Teased sporadically since January, the most recent having been its launch confirmation this month, Volkswagen has officially debuted the Golf 8.5 R as the expected final combustion engine model its performance division will produce.
End of eraAhead of the R brands move towards complete electrification before 2030 , the 8.5 R also becomes the equal most powerful production Golf ever made with outputs of 245kW/420Nm from the venerable EA888 2.0 TSI engine.
An accolade it shares with the US-market only Golf 8 R 333 and the R 20 Years Edition, the 10 kW uptake in power also comes with an increased limited top speed of 270 km/h when fitted with the optional Performance package.
As standard, the R will still do 250 km/h and despite the same torque output as the Golf 8 R, accelerate from 0-100 km/h in 4.6 seconds. Carried over is the 4Motion all-wheel-drive system and the seven-speed DSG.
What has changedBuilding on the aesthetic of the standard Golf 8.5 , the R, again offered as either a five-door hatch or the European-market exclusive Variant estate, receives model specific front and rear bumpers and door sills, a new deeper lower air intake, the otherwise optional LED Plus headlights and, as further cost extra, 19-inch Warmenau alloy wheels Wolfsburg claims aids brake cooling in addition to being eight kilograms lighter per wheel than the standard 18-inch Bergamo wheels.
