| Week at the Wheel | VW Golf BlueMotion Technology |

Inside & Out:

What's left to say about the Golf that hasn't been said already? Wherever you are in the Golf range, from S to R, you know that the cabin will be a feast of unassuming but absolute quality. It's the type of quality that only becomes awesome either in direct comparison with another hatchback, or after a few hundred miles of creak-free surface touching. That it's cheaper now than equivalent Astras and Focuses - both of which are priced above their stations - is a bonus, and probably the reason Golfs are so ubiquitous now.

If you're wondering what the difference between the BlueMotion Golf proper and this BlueMotion Technology model is, it's that this car comes with more kit and doesn't have the aerodynamic and gear ratio changes the fully skimmed green Golf does. For that you lose 7g/km and have to stump up £35 per year in VED. It still has start-stop though, cutting out the same 1.6-litre TDI engine at traffic lights.

Engine & Transmission:

This car is largely about how many miles can be drained from a tank of diesel, though the person that plumps for the Technology version rather than the 99g/km one probably has one eye on something other than strict parsimony. What the smooth 1.6-litre TDI does well is avoid ever feeling like an eco-based compromise; it has to be kept in the mid-range lest it feels wheezy, but it's never frustratingly lacklustre. And the refinement as compared to the old 1.9-litre eco hatch harbingers is in another league.

We'd still prefer a six-speed manual gearbox though. The five-speed item doesn't have you reaching for a sixth in top gear, but tighter ratios would make it easier to stay in the narrow power band - albeit while messing up the economy. Ho hum.

Ride & Handling:

The new Golf still suffers from some of the residual reputation of the MkIV - the assumption that it's slightly slack, lumpy and a leap behind the Ford Focus. That's not the case, though. The Golf might be a shade behind the Ford in terms of the sublime balance that car pulls off between sporty and supple, but it's really only degrees were talking here. This green Golf serves up accurate, light steering, a chassis that rides bumps well and, when pushed, there's the predictable wash of understeer you'd find with any well sorted, low-powered front-wheel drive car.

VW through and through, then: bankable.

Equipment, Economy & Value for Money:

Ok, comparison time. The Golf is the best all-round hatch on sale today - that's a given (take it from us) - but green cars are all about the numbers. It's about getting a balance between initial outlay and running costs - and that depends on your mileage and whether you're a private, company car or fleet owner. We'll leave the benefit in kind minefield alone, and we've already mentioned that the 107g/km of CO₂ puts it in the £35 VED bracket as opposed to the zero one of the BlueMotion proper. That's hardly a deal breaker, is it? Plus, after April, when VED changes (again), the difference will only be £20 per annum.

However, economy drops from 74.3- to 68.9mpg, and that seems like a lot. It's still better than the 62.8mpg of the regular 1.6-litre TDI, yet all three have the same 104bhp. So, what you've got to decide is what you want to pay, and whether you can claw the money back in fuel and tax costs. A BlueMotion Tech commands around £400 more than a standard TDI SE but gives you around 6mpg more. You do the math.

Overall:

This halfway house between standard TDI and BlueMotion Golfs should appeal to those who like the idea of incredible day-to-day economy but without the low specification and mild compromise of the eco-version proper. Certainly, if the numbers stack up so as to make this a cheaper option, go for it, but if you're a private buyer for whom the extra price won't be clawed back by the extra economy, just buy the regular car. Nobody's kidding themselves here: if the environment was your main concern, you'd be on a pushbike.