The Volkswagen Golf R Is Nearly a $50,000 Car Now

Volkswagen updated the GTI and Golf R for 2025. Both cars have tweaked styling inside and out, and there’s more power from the Golf R’s turbocharged 2.0-liter engine. The result is a notable price bump, led by a hefty $1,435 increase for the Golf R.

With VW’s $1,225 destination charge included, the 2025 Golf R now starts at $48,325. That price gets you 328 horsepower sent to all four wheels through a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission. While VW giveth power—13 more ponies compared to last year—the company taketh away the third pedal. Going forward, the DSG gearbox is the only transmission offered.

The same holds true for the GTI, which receives a modest $480 year-over-year increase. Its base price for 2025 is $33,670; for that, you get the same 241 hp version of the 2.0L turbo driving just the front wheels. A seven-speed DSG is the sole transmission, though it does have paddles if you want to select specific gears. Still, it’s not the same as heel-towing into a corner as the inside rear wheel lifts off the track.

Visually speaking, both Golfs have mild updates to the front with new headlights and redesigned lower fascias. Inside, the GTI and Golf R share a new 12.9-inch touchscreen running the company’s latest MIB3 system. The GTI also receives a “more intuitive layout” that kills the unloved haptic steering wheel controls for actual buttons. Sadly, the same treatment doesn’t come to the Golf R, but VW is keen to remind you that, at 328 hp, it’s the most powerful production Golf of them all.

Will prospective buyers accept the price bump? Sales for the Golf R rose 29.6 percent while GTI sales jumped almost 50 percent. That said, their combined sales of 15,268 units is still a small slice of VW’s pie next to its SUVs. We can’t help wondering how many of those sales were driven by the impending demise of the manual transmission, but we’ll find out when 2025 models reach dealerships later this year.

50