Most new cars feel “solid” when they are brand new, sitting on the lot. That solid feeling ends really quickly for many cars, but VWs always seemed immune, you could get into a VW with 200,000 miles on it and still get that satisfying solid feel from it. Then again VW interiors haven’t been known for their durability. The MkIV Jetta and Golf have serious peeling problems with dashboard pieces. The MkVI Golf was supposed to be an improvement in all areas, and in this article I will go over why I think that is true…
Lets start with the small details in the interior, little things that VW did that really help the overall experience.
The Lumbar Lever is a really nice touch...
The seats are typical VW with the wide range of adjustments that are lacking on many of its competitors including height and lumbar adjustment. The height is adjusted as you may be used to on earlier cars using a push-pull lever on the outside of the seat. The lumbar adjustment is more interesting – rather than a knob you get a much easier to use lever on the side of the seat. I find lumbar adjustment very important, especially on long drives where I will be changing my seating position.
Slide-Forward Lever on the Front Seat
Getting to the back seat is an easy affair and I was impressed again by the release lever on the seat. One of my cars is a MkIV Golf TDI (year 2000) and the handle is prone to being knocked off or broken by a over-zealous passenger getting into the backseat. The 2012 Golf TDI addresses this by protecting the bottom edge of the lever. It looks good too.
Seats fold down easily & without removing the headrests...
The rear seats fold down and are split 60/40. Thankfully folding down the seats does not require either lifting up the seat bottoms nor removing the head rests. In this two-door model I was able to release and flip down the back seats completely from the hatch and I did not need to use the side doors at all. Folding the rear seat back up is also headache free as the seatbelt is out of the way enough not to get stuck behind the seat.
The belt is far enough out of the way that it won't get stuck behind the seat back.
Overhead lighting is well done too. The front overhead lighting console incorporates some red ambient lighting as well as the controls for the Bluetooth integration with a cellphone. All controls have text that is backlit in red so they are easy to find, see and use at night. There is also a sunglass holder, but we’re not using it yet. The console has the two independent passenger and driver map light.
2012 Golf TDI Overhead Console
Rear passengers get their own map lights as well, though their controls aren’t backlit.
The rear seat lights have plenty of power to fully illuminate the backseat.
Thats a short outline of little stuff that we really liked. The next chapter we’ll go over the 2012 Golf TDI Interior from the drivers seat!
Just took delivery of Golf TDI 4dr on 16 Jan. Did my homework and narrowed down to TDI mainly for diesel engine and drive ability. I am 6′5″ and have more than ample leg and headroom. Impressed with low end torque and acceleration. Fit and finish top notch. I am still finding new surprises and features. Picked up car in the evening and the only thing the salesmen did was get the blue tooth working. Visibility expansive and the car responds and accelerates well. I did my homework and had printouts of dealer invoice and with very little haggling got one at DI if I took one off the lot. No shortage of diesels. In fact I received 3 other responses from Internet dealer reps who would have sold for DI. Got the shark metallic blue, looks very nice. Only downside for here in FL is no privacy tint available from factory, but many options for tinting locally. All in all, one of the best vehicle purchases I have ever made. Looking forward to many miles and good economy. Makes driving something to look forward to
Downsides on delivery: front right tire with only 20 psi, 2/3 full tank, and rear allow wheel missing VW hub insert. Went back and they pried on off another Golf insert and good to go. Salesmen said these are frequently taken but no hassle to replace.