Eco emphasis for VW Golf

Volkswagen has upped the ante on economy and emissions with the announcement of a new, ultra-thrifty 1.6-litre turbodiesel engine for the Golf 6 that can be ordered by UK customers for delivery in October this year.

The new Golfs swing the focus onto Volkswagen’s development of cleaner, more frugal engines using existing technology.

The four-cylinder common rail turbodiesel comes in two basic forms: a 67kW five-speed manual transmission version producing 230Nm, and a 78kW version with 250Nm and the choice of five-speed manual or seven-speed DSG transmission.

S Golf customers in the UK can choose between 67kW or 78kW engines, while the SE comes with the 78kW version only. Three or five-door variants of all models will be available.

A manual-only, SE-based BlueMotion variant using the more powerful engine will also be on offer. It will employ drivetrain and aero modifications to produce better fuel and emissions figures than regular models using the new engine.

While Golfs equipped with the 1.6-litre TDI engine return impressive enough economy and emissions figures (4.5L/100km and 118g/km for the 67kW engine, 4.5L/100km and 119g/km for the manual-transmission and 4.7L/100km and 123g/km for the DSG 78kW engine), the BlueMotion version uses things like stop-start technology, regenerative braking, revised transmission ratios, low rolling-resistance tyres and aero aids including relocated cooling ducts and a 15mm-lower ride height to achieve 4.1L/100km and 107g/km.

VW says the BlueMotion Golf will be capable of travelling close to 1300 kilometers on a tank of diesel.

An even cleaner BlueMotion version based on the entry S model and capable of returning a fuel average of 3.7L/100km along with a sub 100g/km CO2 output of 99g/km, will be introduced in the UK later in the year.

Naturally the performance of the eco Golfs stays clear of any hot-hatch connotations, although the relatively strong torque figures and the rpm at which they are developed indicates decent accelerator response out on the road.

Zero to 100km/h figures of 12.9 seconds and 11.3 seconds for the 67kW and 78kW engines (including BlueMotion) respectively indicate where the emphasis lies. The DSG 78kW version is a tad quicker with a quoted zero to 100km/h figure of 11.2 seconds.

Australia has not yet been confirmed as a recipient of the new engines although, given the fact the eco models are built in right-hand drive form for the UK, it is certainly on the radar.

Volkswagen Group Australia General Manager for press and PR Karl Gehling said the local arm of the organisation is quite keen to get the new eco line of Golfs, but still has some way to go before making any decision.

"We are only investigating at present and have a bit of work to do before we can make any statement," he said.

The low-impact Golf models would be a timely addition to the Australian fleet, where eco cars are gaining a small but noticeable foothold.

Gehling said that, compared with more complex eco cars such as hybrids, the BlueMotion Golf is a lot less complicated and, in the end, easier to live with while still returning impressively low emission and fuel consumption figures.

"The good thing about the BlueMotion Golf is that it has the traditional Golf practicality -- passenger space and luggage capacity - and that it uses existing technology" he said.

Given that the new diesel Golfs are not due for delivery in the UK until September, it could be assumed that, if they did get the green light for Australia they would not arrive until early 2010 at best.

Presumably the Golf naming conventions in Australia would reflect the current range that embraces Trendline and Comfortline versions.

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