2007 Volkswagen GTI 5-door

2007 Volkswagen GTI 5-door - The five-door is very similar to the three-door. They have identical exterior dimensions, as well as front and rear interior volume, and, of course, the 200 horsepower jewel of an inline-four. Even curb weight is close. Our test car weighed in at 3255 pounds, only 35 more than the victorious GTI in our March 2006 comparison test. Such minor differences mean that none of the GTI’s driving pleasure is lost. The heavily bolstered and firmly cushioned seats keep the driver in place and comfortable. And the steering wheel, pedals, shifter are perfectly placed. The suspension is superbly tuned to feel sporty with minimal lean in a corner (it grips up to 0.86 g’s laterally) while still comfortably absorbing almost all bumps and jounces the wheels ride over.

Our test car came with the smooth-shifting, six-speed manual gearbox that we enjoy at least as much as the high-tech, double-clutch, paddle-shifted transmission that VW calls DSG. And despite the big torque available to the front wheels (207 pound-feet at just 1800 rpm), it’s easy to get the power down. This powertrain combination took our GTI to 60 mph in 6.4 seconds and through the quarter-mile in 15 seconds flat. And, just like the three-door, there is always enough low-end grunt to buzz by traffic around town, or pull authoritatively out of hair-pins out in the country.

So what is different? Two extra doors, in back. Those doors not only make the back seat much more accessible, but actually usable by adults. There is plenty of foot, leg, and headroom for most average size people (space was ample for your 5-foot, 11-inch author). And it’s downright cavernous for a budding family with a couple of kids.

The price of entry for VW’s sporty five-door hatch is $23,230, or $500 more than the three-door. We think that’s a bargain for more accessible space without any discernable loss in performance. As far we are concerned, this is the GTI to buy.