VW Golf 8.5 R on ice – A 4Motion celebration

Veteran motoring journalist Calvin Fisher travelled to Sweden for an ice-driving experience of the VW Golf 8.5 R and the Wolfsburg-based brand‘s other 4Motion-equipped models. Suffice it to say, he spent most of his time going sideways…

The headline: “Golf 8.5 R on ice” doesn’t only refer to the fact that the new, more powerful iteration of the all-wheel-driven performance Golf won’t be making it to Mzansi because of our poor fuel quality.

No, I’m literally parked on ice – welcome to the frozen lakes of Arvidsjaur, Sweden. I’m here, just 110 km south of the Arctic Circle in the heart of Lapland, where it’s cold. And I mean really cold (-14°C). But, we were about to warm ourselves up, thanks to the line-up of machines Volkswagen had prepared for us.

Our hosts had assembled various cars for us to flick and dance with in this chilly environment. Sure, there were the likes of the new Tiguan and larger Tayron (due in SA in August/September 2025), the Passat Variant wagon, as well as a prototype for an AWD Golf 8.5 1.4TSI. Then there was a pair of EVs in the shape of the ID4 GTX, ID7 Tourer GTX and, of course, the latest Golf R – in hatch and estate guises.

As mentioned before, it’s the facelifted (8.5) R with 245 kW and 420 Nm of torque. In the dry, it’ll do 0-100 kph in 4.6 sec, but here, not so much. It has a 7-speed dual clutch auto, but we’ll struggle to see 4th.

This isn’t strictly a car review; instead, it’s a celebration of the culmination of over 4 decades of all wheel drive – almost completely conducted via the side windows. We’ll be going sideways – ad infinitum – and by way of 4Motion, Volkswagen’s clever means of keeping all 4 wheels turning, so that you can make it quickly – and safely – around any kind of corner. And even if the corner is made of 80-cm thick ice.

Because here on Lake Arvidsjaursjön, it is. They say it’s safe to land a plane or drive a bus on this ice, but that doesn’t make hearing the cracking noises any less terrifying. Despite my fears, it is indeed a stalwart location among the motor manufacturers keen on cold weather testing; the VW Driving Experience layout features about 40 configurations (each 1 is essentially a racetrack), with the longest 1 measuring 10 km.

I’m on what the locals call the Red Loop. It’s about 5 km long and a festival of chicanes that tighten and loosen randomly to keep you on your toes. The 1st few laps are chaos, with me frantically winding and unwinding lock upon lock of steering in an attempt to keep this Golf 8.5 R dancing from apex to apex.

Eventually, the process becomes rhythmic, even therapeutic, as you get comfortable with zero traction. Push past the discomfort of that initial frantic and squirrelly nature and you’ll encounter a level of zen that only rally drivers (or the most exuberant farmers in their bakkies) will experience on a gravel road.

You start to appreciate the linear power delivery of the “EA888 LK3 evo4” motor and how you can, with subtle inputs from the steering wheel, accelerator and, to a lesser extent, the brake pedal, make the Golf 8.5 R rotate at will, all to the tune of a rollicking turbocharged 4-pot soundtrack, of course.

This changes somewhat when you hop into “more demure” electric family SUVs such as the ID4– and ID.7 Tourer GTX. Suddenly, it occurs to you that like an electric light switch, their “throttle responses” are binary (on or off), which results in an all-in/all-out behaviour. Whereas previously you had modularity, now you have wanton floodgates, 560 Nm deep, ready to lurch you into a 180-degree spin.

But it isn’t the case. VW has done an enviable job of building modularity into its ID models’ “throttles” via a software update, which enables the EVs to skate like their internal-combustion-engined counterparts.

Whereas the all-paw setup of VW’s ICE models (such as the Golf 8.5 R) can be described as “hang-on” AWD systems (with the powered front axle dragging the rear wheels behind it), the all-electric ID models’ AWD configuration can be described as an add-on system that makes the rears help push the car along.

But only the Golf 8.5 R enjoys torque vectoring along its rear axle (via 2 clutches), which acts much like a limited slip differential to optimise grip and deliver long, predictable slides and broad grins. Like mine.

Volkswagen has been honing its all-wheel drive (4Motion) systems for decades now. The Wolfsburg-based brand toyed with the technology covertly as early as the T2 Kombi, evolving in it their Syncro-endowed models before ultimately going mainstream with the likes of the Touareg, Amarok and Golf R.

And while driving on a frozen lake is hardly relatable to a South African motorist, it demonstrates the lengths VW go to ensure 4Motion is more than a safety feature; it’s also a form of driver engagement. And you can take my word on the latter, as I leave the lake sweating, smiling, and very much engaged.