The Volkswagen Group's latest hot hatch has finally arrived, and it's a real showstopper. The car's entertainment system is intuitive, with a user-friendly interface that makes navigation a breeze. It's no surprise, then, that the car's ergonomics are on point, with a steering wheel that responds perfectly to every turn and movement.

But what really sets this car apart from its competitors is its practicality. With a spacious interior and ample cargo space, it's perfect for daily driving. And yet, despite its utilitarian nature, it still manages to deliver an exhilarating driving experience. The manual transmission is light and easy to use, making it a joy to drive on the road.

However, if you're planning to use this car as your primary mode of transportation, it's worth considering the DSG twin-clutch transmission option. While some drivers may prefer the more engaging manual transmission, I can see why others would opt for the DSG. It's not that the manual is bad by any means - in fact, it's a solid choice for those who want a more hands-on driving experience.

But when it comes to everyday driving, I think the DSG has its advantages. The power delivery is smooth and linear, with just enough lag to make the engine feel like it's doing its job. And while some may find the sound of the engine to be lacking in excitement, I'd argue that this is a minor quibble at best.

One feature that does set this car apart from its competitors is its four-wheel drive system. While some drivers may not appreciate the added complexity, I think it's a major plus. By prepping the differential for power delivery, the car ensures that traction is maintained even when cornering aggressively. It's a clever system that makes all the difference on slippery roads.

Of course, as with any car, there are trade-offs to consider. If you're planning to take this car out onto the track, I think it would be wise to leave it in the garage. The car is competent, but it's not exactly built for speed. However, if you were to own both this car and a Civic, I'd estimate that you'd spend about 75% of your time driving the Golf GTI and 25% driving the Volkswagen.

But even with those numbers, I think the Golf GTI is still the better car in terms of sheer excitement. There's just something special about driving an agile, responsive hot hatch like the Civic - it's a thrill that's hard to beat. And while the Volkswagen may not offer the same level of thrills and spills as its rival, I think it's still the best car for everyday use.

In fact, if you were to consider the Golf GTI as part of a larger category, I'd argue that hot hatches are possibly the best genre of car out there. They cover just about everybody's needs - they're affordable, reliable, and fast. And let's be honest, what's not to love about a car that can get you from point A to point B quickly and efficiently?

