As the Mk8 Golf trundles slowly along into American showrooms, it’s reassuring to know that there will be some features designed to help drivers go fast. The company has taken a moment to outline exactly what kind of digital features will grace the displays of the Mk8 Golf R and GTI. Filled with a combination of two screens, a 10-inch center screen and a 10.25-inch digital instrument display behind the steering wheel, the Golfs will have much latitude for customization.
The feature that may excite Golf R fans the most is the horizontal rev counter that will top the display behind the steering wheel. This will be for the DSG model and will appear in “Special” mode and “Drift” mode. As with the light display on an F1 car’s steering wheel, as the revs mount the rev bar will fill giving you a clear indication of when the optimal shift point is. The same screen can also display boost pressure, gearbox temperature, torque, power, your G reading, torque distribution from the AWD system, and a lap timer in the Golf R. The more powerful Golf also features an R button that can either be touched lightly to open a drive mode menu or pressed firmly to put the car in Race mode.
Regardless of which Golf you choose, the car will feature a “View” button that will put the digital instrument cluster into a special configuration that features a large (circular) rev counter in the middle with two customizable gauges of your choosing on either side that can show things like boost pressure and power output. Volkswagen has decided to opt for slider bars throughout the car’s interior. With touch capacitive buttons on the steering wheel and on the center console, drivers will have to adjust the air temperature and the volume of the sound system with the sliders.
If that makes you angry, you can at least be comforted in the fact the R and GTI will have the perfect mood lighting to suit your emotional state thanks to customizable displays and ambient lighting that offers owners 30 color options. Volkswagen of America will only be offering the next-generation Golf GTI and the Golf R while the standard trims will take a bow for the 2022 model year. The cars that will go on sale are expected to do so late this year. Expected to start from under US$ 30,000, the new GTI will get a 2.0-liter turbo four pushing 241-hp to the front wheels, while the new Golf R will get a more powerful 315-hp turbo-four and an all wheel drive system with a drift mode.
