Diesel cars have a bad reputation for being slow. And that's because old diesel cars were indeed slow and this fuel type was usually associated with trucks and busses. Modern diesel cars are still somewhat slow compared to their gasoline counterparts, but there are a few notable exceptions. The eighth-generation Volkswagen Golf GTD is one of them and this new video from Automann-TV reveals that it's impressively fast.

The GTD showcased here is one of the four performance-oriented Golf Mk8 models you can buy today. It's the only one using diesel, as the GTI and R are gasoline-powered, while the GTE is a gas-electric hybrid. At 197 horsepower, it's not as powerful as the GTE and GTI, both rated at 242 horses. However, it delivers as much torque as the GTE and 22 pound-feet more than the GTI at 295 pound-feet. So how quick is it?

Obviously the first test in the video involves a 0 to 62 mph sprint. The driver clocks his best sprint at 7.7 seconds, which is notably slower than Volkswagen's claimed benchmark. But it's worth noting that the GTD rides on winter tires, so it might actually be quicker. However, even at more than seven seconds to 62 mph, the GTD is still impressively quick, falling just one second behind the GTI. The video also reveals that the Golf GTD will take you from zero to 124 mph in 28.9 seconds, while the sprint from 62 to 124 mph takes only 20.6 seconds.

There's no doubt that the Golf GTD Mk.8 is one of the quickest diesel cars you can buy today, but the diesel version of the Ford Focus ST shouldn't be far behind at 187 horsepower and 295 pound-feet of twist. But until we get a proper comparison between the two, I'm pretty sure the Golf GTD is a solid alternative to the Golf GTI and Golf GTE.