Volkswagen reveals new Golf Alltrack ahead of Paris debut

• Volkswagen has bolstered its seventh-generation Golf line-up with the addition of a second Alltrack model.
• The rugged-styled, high-riding variant of the Golf Estate will go on sale in the UK in mid-2015, and prices will start from around £23,000.

• Revealed here for the first time prior to its world debut at next week’s Paris motor show, the fifth dedicated model in the existing Golf line-up is positioned in a niche between the latest Golf estate and the soon-to-be-replaced first-generation Tiguan. It aims to providing buyers with the practicality of the former with the off-road capability of the later.
• In a move mirroring that taken with the larger and more expensive Passat Alltrack launched in 2013, Volkswagen has provided the Golf Alltrack with a series of off-roader inspired styling elements that attempt to distant it visually from the Golf Estate, upon which it is based and shares its steel body.  
• Included are restyled bumpers with stylized plastic protection plates front and rear, black plastic cladding within the wheel arches and beneath the doors, further production plates within the sills and a set of roof rails.
• The nominal ride height of the standard Golf Estate has been raised by 20mm, providing the Golf Alltrack with greater ground clearance for added off-road ability.

• Volkswagen plans to launch the Golf Alltrack with a range of three turbocharged four-cylinder engines – a single direct-injection petrol and two common-rail diesels, all mated to its four-wheel drive 4Motion system which features an electronic front differential lock as standard.
• The sole 1.8-litre petrol develops 177bhp and 206lb ft, providing the 1.8 TSI with a 0-62mph sprint time of 7.8sec, a top speed of 135mph, and a combined 41.5mpg and CO2 rating of 158g/km.
• The diesels include Volkswagen’s familiar 1.6-litre engine. It produces 108bhp and 184lb ft to give the 1.6 TDI a 0-62mph time of 12.1sec and 116mph top speed, along with combined consumption of 60.1mpg and CO2 emissions of 124g/km.
• Further up the range is a 2.0-litre diesel, offered in two outputs. The first develops 148bhp and 251lb ft, propelling the more affordable of two 2.0 TDI models from 0 to 62mph in 8.9sec. It has a top speed of 129mph, economy of 57.7mpg and CO2 emissions of 127g/km.
• The higher powered 2.0 TDI uses the same engine but benefits from an additional 33bhp and 29lb ft, possessing 181bhp and 280lb ft.
• This provides the range-topping Golf Attrack model with a 0-62mph acceleration time of 7.8sec, a 136mph top speed, combined consumption of 55.4mpg and CO2 emissions of 134g/km. Volkswagen also claims a braked trailer capacity of 2000kg.