Hi
I was getting excited but having seen the Vwvideo and looked closely, I really don’t think it’s the Mk 8.5
The forthcoming launch of the mk8.5 facelift - whenever that might be - doesn’t really excite me, but then I’m old and some might say grumpy

. The Golf’s forthcoming mid life facelift will almost certainly follow VW’s tried and tested formula for facelifts; small and relatively low cost changes to maintain customer interest and sales through to the end of the car’s lifecycle. I’d expect VW to increase the list prices of the facelift model range too.
Externally, there’ll the few mild cosmetic changes that have been seen (mildly camouflaged or otherwise) in pre-production spy shots; tweaks to bumper designs and head / tail lamps, and the revised slimmed-down upper grille. There might be some new paint colours and maybe different alloy wheel designs for some models. The uninitiated are unlikely to even notice the changes.
Internally, some of the changes might be more obvious; a larger iPad (infotainment screen) stuck on the dash that has been seen in some of the pre-production test car spy shots, and the return of some physical buttons and switches, and maybe illumination of the slider panel below the infotainment screen. The facelift car might also get the forthcoming new Tiguan’s BMW-style i-drive rotary controller on the centre console to address some of the ‘difficult to use and navigate’ comments of the current infotainment screen.
IMHO the biggest win would be for VW to resolve the remaining software gremlins.