It is the small GTI that enables younger drivers to fulfil a dream, and those who are perhaps not-so-young to rekindle old memories: 42 years after the first Golf GTI made its debut, the new Volkswagen up! GTI is here. The concept and power output of the 85 kW / 115 PS up! GTI are broadly in line with the Volkswagen Golf GTI Mk1 unveiled in 1976 with 81 kW / 110 PS. As a compact bundle of power, the new up! GTI pays tribute to this icon - with crisp dimensions, low weight, a powerful and fuel-efficient engine (WLTP consumption: combined 5.7 to 5.6 l/100 km), greater downforce on the rear axle, sports running gear and the typical insignia of a GTI (including red stripes in the radiator grille, red brake callipers and "clark" tartan seat covers). The 196 km/h sports car brings a new dimension in driving fun to the small car class, thus creating a clear link back to the original compact Golf GTI. One typical
GTI element is the finely tuned sports running gear. It gives the car the agility of a go-kart, while simultaneously providing a high level of comfort. The GTI is in addition the first up! to come with a petrol particulate filter. With this catalytic converter system the Volkswagen up! GTI fulfils the new European Euro AG emissions standard. However, the most powerful of all up! models remains affordable. As was the case with the Golf GTI Mk1, so too with the new up! GTI: high performance does not mean high prices. In Germany, home of the inventor of the GTI, the product line's top model is available, for example, for €16,975 - including sports running gear (15 mm lower body), air conditioning, ambient lighting, redesigned 17-inch ("Brands Hatch") alloy wheels and infotainment system.
With the new Volkswagen up! GTI, Volkswagen is sending its customers on a journey through time across four decades: when the first GTI was launched in the 1970s it democratised access to fast roads around the world. Where large saloons and expensive sports cars had previously set the pace, the new compact Volkswagen suddenly stirred things up. From the front, the red stripe in the black radiator grille, the black double stripes across the side sills and the black stripe on the tailgate immediately identified this Volkswagen as a GTI. Its 110 PS powered a kerb weight of just 810 kg. The key performance figures of the then newcomer and now classic car that in top condition trades for more than a new up! GTI were a top speed of 182 km/h and 0 to 100 km/h in 9.0 seconds. A dynamic drive system was integrated within a compact body (3,705 mm long, 1,628 mm wide excluding wing mirrors, 1,390 mm high), a design as sharp as a knife and classic paintwork. The colours for the market launch were the now familiar "Mars Red" and "Diamond Silver". Later, White and Black also became established as GTI colours. To this day that first GTI continues to influence engineers and designers around the globe.
The sports car creed
The new VW up! GTI continues the creed of the lightweight and no-frills sports car with a compact format: lots of power in a compact, snappily designed, fun-to-drive and fuel-efficient car. In 1976, a compact car such as the Golf was similar in size to a 2018 city runabout such as the up! The up! GTI, for instance is 3,600 mm long, 1,478 mm high and 1,641 mm wide (excluding wing mirrors). It is thus 105 mm shorter than a Golf GTI Mk1, while being 88 mm taller and 13 mm wider. The interior of the new model scores with spaciousness on a par with the original GTI. Added to that is the drive system DNA of the modern era - a 200 Nm turbocharged engine. Fitting neatly into the just as sharply designed body of the Volkswagen up! GTI, it sees the concept of the first Golf GTI celebrate a sensational comeback.
The GTI for the modern era
The benchmarking and performance figures of the new up! GTI read like those of a Golf GTI Mk1 catapulted into the modern era. Weight: 1,070 kg (increased by virtue of such things as airbags, control units and the use of high-strength steels). Top speed: 196 km/h. 0-100 km/h: 8.8 seconds. Colours: again classic and typical of the GTI - the single tones of "pure white", "red", "dark silver metallic" and "black pearl". The roof of the white, red and silver up! GTI is also optionally available in contrasting "black". The sports running gear and the ratio of the electromechanical power steering, meanwhile, are geared to crisp handling. A sound actuator ensures that the new up! sounds suitably sporty inside, but is compatible with the city outside.
In the beginning, there was the engine
The story of the Volkswagen up! GTI began in much the same way as happened in the seventies, when a small team of motorsport enthusiasts developed the first Golf GTI: they bagged themselves the most powerful engine that would fit into the compact car (four-cylinder, 1,588 cc, electric injection, K-Jetronic). And that is what happened this time, too. The crew opted for the 1.0 TSI - a turbocharged direct petrol injection engine, as is used, for example, in the latest Polo and Golf. The three-cylinder TSI with a cubic capacity of 999 cc is a compact and lightweight power train of the EA211 engine family. Its design features include a dual overhead camshaft driven by a toothed timing belt. Both camshafts have been adjusted to reduce the emission and fuel consumption levels and to optimise power output. Details such as a turbocharger with electric wastegate control, an intake manifold module with integrated charge air cooler and an exhaust manifold integrated in the cylinder head ensure that the engine is both powerful and efficient. At a pressure of 350 bar, the fuel mixture is directly injected into the combustion chambers. These features enable the small and lightweight four-cylinder engine to produce its 115 PS peak power output between 5,000 and 5,500 rpm. The direct injection engine's maximum torque of 200 Nm (range from 2,000 to 3,500 rpm) is sent to the front axle via a 6-speed manual gearbox. By way of comparison: in 1976, the first Golf GTI delivered 140 Nm at 5,000 rpm.
