2001 Volkswagen Golf GTi review from Australia and New Zealand

Nothing.

This car is fantastic. In Australia there is only one choice for the GTI, 1.8T 5 door. This suits me fine although a V6 4motion might get the performance marks to 10/10. Although Golf 4motions are not available down under. Damn.

GTI features are pretty good compared to its competition. Recaro seats look and feel great. Blue dash lights are a hoot. Sunroof as a standard feature is welcome, if unexpected in this class.

Resale and build quality are very high. The fit and finish of the car is first class. The car just feels so safe and smooth. Have bettered the claimed top speed by 4km/h to achieve 220km/h and was concentrating too much to notice much else! However at a more sedate 160km/h, or 100mp/h, the car feels so quiet and smooth, and with cruise control it is well suited to highway driving.

Performance from a standing start could be better. However if that was all I wanted I would have bought a WRX like everybody else in Australia! Compared to a WRX the GTI is better built, has higher standards of safety, resale is slightly higher, about 75% cheaper to insure, and GTIs are far more unique.