VW Golf GTI Losing the Stick; Gets Goodbye Edition

There’s a certain brand of hardcore driving enthusiast for whom a well-tuned Volkswagen Golf GTI is the perfect car. By day, it’s an easy-to-live-with commuter with comfortable seats and hatchback cargo space. By night, it has the agility of a sports car, and its 241 horsepower is an impressive power figure in such a small car.

Our expert test driver says, “If there’s such a thing as the perfect car, the Volkswagen Golf GTI might qualify. It has the power and poise to entertain on all kinds of roads. Yet it also has the refinement and practicality to make it an excellent everyday driver.”

But enthusiasts tend to add a caveat: Get it with the stick.

Pretty soon, they won’t be able to.

Volkswagen today announced a special edition of the 2024 Golf GTI meant to say goodbye to the third pedal. The Golf GTI 380, VW says, “is a special equipment set, standard on every 2024 manual-transmission GTI, celebrating the final year of manual production in [the] Golf GTI.”

The 2024 Volkswagen Golf GTI 380 goes on sale in early fall 2023, with a starting MSRP of $32,485 for the GTI 380 S, $37,285 for the GTI 380 SE, and $40,625 for the GTI 380 Autobahn. Volkswagen also charges a mandatory $1,095 delivery fee on the Golf.

Volkswagen didn’t name the 380 thanks to a horsepower boost. The name is the internal code VW uses to identify the current eighth-generation Golf.

The 380 models come in a choice of seven colors, including a manual-exclusive shade called Graphite Gray Metallic. They ride on 19-inch gloss black multi-spoke aluminum alloy wheels with a gloss black roof and mirror caps.

They get summer performance tires and a standard adaptive damping suspension system.

Inside, there’s a golf-ball-inspired shift knob (even though the car’s name comes from the German term for the Gulf Stream, not the sport) and honeycomb accents. “S and SE trims feature classic Scalepaper Plaid cloth seats; Vienna leather seating surfaces come standard for the Autobahn trim and are optional on the SE trim,” VW says.

Once these are gone, so is the third pedal, Volkswagen says. “This model is the last Golf GTI to be offered with a 6-speed manual, while the 7-speed dual-clutch DSG transmission will carry forward on future GTI models and on the Golf R.”

The best cars and best deals delivered to your inbox

Price cars, trucks and SUVs on KBB.com

2023 Subaru Forester vs. 2024 Hyundai Tucson Comparison

2024 Mazda CX-5 vs. 2024 Chevrolet Equinox Comparison

Recall Alert: Hyundai Elantra Hybrid

Colorado Cash for Clunkers: $6K to Go Electric

Dodge Charger Tops List of Most-Stolen Cars — Again

Study: Owning a Car Costs Over $1,000 A Month

Hyundai Shows Off 2024 Sonata for America

2023 Subaru Forester vs. 2024 Hyundai Tucson Comparison

VW Golf GTI Losing the Stick; Gets Goodbye Edition

Study: EVs Better for Environment Only After Many Miles

Apple: Your Windshield Could Be a Screen