Petrol engine particulate filter
The VW up! GTI is one of the first Volkswagen cars to launch with a close-coupled petrol particulate filter. Its use reduces particulate emissions by up to 95 per cent. After flowing through the turbocharger, the exhaust gas gets fed directly into the particulate filter. Due to its special coating, it works in parallel as a regular catalytic converter. In the first component of the exhaust gas purification system the carbon ("C") is retained and converted during the regeneration phases into carbon dioxide ("CO2"). In parallel with this, the catalytic converter function reduces three further emission components from the exhaust gas: carbon monoxide ("CO"), nitrogen oxide ("NOx") and hydrocarbon ("CmHm"). Catalytic reactions turn them likewise into carbon dioxide ("CO2"), and into nitrogen ("N2") and water ("H2O"). A second three-way catalytic converter ensures adherence to the limits even under high strain. In this way the up! GTI already fulfils the current Euro 6 AG European emissions standard.
WLTP approved
The fuel consumption and emission levels of the Volkswagen up! GTI have been determined based on the new WLTP (Worldwide Harmonised Light-Duty Vehicles Test Procedure). The RDE (Real Driving Emissions) tests are also new. They check emission and fuel consumption levels in real operation on the road. Over the combined cycle the WLTP produces a consumption figure of 5.7 to 5.6 l/100 km; the corresponding NEDC level is 4.8 l/100 km. Despite its low fuel consumption, the efficient and yet highly responsive TSI makes the latest up! one of the most agile cars in its class.
GTI front section
Nothing about it has changed in the past 42 years: a GTI is immediately identifiable as a GTI. Indeed the GTI insignia are a kind of certificate of Volkswagen authenticity. At the front there is the red stripe across the radiator grille. Incorporated above it is the GTI logo. A further feature that all current GTI models have in common is the typical honeycomb pattern of the matt black radiator grille. Beyond that, the up! GTI does things its own way. For example, the characteristic transverse rod in the bumper comes in high-gloss black on the up! GTI. The round front fog lights and cornering lights are integrated to the left and right of this. The trim around this area is also painted in high-gloss black. It emphasises the width of the powerful Volkswagen up! GTI. A splitter (a front spoiler in motorsport style) marks the bottom of the bumper; above this splitter there is a further (very narrow) air intake for the turbocharged engine.
GTI side profile
The most powerful up! to date is also immediately recognisable as a GTI from the side. Here the up! cites the original GTI styling with features such as double stripes across the wide side sill panels. In a further nod to its heritage, the width and distance between the stripes is based on the dimensions of those on the first Golf GTI. The wing mirror caps match this in high-gloss black. Below them is, once again, the side GTI logo. The 17-inch alloy wheels that come as standard on the future up! GTI have been redesigned. They bear the name of the legendary "Brands Hatch" racetrack near London in the UK. Visible between the high-sheen spokes of the new wheels are red brake callipers on the front axle (the GTI is the first up! to be fitted with a 15-inch brake). The wheels, specially developed by Volkswagen R, have a particularly stylish look in the wheel housings. This is thanks to the wheel offset having been reduced by 4 mm and an increase of 8 mm in the track width on the front and rear axle. Fitted as standard, the sports running gear, inclusive of lowering by approx. 15 mm, also contributes to the more dynamic look.
GTI rear section
The boot doors of all up! models are black. This detail thus also automatically follows the colour scheme of the first Golf GTI. The black boot door is matched by tinted side windows at the rear. There is a restyled rear spoiler on top of the boot door, which makes the roof line appear longer. This black spoiler is larger than on all other up! models. However, this is not just a stylistic feature as the larger roof edge spoiler provides for greater downforce on the rear axle to help deliver optimised handling performance at higher speeds. In the lower area of the boot door a red trim stripe and the GTI logo identify the Volkswagen as the most powerful up! to date. Further GTI features include the matt black diffuser at the rear and the exhaust system's chrome-plated tailpipe.
GTI insignia
The first GTI featured the now-iconic classic tartan fabric pattern with off-white and red stripes on a black background. Needless to say, the centre panels of the seats of the new up! GTI have also been given a stylish look with this fabric. It is called "clark" - just like in the Polo GTI and Golf GTI (where it is written "Clark"). The outer panels of the seats are black. Further GTI insignia in the vehicle interior include GTI door sill panel trims, a special GTI gear knob and a multifunction steering wheel specific to the GTI with red stitching and the GTI logo in the vertical spoke. Also covered with leather is the handbrake lever. Another "must" in any GTI is a roof liner and roof frame trim in sporty black. A touch of class inside comes via the subtle and attractive red ambient lighting. The dashpad featuring a "pixels red" design is colour-coordinated with the black and red interior elements. The chrome-plated trims around the vents, controls and instruments create an elegant contrast. The upper door panels are body-coloured.
Exclusive GTI features
The Volkswagen up! GTI is launching with a significantly enhanced set of standard features. In addition to the GTI insignia and the details already outlined, these additional features include the Composition radio system, six loudspeakers, a USB interface (Germany), air conditioning, heated seats, electrically adjustable and heated wing mirrors, front fog lights with static cornering lights and, as described, the sports running gear. The up! GTI is available as standard in "pure white" with two doors (four doors available as an option). Other features available as options include a tilting and sliding panoramic sunroof, "drive pack plus" (which includes City Emergency Braking function, automatic headlight control with Leaving Home and Coming Home function, cruise control system and rain sensor), Rear View (reversing camera), "maps + more dock" (docking interface to the smartphone integration for functions such as navigation and media library) and a 300-watt 8-channel "beats" sound system. Regardless of how a new up! GTI is configured, in the ideal scenario it will perhaps be parked in the garage next to a Golf GTI Mk1 - with the new car for 'every day', and the heritage model for journeys through time in the summer.
