Although there is a lot about the Golf Alltrack, it does not can enough profits to options and functions to ensure the price premium over the Golf SportWagen.
Compared to the competition: Although it is not quite as good, the Alltrack the cargo capacity, and many of the capabilities of the compact SUV, but its closest competitors are likely to always cheap Golf-sports car, on which it is based.
The Golf family welcomes their latest addition this year, as the 2017 Volkswagen Golf Alltrack, the hatching occurred. The now six members of the family for 2017: Golf, Golf GTI, Golf R, Golf SportWagen, e-Golf and now Alltrack.
The Alltrack shares a lot with the sports cars (see here), including its drive, overall dimensions and trim levels (S, SE and SEL). There are a few important differences, mainly in styling and price. The Alltrack starts about $2,000 more than a similarly equipped sports cars, the is a large markup for the changes that it offers.
The off-road-oriented all-wheel-drive tours Alltrack to the Subaru Outback, a raised wagon-like vehicle. The Alltrack also offers enough cargo space and the ability to go against the compact SUVs like the Subaru Forester and the Jeep Cherokee. Compare the competitors with the Alltrack here.
I spent a week with a mid-trim 2017 Alltrack SE, including time at a off road park to see if your add-ons, which are worth its additional cost.
Exterior & Styling
The Alltrack looks like a butched-up sports car: The bumpers are different and there are silver (instead of black) roof rails, but the biggest styling change is the addition of the black plastic lower cladding all around the car, makes it look more rough. There is also 0.6 inches of additional ground clearance and an extra 1.4 inches of ground clearance, bringing the total number up to 6.9 inches.
S-models get 17-inch wheels and halogen headlights, while the SE adds a standard panoramic moonroof. SEL models also get 18-inch wheels, and optional bi-xenon headlights.
How It Drives
In 2017, Alltrack, the sports car is the powertrain: a 170-HP, turbocharged 1.8-liter four-cylinder divides and makes a pleasing 199 pound-feet of torque. The Alltrack also has standard 4Motion all-wheel-drive and comes only with Volkswagen’s six-speed dual-clutch automatic (a manual option is coming in early 2017). VW chose wisely in the case of theft from the sports car. The maximum torque arrives at just 1,600 rpm, and it feels alive and vibrant, both on – and off-road.
4Motion features like a front-wheel-drive system, most of the time, but when it detects a loss of traction, an electronic center differential can be up to 50 percent of the power to the rear axle. If the power supply needs to be moved, laterally, 4-Motion can the electronic stability system to brake the wheel, which rotates freely to transfer torque to the other wheel. The Alltrack has unique suspension tuning, and driving mode selection system adds an off-road setting, it changes the steering feel and the throttle response more delicacy off-Asphalt.
If it is positioned as an off-road-oriented vehicle, the Alltrack is an Explosion on the street. The drivetrain and steering are both very sensitive and have great feel. The additional ground clearance does not affect driving comfort; it still has, the athleticism, the members of the Golf family have in spades.
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Off-road, not so positive. The additional ground clearance means that the Alltrack is over small obstacles, not the sports car, perhaps, but it is not enough distance to make it a bona fide off-roader. I would. not comfortable with the Alltrack to a little more than a dirt or gravel road; any lane with suspension articulation, or crawling is a no-go Also problematic is the Alltrack tyres were: When I tried to climb a dirt hill, the 4Motion system was to work overtime, but it was not easy for everyone to handle. You put on a different set of shoes, and the story could be different.
Fuel economy estimates are the same in all versions: 22/30/25 mpg city/highway/combined, on regular gas. This corresponds to the figures of the sports car with the same powertrain, but remains behind the FWD versions by a good margin (29 mpg combined).
Interior
The Alltrack is not the inner mirror of the minimalist exterior design, it’s flashy, but it gets the job done. Alltrack badging lets you know if the standard comes not in a sports car, and I liked the feel of the faux leather upholstery. The flat-bottom steering wheel makes the whole thing feel more sporty.
The rear seat has plenty of headroom, which is a concern in times in models with the panoramic moonroof (in my SE). Legroom is sufficient, but there is a high cabin floor, which means rear-seat passengers may find their knees raised and her legs poorly supported. The can be tiring over longer distances.
However, there were a few strange omissions in the SE for a car that cost over $32,000: it has no automatic climate control or navigation system. These three elements do not show, until you jump to the SEL trim, which starts at $33,710 (including an $820 destination charge).
Ergonomics & Electronics
All trim levels of the Alltrack will offer a 6.5-inch touchscreen in the center console, but it has different technology, depending on the equipment variant. On the S and SE, the screen elements, including the drive-mode selector and some of the security systems (if any) used for most of the tax.
Identical to the sports car, the Alltrack 30.4 cubic feet of cargo space behind the rear seats, expandable to 66.5 cubic feet with the 60/40-split rear seats folded. This is better than the Subaru Crosstrek (22.3/51.9 cubic feet) and Jeep Cherokee (24.6/58.9 cubic meters) but less than the Outback (35.5/73.3 cubic meters).
A rearview camera is standard; it is hidden under the rear badge, until they are needed.
A rearview camera is standard, but the Alltrack is exciting security options come as part of the $845 driver assistant package. There is adaptive cruise control, forward collision warning adds with full auto brake, front and rear Parking sensors and a self-parking system takes over the steering while parallel Parking. The Alltrack also offers a system called Park Pilot, which the Parking sensors detect objects in the car peripherals. The proximity of these objects is on the multimedia screen, along with the path of the Alltrack, so that you can see when you will be able to pass the obstacle.
In the SEL, the driver assistance and lighting package gets a bit more expensive ($1,995), and adds more content, including bi-xenon headlamps and an adaptive front-lighting system, how you control the car, plus automatic high-beam and lane-keeping assistant.
The Alltrack earned top scores in all insurance Institute for Highway Safety Crash tests and the mean score of the advanced crash avoidance and mitigation. See where it is on the IIHS Small-class cars here.
Value in Its class
To assess the Alltrack is worth, you need to start with the next time comrade, the sports car that starts at $25,750 for a S model with automatic transmission and AWD (all prices include destination). The Alltrack S starts higher, at $27,770 similarly equipped. It is the base sports car – fabric replaces padding with synthetic leather and adds the off-road upgrades.