Volkswagen Golf 110TSI R-Line 2024 Review

Sitting atop the ‘regular’ Golf range, the 2024 Volkswagen Golf 110TSI R-Line is priced from $42,290 plus on-road costs, in a line-up that stretches from just over $39K at entry level to a whopping $70,000 by the time you reach the top-tier Golf R hot hatch.

Oh, and we can’t forget about the special-edition Golf R 20 Years, topping the lot at an eye-watering $77,490 plus ORCs.

But the word ‘regular’ doesn’t seem quite fitting when you take a closer look at the R-Line, which feels anything but.

Within 12 hours of jumping into this good-looking hatch, I was asked by two devout car enthusiasts with (well) above-average knowledge whether the Golf I was driving was an ‘R’ or an ‘R-Line’… such is the deceptive exterior styling and badging of this little hatch.

It looks like a premium, sporty, high-spec hatchback, and has a price tag to match, particularly when optioned up like our review car, which comes in at $44,890 plus ORCs with its metallic Atlantic Blue paint job (+$700) and Sound & Vision Package (+$1900), the latter adding a premium Harman Kardon sound system and head-up display.

Standard equipment includes 18-inch alloy wheels, sports suspension (lowered by 15mm), a full suite of IQ.DRIVE safety gear, tri-zone climate control, LED headlights and fog lights with cornering function, 30-colour ambient interior lighting, VW’s Digital Cockpit Pro, a 10.0-inch central touch-screen and Sport front seats wrapped in cloth/microfleece upholstery.

Driving profile selection brings a range of drive modes – Eco, Comfort, Sport and Individual – to increase steering weight and improve throttle response.

Under the bonnet of the 110TSI R-Line is a 110kW/250Nm 1.4-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine, mated to an eight-speed torque-converter automatic that sends power exclusively to the front wheels.

VW backs the Golf with a five-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty, with servicing due every 12 months or 15,000km. If you pre-pay for a three- or five-year service package, it’ll cost $1100 or $1900 respectively.

Hop into the cabin of the 2024 Volkswagen Golf 110TSI R-Line and it’s every bit as impressive as its price tag would suggest.

The modern cabin feels top-notch yet minimalist, with soft-touch finishes, GTI-inspired tartan fabric seats, and a steering wheel clad with touch-capacitive buttons.

Many reviewers have complained about the placement of those touch-sensitive steering wheel buttons and how easy they are to accidentally brush – and bump settings like the heated steering wheel – while driving, but I don’t have that issue and although the physical buttons in more affordable Golf variants are just fine, I think these piano black ones look much more sleek.

The steering wheel-mounted shift paddles, on the other hand, are comically small. I’d much rather some larger flappy paddles to make shifting feel more ‘Fast and Furious’ and less gimmicky.

That’s because the Golf R-Line feels anything but a gimmick behind the wheel.

It mightn’t sound like much on paper, but that 1.4-litre turbo-petrol is impressively capable. That is, once you give it a prod.

It doesn’t feel vicious off the line – for reference, 0-100km/h is claimed to take 8.5 seconds – but up the pace with some more enthusiastic driving and it feels much more athletic.

Torque is aplenty and the addition of a (much more seamless) torque-converter automatic instead of the previous Golf’s clunky dual-clutch, which the GTI still uses, is most welcome.

Get past a momentary pause of turbo lag and that little four-cylinder just hums along effortlessly, producing little noise.

It’s also surprisingly efficient, on test achieving an average of 6.3 litres per 100km, just a little over VW’s 5.8L/100km claim.

The Golf’s dynamics just make it even more enjoyable from the driver’s seat. The suspension is firm even in ‘Comfort’ mode, but without being too stiff, and even the R-Line’s low-profile rubber does a good job of suppressing lumps and bumps in the road.

Sharper hits tend to result in feedback through the steering wheel, and while the brake pedal could do with a touchier, more meaty feel to make it a more convincing ‘sports’ model, the stoppers do the job just fine.

Tip it into a corner and the nimble little Golf is flat and glued to the road. Same for sharp changes in direction, where it’s charmingly agile and quick to respond.

It might be a well-equipped and spacious hatchback, but one thing most can agree on when it comes to the 2024 Volkswagen Golf 110TSI R-Line is that the new Discover Pro infotainment system in the Mk8 range can be difficult to live with.

It’s almost like VW took one step forward and one step back with the Mk8 Golf because the (less-advanced) touch-screen in the previous-gen Golf was more user-friendly.

In this application, it can be slow and clunky, take too long to load a menu, and sometimes it’ll just freeze altogether.

Similarly, the automatic engine idle-stop is a feature promptly switched off at the start of every drive. People with more patience might be able to live with its sluggish restart, but those wanting instant acceleration off the line will probably be left frustrated.

It’s not a Golf R. And while that may be clear from a performance and pricing point of view, it’s not as obvious from the exterior.

While it’s not necessarily a negative – heck, some would even give its deceptively sporty styling props – there’s a distinct air of disappointment when you explain to someone that the little ‘R’ affixed to the grille (exactly like the Golf R) is for ‘R-Line’.

If the 2024 Volkswagen Golf 110TSI R-Line is as far as your (warm) hatchback budget will stretch, we doubt you’ll be disappointed.

It feels premium, is fantastic to drive and comes very well-equipped, for a bit over $40,000.

2024 Volkswagen Golf 110TSI R-Line at a glance:
Price: $42,290 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Now
Engine: 1.4-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol
Output: 110kW/250Nm
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Fuel: 5.8L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 132g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety rating: Five-star (ANCAP 2019)