To celebrate the 40th Anniversary of the Volkswagen Golf, Ireland’s best-selling car for the second year running, in addition to adding a Free Technology pack worth over €1,000 on all Golf models, Volkswagen Ireland has added a host of upgrades to the 2015 Golf range.

The Golf has a new entry-price, now from just €19,995 which is a €400 price reduction from the 2014 model. The car gains a leather steering wheel and front centre armrest in this specification at no extra cost.

The Golf BlueMotion model benefits from a €430 price reduction, now starting at €25,295. The new car also gets front fog flights and a leather multi-function steering wheel as standard, which is valued at €410, saving the customer €840 versus 2014 prices.

The Golf Comfortline model now starts from €22,755 and comes now with 16” ‘Toronto’ alloy wheels, front fog lights and a leather multi-function steering wheel as standard - this specification value increase of €765, coupled with a price reduction
of €375 means that Comfortline customers are now €1,140 better off for 2015.

Similarly, the Golf Highline now starts from just €25,105. Specification includes 17” ‘Dijon’ alloy wheels, ‘Climatronic’ 2-Zone air conditioning, Park Distance Control front and rear, Adaptive Cruise Control and rear tinted windows. This is an amazing €2,250 of specification for just a €290 increase.

At the performance end of the Golf range there have also been changes. There has been a huge increase in specification as standard on the GTI. The car now gains 18” ‘Austin’ alloy wheels, Bi-Xenon headlights, Climatronic 2-Zone air conditioning, Park Distance Control front and rear, Adaptive Cruise Control and rear tinted windows. The GTI now starts from €35,750, a €1,215 price increase but with over €4,350 worth of specification added as standard.

The GTD now starts from €37,705, with an extra €4,215 of specification added as standard for only a €1,200 increase in RRP. These include 18” ‘Nogaro’ alloy wheels, Bi-Xenon headlights, ‘Climatronic’ 2-Zone air-conditioning, Park Distance Control front and rear, Adaptive Cruise Control and rear tinted windows.

At the top of the range the Golf R has come down in price by €9,515 plus has an added specification of €2,040 - now gaining 19” ‘Cadiz’ alloy wheels, Park Distance Control front and rear, Adaptive Cruise Control and rear tinted windows.

There will also be two new special edition models in the Golf range in 2015 - the Edition-R, which sits between Comfortline and Highline and will be positioned as a sportier alternative to the Golf Highline. This trim level features R-Line exterior styling, 17” ‘Salvador’ alloy wheels, rear tinted windows, front sport seats, ‘Mel Stripe’ upholstery and sport suspension. Prices start from €24,600 for the Edition-R spec.

To celebrate 40 years of Golf there is the very luxurious Golf Edition-40, which costs from €30,455 and comes with the choice of either a 1.4-litre TSI 150bhp engine, or a 2.0-litre TDI 150bhp engine. This grade will sit above Highline, focussing on luxury rather than sportiness. Standard equipment over the Highline includes 17” ‘Singapore’ alloy wheels, ‘Discover Media’ navigation system, a panoramic tilt/slide sunroof, heated front seats, unique ‘Edition-40’ interior styling which includes Nappa leather / Alcantara seats in ‘Volcano Brown’, imprinted with the ‘Wolfsburg’ crest. There are also ‘Milano’ decorative inserts.

Volkswagen customers will now be able to get more Volkswagen for their money, with higher spec models and mid-range models available on lower PCP rates of 1.9% and 3.9%. This means that for many models, the monthly payment is the same regardless of the grade chosen. So a customer could choose a Trendline or Comfortline or Highline Golf for just €249 per month. This compares with variable rates of between 9% and 11% APR currently offered for car loans by the mainstream banks. Retail customers can also avail of 3 year’s free servicing on 151 cars ordered before November 30th.