The Volkswagen Golf SV offers existing Golf buyers that little bit more space and practicality.
Sometimes more is just better and, if you’ve ever got out of a Volkswagen Golf feeling you could do with a bit more space, the answer is right here in the chiselled form of the Golf SV.
It’s not the most committed of five-seat SUVs but there is more space in the back.
Engine-wise, you’ll get a choice of a pair of turbocharged 1.2-litre petrol units with either 83 or 108bhp, or you can upsize to the 1.4-litre turbocharged petrol engines with 123 or 148bhp.
Go diesel instead and there are 87 and 108bhp versions of the 1.6-litre and a 148bhp 2.0-litre flagship.
All engines apart from the 1.2-litre TSI 83bhp can be chosen with a DSG twin-clutch sequential transmission. The 2.0-litre diesel will punt the big-boned Golf SV to 62mph in 9.2 seconds and on to a top speed of 110mph, making it a more-than-adequate long-distance cruiser.
Where the Golf Plus was a bit of a half-hearted effort, the SV is more of an attempt at incorporating MPV design functionality.
The longer wheelbase is key. Volkswagen has grafted another 54mm on to the wheelbase, which might not sound much but it makes a real difference to what you can do with the rear seats.
The total length has increased by 83mm, adding extra luggage capacity at the back. The styling is crisp and handsome – that sharp-creased Golf Mk7 look carrying over – but the added roof length lends it a different stance; more MPV than merely bloated Golf.
Drop inside and it’s largely familiar stuff from the front seats. The classy dash, peerless ergonomics and huge range of seat and wheel adjustability draw no complaints, but the SV gets a custom dash moulding.
There’s adequate storage up front with under-seat drawers and fairly sizeable door bins, but other MPVs ultimately offer more and better.
The back seats miss a trick too, neither tumbling nor being removable.
The three-seat bench splits 60:40 and can fold and recline, but the middle seat is hard and narrow. By contrast, you can fold the middle seat down in a Ford C-MAX or tumble the seats forward.
Headroom and legroom are both excellent and, when the rear seat is slid forward to its farthest extent, boot space increases from a generous 500 litres to a cavernous 590 litres. Fold the rear seats down and you’ll get up to 1,520 litres in there.
Volkswagen charges just over £2,000 more for the SV versus the standard Golf hatch, model for model, and offers the SV in four trim levels. Well, three and a bit, really – the economy special BlueMotion model only being offered in conjunction with the 1.6-litre TDI 110 engine and being trimmed in much the same way as the entry-level S inside.
Even the S isn’t badly appointed, with Bluetooth, a DAB digital radio, SD card reader and CD player with 5.8-inch colour touchscreen, iPod connector, a front centre armrest, dual rear Isofix fittings, seven airbags including one for the driver’s knees, the XDS electronic differential, an automatic post-collision braking system and air conditioning.
The fuel economy of all the diesel engines is excellent, with even the thirstiest capable of eking over 60mpg from a gallon of heavy oil.
In the BlueMotion derivative, the 1.6 TDI gets better than 76mpg, which is good going by anyone’s standards. Even the non-BlueMotion version of the 1.6 TDI 110 returns 72.4mpg, but it’s worth noting that this engine is fitted with a five-speed manual gearbox in S trim, while the rest of the range gets a six-speed.
Even the punchiest petrol engine in the line-up, the 150PS 1.4 TSI, betters 50mpg on the combined cycle and does marginally better when paired with the DSG gearbox.
Emissions start at just 95g/km for the BlueMotion, which is the only model in the range to dip under three figures. The 1.6 TDI 110 just misses out, registering 101g/km.
Residual values look set to mirror those of the Golf hatch, a performance that is among the best in its sector. Volkswagen also aim to keep a cap on the costs of upkeep by offering a fixed-price servicing plan for £15.99 per month.
Spend any time with the Volkswagen SV and an inconvenient truth emerges. All that is shared with the Golf hatchback is brilliant. The SV-specific changes, while useful, just don’t offer much that’s new or exciting.
So what you’re doing is trading a little of the Golf’s agility for a little more space in the back. Is that worth a £2,000+ premium? I’m really not sure.
Compare a Focus to a C-MAX and you’ll see what happens when a manufacturer goes all-out to incorporate true MPV functionality into an extended hatch body. If you want genuinely clever seating and storage solutions, the Golf SV is going to disappoint.
That said, the inherent excellence of the Golf chassis and engines, the depth of engineering, the sheer commitment to getting the basics right and the day-to-day liveability of this car will win you over. So it’s shy of a trick or two? So what? For every Cristiano Ronaldo, you need a Sergio Busquets, willing to do the simple stuff well. For that reason alone, the Golf SV would earn its place on my team sheet.
Facts and figures
Model: Volkswagen Golf SV range
Price: £18,875-26,815
Engine: 2.0TDI
Performance: (2.0TDI) Max speed 110mph/0-60mph 9.2s
Fuel consumption: (2.0TDI) (combined) 64.2mpg
COemissions: 95-130g/km