As popular as the Volkswagen Golf is around the globe, of late, the US market seems to be immune to its charms - so much so, in fact, that Volkswagen decided not to bring its all-new eighth-generation Golf here at all - at least, not in its more basic, everyday configurations.

And really, who could blame them? Altogether, the regular, run-of-the-mill versions of the VW Golf sold fewer than 6,000 total examples in the US last year, which is only about ten times the number of people who got struck by lightning.

But Volkswagen has confirmed that through the Golf's eighth generation, the model's two hot hatch variants - the Golf GTI and the Golf R - will continue to be sold in the US. And if you find yourself thinking that seems like an awfully strange business decision, consider this: in the US market, the average Volkswagen Golf R sits on the dealer lot for just two days or so before getting snapped up.

For comparison, the industry-wide average in the US new car market is somewhere closer to two months.

That two-days figure comes via Volkswagen R division chief Jost Capito, who spoke to Autocar recently about the popularity of the Golf R in the states. Not only do Golf Rs go quickly in the US, but they also tend to sell for above sticker price, he says.

That's pretty extraordinary for a niche performance hot hatch. Overall, the Golf R sold in the US in numbers greater than 4,000, chalking up more than two thirds of the sales of the more mundane Volkswagen Golf variants.

Volkswagen has yet to show a brand new version of the R, based on the redesigned eighth-generation Volkswagen Golf, but if the latest version of the GTI is anything to go off of, it should be a hoot. The 2021 Volkswagen Golf GTI packs 245 horsepower and as much as 273 lb-ft of torque, plus sleek new looks and improved handling, courtesy of a new dynamics control system that uses the XDS electronic locking differential and optional DCC adaptive damping, if so-equipped, to great effect.