IT’S SOMETHING THAT many Volkswagen fans have been looking for… and now the German car maker has finally unveiled the up! GTI.
Enthusiasts have long yearned for Volkswagen to give its smallest car the GTI treatment to follow on from the much-loved Lupo GTI.
The up! GTI will make its public debut at the upcoming Worthersee Festival, which has become one of the largest European car events for lovers of the Volkswagen Group brands.
Visually, the up! GTI follows the same styling lines as its bigger siblings, with a red line running along the grille.
Another cool feature is the seats which are finished in the ‘clark’ tartan pattern, something that has long been present in Volkswagen’s performance models. The front bumper has been beefed up and gets some contrasting gloss black paints. It rides on unique 17-inch alloy wheels and sits 15mm lower thanks to its retuned suspension.
Speaking of tuning, the turbocharged 1.0-litre three-cylinder engine has had Volkswagen’s engineers breathing on it to increase power from 90 to 115hp. That may not seem like much, but it’s worth remembering that the up! GTI weighs just 997kg. (Incidentally, the first Golf GTI back in 1976 made only 110hp.)
Volkswagen claims that the up! GTI will take just 8.8 seconds to reach 100km/h from rest, while the top speed (where permissible) is 197km/h. The three-cylinder should feel quick too thanks to its 200Nm of torque.
There is one downside to this news however. Volkswagen Ireland currently has no plans to offer the up! GTI as part of its range, much like the electric e-up! and Polo GTI.
We hope that they might have a change of heart because considering how good the standard up! model is, this is sure to be a real hoot to drive.
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