Volkswagen has opened up the order books for the
new Golf GTI TCR,
the last hurrah in the Mk7 range. Remember, the all-
new Golf Mk8 is already on sale in some markets and will be
in South Africa this year. So the
GTI TCR is a swansong to that model, a “goodbye” car if you will. Orders opened in May for the
limited units, which we expect to be snapped up pretty quickly.
Why? Because the
GTI brand is almost larger than
life here in South Africa. In fact,
GTI represents 33% of all
Golf units sold, which puts
Volkswagen SA on the top 10 list of all
Golf GTI markets globally. Yes, we are quite important.
Since its launch in 2013, the
Golf 7 has sold 40 128 units locally.
Now what is this
GTI TCR? Well, it is positioned above the normal
GTI, but below the
R. Underneath everything it remains a
GTI, which means
front-wheel-drive. What tears it apart from this lesser sibling are
visual upgrades like the front splitter,
perforated disk brakes, 19-inch Reifnitz alloy wheels, matt black side mirrors, a roof spoiler, rear diffuser and sill extensions. The car will be sold in only three colours, namely Pure White, Tornado Red and Pure Grey.
Inside,
Volkswagen also did some work, including the
TCR logo that projects onto the floor once the front doors open.
There are Alcantara door inserts, sports seats with GTI TCR detailing, a sports steering wheel, black and red stitching on the floor mats and a new fabric design for the seats. An exclusive offering just for the
Golf GTI TCR customers here, will be a unique number that will be placed under the
GTI logo at the rear of the car and a personalised ownership certificate.
While the
TCR is still a
GTI,
Volkswagen has ensured that its owners feel even more special by adding some power into the engine.
Still the same 2.0-litre TSI turbo, but now with added vuma to the tune of 213kW as well as 380Nm of torque between 1 950 and 5 300rpm. It is paired to a 6-speed DSG transmission and is said to sprint from standstill to 100km/h in 5.6 seconds. Another bonus is the higher top speed, although you would wonder where it could be legally reached. Regardless, it is 264km/h, up from the normal 250km/h.
