“To call the Golf R32
  the ‘Alpha Male of
  hot hatches’ is to over-
  look the breadth of its
  talents. Fast and
  furious it undoubtedly
  is — but it’s also a
  fully-functioning, five-
  door family hatch.
  Power to the People…”

CARS JUST KEEP GETTING FASTER and drivers keener. Take, for example, the hot hatch market. Arguably it was Volkswagen who, virtually single-handed, created the 'hot hatch' with the original — you might say iconic — Golf GTi. Now once again, after as many incarnations as there are digits on your hand, the MkV Golf GTi is the one to beat. There is a truism that no matter how good you make something someone, somewhere, will try to out-do you. So it may as well be you. The Volkswagen Golf GTi is a brilliant concept; a brilliant car. And then along came Volkswagen with the ultimate Golf — the R32.

While the current fifth-edition Golf GTi would be a very good place to stop to accept the accolades, Volkswagen has taken it as jump-off point for the R32. you could be chuffed — and rightly so — with the GTi's 197bhp under your right foot. But R32 customers get another 50bhp — to take it upto 247bhp — matched to 236lb ft of torque at 2,800rpm and a 3.2-litre V6. And a sportier chassis and 4Motion four-wheel drive. The cost for all this? £25K. Or to put it into perspective, just £4K over the highly-acclaimed Golf GTi. Put that way, it sounds like a pretty good deal. And, of course, the UK's original allocation of 450 R32s sold out shortly after the car went on sale. Good news — because continued demand means residual values will remain high.

So what don't you get? Refreshingly, no 'in your face' styling. Differ-entiating the R32 from your everyday GTi is an aluminium-look grille with horizontal strakes, uniquely-shaped front and rear bumpers, distinctive multi-spoked 18-inch alloy wheels wearing 225/40 rubber, substantial bright blue brake callipers and, at the rear, there are darkened rear light clusters, a subtle roof spoiler and a brace of large, chromed tailpipes centred in the rear valance. Our test car, resplen-dent in Deep Blue pearl effect paintwork, looked really fabulous. For those who know, the only real giveaway is the discreet R32 badge on its tail.

The cabin is focussed and purposeful. Slip behind the beautifully-crafted flat-bottomed — and really great-to-grip — leather-rimmed three-spoke wheel and you'll spot more 'blue' touches: the stark white-on-black speedo and rev-counter both sport sharp blue needles. The heat-insulating window glass is also tinted blue. The instrument dials, including the 180mph speedometer, are exclusive to the R32. There's height and reach adjustment of the steering wheel and comfortable, immensely supportive bolstered Sports seats that hold your body firm without pinching. The relationship between the seats, major controls and steering wheel is spot-on; and finding the perfect driving position is the work of a moment. That it is perfect is confirmed by the fact that once set, you don't find yourself 'fine-tuning' every few miles. Another major plus point is A1 visibility.

Standard equipment is generous and R32 drivers are unlikely to want for much. Standard kit includes four one-shot auto up/down windows, 2Zone electronic climate control, four electric windows, height-adjust-able front seats, electrically heated/adjustable door mirrors, multi-function computer, rain-sensing wipers, automatic dimming rear-view mirror, automatic bi-Xenon headlamps (with superb dipped and main beams), air conditioned glovebox, flat tyre indicator and an 8-speaker radio/CD and multi-function steering wheel with audio controls. High quality materials and more bright metal touches help lift the cabin above the standard Golf GTi. Note the aluminium gear knob, aluminium-look foot pedals and footrest along with some classy, engine-turned (called 'Engine Spin') aluminium inserts in the dash and centre console.

Other nice touches include the repeater indicators integrated into the door mirror housings, letting you know that your indicators are flashing without you needing to look away from the road ahead, an auto-dimming rear-view mirror that you can turn off (ever struggled to reverse at night with one that you can't?), a multi-stepped, adjustable height centre front armrest and a good selection of lidded and rubber-lined storage cubbies with a spacious glove box. The double-headed bottle-opener can not only can be used to open bottles, but it also divides up the twin cup-holder/roll-top storage box just aft of the gearlever. All are useful and well-considered features. Items like the dial-and-forget two-zone climate control, powered lumbar support and excellent under-thigh support from the seats all help make the cabin a relaxing place to be.

Our test car benefited from some desirable optional extras: heated seats (five-stage, and the heat goes all the way up to your shoulder-blades!), full leather upholstery, DVD SatNav with 6.5-inch colour screen and a 6-disc CD autochanger in the front armrest.

Given its sporting abilities, it would be easy to overlook the R32's everyday practicality: the Golf is a particularly spacious hatchback. The R32 comes in both 3-door and, as tested here, 5-door guises and with a decent sized boot — 275 litres, and the luggage capacity goes up to 1.230 litres if you fold the 60:40 split rear seats. Rear seat passengers will not feel disadvantaged: they get plenty of room for everything from their head to their feet and have a well-padded centre armrest. There's also a very large — and very handy — ski-hatch. Access via the tailgate is easy, and we liked the natty tilt-to-open hatch handle disguised as a large VW boot badge. All-in-all, it's ideal for the family in a rush.

