What makes a good hot hatch? Excessive styling? Nope. A car capable of achieving ludicrous speeds? Not that too. A great hot hatch is relatively fast and should provide you with a ton of fun, but also practical and useable on a daily basis. The Volkswagen Scirocco has managed to do just about that.
In the last couple of years, the Scirocco has been the wheels of choice for people that wanted to move on from a Japanese performance car onto a European one. The Scirocco's trump card is its impressively low fuel consumption and charmingly youthful appeal. Those with the need for a little more speed can opt for its brother on steroids, the snappy Scirocco R.
Up close and
Personal
To a neophyte, the new Scirocco could easily be mistaken for its predecessor. Such an oversight is forgivable because the changes on the new one are pretty subtle, yet meritable to the trained eye.
Exterior changes to the frontal section consist of precisely drawn lines, a new light signature by the head lights and Golf GTI-inspired aerodynamic 'blades' fitted at the sides of the bumper. The headlamps of the Scirocco have now been integrated with a sleek, convex LED contour beneath the Xenon module, giving the impression that the car has 'eyelids' while functioning as daytime running lights.
The aim of the design was to give the face of the Scirocco a more contoured and wider visage, and the Volkswagen designers have pulled this off with the help of a larger lower grille and redesigned upper grille, both finished in black. One could say that the changes to the front give the Scirocco an even lower stance, which is all the rage these days.
In our opinion, the changes to the rear are a little more obvious. Gone is the round and cute behind of the Scirocco. In its place are a new set of LED rear lights and a more angular tailgate. The trapezoidal shaped taillights taper in towards the tailgate, which is now furnished with a horizontal light-refracting edge.
To match the aggressive look of the front, the rear bumper is paired with a black diffuser that is also in place to make the rear appear lower. Accessing the boot has also been made easier. The Volkswagen badge now swings upwards around the central axis when pressure is placed on it, doubling up as a handle for opening the boot lid. An added point for hot hatch practicality!
Interior enhancements have not been forgotten either. Volkswagen has upped the sportiness for this Scirocco with sport seats, a revamped instrument cluster, a steering wheel design adapted once again from the Golf GTI as well as auxiliary instruments, or 'gauges' as they are better known as.
These centrally mounted gauges are there to inform the driver of the turbocharger's boost pressure, chronometer and engine oil temperature. While some may frown upon this as a 'boy racer' thing, this holy trinity of auxiliary instruments is actually a feature which pays tribute to the original Scirocco.
The Drive
Mated to a seven-speed DSG gearbox, power in this new Scirocco has been reduced, sadly to fit the Category A COE criteria of a maximum output of 130bhp. What you get out of this new 1.4 TSI engine is 120bhp and 200Nm of torque, about 38bhp down from the previous model.
On the flipside, we got an average fuel consumption of 14.5km/L and the car still does the century sprint slightly under 10 seconds.
For a hot hatch to be even considered as one, it has to handle well and slap a grin across your face each time you take it through a bend. Making up for its slight loss of power, the configuration of the running gear in the Scirocco earns it the name 'sports chassis' in all aspects. The McPherson axle up front allows for a balance of precision driving as well as comfort while at the rear, a four-link axle is called upon to do the job.
Mated to a seven-speed DSG gearbox, power in this new Scirocco has been reduced, sadly to fit the Category A COE criteria of a maximum output of 130bhp. What you get out of this new 1.4 TSI engine is 120bhp and 200Nm of torque, about 38bhp down from the previous model.
On the flipside, we got an average fuel consumption of 14.5km/L and the car still does the century sprint slightly under 10 seconds.
For a hot hatch to be even considered as one, it has to handle well and slap a grin across your face each time you take it through a bend. Making up for its slight loss of power, the configuration of the running gear in the Scirocco earns it the name 'sports chassis' in all aspects. The McPherson axle up front allows for a balance of precision driving as well as comfort while at the rear, a four-link axle is called upon to do the job.
The unit we drove, had the optional Dynamic Chassis Control (DCC) feature and what this does is allow you to select between three damping modes - Normal, Sport and Comfort.
Conclusion
Prior to this update, the styling of the Scirocco was already evergreen and despite being back in the market for six years, it could still hold its own against much newer models. But as American inventor and manufacturer, John Deere said, "If we don't improve our product, somebody else will." Volkswagen has definitely found the right answer with the Scirocco's makeover.
The new Scirocco is without a doubt a head-turner with a practical side. You get two rear seats and a decent boot for something its size, plus you won't be needing to visit the petrol station very often.
