Volkswagen Golf GTE 2020 review

Superbly refined in electric mode and determined in hybrid mode, but lacks the engagement and handling prowess of the latest Golf GTi This second-generation Golf GTE has a lot to live up to. The 2014 original set the standard for front-driven PHEV hatchbacks, running the same petrol-electric drivetrain as the Audi A3 e-tron but benefitting from a longer list of equipment and being priced much more agreeably.This new model continues down the same engineering path: it’s positioned as an eco-friendly alternative to the Golf GTI, with a turbocharged 1.4-litre four-cylinder petrol engine and gearbox-mounted electric motor working through a six-speed DSG gearbox. With a newly developed battery of 13.0kWh capacity compared to the 9.0kWh of the old car, it also offers an additional 7.5 miles of electric range – at 38.5 miles altogether.While that increase might not sound like much, Volkswagen says the real world driving range is significantly increased, owing to greater efficiency from the electric motor and brake energy regeneration system. Meanwhile the combustion engine, updated with new fuel injectors operating at a higher pressure than before, continues to deliver the same 148bhp. The electric motor, which adopts measures already brought to the larger motor found in the ID3, provides an additional 9bhp for 107bhp in total, together with 243lb ft of torque.Together, they deliver a combined 242bhp and 294lb ft, which is 41bhp and 37lb ft more than you’ll find in the new Golf eHybrid – a second plug-in hybrid model that, curiously, is not planned for sale in the UK.As before, the new lithium-ion battery sits beneath the rear seat, with the 40-litre fuel tank relocated to a position underneath the boot floor – a layout Volkswagen claims provides the Golf GTE with a more favourable front-to-rear weight distribution than the GTI. However, the battery contributes 135kg to the car’s 1624kg kerb weight, and altogether the GTE weighs some 176kg more than the GTI.Charging, which is now undertaken via a port in the car’s flank rather than its nose, is claimed to take 3hrs 40mins using a 3.6kW wallbox, or 5hrs on mains power.The modernity of the driveline is matched by the GTE’s so-called Innovision cockpit. It consists of a 10.3in digital instrument panel with unique blue hue graphics and a 10.0in central touchscreen display for the infotainment functions. There’s then an endearing simplicity to its overall operation that makes the Golf GTE easy to get along with.