Volkswagen made significant improvements to the GTI for the 2010 model year, but they are not what you would expect. Along with some body work, the car gets a new steering system and a cabin tech upgrade.
Wayne Cunningham
Wayne Cunningham reviews cars and writes about automotive technology for CNET's Roadshow. Prior to the automotive beat, he covered spyware, Web building technologies, and computer hardware. He began covering technology and the Web in 1994 as an editor of The Net magazine.
Volkswagen's hot hatch, the GTI, is a tuned up version of the Golf. For 2010, Volkswagen improved the handling, gave it new bodywork, and upgraded the cabin tech, but left the drivetrain alone.
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New exterior styling gives the Volkswagen GTI a wider look from the front. In fact, this new design language will find its way to other Volkswagen models.
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The turbocharged 2-liter four-cylinder engine in the GTI makes 200 horsepower and 207 pound-feet of torque. There is some turbo lag, but it is quickly overpowered.
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Volkswagen smoothed out the sides of the GTI, and offers it in coupe and sedan form.
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The brakes aren't branded, but they are beefier than what you would find on a typical Volkswagen model.
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Antiroll bars help control body lean, while an electronic limited slip differential keeps the front wheels gripping in the corners.
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Volkswagen offers an Autobahn package for the GTI, which brings in leather seats. The metal sport pedals are standard.
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The steering wheel has a flat bottom and a metal GTI badge in the bottom spoke.
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This car is equipped with the DSG, an automated manual transmission that shifts very quickly. A six-speed manual transmission is also available.
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The navigation system's maps are stored on a hard drive. There are four map views to choose from: 2D, 3D, topographic, and traffic.
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In a trick taken from Audi, the instrument cluster display shows navigation and audio information.
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The car's navigation hard drive has 20 gigabytes of storage reserved for music. You can copy MP3 files from CDs and SD cards.
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The optional Dynaudio audio system includes a 300-watt amp, and should produce strong, clear sound.
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The disc player also reads DVDs, showing movies on the car's LCD when it is parked.
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Even if the navigation system isn't present, the GTI still gets an LCD touch screen for controlling the audio system.
