How does the daily grind work out for the most playful version of the most potent model?

Price: $82,990

Powertrain and economy: 2.0-litre four cylinder turbocharged petrol, 235kW/400Nm, seven-speed direct shift, four-wheel drive, combined economy 8.6L/100km, CO2 195g/km.
Vital statistics: 4290mm long, 1789mm wide, 1439mm high, 2628mm wheelbase, luggage capacity 374-1233 litres.
We like: More engaging personality than predecessors; generous First Edition provision for NZ.
Not so much: Soul-less everyday soundtrack; infotainment operability shortcomings.

DRIVING at a race track is a great way to get to know your car; if the feedback and responses encourage you to push the limits further on every lap, then it’s surely got to be a keeper?

If you buy into that argument, then the latest Golf R in its ultimate First Edition guise will assuredly have no trouble placing itself into any driving enthusiast’s garage.

Volkswagen NZ’s introduction day back in May made me a disciple of this view and this limited-edition package. The day was long, yet involved little road work; time dedicated to the 2.9km tarmac that comprises Pukekohe racing circuit. This to allow full phat involvement with the indecently powerful and savagely quick Performance Pack presented variant, which costs $5000 more than the standard car – a premium worth every cent.

Golf GTI versus Golf R? Prior to this day, the question was never in doubt. In my mind saving money and electing the front-drive legend was always the way. Past R offers squandered their plus points of additional kapow and all-paw benefit through being so resistant to the one factor that endeared with GTI; emotional connection.

No longer. Picking up all the technical drivetrain cleverness (save the five-cylinder engine) from the RS3, including ‘R Torque Vectoring’ – basically a version of the trick system diff on the Audi – and a new version of Volkswagen’s 4Motion AWD is change for good. Likewise it picking up a number of suspension tweaks to sharpen up handling, as well as an aluminium front subframe and R-specific dampers.

The car just feels more energised and is more engaging. Being far more involving makes it far more fun, which is good given it’s also far more powerful now: it has 100Nm less than the RS3 but 39kW more. Zero to 100kmh in 4.7 seconds is claimed. It’s a fair slug to channel through a seven-speed DSG transmission, even when it always apportions through all four wheels.

I thought it was brilliant on the circuit; the engine delivers properly serious grunt, apportioned effectively but with finesse, it has the right rubber and brakes and the modes that sharpen its throttle, gearchange and suspension responses are highly effective, including the one that tricked it into doing something all-paw cars are generally resistant to: Drifting.

That I scored a trophy (fastest journo in the timed slalom) possibly influenced my opinion, but so be it. Anyway, I came away convinced that anyone who might buy into this model without intent of utilising it fully in track day activities would be wasting their own money and the car’s talent.

So, fast forward to the other day and occasion for a proper home turf test; seven days once again with the prime sizzler. What to do, what to do …?

We all understand, surely, that public road driving demands different considerations to speed: apart from the well-being of your own license, consideration has to be given this being a shared environment. We also recognise many cars sold here have talent ceilings comfortably above our driving regime.

As much as VW has sought to contain Golf R’s rawness via different drive modes, it clearly delivers more than you’ll ever ask for in orthodox everyday operation. And that’s just in respect to the pure driving. No matter what your skill level, obviously you cannot demo the drift talent or the launch control - essentially a computer that makes it super-easy to get the perfect getaway every time – in this arena.

So, come day five of seven. The local racing circuit, not 20 minutes from my home, was hosting exactly the kind of day I knew the car would simply lap up. When I got to the venue that Sunday, there were all sorts of tasty road cars lining up, including several direct competitors for the Golf. It would have been so easy to flash my motorsport licence, pay the entry fee and join the queue.

Aaaaaaannnndddd … no.

Distributor largesse with press cars quite rightly doesn’t allow for borrowers to simply do as they like. There are restrictions. Heading onto a circuit without prior sign-off being front and central among them. If only I’d won Lotto the night prior.

So, anyway, when there’s a lot that cannot be used, the question of how good it is as an everyday car becomes all the more important. Impressive lap times are great to gloat about, but if the subject of that chat is inappropriate for Monday to Friday grind, who’s really the winner?

Good news. Generally speaking, in the instance, where daily driveability weighs heavily on your criteria, it’s fair to tolerable. The key to a happy life is accepting straight out that it’s always going to be more tiger than tabby, so sensibility is required.

Fail to switch all settings off stun and you’ll risk discovering throttle response is so sharp and paired with such urgent and aggressive gearchanges you’ll be running into trouble and out of luck. Truth be told, even in the tunings designed for closest approximation to comfort and relaxation it’s still on a knife edge. One good hit on the throttle is all it takes. But you can live with it.

