Discover the Dynamic Character of the 2025 Volkswagen Golf GTI

To lead a segment is one thing. But to invent one and still run it fifty years later takes something else entirely. Meet the 2025 Volkswagen Golf GTI, the latest take on the hot hatch that started it all in 1975. The blueprint is still familiar: front-wheel drive, a punchy engine, a useful cabin, and a cool look that doesn’t need to shout.

Exterior

Style is one of the Golf GTI’s strongest suits, and the 2025 update reaffirms that. The already sharp exterior picks up redesigned headlights, revised bumpers, a standard light bar across the grille, and an illuminated VW badge. The signature red grille strip continues, now running through the updated headlights. Puddle lights have been reworked too. What was once a polka-dot pattern now projects a stylized golf ball and GTI logo onto the pavement.

Interior

The updates didn’t stop at the sheet metal. Inside, the new Golf GTI features a freestanding 12.9-inch display subtly angled toward the driver, backlit climate and volume sliders, a ventilated 15W wireless charging pad, and new Carbon Gray decor. Standard amenities remain generous: heated front seats, a heated leather-wrapped steering wheel, a seven-speaker audio system, and numerous driver aids, such as Active Blind Spot Monitor, Adaptive Cruise Control, Park Distance Control, and Lane Assist.

Move to the SE trim, and the cloth seats are replaced with ArtVelours, which are comfortable, grippy, and easy to clean. Also rolling with the S trim are a Harman Kardon premium sound system, a panoramic glass roof, keyless access, and automatic high beams. At the top, the Autobahn model adds a head-up display, three-zone Climatronic Touch climate control, leather seating, ventilated front seats, and heated seats in both rows.

Power and Handling

It can’t be a hot hatch without some fire in the belly. The 2025 GTI brings just that with its turbocharged four-cylinder that outputs 241 horsepower and 273 lb-ft of torque. Below 3,000 RPM, this firecracker is quiet, smooth over most surfaces, and refined, but above that, it’s like flipping an on switch. The sound sharpens, the pace quickens, and 0 to 60 disappears in under six seconds.

The real fun, however, is in carving corners. Thanks to its light chassis, the GTI is eager to turn in, and the suspension and differential tuning let you play with rear rotations to help settle the car into bends. You don’t get a stick, but the seven-speed DSG makes a strong case for itself with snappy shifts and quick response when you tap the paddles.

Over five decades of hot hatch legacy come together in the 2025 Golf GTI. For a test drive, stop by Gorman McCracken Volkswagen in Longview, TX.

Tags: 2025 Golf GTI, 2025 Volkswagen Golf GTI, Golf GTI, gorman mccracken volkswagen, volkswagen longview tx
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