Volkswagen Golf or Nissan Qashqai: experts compare two popular cars

Volkswagen Golf and Nissan Qashqai are two cars that are traditionally in demand. The Golf has recently been updated with bumpers, a touchscreen, physical buttons on the steering wheel, and a new infotainment system. And the Tekna+ package gives the Qashqai an impressive level of performance.

TopGear experts compared the crossover and hatchback and identified all the advantages and disadvantages of each model. In some respects, these models were a pleasant surprise, but there were also some unexpected nuances.

If you really just want to get from point A to point B, you can buy an entry-level Qashqai with a turbocharged four-cylinder hybrid, manual transmission, and Acenta Premium trim. However, for the evaluation, the experts chose a car with the highest Tekna+ trim, which is equipped with the Nissan e-Power hybrid system, which uses an electric motor to drive the front wheels and a 1.5-liter three-cylinder gasoline engine to charge the 1.8 kWh battery.

Golf, it would seem, should be much sportier. Prices for the basic Life trim now start at $35,000. The car has a 1.5-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine with a manual transmission. Additional options include active suspension, a sunroof, LED matrix headlights, Anemone Blue metallic color, and Harmon Kardon.

That said, the moderate hybrid assist means the Golf's powertrain is smooth and quiet when starting up, although unlike the Nissan, you don't get all-electric range. The automatic transmission is tuned for maximum efficiency. Experts talked about acceleration to 100 km/h in 8.4 seconds and slow gear changes.

The Nissan is driven by an electric motor, so you get instant torque and good response on the move. This means it's quite quick in city driving and faster to 100 km per hour than the Golf. The brakes work well, despite needing to balance regeneration and pad-to-disc friction, and the suspension is on the right side of firm, but there's not too much body roll when driving on rural roads.

The 3-cylinder engine has noticeable resistance as it revs up pointlessly to conserve battery power. There is no gearshift because the system simply does not need it. You can activate braking mode for extra regeneration or e-pedal mode, but since the battery is so small, the engine will remain on for most of the journey. It's a strange combination of EV and ICE driving experience.

The Golf, while it may be a little slower, at least has better handling. There is also a noticeable weight difference. The Golf's lower center of gravity (plus the multi-link rear suspension that's standard on all but the 114 hp gasoline engines) means it corners well and safely. You don't need the expensive DCC option with adaptive suspension.

The Golf's new infotainment system is a significant improvement over the pre-restyled car, thanks to its 12.9-inch touchscreen. But ChatGPT integration raises privacy and accuracy issues, and there are not enough physical buttons in the cabin.

Qashqai is much simpler. The 12.3-inch infotainment system now uses built-in Google, so there's Google Maps as standard, Google Assistant, and Google Play to download other apps.

The Tekna+ package gives Qashqai new specifications. You get a projection display, a Bose audio system, natural Alcantara trim, heated and massaging front seats upholstered in high-quality quilted leather, and a glass roof. There's also plenty of space in the back, more than in a VW, and the Golf's manually adjustable sports seats.

The Golf also loses when it comes to storage space: its trunk is as much as 54 liters smaller than the Qashqai's, although it should be easier to park, given that it is almost 200 mm shorter.

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