VW Golf Alltrack 2.0 TDI 150: review

Despite riding 15mm higher, the Alltrack is on the same springs and rims as a standard Golf Estate. That means it’s still as untroubled on the road, which is a good start. You can choose an optional multi-mode chassis control system, but it’s so able in standard form that we wouldn’t bother.

It rides and handles like a car (and a good one), not an off-roader. Yet it still has all the ability the average 4x4 owner will ever use.

It also has a 1620-litre boot with the seats down, which is pretty good for a car of this size. So it handles sportily and has plenty of utility, which must mean it’s a sport-utility vehicle. Whatever that means.

Its cabin is very car-like – and as well put together as it is spacious. Interior quality is a big thing for VW and the Alltrack reeks of it – as well as packing a kit list including cruise, climate, DAB, Bluetooth and all-round parking assist.

So you don’t have many options to worry about, though you do have a choice of three diesel engines. The 109bhp 1.6 TDI and 148bhp 2.0 TDI both have six-speed manual boxes as standard, while the 182bhp 2.0 TDI has a six-speed DSG auto.

Our tester was the 148bhp manual, and it’s spot-on in the Golf Alltrack. It pulls strongly and smoothly, with plenty in reserve for overtaking, and it’s beautifully low on effort to drive.

About the only fly in the ointment is the price, which at £28,155 for our mid-range tester is bound to make you think about the alternatives. There aren’t many – unless you include the Skoda Octavia Scout, which is much the same thing underneath. And as it costs a couple of grand less, we’d expect a lot of buyers to do more than just think about it.

Volkswagen Golf Alltrack 2.0 TDI 150

Engine size: 2.0-litre diesel

Price from: £28,155

Power: 148bhp

Torque: 251lb ft

0-62mph: 8.9 seconds

Top speed: 129mph

Fuel economy: 58.9mpg

CO2: 125g/km