And 'rush' it most certainly can. Our test car was fitted with the con-ventional 6-speed manual 'box. But there's also the high-tech paddle-shifting Direct-Shift Gearbox, offering the choice of sequential manual or fully automatic modes, that helps the R32 hit 62mph from standstill in 6.2 seconds. Not that the manual's 0-62mph sprint time of 6.5 seconds is anything to worry about. The knockout punch is not the unfussed way it comes off the blocks (the four-wheel drive makes the rapid take-off seem deceptively nonchalant), but the linear in-gear acceleration — for which you can thank 236lb ft of pulling power, along with a well-stacked set of gear ratios. The gear change is tactile, with a nice precision-feel 'clicky' action. And the leather and polished aluminium gear knob with its 'squared' collar also feels great to use.

What you discover pretty quickly is that this 3.2 V6 loves to rev. Throttle response makes it easy to indulge: just a light dab of the pedal sends the rev-counter's blue pointer whipping round the clock. And the harder it revs, the better it sounds. Twist the key in the ignition and there's a metallic bark that immediately announces 'POWER'. At low revs there's a muted yet unmistakable V6 thrum, quickly building as you press your foot down to become a stirring racetrack yowl as it closes relentlessly on the 6,500rpm rev-limit.

Definitely worth mentioning is that while the six-cylinder powerplant sounds great worked hard, cruising motorways is a refined affair with the 247bhp happy to meld into the background. This R32 is a soothing long-drive companion. Saunter or surge — this super-Golf does both equally well. Top speed, incidentally, is limited to 155mph. And, travell-ing fast, it feels utterly stable. So watch the dials, because three-figure licence-losing speeds are deceptively easy. Worth a mention
are the excellent bi-Xenon headlights: the blue-ish light makes night driving as pleasurable as it is during the daytime.

Of course, where the R32 scores over the GTi — and, by definition, other very hot hatches — is with its four-wheel drive set-up.
So instead of power spinning away you get unwavering traction and outstanding all-weather grip levels. As you would expect, the four-wheel drive makes it easy to use as much of the performance you choose. Whenever and wherever: A-roads, B-roads and motorways. But best of all is a testing twisty road, where the surefooted and chuckable R32 feels securely planted at all times. Push hard and the R32's response is always the same. Grip, and even more grip.

The R32 sits 5mm lower on its sport suspension than the Golf GTi (itself 15mm lower than the standard Golf). So body lurch, like that other kill-joy of torque steer, never rears its head. Underpinning the R32 is a stiffly-suspended sports chassis, and while the ride is expected to be firm, the damping is good enough to ensure a compliant ride over the bounciest black-top.

Four-wheel drive systems tend to leach out 'feel' from a car's steering. The R32 is fitted with electromechanical speed-sensitive power steer-ing and the feel is most definitely there. More importantly, from the first turn of the wheel, response is clean, sharp and direct — not even degraded by the slightest hint of the torque steer or wheelspin that can be unavoidable in front-wheel driven hot hatches. Such a problem is totally unknown in the R32.

In something this quick, it goes without saying that you need damn good brakes. The R32's are just that. Damn good. Top of the pedal response is sharp but you soon get used to it. Prod hard and you'll find a real eagerness to stop, courtesy of 345mm ventilated front and 310mm rear discs. Like anything else it will, given enough provocation, step out of line. But the brakes can scrub off speed as easily as the accelerator can pile it on and besides, the ESP is always there — ready and waiting backstage to step in and correct any mistimed exuberance.

Perhaps the most likeable aspect of the R32's character is the way it puts you at your ease and seduces you to play. Okay, the 4Motion and V6 powerplant have added some extra pounds — the R32 weighs in at 1,590kgs. But it feels as balanced and nimble as its hot-hatch persona leads you to expect. The secret is good communication and it amply compensates for the additional mass. Behind the wheel of the R32,
the driver is Master and Commander. You ask, the R32 obeys. It's a state of affairs that makes this wieldy and involving Golf extraordinarily reassuring to drive, particularly at high speed.

The acid test for cars like these is how well they multi-task. The R32 multi-tasks with the best of them. At one end of the spectrum it can hack it with the hairiest of the pack; at the other extreme it can play the refined premium hatchback. In which role, we should mention, it will return 34mpg on the extra-urban cycle. The combined and town official mpg figures are 26.4 and 19 respectively. We don't spare the horses and recorded an overall test figure of 25.5mpg.

We haven't mentioned safety kit but you get lots of it, starting with the 4WD and a five-star Euro NCAP rating. Also standard are ABS and Hydraulic Brake Assist, Electronic Stabilisation Programme that includes Electronic Differential Lock and traction control. The driver and front passenger get active head restraints and airbags. There's also a cur-tain airbag system for front and rear passengers and front seat side impact airbags. As you'd expect, both front seat belts are height-adjustable. Additionally, there's automatic coming/leaving home lighting and dusk-sensing, automatic driving lights.

Paper comparisons could make the standard Golf GTi seem a real bar-gain compared to its more powerful big brother. However, step outside the Volkswagen arena and you'll quickly find that the same kind of thrills the R32 delivers so willingly come far more expensively from some other marques. Plus the R32 delivers on a second front. Like its VW-badged GTi stablemate, it effortlessly doubles up as a capable and fully fledged family car. That it is also so exhilarating to drive confirms its position as the Alpha Male of hot hatches.

Volkswagen Golf R32 5-door | £25,085 Maximum speed: 155mph | 0-62mph: 6.5 seconds Test MPG: 25.5mpg | Power: 247bhp | Torque: 236lb ft Visit Volkswagen's website