Its pretty hard to conceive now but the Volkswagen Golf was the successor to the Beetle which had until the mid 70’s been around since Hitler was in power and the the vehicle where most have ever been made. Compared to the rounded Beetle the Golf went to the opposite of flat and square shaped body that suited the 70’s at the time. At the time there must have been many sitting in Germany worried about this new successor replacing the most popular car ever, but we now know well into the 21st century, what a success the Golf has been over these 35 plus years.
Although radically different in shape, handling and comfort to the Beetle, the VW Golf did keep an important ingredient to German design and manufacturing and that was its quality of build. This is something still associated with the modern day VW Golf, now made will many models, from petrol to diesel to eco engines as well as the very popular GTi. Volkswagen as so proud of their reputation to quality they even insist on their TV ads that people are buying cars because they are like the Golf, so now buy a real one, so goes the message. Retention of value also keeps the Golf near the top of the favourite list of medium sized hatchbacks, as the higher asking price is often a good investment as used prices hold well compared to certain other manufacturers
The latest generation of the VW is in everyway different to the original, except you still know what it is. Surprisingly though there are older models that many people love and so are well on demand, especially certain GTi hatchbacks from the early 80s. Parts for the Golf are readily available and are shared with many other VAG vehicles, within the group including Seat, Audi and Skoda.
Comments Off