2007 Volkswagen GTI Review

Specifications

The Mk.V GTI might only be two years old (a year and a bit in North America),but Volkswagen has progressively produced faster versions of its famous hot hatchback, be it for production or for show. Recall the GTI Edition 30, a factory-tuned European specialty which commemorated the 30th Anniversary of the GTI by adding an additional 30 horsepower. If attention and looks are your ultimate desire, there’s also the Fahrenheit GTI, which, besides special wheels, is bright orange inside and out. There was also the R GTI, the black and carbon fiber 375 horsepower “tuner” GTI that took SEMA by storm late last year. But none of these hold a candle to the ultimate GTI, which Volkswagen showed enthusiasts at the Wörthersee VW-Audi tuner show earlier this week, the GTI W12 650 Concept.

Before continuing on, let’s quickly go over the facts on this beast. It’s got three times the displacement, three times the cylinders, and twice as many turbochargers as the original, all of which result in an outlandish 641 horsepower (650 ps, hence the name) and more than 530 lb-ft of torque.This is the union between the archetypal performance Volkswagen and the finest powerplant the brand has ever made. It’s simply astounding. Though the Phaeton and A8 that use the W12 engine do not have turbos, there’s a high chance that the engine was instead sourced from a Bentley Continental as they come standard with two quick-spooling turbochargers and all the vital plumbing. In any sense, this kind of firepower is more than enough to shift the compact GTI to 60 mph in just 3.6 seconds and onto a top speed of 201 mph, which makes it the fastest GTI Volkswagen’s ever produced.

Volkswagen has proved that it’s possible to fit six cylinders into the engine bay of its compact cars by designing the narrow-angle VR6 engine in the Mk.III and Mk.IV GTIs, but you would think that shoehorning an engine twice the size would be impossible as there simply isn’t enough room in the engine bay, let alone what such a heavyweight would do to the handling of the car. So VW’s engineering team completely did away with having the W12 sit over the nose. Instead, it’s been completely turned around and dropped into the area where the rear seats once were. This practice is very rare, and is generally reserved forhomologation vehicles for racing purposes such as during the ‘80 for manufacturers participating in the WRC rally championships. A limited number of Renault, Lancia and Peugeot compact cars were converted to rear-engine designs from their more conventional counterparts, but since then only Renault has taken the time and effort to completely re-engineer its Clio subcompact hatchback from a front-wheel drive city car to a true, blue giant-killing, rear-drive, mid-engine supercar. Since the engine is now behind the driver, the GTI W12 is a rear-wheel drive car, not a front-wheel drive one like the cars that roll out of the German factory.

The mid-engine RenaultSport Clio was probably the biggest inspiration for the design team when drafting up the GTI W12 Concept. VW designer Klaus Bischoff was brought in on the project in order to adapt the profile, including as much of the authentic GTI character as possible to a vehicle that’s completely different in every way shape and form. The end result is a car that’s still recognizable as a GTI thanks to the inclusion of the stock headlamps and hood, as well as the detailing like the honeycombpattern of the grille and the red outline. The porthole wheels are also featured on regular GTIs, although at 19-inches in diameter they’re larger than stock and much wider as well. The front tires boast a 235 width, while the rears are Lamborghini-esque 295s for harnessing all of that power. Interestingly, the GTI W12 doesn’t have the gloss black grille surround that the standard production car has.

Due to the car being a one-off, hand-built creation made from carbon fiber and steel, Volkswagen had the ability to incorporate some design features that otherwise would be impossible to adapt to a regular GTI. The car is significantly wider and lower than the standard GTI, by 6.3 inches and 2.75 inches respectively, creating the widebody, squat look. For instance, instead of fitting an additional (or upright) rear spoiler that would spoil the clean lines of the roof, they’ve turned the entire roof into a spoiler. The carbon fiber panel dips towards as it approaches the rear of the car, forming a diffuser. Combined with a conventional underbody diffuser, it provides sufficient rear downforce to keep the back end of the car glued to the ground at the high speeds it’s capable of. Likewise, the rear windows tuck inwards, providing the W12 engine with all of the air it needs.

Because the W12 was only offered with a six-speed automatic in its production form, Volkswagen kept it as is, though paddles and the Tiptronic gate add a little interactivity between the lucky driver and machine. As for the interior of the car, it’s pretty much been kept as stock as possible (in the front half anyway), with Alcantara in place of the standard leather for extra grip. A few things have been removed, however, such as the interior door trims to reduce weight, while the glove compartment has been replaced by a fire extinguisher, should something go awry. There are three extra auxiliary instruments to keep track of the engine’s happenings, while the stability control shutoff switch has a clear plastic switch guard, just like the toggle switches on real race cars.

As awesome of an idea as the GTI W12 650 is, and as excellent as this concept’s execution is, ultimately it won’t be built as Volkswagen has no intentions whatsoever of putting it into production, not even as a limited series vehicle like the narrow-angle VR6, all-wheel drive New Beetle RSi. That’s a real shame considering it truly is the ultimate GTI, and it’d be a real hoot to drive.