The more interesting aspect about its sportiness is in a visual sense, where it’s out there but not wholly overt. As much as it adopts all the usual addenda, it’s visual peacocking is muted. In profile, it could be any other Golf with a big set of wheels.

It doesn’t just avoid making big noise in look. The exhaust note at normal driving speed is so discreet. RS3 owners enjoy bubbly burble whereas Golf R drivers get a sound that, while not unpleasant, is very obviously synthesised.

Higher-end VWs have always been well executed, with sharp displays, smart and beautiful-rendered trims, cool blue highlights, and a general sense of above-average refinement and quality. That’s all here.

The attention to detail pervades the entire car, though with this example there was one small omission – the plastic engine cover was absent. On the track days cars, these were plucked off as a small measure to ensure under-bonnet temps stayed reasonable during the intensity. Perhaps they forgot to put it back.

Driver assists for safety and clean driving (yes, you can, and will deactivate the lane keep) are great; so is the cool kid kit. Wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, a head-up display, heated and ventilated front seats, multicolour ambient lighting, adaptive LED headlights and R puddle lighting are show-offs.

Golf also, of course, is an ambassador for the new tech that is primarily conceived for the electric fare yet to get here. One of those elements is the glass panel instrumentation which looks great but, in terms of operability, is a bit of a challenge, mainly because it’s touch-operability is too touchy. Basically, the haptic sensitivity is such any movement in proximity of the screen raises some potential of unintentional involvement. Particularly with the temperature and volume controls, which are operated by sliding or tapping your finger across the base – right where you’d choose to steady your hand when using the infotainment set-up. The temp control also lacks night time illumination.

That’s about the only area of frustration. In respect to practicalities, it’s just Golf 101, with lots of well thought out ideas. One I appreciated is how the mobile phone charging cubby is angled forward so your device won’t fall out while driving with enthusiasm. The centre bin between the seats is a bit small, perhaps, and the only thing that seems to fit neatly in the small slots beside the gear selector is the key.

The driving position is awesome, the driving feel also. The span of talent in the suspension is such that it can make a decent stab of soaking up rougher road surfaces, in that there’s some compliance in the softer selections.

The harder you go, the more focused the R becomes. There’s excellent high-speed stability, so keeping it straight isn’t a fight. It feels massively sure-footed. Decent steering precision doesn’t always arrive with all-wheel-drive, but it’s certainly apparent here.

The engine’s span of engagement is broad; quite a different character in extreme modes. So much so that, in road driving, at more sensible (yes, that word again) speeds, anyone riding with you might have reason to question your contention about this thing’s actual mettle.

Optimal energy levels are utterly energising and big boy stuff; there’s virtually no discernible lag and torque delivery is relentless. But, like I say, locating the motherlode on the road is not easy. Even when you’re at a pace when it feels like something of a low-flying exercise; it almost always has more shove in reserve. It all comes down to the modes.

You can stir it up to fast pace in Comfort, but the seven-speed dual-clutch automatic won’t be acting at optimal; the shifts will seem a little lazy and it’ll be unwilling to drop a gear. Go to Sport or next-stop Race and there’s significant character change. It’ll hold lower gears and you can rev the snot out. Or alternately, you can change up early and feel the pull that way. Also you can more easily feel power being sent to the rear wheels to help the car rotate on the way out of corners. But it’s still not the absolute optimal.

For that you need dabble more, zero in to the Special – yes, it’s called that - setting identified by a Nurburgring map outline. In this, it’s really belligerent; very snarly and with exhaust backfire on overrun. But other stuff is happening too. The suspension actually softens and the traction assist falls right away; there’s more reliance on the tyres and the all-paw. It’s a whole lot edgier, far more involved. An animal, basically. Would you often, if ever, dare use this in a public setting? Not sure I would.

What I can say is that, whatever the setting, grip and traction levels are incredibly high - which of course means you can get on the throttle all the sooner when racing out of bends – and the direct shift gearbox is totally in your corner.

But it’s only in an unrestricted environment where the full truth is found. I cannot reinforce that enough.

VW is of same mind. As I put this story together, word came in that a new special edition R, created to celebrated 20 years of the sub-brand, has just established as the fastest of the breed on the world famous Nurburgring-Nordschleife. An official time of seven minutes and 47.31 seconds meant it bettered the previous lap record of a Golf R on the 20.0km layout four seconds. Enough said, surely?