#VOTY2025: And The Winner Is…
After all of the scoring, measuring social media metrics, and your votes…there is new Victory & Reseda Vehicle of the Year award winner!
The photo maybe be a giveaway. However, it is a very well-deserved winner. Something that may eb of a surprise, but it shouldn't.
No one really had this picked ahead of your vote. The vehicle's own trajectory and trajectory already foretold the story. It was just a matter of time until we had the chance to see it acclaimed amongst the previous winners of this award.
Without further ado, the 2025 Victory & Reseda Vehicle of the Year award goes to…
The Volkswagen Golf GTI and Golf R!
Before you accuse us of cribbing from our colleagues at MotorTrend (who also gave the GTi and R their due for their Car of The Year), we had the idea of putting both variants of one of the most important vehicles in Volkswagen history before we learned what they did on their end. Honestly, you can't have one without the other.
With that said, the Mk8.5 Golf saw significant updates while staying true to its mission. The Golf R benefitted from a serious performance bump to 328 horsepower. Adding the Black Edition and the Euro Style package were icing on the cake. The essence remains as an all-wheel drive sport compact that puts more smiles on your face while giving you teh thrills it is engineered to deliver.
The Golf GTI will be celebrating its global 50th anniversary in 2026. Over eight generations, it continues to provide enthusiasts a level of performance, excitement and engagement that is worthy of its history. Even with the standard DSG transmission, you cannot be faulted for shagging one around the turns without any care in the world.
Combined, they represent everything Volkswagen has built in creating two sport compact icons that are universally beloved. In five decades, they remain one of the vehicles that enthusiasts point to as influential in their automotive lives.
Victory & Reseda congratulates Volkswagen of America on their initial #VOTY award. It took a while, but we appreciate everything they have done with the Golf GTI and Golf R over the years.
By the way, here is our announcement video here!
All photos by Randy Stern