The Volkswagen Golf will continue with petrol power well into the next decade.
Volkswagen technical development head Kai Grünitz told Top Gear Netherlands the carmaker can keep the current Golf in production until 2035, just days after its electric successor was reportedly delayed by more than a year.
The Mk8 Volkswagen Golf debuted in late 2019 and went on sale in Australia in 2021. The latest Mk8.5 facelift debuted in Europe this year, and is due here in 2025.
This means by the time the petrol-powered Golf does go out of production, it could be more than 15 years old – and based on an evolution of a platform which has been underpinning Volkswagen Group vehicles since 2012.
The proposed revised lifespan means the Golf would go out of production when petrol and diesel-powered new cars are banned from European showrooms, not when the all-electric Golf debuts.
Volkswagen had previously said the electric Golf – which could be named the ID.Golf – would launch in 2028, however earlier this month German publication Manager Magazin reported the launch had been delayed 15 months to 2029.
Apart from the upcoming ban on new petrol and diesel vehicles in Europe, the other potential hurdle for the petrol-powered Golf’s extended lifespan could be safety regulations, Mr Grünitz told Top Gear Netherlands.
While Volkswagen has been able to continually update the MQB platform upon which the Golf is based, it may reach a point where it cannot conform to safety standards – though this is purely hypothetical for now.
Volkswagen traditionally keeps each Golf generation around for about 10 years. However, the first-generation lasted from 1974 until 2009 in South Africa, where it was sold as the Citi Golf for more than two decades after German production ended.
As reported in February, the Volkswagen Golf GTI nameplate will live on after the hatchback goes electric. Mr Grünitz said it has to be a “real Golf”.
“It has to look like a Golf. It has to be affordable like a Golf. It has to be [capable] like a Golf. And there has to be a GTI.”
MORE: Everything Volkswagen Golf
MORE: Volkswagen Golf’s EV replacement delayed – report
MORE: Volkswagen Golf GTI to live on in the electric age
