Thursday 2nd April 2009

VW makes hotter 'Asia only' GTI

VW's GTI V50 special edition gets a harder-edge, but we don't get it!

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We might still be a few weeks away from the launch of the new MkVI Golf GTI here in the UK, but in the Far East it's likely the wait will be even longer. But don’t feel sorry for them, as buyers in Singapore will soon be able to get their hands on this, the Golf MkV GTI V50.

Power has been increased from 197bhp to 246bhp while torque has been increased considerably to 282lb ft, up from 207lb ft. That makes the V50 nearly 40bhp more powerful than the new MkVI with over 70lb ft more torque.

Volkswagen has still opted to use the standard car’s 2.0-litre turbocharged engine, but a Stage 1 ECU remap and a performance exhaust have helped liberate enough extra grunt to lower the 62mph sprint time to 5.6sec, an improvement of 1.3sec.

Sports suspension lowers the limited edition V50 by 15mm and the VW Performance body kit adds a new front spoiler, side sills and rear bumper. The V50 also uses Volkswagen’s six-speed DSG gearbox that was available as an option on the standard GTI.

Beneath the Pirelli P Zero tyres and 18-inch alloy wheels lie upgraded brake discs and callipers taken from the more extreme R32.

Volkswagen are yet to reveal a price for the GTI V50, but as it will only go on sale in Singapore you’re not likely to bag one anyway.

[va1o]

So basicly just the same as the UK Edition 30/ Pirelli MK5 models with a slight remap. To be honest I think I would take a Scirocco or the new Golf GTI over this, but obvsiouley the Asian customers dont get that option.

[clarencegi77]

Whatever for? I live in Singapore and there arn't many Golf's let alone GTI's around.. strange..

[Hub]

"We might still be six months away from the launch of the new MkVI Golf GTI here in the UK"

On sale 22nd May!

[iani]

sent all the golfs there!!

im fed up seeing these ultimately boring cars on our roads!!

about time vw came up with something a bit better imo

[iggletiggle]

iani said:

sent all the golfs there!!

im fed up seeing these ultimately boring cars on our roads!!

about time vw came up with something a bit better imo

boring they may be (IYO) but damn good cars they make..!

Our company run around has been a golf for the past two years and it has NEVER missed a beat, new mk6 here monday as well .. great cars

[Groober]

I love golfs but this is getting boring. How many variants of the GTI is there now. Last time I counted it was about a million

[Motorrad]

iani said:

im fed up seeing these ultimately boring cars on our roads!!

Try thinking things through before commenting.

The GTi is fairly banal but as a 'real world' compromise it beats the crap out of a diesel vectra. Save your ire for them.

[Crow555]

Groober said:

I love golfs but this is getting boring. How many variants of the GTI is there now. Last time I counted it was about a million

How many variants of the Impreza or the Evo Lancer has their been over the years? Lots of car makers do this.

[Tracked_Out]

No, Bedford Rascal, they said:

"That makes the V50 nearly 40bhp more powerful than the new MkVI with over 70lb ft more torque."

Note the mention of "new MkVI", which now has 207BHP as standard. 246 - 207 = 39, so nearly 40 as per the article.

[carl_w]

I'm liking the return of the 1970s fashion of matt black bonnets.

[FL07AAV]

Gimme gimme gimme

So, am I correct in understanding that this is a just a remap of the existing ECU and no other modifications?

If so, are VW saying the standard engine is OK to raise up to the same power and torque levels with no issues?

[Strike_J]

How come the 0-60 time has improved quite so much, its faster than a Focus RS and a Megane R26.R to 60 according to those stats.

[The Milfman]

Strike_J said:

How come the 0-60 time has improved quite so much, its faster than a Focus RS and a Megane R26.R to 60 according to those stats.

I was wondering the same thing? (not that we'll see the car here)

Impressive claims for the V50 and I suspect a little optimistic!

Flame suit on...

[Strike_J]

Yes it does seem a tad optimistic, but guess we will have to wait and see.

[bobberz]

Pic looks like a crappy photoshop- look at the wheels! Still, sounds quite good, the power of an R32, but probably lighter due to it being a 4 instead of the VR6.

[angus54]

Who cares - why is this worthy news??

Another day another Golf with lowered suspension, big wheels and new ecu.....
snore......snore......snore

And anyway with the humidity levels in Singapore it'll need all the extra horses it can get!

Edited by angus54 on Thursday 2nd April 16:35

[Robbouk]

Is this car not the R20 which is the R32 replacement that is coming here in the near future? I think it must be the Audi S3 engine and Quattro drive train. A bit of a no brainer for VW, drop a mk6 golf shell on the S3. Job done!

[va1o]

Robbouk said:

Is this car not the R20 which is the R32 replacement that is coming here in the near future? I think it must be the Audi S3 engine and Quattro drive train. A bit of a no brainer for VW, drop a mk6 golf shell on the S3. Job done!

The R20 will be based on the MK6 and most likely have 4Motion, this car is a FWD MK5.

[CTE]

You can fit a Revvo ECU upgrade for £500-00 which will give you at least this power and torque uprating without any other engine mods. You might want to upgrade the brakes, but thats really down to your driving style, and how stupid you want to be on a public road.
Problem is I fitted such an ECU to my 140hp GT Golf, and about a month later ragged the clutch, but the performance increase is astonishing (easily quicker acceleration than the 230hp Golf), aswell as improving economy. I believe the DSG set up is able to take this sort of increase without problems, but I would check first.

[AB]

Coming to a Bradford near you.