Volkswagen Golf Alltrack

Four-wheel-drive wagon proves there's still life in the estate car yet

- Alastair Crooks

IF there's a brand that's really latched onto the SUV boom, it's With the T-Cross, Taigo, T-Roc, Tiguan and Touareg, its SUV range is extensive, but VW still thinks there's also room for a jacked-up estate, in the shape of the Golf Alltrack.

We're very familiar with the Mk8 Golf, but this Alltrack version of the estate is a unique offering within its range. It's powered by the same 2.0-litre, turbocharged four-cylinder diesel engine found in the GTD diesel hot hatch. With that car now only available as a hatchback, no other Golf pairs an estate body with this powertrain.

On paper the Alltrack looks impressive. Although it has a bigger, heavier body than the GTD hatch, it has the same 7.1-second 0-62mph time and will go on to 142mph. A taller body means the aerodynamics aren't as slippery and CO₂ emissions rise to 147g/km compared with the GTD hatch's 136g/km. But these figures are better than those of the similarly sized Tiguan.

We had no issues with the way the old Golf Alltrack drove, because it felt like a regular Golf, and it's a similar story with this latest model. You might expect a 15mm increase in ride height to be detrimental to its cornering ability, but we wouldn't say it feels appreciably worse than a regular Golf.