The Volkswagen Golf GTI and the Golf R are both Volkswagen’s performance versions of their iconic golf. So what’s the difference and which one is better worth your money?

Both of the cars have a 2.0 litre 4 cylinder engine however the GTI has 228 hp and 258 lb-ft of torque where as the R has been tuned to 288 hp and 280 lb-ft of torque. This means that if you are looking for performance in your fun filled hot hatch, the R is certainly better. Pair that with the front biased AWD system as opposed to the GTI’s front wheel drive system and the R will be quick. All of this however comes at a price, and the golf R is around $12,000 more expensive than the GTI which costs about $28,000. $40,000 is very expensive for a little hatch back.

One thing the R falls behind in is looks. The GTI’s looks are just generally more exciting because of all of the red hints seen throughout the car. It also comes with red brake calipers which look way better than the R’s silver ones. One place the R does look better though is the grill. The R has a lot more aggressive of a grill on the bottom than the GTI. If you are looking for a more sensible daily driver, the golf R certainly looks the part however if you want a car with more fun looks, the GTI wins that.

The same red hints from the exterior are carried on to the exterior on the GTI. They liven up the interior and makes it a little more exciting than the R which has hints of silver that dont stand out as much. One way the R does stand out over the GTI is it’s quad all aluminum exhaust which makes an immense noise.

So what are other things that you get for your money on the golf R? Well you can that exhaust I just talked about, you can get lighter brakes, you can get the top speed limiter taken off so you can go 165 mph and much more. You also get insane performance. The R can go from 0-60 mph in 4.2 seconds. That’s close to supercar speed.

So what’s my final verdict. I’d say that if you are only going to use this for your daily commute and not much else, the GTI is more worth your money however, if you love going to the track once in a while and you have the money, the R is a brilliant choice.