is launching an enhanced version of its bestseller to mark the anniversary. Customers will be able to order the new model in just a few weeks. The new Golf impresses with a next-generation infotainment system, a more intuitive operating concept, a sharper front and rear end design as well as efficient drive systems. These include plug-in hybrid drives with an increased all-electric range of about 100 kilometres. In addition, an illuminated Volkswagen logo adorns the front for the first time on a Golf.
“GTX has the potential to be synonymous with sporty e-mobility”
From GTI to GTX
With the Golf GTI, Volkswagen launched a sports car for everyone in 1976 – and, in doing so, had its finger on the pulse of the times. With more than two million cars sold across eight generations, the Golf GTI is now one of the most successful compact sports cars in the world.
The latest generation of the Golf GTI arrived in 2020: digital, connected, sharper, and easier to drive than ever. A connected driving dynamics manager provides for even better performance.
The successful sports car has long since received support from the Golf GTD. Sporting a powerful 2.0 TDI engine, the latest generation of the endurance sports car is more powerful, economic and lower in emissions than ever before. A turbo diesel version first enhanced the GTI concept back in 1982.
With the Golf GTE, a hybrid drive combines electric sustainability with great dynamism. Thanks to additional electric power, the latest model – presented in 2020 – is capable of the same level of performance as the Golf GTI. The first Golf GTE enjoyed its premiere back in 2014.
The ID.4 GTX is the new top model in the fully electric ID.4 range.
Volkswagen Brand | Annual Media Conference 2021 | Speech by CEO Ralf Brandstätter
There was particularly high demand for the Tiguan and, of course, the new Golf. Following the gradual launch of our emotional and high-margin derivatives in the second half of the year, our Golf family is now complete with the GTI, GTE, GTD, Variant, Alltrack, Clubsport and our absolute performance model, the Golf R. Golf GTI fuel consumption in l/100 km: urban 9.0-8.6 / extra-urban 5.6-5.3 / combined 6.9-6.5; CO2-emissions combined in g/km: 157-149; efficiency class D-C Golf GTE fuel consumption in l/100 km: 1.5 (combined); power consumption in kWh/100 km: 11.4 (combined); CO₂-emissions in g/km: 34 (combined), efficiency class: A+ Golf GTD fuel consumption in l/100 km: urban 5.4 / extra-urban 3.9 / combined 4.4; CO2-emissions combined in g/km: 117; efficiency class A Golf Variant fuel consumption in l/100 km: urban 6.6-4.7 / extra-urban 4.6-3.2 / combined 5.3-3.9; CO2-emissions combined in g/km: 130-98; efficiency class B-A+ Golf Alltrack fuel consumption in l/100 km: urban 6.6-4.7 / extra-urban 4.6-3.2 / combined 5.3-3.9; CO2-emissions combined in g/km: 130-98; efficiency class B-A+ Golf Clubsport fuel consumption in l/100 km: urban 8.4 / extra-urban 5.6 / combined 6.6; CO2-emissions combined in g/km: 151; efficiency class C Golf R fuel consumption in l/100 km: urban 9.0 / extra-urban 5.9 / combined 7.0; CO2-emissions combined in g/km: 161; efficiency class D Once again in 2020 – and despite coronavirus and the ongoing market launch – the Golf was by far the best-selling model in Germany and Europe as a whole.
The Golf once again the favorite car of Germans and Europeans in 2020
The Golf is the “European champion” 2020: the top-selling car in Germany and Europe Significant increase in orders since the product range has been completed with eight derivatives – currently one in three Golfs is a hybridVolkswagen Passenger Cars CEO Ralf Brandstätter says: “In 2020 the Golf is still exactly where it belongs”
It’s full speed ahead for the icon of the Volkswagen Passenger Cars brand, the Golf, since all eight derivatives were made available in the fall of 2020. Last year it was once again the top-selling car in Europe with around 312,000 deliveries The Wolfsburg figurehead was once again the top-selling car in Germany last year, too, with around 133,900 deliveries to customers. “In 2020 the Golf is still exactly where it belongs,” says Ralf Brandstätter, CEO of Volkswagen Passenger Cars.
