{"id":23032,"date":"2011-10-26T09:43:32","date_gmt":"2011-10-26T08:43:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.influx.co.uk\/wordpress\/?p=23032"},"modified":"2022-06-22T17:49:22","modified_gmt":"2022-06-22T16:49:22","slug":"modern-classic-the-golf-gti","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/","title":{"rendered":"Modern Classic: The Golf GTi"},"content":{"rendered":"

Images: VW_Press<\/em><\/p>\n

It is easy to forget just how this little car changed the car world. When it emerged most stuff was rear wheel drive and badly made with overhangs.<\/p>\n

I suppose the GTi really has significance for me because the year it finally arrived in UK spec (right hand drive) was the year I was entered this world. 1979.<\/p>\n

Little did anyone realise that thirty-odd years later, that humble little boxy Giugiaro design would have such a worldwide wealth of disciples.<\/p>\n

Volkswagen\u2019s Golf was not the first hatchbacked car on sale but, when a bunch of VW engineers set out to make a warmed-over version as an after-hours backroom project, the result rebooted the hard drive of every car manufacturer in the industry.<\/p>\n

And to think it nearly didn\u2019t happen.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n

Drive to work now and the subtly tasty hatchback car is a pre-requisite of daily traffic. It is almost certainly the favourite genre of car in the UK, and you don\u2019t need to look far to see why.<\/p>\n

The Golf GTI functions as a jack and master of all trades; a venerable family chariot, a sports car and one that feels special, not to mention affordable. A leading motoring journalist once described the mk1 GTi as \u2018the sports cars you didn\u2019t have to suffer to own.\u2019<\/p>\n

Prior to the Golf GTi\u2019s birth, to reach its calibre of performance you\u2019d need to drive a cramped coupe or a bulky saloon. The GTi didn\u2019t have the temperamental traits of highly-strung Italian machinery, the hit-and-miss quality of British cars or the kitsch of many \u201870s Japanese try-hards.<\/p>\n

It killed the kudos of Ford\u2019s Capri and Opel\u2019s Manta in one fell swoop. I know, because as a kid in the mid-eighties I watched how the Golf headed the crusade for credible front-drive frolics.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n

The hatchback package ticked off practicality, the Golf was ample sized and lightweight, exceptional build quality and with one of the tautest, sweetest chassis tasted to date.<\/p>\n

Fitted with an eager fuel injected front-drive four-pot engine the thing just inhaled meandering B-roads and returned decent motorway comfort, together with real-world mpg. You could cruise it, you could gun it, and you could do the school run without it missing a beat or costing a fortune to keep alive.<\/p>\n

And, like a decent Sunday Roast, it\u2019s this 35-year old automotive recipe that just keeps delivering satisfaction and credibility.<\/p>\n

The GTi Golf kindled the car classlessness of its era. Bankers, race drivers, career mums and anyone in between fell for its modestly displayed sportiness. Who needed a weekend sports car when you could drive a GTi 24\/7?<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n

A lot of cars go down in history for their compromises, but the Golf GTi bucks that trend completely. We love it precisely because it doesn\u2019t compromise a damned thing. Never would you see a Golf GTi classified saying \u2018baby forces sale\u2019.<\/p>\n

There were many who thought the Beetle\u2019s mass appeal and legendary status could never be bettered, but the GTi disproves them instantly and follows in its cult footsteps.<\/p>\n

Of course, even champions have wobbly moments. The GTi\u2019s thoroughbred DNA has been diluted a few times, with the lowest point for me being 1992. The mk3 was a bit chubby and, well, not very good, in my opinion.<\/p>\n

The MK3 was launched with a 2.0-litre boat anchor that was a mere five horsepower more than the \u201870s original, and managed to be no faster in the sprint to 60mph than a 1.3 Toyota Corolla. Bad times.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n

VW had turned the GTi into a Vegas Elvis with all the luxury and glitz, together with a good portion of pie-loving and bronchial wheeze. And just like Elvis records, it kept selling.<\/p>\n

The Mk3 did bring the VR6 though \u2013 the beginnings of the Golf\u2019s relationship with a six-cylinder engine. It sounded great, but it felt too middle-aged tracksuit to be a GTi. It fogged up the original GTi philosophy.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve never really found love with the R32s either, but that\u2019s just me. Once immersed into the forum-filled world of GTis you realise this is a religion divided by the six marks and 35 years of evolution.<\/p>\n

You\u2019re either a mk2 3-door man or an R32 lover; a G60 worshipper or a Belgian look Mk4 follower. In addition to the Golf\u2019s multitasking talent of refinement with hooliganism-available-on-tap mentality, it happens to take rather well to modifying.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n

I’ve had a few GTis and have utmost respect for the genre foundation layer. Sometimes the original gets buried amongst the flood of copycats, but VW has always seemed to keep re-inventing their star pupil. Besides the obvious mk1 (how futuristic must this have looked in 1976?), for me it\u2019s the mk2 and mk5.<\/p>\n

