At times it might seem like Volkswagen as a company has no sense of humour. Every generation of the Golf looks from the outside only slighly tweaked, but still delivers in so many ways.
We need to remind ourselves that it is the same executives that gave the green light for the Bugatti Veyron, and Volkswagen also manages Porsche, Audi and Lamborghini and owns Ducati.
With this background it might not come as a huge surprise that VW has revealed the fastest and most powerful Golf concept to date, the Golf R 400. The number 400 refers to 400 PS, or 294 kW, which is 88 kW more than the current Golf R, which the 400 is based on. Torque delivery is also up by 70 N.m to 450 N.m. As you might have guessed, the same Type EA888 2,0-litre turbocharged engine is used, albeit with several improvements.
Upgrades include a new turbocharger developing a higher boost pressure while the engine features a reinforced crackcase. There is also variable valve control and dual camshaft adjustment. Volkswagen claims the same 1 420 kg weight as the Golf R, but, as the pictures illustrates, the exterior and interior have received several upgrades.
The body is 20 mm wider and the wheelarches are flared. Instead of widening the track of the car, the 19-inch wheels now feature in increased offset. At the front the new bumper channels even more air to help with the necessary cooling. Changes to rear of the car are also quite dramatic. The interior receives bucket-type seats with part-Alcantara inserts.
Volkswagen claims that with the DSG-equipped transmission, connected to the 4Motion all-wheel-drive system, the Golf R 400 will sprint front standstill to 100 km/h in a supercar-rivalling 3,9 seconds while top speed is limited to 280 km/h, 30 km/h up on the Golf R’s.
Volkswagen ended its press release with the words: “The Volkswagen Golf R 400 is only a concept at this stage, with no production plans”. However, we know that Audi is also working on a >290 kW 2,0-litre engine.
It seems we will either see a Mercedes-Benz A45 AMG contender from Volkswagen or Audi in the not too distant future.
