Used Volkswagen Golf GTE 2015-2019 review
What's the used Volkswagen Golf GTE hatchback like?
Proof that the VW Golf comes in all shapes and sizes to appeal to all is to be found in the GTE.
This is the 2015 to 2019 plug-in hybrid version of the seventh-generation (Mk7) version, which means it mates a conventional petrol engine with an electric motor and has the capability to run on electric-only power for up to a claimed 31 miles. Thus the GTE can take advantage of all that’s good about electric-only motoring for short journeys, while its entirely conventional petrol engine means you can motor normally once the batteries have run out of juice - in other words, there are no range anxiety issues.
Paying a bit more, either new or used, gets you the GTE Advance, with its sat-nav, heated front seats, rear tinted windows, 18in wheels and an exterior sound generator designed to let the public know you are there when the car is in electric mode.
On the road, the GTE is smooth, refined and decently quick. Indeed its 0 to 62mph acceleration time is nearly as quick as the GTI’s, at 7.6sec. It’s rapid and, in electric-only running, pleasingly quiet, but it doesn’t have the sharpness to it that the GTI has, and it isn’t quite so much fun to drive.
Of course, its real forte is economy. You can run the Golf GTE in one of four modes: pure electric, hybrid, GTE and ‘battery charge’. In pure electric mode it behaves much like the fully electric e-Golf, so the petrol engine stays switched off and there's a silent stream of power the instant you push the accelerator pedal.
With a fully topped-up battery (which takes 3-4 hours from a domestic three-pin socket) expect to get about 20 miles down the road before the batteries run out of juice, rather than the claimed 31 miles. In cold weather, you won’t even get that far.
Most of the time it's easier to run in hybrid mode, with the 1.4-litre petrol engine being assisted by an electric motor to improve performance and help deliver good fuel economy. As in all the best plug-in hybrids, there’s a seamless transition between petrol and electric power, so you can barely detect which is doing the bulk of the work.
