First look: VW goes mental with Golf GTI

VOLKSWAGEN has unveiled digital images of a mid-engined concept car to tickle the imaginations of boy-racers into overdrive.

Enter the biggest, baddest, heaviest Golf ever created: the Golf GTI W12, featuring – wait for it – a mammoth twin-turbocharged 6.0-litre W12 engine.

Obviously inspired by the mid-engined V6 RenaultSport Clio, VW has mounted the engine behind the driver in a race-derived aluminium chassis, with the power going to the rear wheels.

Producing a chassis-twisting 477kW of power and 750Nm of torque, the GTI W12 borrows its engine from the Bentley Continental, Audi A8, Volkswagen Phaeton and Touareg SUV.

For the record, the current 2.0-litre turbo GTI produces 147kW and 280Nm while the 3.2-litre V6-powered R32 goes further with 184kW and 320Nm.



Volkswagen claims the GTI W12 can hit 96km/h in 3.7 seconds while reaching a supercar-rivalling top speed of 325km/h.

The car rides on 19-inch wheels and features extensive body modifications to aid aerodynamics and handling. Will it get the production go-ahead? Keep dreaming boys.