New 2021 Volkswagen Golf GTI Clubsport 45 on sale now

The new Volkswagen Golf GTI Clubsport 45 is on sale in the UK now, with prices starting from £39,980. It’s based on the hottest version of the company’s long-lived front-wheel drive hatchback, but with a few tweaks to celebrate the Golf GTI’s 45th birthday.

Styling revisions over the standard Golf GTI Clubsport include gloss black mirror caps, a gloss black tailgate spoiler and special edition “45” badges for the car’s flanks. There’s also a new set of 19-inch alloy wheels with red detailing.

Inside, it gets Art Velours-trimmed sports seats embroidered with the GTI logo. There’s a new sports steering wheel, too, which carries the same special edition 45 badging as the car’s exterior.

Aside from visual changes, there’s also a new lightweight Akrapovič titanium exhaust system. Volkswagen has also fitted the Clubsport with a new “Race” package, which removes the car’s 155mph top speed restrictor. That means, this special edition Golf GTI is the fastest model in the Golf line-up, with a top speed of 166mph.

Like the Golf GTI Clubsport, the Clubsport 45 is powered by a 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine, which produces 296bhp and 400Nm of torque. That’s 54bhp and 30Nm more than the standard Mk8 Golf GTI.

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It is only available with a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox, which sends drive to the front wheels via an electronically-controlled limited-slip differential for improved traction. Like the standard Clubsport, the 45 can sprint from 0–62mph in 5.6 seconds.

The first-generation Golf GTI was launched back in 1976 as one of the originals of the hot hatchback genre. Since then, Volkswagen has sold more than 2.3 million examples across eight generations. 

With this 45th anniversary model arriving so early in the latest Golf’s lifecycle, we’re faced with the prospect of the Mk8 GTI remaining on sale for the car’s 50th birthday, too.

Now read our review of the Mk8 Volkswagen Golf GTI. Let us know your thoughts in the comments below…