The mk2 for its sheer longevity and fact it has aged as well as Jane Seymour. And the mk5 for its exquisite combination of retro tartan and logoed lights.<\/p>\n

Long may the icon shine on.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Jonny Smith on the hatching of hot…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1779,6],"tags":[851,1128,2033,722,1038,767,278],"class_list":["post-23032","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-cars","category-features","tag-german","tag-german-cars","tag-giugiaro","tag-golf","tag-gti","tag-volkswagen","tag-vw","manufacturers-vw-2"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nModern Classic: The Golf GTi | Influx Magazine<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Influx hails the GTi as a modern classic.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Modern Classic: The Golf GTi | Influx Magazine\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Influx hails the GTi as a modern classic.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Influx Magazine\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2011-10-26T08:43:32+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-06-22T16:49:22+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/MK_2_3-1-of-1.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Influx\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@influxmag\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@influxmag\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Influx\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Estimated reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Influx\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/#\/schema\/person\/bd1d7849cc02132a2eef1e6a832bff63\"},\"headline\":\"Modern Classic: The Golf GTi\",\"datePublished\":\"2011-10-26T08:43:32+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-06-22T16:49:22+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/\"},\"wordCount\":837,\"commentCount\":6,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/MK_2_3-1-of-1.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"german\",\"german cars\",\"Giugiaro\",\"Golf\",\"GTi\",\"volkswagen\",\"VW\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Cars\",\"Features\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/\",\"name\":\"Modern Classic: The Golf GTi | Influx Magazine\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/MK_2_3-1-of-1.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2011-10-26T08:43:32+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-06-22T16:49:22+00:00\",\"description\":\"Influx hails the GTi as a modern classic.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/MK_2_3-1-of-1.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/MK_2_3-1-of-1.jpg\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Modern Classic: The Golf GTi\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/\",\"name\":\"Influx Magazine\",\"description\":\"Cars, Bikes, People, Culture\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Influx Magazine\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/cdn-influx-wp.adrianflux.co.uk\/uploads\/2016\/06\/influx-logo.gif\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/cdn-influx-wp.adrianflux.co.uk\/uploads\/2016\/06\/influx-logo.gif\",\"width\":300,\"height\":60,\"caption\":\"Influx Magazine\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/x.com\/influxmag\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/#\/schema\/person\/bd1d7849cc02132a2eef1e6a832bff63\",\"name\":\"Influx\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/aca34c7dcf62c4a37ad59c4be80c5b75?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/aca34c7dcf62c4a37ad59c4be80c5b75?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Influx\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Modern Classic: The Golf GTi | Influx Magazine","description":"Influx hails the GTi as a modern classic.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/","og_locale":"en_GB","og_type":"article","og_title":"Modern Classic: The Golf GTi | Influx Magazine","og_description":"Influx hails the GTi as a modern classic.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/","og_site_name":"Influx Magazine","article_published_time":"2011-10-26T08:43:32+00:00","article_modified_time":"2022-06-22T16:49:22+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/MK_2_3-1-of-1.jpg","type":"","width":"","height":""}],"author":"Influx","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@influxmag","twitter_site":"@influxmag","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Influx","Estimated reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/"},"author":{"name":"Influx","@id":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/#\/schema\/person\/bd1d7849cc02132a2eef1e6a832bff63"},"headline":"Modern Classic: The Golf GTi","datePublished":"2011-10-26T08:43:32+00:00","dateModified":"2022-06-22T16:49:22+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/"},"wordCount":837,"commentCount":6,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/MK_2_3-1-of-1.jpg","keywords":["german","german cars","Giugiaro","Golf","GTi","volkswagen","VW"],"articleSection":["Cars","Features"],"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/","url":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/","name":"Modern Classic: The Golf GTi | Influx Magazine","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/MK_2_3-1-of-1.jpg","datePublished":"2011-10-26T08:43:32+00:00","dateModified":"2022-06-22T16:49:22+00:00","description":"Influx hails the GTi as a modern classic.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/MK_2_3-1-of-1.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/MK_2_3-1-of-1.jpg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/modern-classic-the-golf-gti\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Modern Classic: The Golf GTi"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/","name":"Influx Magazine","description":"Cars, Bikes, People, Culture","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-GB"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/#organization","name":"Influx Magazine","url":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/cdn-influx-wp.adrianflux.co.uk\/uploads\/2016\/06\/influx-logo.gif","contentUrl":"https:\/\/cdn-influx-wp.adrianflux.co.uk\/uploads\/2016\/06\/influx-logo.gif","width":300,"height":60,"caption":"Influx Magazine"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/x.com\/influxmag"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/#\/schema\/person\/bd1d7849cc02132a2eef1e6a832bff63","name":"Influx","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/aca34c7dcf62c4a37ad59c4be80c5b75?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/aca34c7dcf62c4a37ad59c4be80c5b75?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Influx"}}]}},"Feature Image":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/GTi_FI-1-of-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23032","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23032"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23032\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":36500,"href":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23032\/revisions\/36500"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23032"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23032"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23032"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}