2012 Volkswagen Golf GTI Cabriolet

Volkswagen Golf GTI – for 36 years now, this vehicle designation has been the benchmark icon of all sporty compact models. Over 1.8 million VW Golf GTI cars have been sold to date. Launched initially as a young and wild car, Volkswagen’s GTI has long graduated to become a highly respected classic. One aspect that has remained constant from its inception to the current generation GTI is a sporty yet economical engine and very dynamically designed running gear. However, what never existed before under the GTI label was an open-top version. But that will be changing very soon: Volkswagen launches the first convertible in GTI history on 22 June 2012.

With an output of 155 kW / 210 PS (from 5,300 rpm to 6,200 rpm), the TSI engine which lies at the heart of the new Volkswagen Golf GTI Cabriolet has exactly the same power as the classic GTI with a steel and/or panoramic sunroof. Specifically, this is a GTI direct-injection petrol engine of the EA888 series. The turbocharged 16-valve four-cylinder engine develops a maximum torque of 280 Newton metres at a low 1,700 rpm. And this torque remains available at a constant level up to 5,200 rpm – an ideal plateau for a torque curve, which is actually not curved any longer.

The TSI engine accelerates the most powerful Golf Cabriolet ever from 0 to 100 km/h in just 7.3 seconds. A special strength of the engine is its great flexibility: the manually shifted Cabriolet can accelerate from 80 to 120 km/h in just 10.5 seconds – this value shows why the open-top four-seat convertible is an ideal cruiser.

Source: Volkswagen Press Release