If there's one good thing about the massive venue Volkswagen chose for its premiere party, it's the fact that the cars could actually drive around a little on stage. Nothing too crazy, just a few figure eights to give the crowd a little taste of what each car looked like in motion. When it came time to roll out the new 2010 Volkwagen GTI, the executive behind the wheel couldn't help goose the throttle a few times as he navigated the show stage. The tires squealed as the GTI displayed massive understeer, but it was fun to watch nonetheless.
As for the car itself, there's not much to say. It's almost indistinguishable from the current model and its 2.0T engine only has 10 additional horsepower. A standard electronic limited-slip differential should get it out of the corners a little faster than before, though, so expect a solid all-around hatchback when it goes on sale in the U.S. next fall. -- Ed Hellwig, Lead Senior Editor, Inside Line
felonious says:
06:30 AM, 10/ 2/08
Are those seats production?? Points for trying something different, but that is so ugly!
billt9 says:
08:28 AM, 10/ 2/08
That's not different, VW seats always came in plaid.
huyracing says:
10:10 AM, 10/ 2/08
i have an 09 GTI and it has the new engine that makes over what is claimed... so it is likely the same engine with the correct rating in this new model. i like this new front end, but the rest of the car looks bland... you can tell what they meant by simplifying this cars design for cheaper cost of production... much smoother lines. i love the steering wheel though... for those not in the know, its the same steering wheel in the TT, R8, Gallardo, Murcielago, and who knows what else. The seats and interior stitched in red further add to its appeal. And the LSD... although there are aftermarket options now, it is very costly. I still prefer mine exterior-wise, but if it were to ever have problems (its been perfectly reliable) then i might dump it for this one.
ateixeira says:
02:01 PM, 10/ 2/08
They must have boosted the engine in some way - this is SAE hp after all.
Ditching the Audi grille will let those cars stand out more from VWs.
hondacura4 says:
02:09 PM, 10/ 2/08
I like the old front end better.
andyer says:
06:38 PM, 10/ 2/08
Aesthetically, I think this fixes all of the problems with the MKV -- it looks 10x better to me...
Just fix the wheels....and all of the reliability issues, please :)
blueguydotcom says:
07:50 PM, 10/ 2/08
Lame. VW is just standing still with this lame refresh of the GTI.
rick8365 says:
10:56 AM, 10/ 3/08
I have always liked this line....and I dig this one too - especially the 5 door.
rick8365 says:
10:57 AM, 10/ 3/08
......agreed on the wheels though - not me cup o'tea
draw007 says:
05:45 PM, 10/ 7/08
Some obvious Dub haters in the crowd...
As a current MKV GTI owner, VW's new direction looks pretty damn good - especially the new front clip. They did wimp out on the output, however, 10hp increase still doesn't give Speed3 or Cobalt SS's anything to worry about. C'mon VW, give us something we don't automatically have to flash...