The first batch of photos with the upcoming Volkswagen Golf 7 GTI has surfaced the Internet. The car you see in these spy shots (courtesy of WCF) was undergoing some testing at Nurburgring and we can see that it won’t be a lot different in terms of design, but the car is expected to be more powerful, lighter, better equipped and more efficient in comparison to the current generation of the model.
Although the car was wearing a lot of camouflage we can see that it has bigger brakes, a honeycomb grille, wider stance and a twin exhaust system so for sure we’re dealing with the hot GTI version of the upcoming seventh generation of the Golf.
The car will use Volkswagen’s new MQB platform that utilizes hot-formed steels in order to lower the curb weight and also improve rigidity. The Golf 7 GTI will probably feature an aluminum roof which should lower the curb weight by about 100 kg so the car will weigh somewhere around 1,300 kg.
Under the hood of the new GTI is expected to be a new direct-injection, 4-cylidner, turbocharged 2.0-liter engine which is internally known as the EA888. The power unit has been developed by Audi and will equip not only the new GTI but also other performance models from the VW Group. The engine is rated at 300 hp for the top-spec Golf R, but the one in the GTI will churn out about 240 hp, just about the same as the power offered by the Golf GTI 35 Edition.
Thanks to the lower curb weight and the additional horsepower, the new GTI will be able to do the 0-62 mph sprint in about six seconds, about 0.9 seconds less than the current version of the car. While the outgoing model can reach a top speed of 149 mph, the new VW Golf GTI will be able to hit a maximum speed of 155 mph.
This new engine is going to be considerably more efficient since the curb weight has been lowered while the internal friction has been reduced. The Golf 7 GTI is estimated to return approximately 45 mpg UK and will have CO2 emissions of about 150 g/km. An increased body stiffness and a lover curb weight means that it will be able to provide a better handling and we will probably see an increase in the braking performance.
Inside the cabin of the new Golf we will probably see several cool gadgets, like fatigue assist which is capable of warning the driver if he/she is about to fall asleep while driving. In addition, there should also be some self-parking systems as well as a central touchscreen similar to the iPad. Volkswagen will roll out both three- and five-door versions of the new Golf.
The car will probably make its public debut this October during the Paris Motor Show, while the GTI is expected to hit the showrooms at the beginning of next year. We don’t have any information at the moment about the price tag of this new seventh generation of the Volkswagen Golf.
Source: WCF
