VW Up GTI: Homage to the Icon

For the 36th time, up to 150,000 fans will gather in Reifnitz in Carinthia on this Ascension weekend to show off their own tuned and original VWs and Audis and marvel at those of others, roll through the small community in numerous corsos or drive around the turquoise-blue mountain lake while hundreds of fans enjoy the show in camping chairs on the roadside and applaud particularly beautiful cars.

So no setting could have been more fitting to present the latest member of the family to the world public for the first time 41 years after the premiere of the first Golf GTI in the presence of brand board members Herbert Diess and Jürgen Stackmann. The concept and performance of the 85 kW / 115 hp Up GTI are based on the 81 kW / 110 hp Golf GTI I launched in 1976. The virtues are crisp dimensions, low weight, powerful engine, increased downforce on the rear axle, a sports suspension and typical insignia of a GTI such as red stripe in the radiator grille, red brake calipers, seat covers in the "Clark" check pattern and individual wheel design. The production version of the 197 km/h sports car will be launched directly at the beginning of 2018.

The original GTI
When the first GTI was launched in the 1970s, it democratized the fast tracks of this world. It was immediately recognizable from the front by its red stripe in the black radiator grille, by the black double stripes above the side sills, and at the rear by an equally black frame on the tailgate. Its 110 hp met a curb weight of just 810 kg. The most important performance figures of the then newcomer and today dearly traded classic car: 182 km/h as Vmax and 9.0 seconds for the sprint from 0 to 100 km/h. The colors at market launch: "Mars red" and "diamond silver". Later, white and black also established themselves as GTI paint finishes. Although the Up GTI is 105 mm shorter than a Golf GTI I, it is 99 mm taller and 13 mm wider. Inside, the new model also scores with space on a par with the original GTI.

And his great grandson
The key data of the new GTI: 997 kg (despite airbags and high-strength steels), Vmax 197 km/h, 0-100 km/h in 8.8 seconds. Colors: the solid colors "Tornado Red" and "Pure White" and the metallic paints "Dark Silver," "Black Pearl" and - as the new GTI color - "Costa Azul" (blue). With the exception of the blue, the colors follow the original Golf GTI I paint finishes. The engine is powered by a turbocharged three-cylinder gasoline direct injection engine with a displacement of 999 cm3. Steam and efficiency are provided by a turbocharger with electric wastegate actuator, an intake manifold module with integrated intercooler and an exhaust manifold integrated into the cylinder head. Thus equipped, the small and lightweight four-valve engine develops the aforementioned 115 hp between 5000 and 5500 rpm. The direct injection engine delivers its maximum torque of 200 Nm to the front axle from 2000 to 3500 rpm via a 6-speed manual transmission. By comparison, the 1976 Golf GTI I delivered 140 Nm at 5000 rpm.

Then is not now
A sound actuator ensures that the Up sounds like a GTI inside, but is compatible with the city outside. As one of the first Volkswagens with a gasoline engine, it will generally come with a particulate filter. Generally, the sports car is also equipped with start-stop system plus recuperation mode. Thus, the GTI will meet the new Euro 6 AG emissions standard and will already be certified according to the new WLTP test cycle. Or as the manufacturer writes: "Sportiness and economy will definitely form a harmonious alliance in the new Up GTI."

PS: At the presentation, ex-Formula 1 driver Hans-Joachim Stuck rolled onto the stage in his original Golf GTI from the 1970s. At the time, he was a sensation in the paddock with his red people's car: "All the racing drivers were dying to drive it," said the popular figure with a smile.

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