Weekly Test-Drive: 2010 Volkswagen Golf TDI

January 19, 2010 Omar Rana 2010, Compact Cars, Diesels, Hatchbacks, Volkswagen Golf TDI, Weekly Test-Drive

Today, we welcome the first diesel to ever enter egmCarTech’s garage for a full week-long test drive – the 2010 Volkswagen Golf TDI.

First Impressions: We are very impressed. We recently asked you guys whether or not you would consider a diesel powered vehicle over gasoline – with most of you leaning towards diesel (which was a bit surprising to us). There are some obvious benefits to buying a diesel powered car over a gasoline powered car including a boost in fuel-economy, a boost in torque and the final price differential over gasoline models is generally much smaller than that for hybrids vehicles.

The starting MSRP on our 2010 Volkswagen Golf TDI comes in at $21,990. With the addition of a $1,750 touchscreen navigation, $1,000 power sunroof, $225 Cold Weather Package and $199 for the Bluetooth connectivity, our test VW Golf TDI carries a final price tag of $25,914.

Power comes from a 2.0L inline 4-cylinder turbo diesel engine making 140-hp and 236 lb-ft of torque. Standard with a 6-speed manual, the Volkswagen Golf TDI goes from rest to 60 mph in 8.6 seconds while averaging an EPA estimated fuel-economy of 30/41 mpg (city/highway). Buyers can also opt for the optional 6-speed automatic DSG gearbox but we wouldn’t recommend it if you have an enthusiast driving style. Having a little fun, we are driving our 6-speed manual Golf TDI a little faster than usual and are still averaging 33 mpg.

As always (more often than not), we’ll be providing you with daily updates during our week-long drive – so make sure you ask us all the questions you want answered about the 2010 Volkswagen Golf TDI in the comments section below.

2010 Volkswagen Golf TDI (Weekly Test-Drive):