To celebrate 35-years of the world’s most famous hot-hatch, Volkswagen last year launched the Golf GTI Edition 35. Big news in Europe, it has finally filtered its way down to South Africa. What’s that they say about better late than never? Yeah, exactly. Anyway, all bitterness aside, this special edition should no doubt appeal to customers who want something a little more special than the standard GTI but simply cannot justify the eye-watering price-tag attached to the range-topping R model.

Starting at R370 900, the Edition 35 not only gets more power and torque (173kW/300Nm) but also a host of exterior and interior styling tweaks. A bold new front apron design incorporating bi-xenon headlights plus cornering and LED daytime running lights. New 18-inch “Watkins Glen” alloy wheels. Blade-like side skirts. These are just some of the things that’ll make you stand out in a crowded weekend car park.

Inside you’ll find a classic golfball gear knob – a retro throwback to the original that debuted back in 1976 – as well as a pair of front sports seats covered in a unique honeycomb-pattern upholstery. Apparently this is supposed to match the radiator  grille. And to further remind you that you’re climbing into something special, VW have also decked the door sills with some “35″ logo kick plates.

Able to dispatch the zer0-to-one-hundred dash in 6.6 seconds and top out at a quoted maximum speed of 247km/h, the Edition 35 comes standard with VW’s XDS electronic differential lock system for enhanced handling. Cog-swapping duties are handled by a six-speed manual gearbox but a DSG is available as a R14 800 option. Personally though, I wouldn’t bother.