Volkswagen GTI Overview

Do you remember the first Volkswagen GTI? It was the original sports car in a box when it snarled onto the scene as a 1983 model, back in the days when there was still a VW hatchback named after a creature with long ears and buck teeth.

The GTI was fast on its feet, reasonably quick from a standing start and roomy inside; it had sports-car responses combined with a hatchback's space efficiency. And if the GTI wasn't quite revolutionary (there was the precedent of the Austin Mini Cooper S) it was certainly sensational.

The original GTI added new descriptions to the automotive lexicon, such as pocket rocket and hot hatch. And it spawned a small fleet of wannabes - the Mitsubishi Mirage Turbo, Dodge Omni GLH, Toyota Corolla FX16 and Mazda 323 Turbo, to name just a few.

That wasn't so long ago, but our automotive appetite has obviously changed. America has lost its taste for hatchbacks, preferring cars shaped like bullets rather than boxes, with at least the illusion of a conventional trunk.

The hot hatchback phenomenon is all but history. Although Honda continues to offer the peppy Si version of the Civic hatchback, it's a member of a family that also includes formal coupes and sedans. Only VW persists with a full line of true shoe-box hatchbacks, called Golf.

And only one Golf carries on the concept established by the original GTI. This is it.

The GTI VR6 isn't exactly inexpensive with a price of $19,265. But compared with sport coupes of comparable performance - the Acura Integra GS-R, Ford Probe GT and Mazda MX-6, for example - its comprehensive collection of comfort and convenience features makes it very competitive. The only options you can add are clearcoat metallic paint and a 6-disc CD changer, bringing the price up to $19,935. We were content with the standard equipment on our test model.