In fifty years and eight facelifts, the Volkswagen Golf has become iconic in automotive history with nearly 37 million units sold worldwide since 1974.
“More than 2,000 people have opted for a new Golf every day over the last 50 years,” calculated Volkswagen, which is celebrating, this Friday, the launch of the first generation of the Golf on March 29, 1974. A car with angular shapes designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro which was to replace the legendary, rounded Beetle. It immediately met with success, particularly with its version on the GTI.
In fifty years, eight generations of Golf have succeeded one another. The latest version dating back to 2019 continues to be produced at the Wolfsburg factory, the historic stronghold of the VW brand, founded in 1937, but also at other production sites in Germany as well as in seven other countries. And the Golf remains the manufacturer's best-selling model in Germany according to the market analysis firm Statista.
A plug-in hybrid version
To keep up with the times and meet demand, the Golf has adapted by gaining weight but also with new engines like this year with a plug-in hybrid version. For the latter, VW promises an “all-electric range of more than 100 km” as well as “voice control and a conversational agent based on artificial intelligence Chat GPT”.
To delve into this history, the brand is organizing an exhibition in Wolfsburg in northern Germany, from Tuesday until February 23, 2025.