Road test: Volkswagen Golf 2010 Bluemotion
Written By Lee Sibbald Published On: Jul 28 2010The Golf Bluemotion is powered by a 1.6-litre TDI pumpe duse engine, which isn’t as sophisticated or refined as the newer common-rail units, but is still decent enough to use. Compared to the standard powerplant fitted to the base diesel-engined car in the Golf range, there are a number of special components fitted to make it more efficient, including a new crankshaft, cylinder head and oil pump, an alternator that contributes to the regenerative braking, plus a starter-generator that acts as the basis for an automatic stop-start function. The five-speed manual gearbox has also been tweaked to provide the best available economy: a fairly long fifth gear means that you’re only using about 2,000rpm at 70mph, so motorway cruising isn’t too noisy. However, even with all these modifications, don’t expect too much in the way of performance: a modest 104bhp and 185lb-ft of torque at 1,500rpm combine to allow a 0-62mph time of 11.3 seconds, which gives a pretty good indication as to its slightly sluggish pace. But as speed isn’t the point of a Bluemotion, most owners shouldn’t be too disappointed.
The good thing about an ‘eco’ Golf is that it’s still a Golf. As such, it still has the superb package of ride and handling that has made the German hatchback a market leader for so long. The handling is outstanding: the steering is perfectly weighted for a small family car, although it’s not quite as feelsome as its Focus rival; it’s agile and well balanced in bends; the high levels of grip means it adheres to the road; and the body is taut and controlled. This Bluemotion is unlikely to be chucked into corners in the same way a GTI is, but even if it is, it would remain composed and surefooted. The ride is slightly different from that of the standard Golf, thanks to a sports suspension that lowers the ride height and uses slightly stiffer dampers. However, it’s still perfectly compliant and sufficiently comfortable for most road surfaces, so any intrusive harshness is negligible.
Read the full Volkswagen Golf 2010 Bluemotion review
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