Yahoo News New VW Golf GTI Is Almost Here, Debuts March 3
Volkswagen has officially confirmed that the new Mk 8 Golf GTI will appear at the Geneva auto show on March 3, 2020.
A teaser illustration shows the front end of the new GTI.
The GTI will go on sale in the U.S. either in late 2020 or early 2021, likely as a 2021 model.
After countless spy photos, rumors, and plenty of speculation, Volkswagen is finally talking about the new Golf GTI hot hatch for real. It will debut at the Geneva auto show on March 3, and there's a new teaser illustration that gives us a glimpse at the eighth-generation car's front end.
The honeycomb grille texture shown here dominates the GTI's lower air intake and has interestingly integrated fog-light clusters. It looks slightly different than the GTI prototypes we've seen before, but VW does say that the GTI it will show in Geneva is a "near-production concept car" so it may not be identical to the version that will eventually reach dealerships. Its headlights are similar to those of the standard Mk 8 Golf hatchback, and there's of course the requisite GTI badge prominently displayed next to the VW logo (which is the newly designed emblem, natch).
We're fairly certain that a turbocharged 2.0-liter inline-four will be under the hood, likely making upwards of 250 horsepower. That will provide a useful bump over the current GTI's 228-hp engine, and both six-speed manual and seven-speed dual-clutch transmission options should be on the menu. Along with its more aggressive front- and rear-end treatments, the GTI will benefit from a stiffer chassis setup and upgraded brakes compared to the standard Golf hatch, as has been the case with GTIs in the past.
The new GTI will be coming here for sure, as both it and the forthcoming Mk 8 Golf R have been confirmed for America—the base Golf hatchback's fate on our shores is less clear. Volkswagen says that the new Golf GTI will launch in the second half of the year globally, but we're not sure about exact timing for the U.S. market. Our guess is that it will be a 2021 model in the U.S., going on sale either late this year or in early 2021.
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