Finally — new VW Golf hits U.S showrooms

Volkswagen finally put its seventh-generation Golf on sale in the U.S., starting with the high-performance GTI.

VW announced the arrival of the GTI at dealerships Friday, but conceded that the first sales probably were over Memorial Day weekend.

The Gen-7 Golf has been sold overseas since late 2012. VW said it delyed a U.S. launch until it could shift production of the car from Germany to VW's Puebla, Mexico, factory, where it also makes the Jetta and Beetle for the U.S. and overseas markets.

Starting with a niche model, the GTI, means that the automaker's new Golf assembly operation in Puebla initially can run slower to work out any bugs, if VW chooses to do that.

The Gen-7 Golf is a little bigger than its predecessor, but weighs as much as 79 pounds less. Engines are more powerful, but mileage is better.

The GTI starts at $25,215, for the two-door, manual transmission model with 2-liter, 210-horsepower turbocharged gasoline four-cylinder engine. Power rises to 220 hp with the $1,495 Performance Package of features that also includes a limited-slip front differential and bigger brakes.

The standard Golf starts at $18,815. That's a so-called "Launch Edition." Like the basic Golf, it's a two-door with manual and 1.8-liter, 170-hp, turbo four-cylinder. It's $1,000 less than what will become the base Golf, called "S," once sales are rolling.

To keep the price down, Launch gets steel wheels instead of alloys, cloth seats instead of VW's V-Tex leatherette (vinyl) and lacks the Golf S Car-Net telematic system.

Golf TDI (VW's designation for its diesel) will start at $22,815, and is available only as a four-door. The diesel engine is a new design, though its specifications are similar to the TDI it replaces. It gets a 10-ho boost, to 150 hp, and has the same 236 lbs.-ft. of torque as the current version

The Golf is VW's best-selling car worldwide, but is a mid-pack seller among VW models in the U.S.

The 2015 Golf is 2.1 inches longer than the the pr! evious model, 0.5 of an in. wider and the roof sits 1.1 in. lower. The 2015 lineup is as much as 79 pounds lighter than the cars being replaced.

Front wheels are 1.7 in, further forward as VW moves toward a "cab rearward" look that marks larger, premium cars, as well as recently designed mainstreamers such as Mazda6.

Mileage:

GTI is rated by the government at 25 mpg in the city, 34 (33 with automatic transmission) on the highway, 28 in combined city/highway driving. That's up from ratings of 21/31/25 for the 2014 manual and 24/32/27 for the automatic.1.8-liter four-cylinder gasoline turbo in most models is rated by VW at 26/37 with manual gearbox, 26/36 with automatic. VW gives no combined city/highway rating, and the government hasn't yet rated the Golf's new engine. It replaces the 2.5-liter five-cylinder which has a government rating of 23/30./26.2-liter diesel is rated by VW at 31/42 with manual, and isn't yet rated by the automaker with automatic transmission. No government rating yet. The diesel it replaces is rated by the government at 30/42/34.