Volkswagen Golf due restyle and infotainment overhaul in 2023

The eighth-generation Volkswagen Golf is due for an important mid-life facelift that will bring refreshed styling and heavily overhauled infotainment. 

The ‘Mk8.5’ Golf was spotted testing on public roads around Germany almost completely without camouflage in the final stages of its development. The current Mk8 Golf is only available to order from stock.

Spotted in what looks to be mid-rung Style trim, the prototype has a restyled, deeper front bumper, new headlights and a slightly reshaped rear end with wider exhaust graphics and restyled brake lights.

More significantly, photos of the cabin reveal that the Golf will follow its newer, electric siblings in gaining a larger, 15.0in touchscreen, which will host an evolved version of Volkswagen’s MIB3 infotainment system that has been re-engineered with a focus on improved utility and functionality.

This facelift – like that recently rolled out to the Volkswagen ID 3 – will also no doubt look to address issues surrounding quality and user-friendliness, bringing a new direct-access bar for core functions such as home screen configurations, and relocating the main climate controls to a touch panel permanently positioned at the bottom of the screen. 

The Mk8.5 Golf will otherwise largely follow the current car inside, with soft-touch materials featuring on the dashboard and top of the front door sills, but new trim pieces on the steering wheel are among the tweaks. 

The current Golf is priced from £26,565 in basic Life trim but the Mk8.5 expected to add a premium to that. 

The refreshed Golf will go on sale at around the same time as the similarly upgraded Touareg, as well as the new-generation Passat and Tiguan, as Volkswagen seeks to sustain the appeal of its ICE car line-up in the run-up to going all-electrified by 2030.