VW Golf GT 1.4 TSI ACT 140 PS

The third of the trio of new Golfs I sampled was a GT variant, with the 1.4 litre TSI petrol engine.

This was especially interesting in technical terms as it was equipped with VW’s ‘Active Cylinder Technology’ (ACT) system. As explained in my introductory text, this is designed to shut down the central two cylinders of the four, to save fuel when the car is running under light load conditions.

First, though, I need to mention the highly enjoyable nature of this car, when driven enthusiastically and normally, on all four cylinders. It is smooth, powerful and torquey – and delivers a very rewarding drive.

However, before driving the car I spent some time talking with a technical person at Volkswagen, who explained to me how the system operates, and assured me that the change in engine running between four and two cylinders, and back again, when the ACT system operates, is imperceptible. Well, call me sceptical… Should I confess that I was prepared for this assertion to be taken ‘with a pinch of salt’.

So, to try the system for myself, when out on a long road route in the countryside, and with no following traffic, I allowed the car to run on light throttle, trying hard to detect when the centre two cylinders stopped contributing. I became aware of the dash-mounted warning lamp illuminating, to tell me that this was happening, and, when I hit the gas pedal to give full throttle, noticed that the lamp had extinguished again, but I COULD NOT hear, nor feel, the change from four to two cylinders, and back again. Remarkable – and it just shows that I shouldn’t be such a doubting Thomas…

The main benefits of this system are, of course, improved emissions and mpg figures. So despite an increase in power of 18 PS or nearly 15 per cent for this 140 PS version of the TSI engine (compared with the 122PS variant I had tried previously), the CO2 emssions figure was 8g/km lower (or almost seven per cent), at 112g/km.

In addition, and crucially, by my reckoning the ‘Combined’ mpg figure for the 140 PS model, of 58.9 mpg, is approximately 8.5 per cent better than the 54.3 mpg figure quoted for the 122 PS version.

At nearly £23,000 this version’s certainly not cheap, but it really is very good to drive.

The heart of the ACT system (fitted as standard on the GT I drove) is found at the top of the engine and linked to camshaft operation. When the ACT system comes into play, the two centre cylinders are effectively shut down, thus saving fuel.

The engine mounting set-up is now standardised across the Golf range, helping to make significant savings in production costs.

WHEELS-ALIVE TECH. SPEC. IN BRIEF

GOLF GT 1.4 TSI 140 PS

Engine:
1390cc 16 valve four cylinder, with stop/start and battery regeneration technology

Power:
140 PS @ 4,500 to 6,000 rpm

Torque:
184 lb.ft/250 Nm @ 1,500 to 3,500 rpm

0-62 mph:
8.4 sec

Top speed:
131 mph

Fuel consumption:
11(‘Urban’): 47.9 mpg
(‘Extra Urban’): 65.7 mpg
(‘Combined’): 58.9 mpg

CO2 emissions:
112 g/km