Tag: VW

VW Ends North American Golf Production, Torch Carried Forward by Mk8 GTI and R

21 Jan 2021, 12:32 UTC ·
by

Aurel Niculescu

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Like many other automakers, Volkswagen is trying to follow the trends by moving further away from passenger cars in favor of crossovers and SUVs. A move that has been expected for a while, the dismissal of the standard Golf from localized North American production has now become official.
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The Golf nameplate has been a part of Volkswagen’s U.S. market lineup since the very beginning, with the original Golf first sold in America back in December 1974. Just a month after turning 46 years old, the nameplate’s fans will sadly have to witness its dismissal from local North American production.
Volkswagen has officially announced it just ended local Golf manufacturing at the Puebla, Mexico, facility this very month. The company expects the 2021 Golf – still based on the seventh-generation architecture – to soldier on until the end of the year in the sales charts thanks to the Golf units already produced at the plant.
The U.S. saga for the Golf includes almost 2.5 million units delivered throughout the years. It will open a new chapter going forward with the arrival of the 2022 Golf 8 GTI and Golf R, which are scheduled to hit dealerships this coming fall.
“Over four decades, the Golf has delivered a great value to American drivers,” said Hein Schafer, Senior Vice President, Volkswagen of America. “It exemplified what Volkswagen does best—melding dynamic driving characteristics with purposeful packaging and unmatched quality. While the seventh-generation Golf will be the last of the base hatches sold here, the GTI and Golf R will carry its legacy forward.”
Although it’s of little consequence at this point, Volkswagen wanted to brag a little with the past achievements of the Golf even when bringing the unwelcome news of its dismissal. As such, the automaker remembered how the current-generation Golf became North American Car of the Year upon its debut as a 2015MY.
In case anyone is wondering, for the 2021 model year, the Golf is available in a single configuration on the U.S. market, the Golf TSI. With the well-known 1.4-liter turbo engine under the hood, the model has 147 horsepower and 184 pound-feet (249 Nm) of torque to show for itself.
It can be had with a six-speed manual box or an eight-speed auto, and pricing kicks off at $23,195 and $23,995, respectively, before adding the additional $995 destination charge.

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