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enboth of these cars that me W Golf R and this Honda Civic type-r I've got really good claims of being hot hatch royalty that golfers may be the best all-around hot hatch has ever been and this Civic type-r is the fastest front-wheel drive hot there's ever been it's great maker isn't it yeah hello was it like my god it's you know what it's really really good it's far and away the best Civic type-r ever I think we now have to consider the car that came before this an engineering study that's what that was all about it was Honda's engineers learning as much as they could about building a very powerful front wheel drive hot hatch and they've applied all of that learning to this car yeah it's funny isn't it because they went through a phase of thinking they weren't gonna do another type on because the world moved on it obviously realized that we still wanted one and I say that last guy was only on so for two years was and it was very one-dimensional because it fair to say this is that's absolute first so this car was developed concurrently with the basic so this platform now with independent rear suspension was always designed and intended to one day become a very powerful front wheel drive haha yeah you don't think it misses anything for not being forward right absolutely I mean it's got it's got good traction it doesn't talk steer wildly yeah yeah it wouldn't be better off of his former driver tour and I think I think it would just be heavier it does feel light and agile because of the double knuckle spring strut especially it doesn't doesn't feel like it's monstering the front tires or talks doing around - but well at least not on the non place designed for evening wear what's it like on a fairly bumpy beer okay just a bit about me right there this car now has a comfort mode as you all know the previous model did it and it's Arkans off the dampers beautifully and it just means that it's got this real plushness to the ride quality it's like sitting on a bed of compressed air it just it goes down the road beautiful I'm actually gonna pay it the biggest compliment that I can pay a car it feels when you're driving at good speed down the bumpy roads like a Porsche GT car that's pretty high praise - yes 2 litre four-cylinder turbocharged engine 320 horsepower it's got tons and tons performance but it's still quite laggy engine so it'd be in third gear at just under 3,000 rpm put your foot down and you can count to 1 here before it really starts boosted yeah just acquired you're going get was good though gearbox is fantastic yeah all type ARS have got make up manual - yes and this is no exception it's really nice ok and yeah the differential works really nicely actually that the differential is so good that it just becomes one of the devices that you can use to control the car so you use the brakes to slow the car down you use the engine to make you go quickly in a straight line and you use the differential to drag you out of a corner it's it's freely freely satisfy initially but what I really like about this car is that it doesn't have any major foibles or any weird little quirks or trades that you have to learn to drive around it's actually intuitive you jump in and you can start driving it well and driving it fast yes straight away intercept device because the the golf is as well so find out in a minute he's really it's very much like that is this still despite the fact that it's a great all-around car is it still exciting as well but it's mega exciting I really do I've been driving around in there all day and I just think it's a huge amount of fun it's a pedal along a good road it's it's quite a pointy chassis it's really well controlled really well sorted and I just think it's a huge fun to drive what's bad okay so there's a lot to like about this car but we should address it should which we address it now yeah we might as well we better get out the way the way it looks I know it's fun it 800s told me that there's only there's no scoops on it there's no skirts and spoilers that are not essential so all of it they all the men - all the spoilers everything they will do something which is something a little something eh they're not just there to to look aggressive yeah but I but I'm like you mate I don't really know anyone of you kind of like the way this car looks yeah I can count on one finger than that people have told me they like you know this car looks it's it's not a looker also the cabin if you're used to premium cars in any way the cabin is going to be a letdown yeah the infotainment is garbage the navigation is just yeah is there is there a worse one that I'm not sure other reaso thing there are certainly are though theater is having said that we now have a good driving position that CS is much lower than it was in the previous car we stow about these mega really supportive seats so in terms of the things that matter in a high performance car this cabin actually isn't bad at all all right can I talk you through the golf and at some point will I suspect will agree which we might refer to I borrowed one time doorbell nice place to set fires hot hatches go try using that and this thing the entertainment system that but now if it all just works its intuitive yeah it's brilliantly it's just as they all are on all the Volkswagen Group cars you know the the ergonomics of the sound drivers are just brilliant the steering wheel goes exactly where he wants it but you could just sit on the deck bring it up close it's just a hot hatchback but first and foremost it's a hatchback yes which offers it quite a lot in terms of design yes car and the Civic they're polar opposite really strange and sample that Civic is just wild yeah totally totally I know there are some there are some people weird options on this and I just think more has been much yeah you know just keep it keep it don't know but it's also pretty quick travelling horse power this one is a DSG twin clutch but you have the DSG on the menu buzzer no you know I've driven 900 miles in a day with a manual and it's fine and it's a good manual as well isn't it it's quite it's Nikki it's quite sort of light and easy easygoing however if I was driving one of these every day and my commute was like most commutes are I think I probably have DSG i I had a pre-facelift car for the best part of the year I did a load of miles in it it was a manual and I actually concluded that I would have the DSG box yeah I think it just suits the nature of the car yeah yeah cuz it's not it's not an engaging kind to have do I don't wanna use the word is not exciting is it it is in a way isn't it but it's not as far as in your face exciting as the Civic if it's it's it's as different properties it's an everyday hot yeah exactly yeah engines edges good engines strong nice linear power delivery there's a bit of lag not loads makes it it makes it alright noise they've got this vehicle sound symposia and the other part of the dashboard to just sort of help that on a bit but it's not you know it's not it's not a screaming engine or anything around is it only the four-wheel drive which means it's got loads of traction it's kind of front led until it wants to look now to the rear announcer but it doesn't wait until it scrambles anymore does it I think issue if you turn in and you're trailing the brakes and took on it it preps the diff to put power to the back which is pretty clever yeah so you no longer sense that it's waiting for the front wheels to slip a chance anything back yeah exactly so I think you never but inevitably it had to be at weight so it's less agile then you've got a Golf GTI I think but considerably less agile than the Civic yeah and ultimately I don't thanks to the time I wouldn't count on much I agree I agree so let's have a think if you were going to the track Dave you owned this car and you're gonna do a track day in this car I think you probably go once and discover that the cars actually not really cut out for track work it's competent but just not that exciting yeah I think if you had the Civic he'd go on track you just think wow that's something we're gonna do that again and he keep doing it yeah how can you be really happy one of these until you did it until you did a track day alongside somebody else if you owned both what you reckon the ratio would be of days that you drove one at versus days you drove down I reckon I'd been in a year she wants three out of days a year driving this rather that's it yeah I agree but I think we both agree don't we that this is it's the better around it yes it's the car that you'd use most of the time we also agree though that in terms of sheer excitement in terms of thrill that Civic as there's got that known agile yeah it's really special isn't it a special car and the Honda no question is the better drivers car but I think this is the best car just maintain all the best drivers go and that probably makes it overall the best hot hatch that's going on so you could make an augment is the best car - well you know what I'd actually go with that I've written in the past that I think colleges are possibly the best genre of car going just because they cover just about everybody's yeah and they're affordable yeah exactly yeah exactly listen ace they're so fast you can go on the road isn't that big you know he'll have a lot of fun in one of these you go quickly super reliable or you know perfectly fine to get into it December just as it is in August yeah and all of that it's such a difficult car to practice\n"