“With the Golf 8 we are seamlessly continuing the success story of its previous generations. The car is continuing to set technical standards in many dimensions,” said Brandstätter. “After the outbreak of the coronavirus in spring interrupted the market launch that had just started, the Golf had a lot of catching up to do in the second half of the year. In particular, the availability of all of the important model derivatives, such as the GTI, GTD und GTE, gave the Golf a second wind in the third quarter,” Brandstätter continued. The high demand for hybrid models also contributed to this success.
The new Golf GTD
The new Golf GTD
Bernd Schröder
Philipp Dörfler
360° Wolfsburg - November 2020
Köhler is a die-hard motorhead and his first car was a Golf I LX. Transformation, new software architecture, and now the coronavirus crisis. How do you, as a historian, view the situation of the eighth Golf generation? No two crises are the same, of course. As historians, we’re not prophets who can reliably predict the future. Rather, our job is to research and compare historic constellations. And on that point I have to say, the Golf is good at transformation. What do you mean exactly? The Golf is a child of the great transformation of 1974. The company had held on to the Beetle for far too long. With the Passat, Scirocco, Golf, and Polo, it was then possible to finally provide cars for all tastes and budgets in various segments. And the Golf? As the successor to the Beetle, the Golf represented the core of the new product strategy. The success of the model has been put down to the company’s courage in breaking with conventions. The Golf’s design was incredibly striking and angular. The outdated rear engine was moved to the front and water cooling replaced air cooling. And ultimately, Volkswagen was also a little lucky that their products really resonated with the spirit of the time. Was the Golf the car of the middle-ground in the late 1970s? Yes, that’s exactly where the Golf was positioned. A complete all-rounder that met every user expectation all the way up to the sporty GTI version – an all-in-one machine guaranteed to fulfil the requirements. The Golf segment has hardly lost any of its reference function. Through market research we know that lifestyle and social milieu have become increasingly important since the 1980s: “Tell me who you are – and I’ll tell you what you drive,” so to speak. Only that with the Golf class, the buyers are spread across all social strata and milieus. Once a Golf, always a Golf? The compact car seems to inspire great loyalty. Golf owners often stick to the basic concept, but vary things when it comes to features and engines.
360° Wolfsburg - February 2020
Geneva Motor Show starts at the beginning of March—Golf GTI1 and Golf GTD will celebrate their world premiere Premiere in Geneva: the new Golf GTD1. The Volkswagen brand is celebrating two world premieres in Switzerland with its sporty derivatives of the new Golf: it is presenting both the GTI¹ and the GTD¹ to the public. Also making an appearance in Geneva is the new Golf GTE¹. The plugin hybrid has a battery with a 50 percent higher energy content at 13 kWh. This facilitates a longer electric range Show car: the ID. SPACE VIZZION 2. “I’m Rüdiger Reisert, a Volkswagen employee at Internal Communication in Wolfsburg. I live with my family in Berlin. Most days I get around fine by bus, train, or bicycle, which is why I don’t own my own car. But even in a major city, there are times of the day when it’s quicker to get around by car. That’s when WeShare is a great alternative. Even with a lot of luggage, I can take advantage of the comfort of Volkswagen’s own carsharing. But sometimes the reason why I use an e-Golf from WeShare is simply the driving pleasure.” “My name is Jens Wick, I live in Berlin, and I work for Volkswagen Group Retail in the capital. I’ve been using WeShare since the service came into existence. I use it almost every day to take my daughter to daycare and to go from there on to work. Thanks to WeShare, I save myself the stress of having a small child on overcrowded trains during rush hour. By the way, almost all vehicles have a child seat on board. What’s more, carsharing is cheaper than the parking fees in the city center. It’s quite simply convenient and enables me to be very flexible – I wouldn’t want to have to do without WeShare.” “My name is Andreas Reeg, I’m an architect, and I live with my wife and children in Berlin. We’ve been using WeShare for four months—mostly for work in order to get to appointments. After work, I usually use the carsharing service in the evenings if a car will be faster than a bicycle or public transport.