Volkswagen Golf GTI

Ergonomic improvements are a welcome enhancement to VW's iconic hot hatch, but there's still no manual version

- Alex Ingram

AS 50th birthday presents go, a brand-new Volkswagen Golf GTI isn't half bad. That's exactly what Volkswagen has gifted itself - and also any buyers with £39,400 to spend. And who can blame the German brand for a little bit of backslapping? After all, very few hot hatches have even come close to achieving a fraction of the 2.3 million sales of GTIs worldwide since 1974.

But popularity isn't the same as ability, and the latest Golf came in for a little criticism when it was launched. Following on from the high standards set by the Mk7, it couldn't quite live up to the same level thanks to the driving experience.

Like the rest of the Golf Mk8 family, the GTI came with a string of ergonomic foibles that managed to irritate enough to detract from the entire package. Fortunately, Volkswagen has responded to all the negative feedback, and a lot of our previous misgivings have been addressed this time around.

On the styling front, there wasn't much to complain about before, so not much has changed. The headlights have revised graphics, and uprated matrix LED technology offers 15 per cent more range than the previous items on high beam. At the back, there are revised tail-light graphics, and these are complemented by new wheel design options, while the GTI badge on the side, previously a small graphic behind the front wheelarch, has been replaced with larger lettering on the door itself.

But it's in the cabin where the last car was subjected to the most criticism, so this is where improvements have been made. The first change is right before your eyes: the welcome return of physical buttons to the steering wheel. They take the place of the fiddly touch controls from before and it's a small, but very welcome change.