Thursday 12th November 2009

South African 'Citi Golf' Finally Ends Production

It's a long-earned final call for the Mk1 Golf that never grew up

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After a 25-year marathon production run, Volkswagen South Africa (VWSA) is finally to say goodnight to the Citi Golf, the car based on the original 1970s Mk1. When the Mk2 Golf came to South Africa in 1984 the Mk1 stayed in production as a cheaper alternative, and has proved so popular that it has kept going ever since - albeit with some 'modernisations' along the way.

The latest versions of the Citi Golf really are bizarre things to behold, with the original Mk1 body only subtly modernised with some extra plastic bits, and an oddly anachronistic 'modern' interior similar to that of the Mk4 Polo. In 2006 a sporty version called the 1.8iR was revealed as a 120bhp 'hot' variant, with comparable performance figures to a real (original) GTI.

There was a rumour that the jigs used in the production of the Citi Golf were wearing out and costing too much to repair, expediting the car's end, but the decision to chop the long-toothed classic is more likely to be due to VWSA's need to clear space to produce new Polos and Jettas for export at the Uitenhage plant.

The recently negotiated export contract is big business for VWSA, but before it finally hits the kill switch on the Citi Golf production lines the Mk1-alike will receive one last hurrah, in the form of a limited run of 1000 special editions.

Appropriately named the 'Mk1', the last Citi Golfs get a 1.6-litre engine putting out a racy 99bhp. The exterior is marked out with neat double-headlights, a chrome grille surround, smoked tail lights, a stainless steel exhaust pipe and special 15-inch wheels. The aforementioned strangely modern interior will also come with sporty part-leather seats (this is still a budget car after all!), a leather steering wheel and aluminium gear knob.

Incredibly, according to VWSA, one in four new cars sold in South Africa is a Citi Golf. The final special editions will go on sale at 113500 South African Rand, equivalent to £9,292.

 

[collateral]

Think I saw a white one of these driving through Wilmslow a while back. Very cool.

Those wheels are from a Lupo, are they not?

Accidentally rated it 5 when I meant to put in a 10...doh

[Ray Singh]

I didn't realise that they were still making this.
Very cool car.

Get one from SA and transfer a good GTI engine into it?

You make your own nearly new, rust free GTI?

Edited by Ray Singh on Thursday 12th November 13:22

[matt1269]

Want!

[Orangecurry]

AFAIK the South Africans have always only made five-doors.... otherwise I'd be over there buying a three-door version right about now.

[Garlick]

I'd love one of those.

[mk1chopper]

loving the classic strips on the doors, I miss my mk1.

[danrc]

I always thought the dash's were out of a Fabia.

Still cool though

[Steamer]

There was one of these driving around my town on something like a L-plate... nobody believed me! (or claimed it was the worst case of car cloning fraud!)

...in the end I had to find it and photograph it just to stop the ridicule!

[900T-R]

Hmmm, they've even gone as far as to install a Lupo 3L steering wheel (bottom right pic) to make it even lighter

Edited by 900T-R on Thursday 12th November 13:49

[BBS-LM]

Ray Singh said:

I didn't realise that they were still making this.
Very cool car.

Get one from SA and transfer a good GTI engine into it?

You make your own nearly new, rust free GTI?

Edited by Ray Singh on Thursday 12th November 13:22

Same here, I didn't think anyone was still making the original GTI. I so want a brand new original Golf GTI now, dam you PH.

[Cassius81]

danrc said:

I always thought the dash's were out of a Fabia.

Still cool though

Yeah, looks like it to me too... Green backlighting=Skoda not VW

[timnoyce]

That is BAD ASS!

[custardkid]

why dont they sell them here?

there has to be a market, especially at <£10k

custard

[LuS1fer]

Someone should import them, I'm sure there's a market.

[Garlick]

timnoyce said:

That is BAD ASS!

Quite.

[900T-R]

custardkid said:

why dont they sell them here?

there has to be a market, especially at <£10k

custard

'Cos I can't see them comply with any current EU safety (and probably emission) regs any more (even the Golf 2 was as bad as an old Beetle when put against a wall by one of the German mags).

[Quattronaut]

custardkid said:

why dont they sell them here?

there has to be a market, especially at <£10k

custard

Totally agree, stick something vaguely eco under the bonnet and Notting Hill would be full of them within weeks

Stick something a bit cheekier under there and half of PH would sign up at <£10k

[Riggers]

Cassius81 said:

danrc said:

I always thought the dash's were out of a Fabia.

Still cool though

Yeah, looks like it to me too... Green backlighting=Skoda not VW

Definitely A fabia-derived interior, but I don't think it's unfair to say that it's similar to a late-model Mk4 Polo's...

Incidentally, does anybody know if the CitiGolf dash fits straight into an original Golf? (Don't want to do it, just curious...)

[shalmaneser]

custardkid said:

why dont they sell them here?

there has to be a market, especially at <£10k

custard

crash testing.

[sparks_E39]

I agree, get one over, transplant a GTI engine into it and it will be fantastic.