Volkswagen Golf Hatchback (97-04) - Review

Review by Parkers on
The fourth generation Golf delivers luxury, quality and refinement in a very safe package. Rivals may look or drive better, but none offer the Golf's superb cabin and solid but understated image. It costs more than most small family cars, but depreciation is slow and running costs are reasonable. Fuel economy is fine on petrol-engined cars, but the diesel cars are excellent, especially the PD high pressure injection engines. These give enjoyable brisk performance combined with 50mpg.
4 out of 5

Other Volkswagen reviews

3.5 out of 5

Running costs

The frugal 1.9-litre diesel returns over 50mpg and the petrol models aren’t bad either. Insurance for the hatchback can be high – particularly for GTI models – but smaller 1.4-litre models are a little more affordable to insure. Servicing and spares are quite pricey at main dealers and reliability hasn't been perfect either. Thankfully, high demand for the Golf means strong re-sale values, making a big difference on your purchase when the time comes to sell.

* based on most recent data

Estimated fuel cost for 10,000 miles per year

Unleaded

£1,497 - £2,557 *

Diesel

£1,187 - £1,491 *

The estimated fuel cost figure is a guide to how much this model will cost to fuel each year, so you can compare between cars. It's calculated by using the model's average mpg (calculated from both town centre and motorway driving) and the average fuel price. It's based on the following cost-per-litre: petrol 135p and diesel 141p. Prices are updated daily.

Summary Running Costs

Servicing period

20,000 miles (major), 10,000 miles (minor).

Warranty

Mechanical three years, bodywork six years.

Road tax (12 months)

£120.00 - £270.00

Vehicle excise duty (VED) varies according to the CO2 emissions and the fuel type of the vehicle. For cars registered after March 1st 2001 VED or road tax is based on the car's CO2 emissions. For cars registered before March 1st 2001 it is based on engine size.

Full running costs data

3 out of 5

Green credentials

  • A
  • B
  • C
  • D
  • E
    140
  • F
  • G
  • H
  • I
  • J
  • K
  • L
  • M
    278

CO2 emission figure (g/km)

Fuel economy rating

The arrows indicate the best and worst CO2 bands for this model.

Emissions summary

Golf scores quite well on the eco front. With an average of 188 g/km CO2 across the line-up, its emissions are fairly standard for a small family hatchback. The range is not particularly economical, averaging 38 mpg.

Find the exact engine and CO2