Great for lapping the Nürburgring… and transporting dogs. Watch Chris Harris drive the best practical performance cars. | Top Gear

The latest Volkswagen Golf R is of course the most powerful and fastest Golf ever, but the new all-wheel drive VW super-hatch has apparently sprouted a (very German) sense of humour, thanks to a clever rear differential and Drift Mode. Yep, it’ll powerslide. But is that gimmick what you really want from a sensible, classy all-weather 316bhp superhatch? And has Volkswagen’s bizarre decision to replace buttons and logic with a laggy touchscreen inside wrecked the Golf’s sense of quality and maturi