Following last week’s high-profile tease, the Volkswagen Golf GTI Roadster Vision Gran Turismo made its official debut at the Wörthersee fan fest in Reifnitz, Austria. True to its buildup, this stunning real-world one-off that mimics its virtual sibling created for Gran Turismo 6 on Sony Playstation 3 is the most extreme exercise to ever wear a GTI badge.
"When Sony asked us if we would develop a Vision GTI vehicle exclusively for the game to mark the 15th anniversary of Gran Turismo we didn’t hesitate for a moment," noted Klaus Bischoff, Head of Design at Volkswagen. "The Vision GT project offered a wonderful opportunity to sketch out extreme ideas and design elements of the GTI that are portrayed as vibrantly, dynamically and emotionally as possible."
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Penned in house by a group of young designers led by Malte Hammerbeck, Domen Rucigaj (exterior) and Guillermo Mignot (interior), the GTI Roadster Vision Gran Turismo was developed entirely on the computer. Finished in a vibrant Gran Turismo Red Metallic set off with matte carbon accent elements and gloss black highlights, this dramatically styled 2-seater rides on a shortened GTI platform that measures 163.7 inches nose to tail and has a 98.2-inch wheelbase. Everything from its aggressively contoured front fascia, laid-back windscreen and cut-down doors that rotate up and forward to its boldly flared wheel arches, integrated C-pillar roll hoop and a massive rear wing speak to the car’s competitive character. Adding a perfect exclamation point to the mix is a set of 20-inch staggered-width alloy wheels wrapped in Z-rated tires – 235/35s up front and 275/30s at the rear.
Motivation for the Golf GTI Roadster Vision Gran Turismo is supplied by a 3.0-liter twin-turbocharged TSI VR6 engine that cranks out 496 horses and 413 lb-ft of torque, sufficient muscle to send the 3,311-pound VW dream machine streaking from 0-60 mph in 3.5 seconds and carry it on to a 192-mph top speed. A 7-speed DSG dual-clutch automatic transmission handles cog-changing duties and power heads to all four corners via VW’s 4Motion all-wheel-drive system. A race-tuned chassis and ultra-capable 15.0-inch front/14.0-inch rear disc brakes round out this scintillating mechanical mix.
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The same kind of performance pedigree extends to the Golf GTI Roadster Vision Gran Turismo’s function-focused cabin treatment which features a racing-inspired Black and Anthracite color theme set off with red accents. Competition-style bucket seats are fitted with 5-point belts while the car’s yoke-type steering wheel is flanked by paddle shifters and also incorporates a multifunction driver information display. Although the GTI Roadster Vision Gran Turismo is destined to remain a dream machine, Volkswagen reportedly is considering a number of its design elements for possible future production applications.
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