Volkswagen Golf GTI at Ali & Sons in Abu Dhabi

The UAE’s GTI fans have been waiting a long time for today, as Volkswagen Ali & Sons Abu Dhabi launches the new sixth generation Volkswagen Golf GTI.

With a history spanning more than 3 decades, Volkswagen has built up an enthusiastic and dedicated fan base for the iconic GTI – respected among enthusiasts, and coveted by many other drivers, as one of the world’s most credible sports hatchbacks.

“We’ve been fielding requests for this car for the last six months,” says Ammar Al Johmani, Volkswagen Brand Manager at Ali & Sons Co. L.L.C.

“Now customers across the country can finally embrace this new iconic sporty car, its groundbreaking capabilities and astonishing performance.

“Through the years the GTI and the phrase ‘the right stuff’ were synonymous with the feeling of power, speed and freedom, and with the arrival of the new generation GTI drivers will once again continue to enjoy the power of ‘owning their wings’,” says Al Johmani.

With the original incarnation of the Golf GTI (Gran Turismo Injection), Volkswagen presented a purely sport orientated vehicle which first won fans over. Despite originally being planned as a limited series of 5,000, the GTI was destined to be a bestseller and quickly became synonymous with nifty sporty compacts.

“The GTI is no ordinary car – it is also an automotive perspective on the world and its fans are fans for life,” Al Johmani adds.

Since the debut of the first and the discontinuation of the fifth generation, more than 1.7 million buyers made the GTI to the world’s bestseller. In 2004, the fifth Golf GTI brought back this legend more powerfully than ever before.

“And we’re continuing this legacy with the sixth generation, which does not disappoint,” says Al Johmani. “It is sharper, more confident and has more to offer than all others before it.”

Reinterpreting a legend, Volkswagen has created a GTI whose chassis system – with standard electronic transverse differential lock (XDS) – redefine behaviour in curves and traction. A 240 km/h fast GTI that is more fun to drive with its powerful 155 kW/210 hp turbo engine, which only consumes 7.3 litres super unleaded (0.7 L/100 km improvement). A GTI that delivers audible dynamics with a sound generator and new exhaust system design (two tailpipes, one left and one right).

For many enthusiasts, their fascination with the Golf GTI has always been for its engine, and the sixth generation continues that tradition.

The new GTI’s boosted high-tech engine meets the demands of its fans with ease. It is more fuel efficient than a large displacement engine, but with the turbocharger it is just as athletic. At exactly 155 kW/210 hp, in terms of power level the new Golf GTI’s TSI engine is positioned between the last production GTI and the 30 Year Edition.

When it comes to emissions and fuel economy, the new 210 hp engine has advanced far ahead of the two previous GTI four-cylinder engines with 200 and 230 hp. At 170 g/km, the engine also shows marked improvement in CO² emissions. And the new GTI succeeds in bridging the gap between a serious business car during the work week, and a sporting competitor on the weekend. In this context, it should be noted that the first Golf GTI in 1976 had a power of exactly 81 kW/110 hp and a top speed of 182 km/h. At that time it was also one of the few cars to perform this balancing act.

The resulting package delivers enormous propulsive force; the car completes its acceleration from 0 to 100 km/h in just 6.9 seconds, and the new Golf GTI handles a 1,000 metre sprint from a standstill in 27.3 seconds.

Just as impressive is the engine’s elasticity: in fifth gear, the Volkswagen accelerates from 80 to 120 km/h in just 7.5 seconds. Even in sixth gear it only takes 9.5 seconds. Not until 240 km/h is a balance reached between air resistance (cw = 0.324) and power. The tachometer indicates 5,900 rpm at this top speed.

“The GTI has become a car of legend and this new model only adds to that – the changes are subtle, but what they do, is succeed in transforming the GTI legacy from great to out of this world,” Al Johmani concludes.