Sophisticated madness

Volkswagen Golf R32 shows us how what happens when adults go power crazy

If you are not a Volkswagen fan and you see the R32 pull up on your tail on the highway, you would probably think that it is a Golf with fancy grille and bigger wheels.

The correct procedure, when this golf with aluminium-finish grille surround pulls up behind you is to just hesitate to pull aside for it to pass. Just move left for a bit then change your mind and take your time to overtake that truck just ahead of you and pull to the left only when you have comfortably cleared the truck.

What this does is it makes the R32 driver a bit impatient because it is likely that he was enjoying a completely comfortable high-speed run and is probably planning his Penang Prawn Mee lunch in Sungai Dua with his passengers.

Once you move aside, he will probably open the throttle and enjoy the addictive mid range acceleration of the R32. It’s like falling down but horizontally.

If you pull up behind an R32, you would immediately know it because the Germans have put two cannons masquerading as exhaust tips at the centre of the bumper. They are not so much as exits for burnt gases but warning to other drivers not to mess with it.

Anything less than a 3.5-litre sports coupe or manic two-litre Japanese rally-special would have not chance against this blue rocket in mid range.

The correct procedure, when you come up behind one of these is to just follow closely so you can get first hand experience of see how it accelerate from impulse drive velocities to warp speed.

The thing that I really like about the Golf R32 is that it never complains when you work it hard. The caked brake dust on the wheels are proof that I really whipped it hard. We showed it the highway and this blue Golf easily clocked the double ton and when we took it on snaking tarmac, the R32 tamed it without calling on the traction control too many times.

The big engine in the nose and extra mass of the all-wheel drive system does slow down it’s reflexes a bit but it is still one sharp dancer. When taking the lead, you just need to give it a bit of time to catch up but this only ever happens on really tight corners and switchbacks.

The work area of the R32 is typically VAG, clean, modern and uncluttered with everything  arranged methodically, logically and ergonomically. It is not flamboyant but the cabin will last a long time as the design is timeless and the materials used are top drawer.

When on the move, drivers will appreciate the ergonomically shaped steering wheel, pedal positioning and how everything is easily reached and understood.

On a mountain road, there is no way you can resist giving the R32 a good workout so these deep bucket seats are truly welcomed, they hug the front occupants tightly and securely so that they remain comfortable even when the car darts around like a crazy rabbit.

As you can see, the R32 is best experienced by two people, those in the rear seat would eb thrown aroudn so much that they might end up as human pretzels after a particularly spirited mountain drive.

Technically, the R32 is a Volkswagen Golf Mk V with a 3.2-litre narrow-angle V6 or VR6 engine. The motor is matched to a six-speed dual-clutch or DSG  transmission. Beyond that, power is then routed to all four wheels through a sophisticated all-wheel drive system that is linked to a vehicle stability programme that can route power to tyre with the most grip. If you get in trouble, the system will send power to the right wheel(s) to get the car back into line.

Like I said earlier, the R32 is sophisticated madness, it is a hot hatch for adults. The car is comfortable enough for daily use, spacious enough to be a believable family transport and even has a boot big enough to hold a family’s long weekend luggage.

It is the perfect highway cruiser. It can hold autobahn velocities all day without getting even remotely stressed and we all know that a relaxed car transport relaxed passengers. You can arrive from a 500 kilometre journey and be ready to turn back after a cup of tea.

When faced with long sweeping turns of the highway, the Golf R32 has all the answers, tracking true and accurately as both the chassis and all wheel drive system work out which does what to maintain handling integrity.

The suspension is also at home on the highway, absorbing small ridges and imperfections without trying and when you find the car going over long undulations, the spring and dampers do sterling work to keep the mass oscillation under control. There is no float or wallow from this car at high speed on the highway.

Things take on a different note when we turned the R32 towards the mountains, here the extra mass of the engine and drivetrain start to make itself felt.

There is a definite hint of understeer when you need to take in tight corners as the added inertia of the engine and transmission resist directional changes. Despite the wide, low-profile rubber, there is no hiding the mass up front. I am glad to report that the all-wheel drive system does a good job of transferring all the power to the ground in a controlled fashion.

As with most all-wheel drive system, the R32 has the tendency to understeer and as I ahve said before things can be made worse by the heavy nose. I cannot tell you whether the system is biased towards the rear wheels but this monster golf is safe if unexciting into corners so what you have to do when faced with a small radius turn is to brake hard and brake late and stay on the anchors during the initial turn-in

This will unsettle the rear slightly and give you a chance to convince the front to turn in more quickly than it would usually like to.

Once you have achieved the right attitude into the corner, preferably with as little steering lock as possible, start feeding the power and let the r32 slip into a gentle drift. If you enter the corner with too much lock, the system would simply cut back power to prevent wheelspin so you won’t get the slingshot effect when going out of corners.

You definitely cannot treat the throttle as an on/off switch because the engine produces more power than the chassis can naturally handle, ignoring this rule would simply result in a more sluggish drive.

Conclusion

The R32 is a Bahn stormer of the highest order. It is not a nimble hot hatch or sportscar for twisty roads. It will try to please you even on twisty roads but you just know that it has to work too hard to keep you safe.

Specifications

Golf R32 3.2l V6

Nett selling price – Peninsular Malaysia*       298,888.00

Nett selling price – Sarawak*                       301,888.00

Engine, transmission, electrics

Engine type                                                6-cylinder petrol engine

Cubic capacity, litres/cm³                             3.2/ 3189

Bore/stroke, mm                                         84.0/ 95.9

Max. output, kW (PS) at rpm                       184 (250)/ 6300

Max. torque, Nm at rpm                              320 (2800/3000)

Emission category                                       Euro 4

Gearbox                                                     6-speed direct shift gearbox

Alternator, A/battery A (Ah)                        140/420 (75)

Weights, kg

Gross vehicle weight                                   2070

Unladen weight                                           1538

Top speed, km/h

with direct shift gearbox                              248

Acceleration from 0-80/0-100 km/h, s

with direct shift gearbox                              4.3/ 6.2

Fuel consumption, litres/100 km 1)

Fuel     Premium unleaded

Urban                                                        13.1

Extra-urban                                                7.7

Combined                                                  9.7

CO2 emission combined, g/km                    231