VW Design Vision Golf GTI concept teased

Volkswagen's hardcore Golf GTI concept that we told you was heading for Austria’s annual Wörthersee Tour tuning event has turned out to be a striking race car concept dubbed the Design Vision GTI.

The concept is based on the latest 2015 Volkswagen Golf GTI, the seventh generation of the iconic hot hatch, and has been developed as a ready-to-race product.

The regular VW Golf GTI drivetrain has been thoroughly overhauled for the concept, with the standard four-cylinder turbo replaced by a twin-turbocharged and direct-injected 3.0-litre V6. Peak output now registers at 375kW and 560Nm, which is more than double that of the regular Golf GTI.

All this power and torque is distributed to the wheels via a seven-speed DSG dual-clutch transmission and Haldex all-wheel-drive system. Volkswagen boasts the concept will hit 100km/h from rest in just 3.9 seconds and max out at 300km/h.

In order to slow this souped-up Golf GTI, designers fitted large carbon ceramic brakes, sized 380mm up front and 355mm at the back. The 20-inch wheels, which feature the GTI’s ‘Austin’ pattern, come with special blades designed to vent hot air generated by the brakes through the wheel openings. The wheel bolts are covered to give the appearance of a centre-lock design.

The design team for the Design Vision GTI, led by Volkswagen brand design chief Klaus Bischoff, has drawn the C-pillars and sills outward, thus creating space for substantially wider front and rear tracks, as well as the specially developed wheels (with 235 tyres in the front and 275s at the rear). The concept is slightly shorter than a regular Golf GTI, however, thanks mainly to a more compact rear bumper treatment, and it sits a bit lower as well.

One particularly neat element is the GTI's typical red grille divide, which on the concept also divides the headlights. The actual lighting elements are set back, giving them a deep, sunken look.

Inside, designers had a ‘pure GTI’ focus, which meant concentrating on the truly essential but with a little style. This meant as few switches as necessary, so that they can be operated intuitively even while driving hard. Unique features include an electrical kill switch, a push-button for a fire extinguisher and an ESP deactivation button. The car has three drive modes: "Street," "Sport" and "Track".

The shapes of the dashboard and the center console correspond to the GTI's, but are even more driver oriented, with tauter surfaces and harder edges. The race-car impression is reinforced by the use of carbon fiber, which is combined with Alcantara and Nappa leather. The rear seats have also gone; their space taken by an X-shaped cross member that further strengthens body stiffness.

Volkswagen explains that the aim of the design was to provide a glance into the future of the GTI. Though we’re unlikely to see the Design Vision GTI enter production, many of the concept’s features are likely to appear on eventual race versions of the latest Golf as well as the more extreme 2015 Golf R hot hatch due out next year.

The 2013 Wörthersee Tour kicks off today and concludes on May 11.

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