Volkswagen Golf GTI drive-away pricing announced

The Volkswagen Golf GTI is now priced at $47,990 drive-away, at least until March 31 when pricing is expected to revert to $45,490 plus on-road costs.

Until now Volkswagen Australia has been unable to offer drive-away pricing for the more powerful 180kW/370Nm 2.0-litre turbo-powered MY19 Golf GTI because of low supply.

However, following the release of the more expensive MY19 Volkswagen GTI in Australia last October -- fitted as standard with five doors and an automatic transmission -- the factory in Germany has caught up with demand.

"For the first time since this GTI variant was introduced late last year, we will be in a position to meet demand," said Volkswagen Australia's general manager of passenger vehicle sales, Ben Wilks.

Drive-away pricing is becoming increasingly common with many top-selling car brands' model lines and provides consumers with more transparency by including dealer delivery and statutory on-road costs.

Three-door and manual versions are no longer available, but apart from five doors and a seven-speed dual-clutch DSG transmission, standard features for the 2019 Volkswagen Golf GTI include an 8.0-inch infotainment system with sat-nav, a digital instrument cluster or active info display in VW-speak and adaptive radar cruise control and adaptive suspension.

As well as being able to park itself it features a reversing camera, keyless entry/start, a leather steering wheel, 'Clark' sport cloth upholstery and power folding wing mirrors.

The popular German hot hatch comes with loads of advanced safety technology, such as autonomous emergency braking with pedestrian detection, adaptive cruise control, adaptive lane guidance, traffic jam assist, rear traffic alert, blind spot monitoring and LED headlights with light assist.

Performance features such as 18-inch alloy wheels, a front diff lock and the usual GTI body kit are coupled with an upgraded braking package from the Golf R.

"The inclusion of this much standard equipment – items that were inevitably optioned by customers – coupled with the newly enhanced drivetrain, make this in fact the best value GTI since the Mk7 was introduced in 2013."

The 2019 Volkswagen Golf GTI now only comes in one variant, the five-door body style fitted with an automatic transmission. See below for the options list. It has a growing list of rivals too, including the Hyundai i30 N.

Like the rest of the Volkswagen passenger vehicle range the Golf GTI has a five-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty with one-year roadside assist. Capped-price service package are also offered for the Golf GTI.

Sales of the Volkswagen Golf were very strong in 2018, with a 12-month tally of 19,076, seeing the car sneak into the top 10 selling cars of 2018.

Sound & Style package -- $2,300
(19-inch Brescia alloy wheels, 9.2-inch infotainment screen, gesture control, voice control and Dynaudio Excite 400W premium audio system)

Luxury package -- $3,900
(Vienna leather upholstery, heated front seats, electrically adjustable driver's seat with memory function, exterior mirrors with memory function, panoramic electric glass sunroof)