THE ICONIC VOLKSWAGEN GTI HAS JUST BEEN FUTUREPROOFED WITH THE ID. GTI CONCEPT
In the circles I run in, the majority of people subscribe to the VAG way of life. Get your mind out of the gutter, I mean they all drive Audi or Volkswagen products. Just about all of them have been speculating for many months about what will happen to the iconic GTi badge, and if it will be used in the electrified future of motoring. Well, we finally have our answer with the recent reveal of the ID. GTI Concept, the latest in the now expansive range of ID. cars from Volkswagen. This is a good thing, nay, a great thing. There are still many GTi / performance car fanatics who have to be convinced that electric cars are indeed the way of the future and that petrol-fed powerplants will one day be a thing of the past, but creating a concept that ticks all the boxes and uses a nomenclature to announce the range-topper most of us grew up lusting after is definitely a way to start winning these stalwarts over. The company unveiled the rather easy-on-the-eyes ID. GTI Concept car at this year’s IAA Mobility motor show. Thomas Schäfer, CEO of Volkswagen Passenger Cars, says: “We have realigned Volkswagen over the course of recent months. Our actions are always focused on the question of what customers expect from us. The complete range of our new orientation will be visible for the first time at the IAA Mobility. Volkswagen is delivering what customers want: whether electric, combustion engine or hybrid vehicles – all our new models impress with enjoyable efficiency, intuitive operation and high quality that is evident in all areas. In this way, we are meeting our promise of once more focusing completely on customer needs.”
So the important stuff, will it be worthy of the GTi badge? Well, it does look like we want it to. It’s a 4-door (5 if you’re one of those weirdos who count the boot as a door) hatchback just like the current MK8 GTi, and to make it look a little sportier the rear handles are hidden. They say the design follows the form of the original GTi from 1976, but it’s not quite angular enough for that if you ask us. It’s still a looker though and you can see it was designed by Andreas Mindt, the same man responsible for the Mk7 Golf design. The latest Mk8 is a good one to compare the size to, seeing as that’s the GTi on the market currently. It measures 4 284 mm in length, 1 789 mm wide, 1 456 mm high and has a wheelbase of 2 636 mm. This ID. GTi Concept is close, but a little more compact with a length of 4 104 mm, a width of 1 840 mm wide, a height of 1 499 mm and a wheelbase that measures 2 600 mm. This bodes well for something that should have a healthy power output and remain compact enough that it should be able to offer up great handling. While the car has been previewed wearing the GTi badge, it seems that someone decided to be a tease and there’s been no mention of what electric motor will power the ID. GTi or if it will have a pair of motors driving all four wheels. Luckily the car is built on the new MEB platform, which stands for Modular Electric Drive and the operative word in that being ‘modular’. This means there will be a lot of swapping of parts and systems between the various electric models, and if the ID. GTi will be a flagship model it makes sense that it will have a power output worthy of the badge. The recently-revealed ID.7 may come in a GTX version that if rumours are to be believed will be powered by the regular ID.7 electric motor powering the rear wheels with a claimed output of 207 kW along with the motor found in the smaller ID.4 rated at 79 kW to give the car a combined 286 kW. Seeing as this is a GTi and GTi beats GTX in specs, it will easily be the most powerful production GTi to date but we’ll have to wait until at least 2027 to find out.
Take a look at the YouTube video that gives us the reasoning behind the creation of the ID. GTi Concept and what it means for the future of one of the automotive world's most loved and revered nameplates - GTi. Of course that stands for Grand Touring Injection and there's not going to be any kind of injection found anywhere on the car, but it still counts. Will this spur on a new electrified hot-hatch war? We can only hope!: Volkswagen ID. GTI Concept Design Explanation 🔍 | Volkswagen
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