2021 Volkswagen Golf GTI continues on the road more awesomely traveled

2021 VW Golf GTI 2.0T Autobahn: Is this still the best inexpensive playdate?

Price: $38,215 as tested. No options on test vehicle.

Conventional wisdom: Consumer Reports rarely lists so many things to like — “fun to drive with sporty handling, accommodating rear seat, hatchback utility, civilized ride comfort and interior noise levels, very nicely trimmed interior for the class, 29 mpg overall is impressive, easy-to-use infotainment system, feels a lot like an Audi, but for considerably less money, standard FCW, AEB, BSW.” But there’s a big down side: “Spotty reliability.”

Marketer’s pitch: “Power has met its match.”

Reality: Inexpensive is in the wallet of the beholder, but this is fun.

What’s new: This will be the final year of this generation of the Golf GTI. But unlike the regular Golf, which will vanish from the U.S. market, a new GTI and Golf R model is planned for 2022.

Up to speed: The 2.0 turbo four creates 228 horsepower. It gets to 60 in 6 seconds, according to a Motor Trend test of a 2018, the first year of this GTI generation.

But these numbers don’t convey the sheer delight that the GTI transmits to a driver. The front wheels can get away from you a little when starting out into a turn, but feeling the torque yank the vehicle from one side to another makes the experience a hoot. It’s like the crowdsurfing of cars — the momentum just carries you away.

Shifty: The seven-speed automatic powers the front wheels mightily. Shifting is smooth and wonderful in both automatic and shift modes. Sport and Drive mode are both equally delightful as well.

A six-speed manual is standard, and I imagine that only adds to the fun.

On the road: As mentioned, the front-wheel drive makes handling quirky but fun. Pull out from a standing start to the left a little too hard and feel the GTI ready to swing away from you and keep on turning. But on the winding country roads, just go full bore and have fun with the GTI. The rewards are a vehicle that just flies from corner to corner and hill to hill.

Every trip to Target becomes a road rally.

The highway ride is not all that wonderful, unfortunately. The GTI crashes into highway road seams with the force of a 4,000-pound bicycle. Sturgis Son-in-Law 1.0 has a GTI, and I notice they now take Sturgis Kid 1.0′s Scion iM on long trips. So the theme here is buy the GTI, but marry well.

Driver’s Seat: The seats aren’t going to help with the road feel either, unless you prefer your road feel extra firm. I found myself running the seat heater even when I wasn’t that cold because my back was getting sore from the ride. (Bright side — the GTI is so fun that I willingly put more miles on it than I had a lot of other vehicles in the pandemic.)

Friends and stuff: It’s a little tight back there for the extra people you probably would rather leave behind anyway. I consider the discouragement a good tool, because some of those people complain that your driving is too insane. (True story.) Then shut up and take the Toyota, kids. There were even complaints from The Lovely But Perhaps Future Former Mrs. Passenger Seat, If She Doesn’t Stop her Whining.

Still, the seat back there is comfortable and headroom and foot room are good, it’s just legroom that’s snug.

Cargo space is 17.4 cubic feet behind the rear seat and folding it down creates 42.2.

Play some tunes: The radio is standard Volkswagen fare, which means it’s easy to operate. Dials control the important stuff, buttons bounce from place to place, and the touchscreen works well. The touch pad buttons remain easy to hit by accident, though, so often you’ll be looking to get out of the unexpected menu.

Sound from Fender premium sound system is only pretty good. It sounds a little tinny and not rich, a B+.

Keeping warm and cool: Buttons control the source, and dials handle temperature and fan speed.

Night shift: The low beams sit really low. And the high beams are also kind of low — I kept forgetting to turn them off, and I think only about a third of other drivers flashed at me.

Fuel economy: All the fun in the GTI comes with a nice savings at the pump as well: The vehicle averaged 29 mpg in a rip-roaring tear around Chester County. I think some of the trees are still swaying from my wake.

You can feed it regular unleaded, if you choose, but the full performance numbers require the best.

Where it’s built: Puebla, Mexico.

How it’s built: Consumer Reports predicts the reliability to be a 2 out of 5. It’s gotten a lot of 1s over the years.

In the end: Volkswagen better not mess this up.