Volkswagen Golf R Mk 8.5 Bows In with Special Black Edition

The facelifted Volkswagen Golf R Mk 8.5 breaks cover with a 328 HP-rated engine and a special Black Edition model.

The eighth-gen (Mk 8) Golf is about to hit the last stage of its lifetime, as Volkswagen recently launched the new Golf R model based on the facelifted Mk 8.5 model. As unveiled in its initial teaser, the facelifted Golf R gets an uprated turbocharged mill, alongside both the new wagon variant and a special Black Edition model.

Similar to its non-R-badged siblings, the Golf R Mk 8.5 gets the same facelift design treatment, now featuring a more aggressive front face courtesy of its new front bumper design with gloss black-hued accents and inserts, plus an illuminated VW badge in the middle. Its angrier front face is complemented by sporty side skirts, matte chrome side mirror caps, plus an equally aggressive rear end featuring quad sporty tailpipes and a gloss black rear diffuser.

The new 19-inch Warmenau forged alloy wheels are 20% lighter than the standard 18-inch units.

While the new Golf R rides on standard 18-inch wheels, customers can opt for the sportier and more lightweight 19-inch Warmenau forged alloy wheels. With each of them weighing only 8 KG, this optional 19-inch unit is 20% lighter than the standard 18-inch ones, while its open multi-spoke design allows for better airflow that helps to improve brake cooling.

Besides the Warmenau wheels, the facelifted Golf R also comes with other optional parts, including an Akrapovic titanium exhaust system, which is the same one used on the Golf R 333 special edition, improved IQ.LIGHT LED matrix headlights, and new 3D LED taillights.

Volkswagen Golf R Mk8.5 Black Edition

For those who still think the new Golf R is too tame for their liking, they can opt for the special Black Edition instead. As its name suggests, this special Golf R gets dark-tinted headlights, dark-hued logos and emblems, and a slew of blacked-out exterior parts like the wheels, brake callipers, and exhaust tips. On top of that, the Golf R Black Edition also comes standard with the Performance Package, which adds functions like G-meter and GPS lap timer display on its infotainment display, as well as a boosted V-Max of 270 KM/H.

On board, the updated Golf R also benefits from the same facelift treatment as other Mk 8.5 Golf variants, plus some additional sporty bits and R-specific parts. Key highlights include the 12.9-inch infotainment screen with ChatGPT-powered voice assistance, a smaller 10.2-inch digital instrument cluster with R-specific graphics and vehicle telemetry functionality, and a 30-colour ambient lighting system.

Meanwhile, the R treatment comes in the form of sporty R-badged front seats, a slew of blue accents, stainless steel sport pedals, and several faux carbon fibre trims.

The new Golf R's 2.0-liter 4-cyl turbocharged mill benefits from a higher state-of-tune, now delivering 328 HP and 420 NM.

On the performance front, the facelifted Golf R benefits from an uprated powertrain setup, featuring the same 2.0-litre 4-cyl turbocharged petrol mill that now outputs 328 HP (333 PS) and 420 NM—the same output as the limited-edition Golf R 333 model debuted last year.

The forced-induced mill is still mated to a seven-speed DCT gearbox and VW’s proprietary 4MOTION AWD system with torque vectoring capability. This setup is good enough to dispatch a decent century sprint time of 4.6 seconds, en route to its standard V-Max of 250 KM/H.

The all-new Volkswagen Golf R Mk8.5 is slated to hit its native European market later this month, followed by several other international markets, including the US, in early next year.

As for our market, Volkswagen Passenger Cars Malaysia (VPCM) recently launched the pre-facelift Golf R Mk8 in our market, which is locally-assembled (CKD) at its production facility in Pekan, Pahang. With that being said, it may take a few years before we get to see the facelifted Golf R make its way into our market.