Over the years there have been a number of ‘off-road worthy’ wagons produced by a number of different manufacturers. The Volvo XC70 wagon, the Subaru Outback, the Subaru XV Crosstrek, the Audi A4 and A6 Allroad models. Usually, these cars come with a slight lift in ride height and some added protection for the car should you decide to take it off the beaten path. In addition to the skid pads, these cars all feature some form of matte plastic cladding on all the bumpers.
For the 2017 Golf Sportwagen Alltrack, Volkswagen has closely followed the same formula. The new Golf Sportwagen Alltrack can be seen fitted with the typical plastic cladding around the bumpers, a one-inch suspension lift over the normal Golf Sportwagen, and skid plates on the underside of the car to protect it from large rocks.
Like all the cars listed above, the Alltrack has one more important change made to its drivetrain. This Golf comes with Volkswagen’s 4Motion all-wheel drive system, which in normal driving acts as a front wheel drive car. However, 50 percent of the torque can be sent to the rear wheels when the vehicle deems it necessary.
Paired with this AWD is VW’s trusty 1.8L four-cylinder motor which makes 170 horsepower and 199 lb-ft of torque. The Alltrack will be available with both a manual and automatic transmission. Another new feature to the Alltrack is a hill descent assist mode to help drivers safely maneuver steep hills.
Official 0-60 time has not been released by VW, but some estimates have been made around the 7-8 second mark. Volkswagen does not have any plans for a high-performance model as of yet.
The interior hasn’t seen any major changes other than some newly appointed seats. These seats, which are exclusive to the Alltrack, come in cloth with a sort of suede/Alcantara type material on the bolstering. VW has printed “Alltrack” on the seats to further designate this Golf as the off-road version. The rest of the interior is largely the same as the normal Golf Sportwagen.
The German automaker hasn’t announced pricing for the Alltrack, but the standard Sportwagen starts at $22,500 with shipping. It would be fair to estimate a price closer to the $30,000 mark. The Golf Sportwagen Alltrack goes on sale later in 2016. Stay tuned for more information regarding pricing and performance figures.
To see the first look at the Alltrack from the 2015 New York International Autoshow, check out the video below:
