2010 Volkswagen Golf GTI Excessive

Press release

A long-standing tradition every year at the GTI-Meet at Wörthersee – the largest of its kind in the world - is that Volkswagen likes to surprise its fans: not only with exciting new production models, but with breathtaking concept cars as well. In 2007, it was the "Über-Golf" GTI W12-650, in 2008 the "Sound Machine" Golf Estate RaVe 270 and in 2009 the Golf GTI Wörthersee 09, a concept on which meet fans got a preview of the new LED rear lights. This year, Volkswagen is presenting fans in Reifnitz with the Golf GTI Excessive. This concept car illustrates the great design potential of the Golf GTI and how it might develop in the future.

The Golf GTI Excessive is painted in the same fire-red "Firespark Metallic" as the Golf GTI Wörthersee 09. However, this time fire-red is not the only colour. But more on that topic in a moment.

Of primary importance on the Golf GTI Excessive are add-on parts in high-gloss black piano paint. The focus here is on extremely precise cuts of forms, radii and straight lines, as though cut with a razor blade. The add-on parts themselves – a look at the front and rear spoilers or the side sills in the style of splitters used in motorsports illustrate this impressively – are on the one hand slender and light, but also noticeably stable and appearing as though carved from a single block.

To cut to the chase: Designers have not modified any of the body panels on the Golf GTI Excessive. And yet the concept car projects an image that is even fuller, more dynamic and wider too – due to its flared wheel wells in the style of the Golf GTI I (+ 30 millimetres per side). There is refinement in every detail.

Front end: A narrow spoiler slices the car’s the way through the air. This splitter runs as a black strip beneath the front apron, ending at the wheel well extensions, also black, on the right and left sides of the car. For aerodynamic and stylistic reasons, there is an opening between the lateral terminations of the spoiler and the wheel well extensions. It allows the driving wind to pass through without creating air turbulence. The similarly modified screens of the central air intakes also connect above the front spoiler. Noteworthy here: The daytime running lights avoided a complete re-routing of the airflow for ventilating the 18-inch high-performance braking system that is used in the Golf GTI Excessive.

Side profile: Naturally, the best view of the internally ventilated and perforated disc brakes (diameter: 370 millimetres in front, 310 in rear) and the brake callipers with their "GTI / Wörthersee 2010" logos is from the side in front. Another conspicuous feature: the classic "CH Black Edition" type 19-inch BBS wheels, also in black, with a wheel offset of 35 millimetres. These especially lightweight wheels are produced in a flow forming method originally developed for Formula 1 racing.

The wheels, fitted with size 235/35 ZR 19 tyres, give the widened wheel housings a very full image. To be exact, one other reason the wheel-tyre combination practically fills out the wheel housings is that the GTI’s coilover suspension was lowered. Toward the sides, the wheels end right at the height of the wheel housing flares, as though aligned by plumb-bob. Bridging the space between the wheels, of course, are the side sills, which are also styled in high-gloss piano paint. These splitters resemble trays or wings more than sills; they fit in with the winglets integrated in the sills in the vicinity of the rear wheel housing flares. Matching the sills and wheel housings in colour are the newly designed mirror housings and their mounts at the lower point where the A-pillar intersects the side window.

Rear: The rear section provides a show all to itself. The presentation begins at the top: with a new rear spoiler painted in body colour; it visually extends the roof – upgraded with black piano paint – toward the back. The highlight: From the rear, the view of the roof through the spoiler is eye-catching. In the rear spoiler, designers have also integrated a very narrow strip of LED brake lights along its full width.

The gaze moves over the LED rear lights – also available on the "normal" Golf GTI – and gravitates downward where, whether one is a fan or not, it remains glued. The reason: The splitter theme of the front spoiler and side sills continues in the rear section here. This is also where – ideally form-integrated in the diffuser – one finds the trapezoidal, narrow titanium tailpipes of the exclusive Akrapovic exhaust system. The system not only looks sharp; it also adds an extra 3.7 PS of power and an extra 6 Newton-metres of torque. And the circle to the fire-red paint of the Golf GTI Excessive is now complete: As soon as the driver actuates the brake pedal, the diffuser – trimmed in a typical GTI honeycomb grille beneath the car – lights up fire-red. Regardless of such effects, however, the real appeal here is the fascinating precise workmanship of the splitters that run completely around the car and of all of the car’s add-on parts.

Standard powertrain concept: In terms of performance data, the new exhaust system imparts slight deviations in an upward direction. The total power of the GTI concept car is a full 158 kW / 214 PS, and its maximum torque is 286 Newton-metres. Like the production GTI, the Excessive accelerates to 100 km/h in under seven seconds and attains a top speed of 240 km/h. Combined fuel consumption: a low 7.3 l/100 km.

Interior: Inside, the Golf GTI Excessive follows the classic path of the Golf GTI Wörthersee 09. Its upgrades include decorative brushed aluminium trim and glossy black painted frames for the vent nozzles. The floor mats are also framed - in red piping. An interior highlight: the modified sport comfort seats with their integrated head restraints. They impress with innovative upholstery fabrics and a red-black colour composition. That is to say, black Nappa for the outer seat areas and flash-red Nappa for the lateral seat supports.

What remains to be seen is the highly anticipated feedback from fans on whether they want precision exterior add-on parts, e.g. as an accessory kit for their new or already registered sixth generation Golf GTI. It certainly would be tempting...