First Look: The New 2019 VW Golf MK8 Generation is Here

The MK8 is finally here as Volkswagen has given us our first official sneak peak into this new generation of Golf/GTI. So will this newly improved MK8 Golf/GTI be an improvement over what we feel was the best generation to date, the MK7?

Well the new MK8 appears to be slightly longer and wider than the previous MK7 GTI as you can see from the enlarged wheel arches and bumper in some spy shots.

MK8 Golf Spy Shot

On the exterior the new MK8 Golf/GTI should also be adopting the new headlight design which is found on the new Toureg models.

Details on this car have been pretty secret despite Volkswagen releasing a production schedule already. The first cars are due to roll off the production line as early as June 2019. But what we do know is the MK8 is being marketed as a means to bring Volkswagen into the era of fully connected vehicles as Karlheinz Hell, VW’s small car exec as been quoted in saying “The next Golf will take Volkswagen into the era of fully connected vehicles with extended autonomous driving functions. It will have more software on board than ever before. It will always be online and its digital cockpit and assistance systems will be the benchmark in terms of connectivity and safety.”

The MQB platform is not going anywhere in the new MK8 Golf. It however will be a tad bit lighter than its prior generation by using lighter materials. Shedding about 70kg off of its scale. The same or similar engine configurations will be found but basic trim models such as the GTI should see a slight horsepower improvement over the MK7 numbers. Estimates are 250 bhp for the GTI and 350bhp for the R models.