2015 Volkswagen Golf GTD

It’s no secret that one of our favorite cars is the Volkswagen GTI. Well, there’s a new one on its way to the states, and it’s bringing along a new friend with it, the 2015 Volkswagen Golf GTD. 

The GTD’s look and handling may be all GTI, but that “D” stands for a new 2.0-liter turbo diesel under the hood. It lightly clatters out 184-horsepower and 280 lb-ft. of torque. 

BRIAN ROBINSON: Leave it to Volkswagen to bring a high performance diesel to the states. This thing flat out rocks!  And while it may not have the straight line speed of the GTI, all the handling’s there, with the mileage of a hybrid.

JOHN DAVIS: Indeed, the 7.5-second 0-60 is well short of the GTI, but the GTD fully matches it when it comes to attitude both inside and out.

The front end sports a GTI aggressive face, but gets classed up a little with chrome trim instead of red. In back, its business as usual with a large spoiler up top and doubled up exhaust tips down below. GTI elements like the tartan plaid seats, stainless steel pedals, and sport steering wheel highlight the interior.

While it’s already on sale in Europe, we’ll have to wait until next year, so pricing hasn’t been set just yet. Expect to pay a small premium for the GTD over the GTI.