A Legend is Born
Cue the 1970s. The dress code was flared jeans. Disco balls were spinning from ceilings. And Volkswagen decided it was time to move on from the playful curves of the Beetle.
VW hired the Italian design legend Giorgetto Giugiaro to sketch a replacement. The boxy, angular hatchback shape was purposeful. It made the car practical, with better visibility, and more space.
The Engineer, Kraus, pushed for front-engine, front-wheel drive. This change defined the car’s handling, and efficiency.
Enter the Volkswagen Golf. It was practical, affordable and it had undeniable potential. It was also German with Italian influences. And like all good German and Italian things, it was built to last (unlike disco).
The Rise of an Icon
Fast-forward half a century and the Golf is still wheel-spinning off driveways across the continents.
It’s had a few facelifts in that time. From the Mk1 to today’s Mk8, each and every version has challenged the mainstream, inspired the competition and pushed the hatchback game forward.
Why the Volkswagen Golf Still Shines
It’s simple. The VW Golf doesn’t try too hard. It just… is.
The Cars, the Culture & the People
Owning a Golf isn’t just about owning a car. It’s about the tribe and what it represents - creativity, individuality, and identity. From the GTI sticker collection to the slammed suspension, vinyl wraps and custom alloys - the Golf is a canvas.
But it runs deeper than just the Golf. That chrome VW roundel on the grille connects you instantly to decades of heritage but also the appeal of the more modern Corrado and Scirocco that turned heads in the ‘80s and ‘90s. It’s all the same badge, the same spirit.
The Golf is not on its own island either. It’s part of a much bigger Volkswagen story. One that stretches back to the iconic Transporters of post war Germany. These campers soon became rolling symbols of freedom, surf culture, and counterculture. Just like those vans, the Golf has built its own following, linking generations of drivers together.
From Camper meet-ups on windswept coasts to late-night Golf races through city streets, these vehicles all have one thing in common - their DNA. Whole clubs, forums, and societies exist where Transporter owners swap road trip stories next to Golf fans fine-tuning their turbo setups. It’s all Volkswagen. It’s all connected.
That’s the magic: the Golf isn’t just a car you drive. It’s a continuation of a lifestyle. A thread in a tapestry woven from Beetles, Transporters, and GTIs. A community that always welcomes another set of keys to the family.
The New Era
You may have clocked the sharper designs from the brochure pics. Perhaps, even swooned over the smarter tech and new levels of digital capability online. But until you’ve felt the stitching of the leather steering wheel pressing into your palms. Until you've heard the squeal of tyres biting into tarmac. Until you’ve felt the thud of your heartbeat in rhythm with the car - none of it really matters
The new GTI? Still the yardstick for hatchbacks. Now sharper, meaner, angrier. The Golf R? Basically a road-legal rally car. The hybrid and electric options? Fast, clever and a little bit smug.
A new era, and the best one yet.
Volkswagen Golf at Summit Drive
We’ve often got some of the best Volkswagen Golf deals on the market. Go ahead, go compare. Work or play, we bring these beauties to the masses across the UK. But more than that, it’s about the friends, the meets, the laughs, the shared obsession with a badge that’s been turning heads for decades. Become a part of something bigger.
