2006 Volkswagen Golf Comfortline review from Australia and New Zealand

A plethora of squeaks and rattles from new, including a high pitch squeak coming from the right-hand side rear door that could not be rectified by the dealer. Suggested we turn up the music volume when driving.

Heated mirror behaviour could not be explained by the dealer - driver's side mirror gets ever-so-slightly warm when heating is switched on, however passenger side gets too hot to touch. Dealer attempted to fix several times with no success, scratching the mirror in the process, which later had to be resprayed (under warranty). Problem still unresolved.

The Golf is still considered a very well built car, and it does not disappoint. The current car was made is South Africa and does suffer from a few problems as listed above, however these problems are generally outweighed by the brilliant engineering that went into the design of the Golf.

Everything about the car met and exceeded the expectations - the ride, which is firm yet not uncomfortable, the handling, which is facilitated by an electric power steering that adjusts the force on the steering wheel depending on the speed of the car, and a large number of little pleasant gadgets such as rain sensors, automatic head-lights, all four auto-function electric windows, semi-automatic air-conditioning, etc.

The cabin is much roomier than one would anticipate and can comfortably accommodate 4 adults and a child.

The high safety rating proves this car to be a great alternative to standard heavy Australian family sedans with unnecessarily large engines and lack of refinement.