GOLF R

FORGET WHAT YOU THOUGHT YOU KNEW ABOUT THE VOLKSWAGEN GOLF R. THE LATEST VERSION HAS GONE WILD

- GEORG KACHER

WITHIN AN 80-KILOMETRE RADIUS of Wolfsburg, the countryside is about as featureless as the Sahara desert. For real variety and driving pleasure, you can do a lot worse than head into the former East Germany, taking in parts of the Harz mountains and historic cities such as Quedlinburg.

Although reunification had some very negative effects on the old GDR – from unemployment and higher taxes to the arrival of radar speed traps – thankfully it did not mess with some of the country’s greatest driving roads. Some have survived in their original form, namely a cobblestone centre strip much too narrow for two vehicles, flanked by extra-wide and accordingly slippery loam shoulders. While the main thoroughfares were speedily reconstructed with EU money, these minor roads have barely changed in decades.

It’s no surprise that in this part of Germany, companies doing very well for new-car sales include Hyundai and Kia (with their seven-year warranty). This is challenging turf. And yet the new Golf R feels instantly at home here, not once chafing its protruding chin spoiler, kerbing a vulnerable 20-inch wheel or denting the precious low-riding exhaust – all positive signs for when it eventually lands Down Under late this year.