Should you buy a Mk6 VW Golf GTI?

If you want a properly fast 21st-century hot-hatch, the Golf GTI is not the leader of the pack when it comes to cheap performance cars. However, it’s a talented all-rounder and a very easy car to live with every day, in all seasons. Build quality is high, and aside from the inevitable plastic headlights and less-robust paint typical for cars of this age.

So it’s a great choice if you want a balanced blend. If your priority is outright performance, we’d look to the Ford Focus ST, RenaultSport Megane or Honda Civic Type R, which are better value as used buys. You may also find it easier to find a similarly powerful Audi A3, and the BMW 1-series offers the excitement of rear-wheel drive.

We would go for the Edition 35 and as late an example as possible, but there’s no particular model to avoid. As five-door cars now dominate the landscape and showrooms, a three-door GTI has the most authentic hot-hatch vibe.

What we like

Economical, flexible engine with sharp, but not harsh, suspension. Clean styling with subtle performance clues. Decades of GTI brand recognition and consistency.

What we don’t like

Troublesome early EA888 engines (211hp), back-street mechanic ‘voodoo’ around DSG gearbox complexity, the feeling that you could just as easily have a SEAT, Skoda or Audi, and the loss of the golfball gearknob on manual cars.