The Golf is the sharper, more responsive car. It seems to
bring the rear axle into play sooner, has delightfully even-handed, well-managed
traction and faster engine response, allowing it to pull out the hard yards
from tight corners before the Merc’s hefty turbo
spools up. It’s deft and neat, has sharper, more wristy steering and a pointy front end. You can
really hustle it, and it’ll stay poised and eager.
The Merc requires more trust
because it’s less instantly reactive. Here, it’s all about controlling the
nose, keeping the weight on under braking, getting on the power early (both
really relish a bit of left-foot braking, right-foot throttle if you’re up for
it – the Merc’s stoppers are less grabby, too),
surfing the wave of torque. The Merc’s nose is more supple – there’s a bit of roll there, a hint of
softness and delay, which is great for absorbency on bumpy roads, but means it
doesn’t pick out a line as cleanly as the R or dive into corners with quite the
same alacrity.
There's sufficient
space for four adults and their luggage inside the Volkswagen Golf R
But the A45 also has brilliant seats to go with that coupe
driving environment and, perhaps more fundamentally, a naughtier vibe about it.
While the Golf is Peter Perfect, the A45 is Taz the
Tasmanian Devil, a roaring, yelping, spinning nut-job
that you hang on to, knowing you’re going to have a good time. Put it this way:
when we wanted to do a jump shot on the glorious mountain road beyond Rhayader, we choose the Golf because we knew it wouldn’t do
anything nasty, but driving home that night, I was in the A45. It’s the car
that more accurately channels the legacy of that earlier generation of 4WD
heroes, the Evos and Imprezas.
It’s a car that wants you to stay on the gas all the time, and only really
comes alive when you do, engine chomping at cold air above 5,000rpm, rear axle
finally getting involved.
The A45’s AMG
Drive Unit could hardly be simpler to use
Special mention for the stability control systems in both
cars (which have barely ever needed to get involved) and another, more
perplexed nod for the Merc’styre pressures, which are a whopping 10psi higher at the
front than the back. Strange. Today’s fuel results
don’t go the Merc’s way, either, the A45 AMG having
averaged a frankly distressing 16.9mpg to the R’s 19.4mpg. standard
The Golf R looks
impressive with two pairs of chromed tailpipes
We finally roll into Aberystwyth
at 5.15pm, having covered 406 miles on our B-road journey across Britain. Best
road? Probably the one that wasn’t a B-road at all, the
mountain road from Rhayader. But, to be fair,
every B-road we touched was worth discovering – they’re just endlessly
inventive, fascinating ways of getting around, demanding more of you and the
car than bigger roads, but rewarding way, way more in return. Best car? You
could pull that one both ways. In the end, although I enjoyed the Mercedes more
in extremis, I’m giving the nod to the Golf, not least because it’s nearly
$11,650 cheaper and just as fast across country. And the
journey itself? Well, parked up on Aberystwyth’s
beachfront as the sun drops cleanly into the sea, we conclude that South Marine
Terrace makes a much better end point than Gas Works Road.
