Cars

Volkswagen Golf GTI launched in India at Rs 53 lakh

Volkswagen-Golf-GTI-India

Why such a ridiculous price tag, you ask? Well, for the same reason why Volkswagen launched the 3-door Polo GTI with an ex-showroom price of 25 lakh in 2016. It was a hilarious price tag when most Indians were thinking 100 times on whether they should blow-up their savings to buy an Alto, or save that money for their kids’ school fees. It is just as hilarious now. Rupees 53 lakh (61.50 lakh, on-road, Delhi) for a front-wheel-drive hatchback?!

Taxes baby!
Well, blame it on the hefty import duty one has to pay to import a fully built car (CBU). For a car that has a CIF value of up to $40,000, there’s a Basic Customs Duty (BCD) of 70%, a GST of 28% (if the engine is above 1,500 cc), and a Compensation Cess of 20% (if the engine is above 1,500 cc). Which brings the total import duty for a Golf GTI to 118%. What’s hilarious is that in the Union Budget 2025, the government reduced the BCD from 125% to 70% for cars that are priced above $40,000, but then it introduced something called Agriculture Infrastructure and Development Cess (AIDC) of 40%. Which means the actual reduction for cars priced above $40,000 was only 15%.

Let’s see how the prices are elsewhere. In the U.S., the Golf GTI carries an MSRP of $32,445 (INR 27.70 lakh); this excludes destination, taxes, title, options, and any dealer charges. In Germany, the base price is €45,655 (INR 44.27 lakh); this includes a 19% VAT. In the UK, the on-road price is £40,735 (INR 47.10 lakh); this includes a 20% VAT.

Better options?
I know, spending 60+ lakh (65.70 lakh on-road in BLR) on a front-wheel-drive hatchback sounds ridiculous. Let’s see if there’s a better way of spending that kind of money. Well, you’ve the not-so-practical Mini Cooper S with an on-road price of 55.76 lakh (BLR), and its JCW variant with an on-road price of 69.27 lakh (BLR). M340i? Well, it’s in a different league altogether with an on-road price of over 93 lakh (BLR), and so is the S5 Sportback with an on-road price of over 99 lakh (BLR).

When you go into the rabbit hole of details and data, it comes down to the fact that nice things these days are relatively expensive, no matter where you go. What I mean is, the GTI isn’t exactly cheaper either in its home country of Germany.

If you’re in a position to afford a GTI in India, then I’d say, go for it. It has got a 2.0L 4-cylinder TSI with 195 kW (265 metric hp) and 370 Nm (273 lb-ft), paired with a 7-speed DSG. It also boasts an electronic differential lock (XDS) on the front axle. Working with the ESP system, the XDS acts as a limited-slip differential to compensate for the understeer during fast cornering. VW plans to sell only 150 units in the country.

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