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AUTO REVIEW
VW Golf TDI
worthy of all its accolades
By Steve Schutz, MD
The 2015 Volkswagen Golf, the seventh United States, though, the Golf lags behind 2014, followed by the standard two- and
generation of that familiar car, is remarkably its more popular showroom sibling, the Jetta. four-door hatchbacks with their numerous
unassuming for a vehicle that’s won so many With the newest Golf, Volkswagen clearly in- conventional drivetrains, including the TDI
prestigious awards. North American car of tends to increase Golf sales, first by making diesels. Now we have a hybrid Golf, and soon
the year, Motor Trend Car of the Year, Car a very good car (check), and then by flooding the Jetta Sportwagen, which currently sits on
and Driver Ten Best, you get the idea. And the American market with more variations of the previous Golf platform, will be replaced
yet the new Golf doesn’t turn any heads the Golf than we’ve ever seen before (they’re by the more logically named Golf Sportwa-
when you drive it around. getting there). gen. True Volkswagen enthusiasts will get the
Golf R, an AWD performance car for drivers
I suspect that’s fine with the decision-mak- SEVERAL VARIATIONS who think the GTI is too tame, and certain
ers at Volkswagen who care about sales more We’ll get to that first bit in a second, but markets — I’m guessing not to include San
than awards or looks from pedestrians, and Antonio — will get the all-electric eGolf.
the Golf certainly sells. At least it does inter- the Golf variations that are coming soon are
nationally, where the Golf is a perennial best- worth discussing. The first Mk7 Golf sold Despite utilizing an all-new modular plat-
seller in countless countries. Here in the here was the GTI which launched in early form called MQB that’s engineered to under-
44 San Antonio Medicine • July 2015
