T his is by far the meanest golf ever to leave wolfsburg – even if there have been more powerful and faster examples before it. In the summer, the concept car was still being celebrated by the fan community of the fastest volkswagen at the traditional meeting on worthersee lake.
Now the study design vision GTI in razor-skin design has made an appearance at the los angeles auto show. its creators granted it a brief foray onto the asphalt – albeit with throttled thrust.
When this V6 TSI starts up, the throaty roar from the two tailpipes leaves no doubt as to the power that could be unleashed here, if you were allowed to. On the short stretch to the small pylon slalom, the over-GTI could only refer to its data sheet acoustically.
As there would be: a direct-injection gasoline engine with double turbocharging, 503 hp output, the maximum torque of 560 newton meters is at 4000 to 6000 rpm. The immense forward thrust is distributed to all four wheels via a dual-clutch gearbox (DSG). The price for the single piece is over four million euros.
Optical deception with the C-pillars
The fact that the speedometer needle is supposed to touch 300 is just as believable for the white-black bullet as the claim that it can go from 0 to 100 km/ in 3.9 seconds. The 3.0-liter power plant in the study not only has one liter more displacement, it also doubles the power of the current seventh-generation golf GTI (220 hp) and adds a few more horses to the mix.
Every detail of this vision of the possible future of the next GTI must have been a source of great pleasure to the team led by volkswagen’s head of design, klaus bischoff. The concept looks as if it wants to peel off its skin even before takeoff. A visual deception, as the C-pillars and side sills literally grow out of a plastic shell to capture the wider track width of the special 20-inch tires with this sleek and elegant solution.
The design vision GTI is fitted with 235 tires at the front and 275 tires at the rear. The concept car, which is intended to be more than just a show car, is peppered with black panels. These "blades" (dt. blades), as they are called at volkswagen, flank the matte black grille at the front and are also used as a styling element at the rear.
The only effective color accent is the red brake calipers. Like a vexing image, the current GTI nevertheless shimmers through again and again as a visual cue.
Cockpit like in motorsport
In the compact interior, the designvision wears a cool gray racing overall with bucket seats and carbon look for the surfaces. The small, downward-flattened steering wheel is easy to grip and, like in motorsport, has a button for three suspension settings. The deep, wide hood concealing the transversely mounted six-cylinder engine dives forward under the gaze of the driver’s seat.
What this car could do must remain an imagination, after all, it is a precious one-off. Of course, the few meters could not really satisfy even GTI connoisseur hans-joachim stuck, but they inspire him. The hybrid XL1 from volkswagen, which looks like a space glider, was also available for a few test laps.
Fifty examples of the pre-series have already been built, and the remaining 200 have almost been sold, according to reports. And if it should be a little more in the future, there will always be a GTI.
The sports car that used to be an audi avant
560 hp should be enough for every occasion. Far from it: tuning company abt turns the audi RS6 avant into a 700-hp bullet. The "welt" has tested it on a closed track.