A Different View – 2015 Volkswagen Golf R

March 22, 2021 by Randy Stern

How do you transform one of the world's most popular cars into something truly special?

The Volkswagen Golf celebrates 40 years of existence this year. It defined a segment worldwide with a simple formula: A hatchback that does everything and the ability to please everyone. Since then, the Golf (and the Rabbit for a couple of generations in this country) had the ability to excite enthusiasts with performance editions that created new segments along the way. The GTI was the original "hot hatch." It remains this way today, now in its seventh generation.

For VW, the GTI was not enough. During the MkIV era, the R32 took Golf onto another plateau with its fire-breathing VR6 engine, 4Motion all-wheel drive and segment defying performance for a consumer vehicle.

Here is the MkVII version – the 2015 Volkswagen Golf R.

To celebrate this magnificent car, my friend, photographer Eric Vilendrer, focused his lens onto the latest edition of VW's hottest Golf to make this Tornado Red example as it basked in the late afternoon sun. Later that day, the car went on a drive with the crew at SouthWest Sunday Cruise group from Shakopee, Minnesota to Tonka Bay. These are Eric's images of the Golf R from that drive.

A review of this newest hot Volkswagen is forthcoming on the web in the near future. In the meantime, enjoy these images from Eric.