2019 Volkswagen Golf GTI TCR
In comparison to the Golf TCR, the GTI TCR has a few more aerodynamic qualities and some minor changes. Up front, the top and outboard side of the corner vents on the fascia have a large black insert. Three horizontal louvers run across each vent. Down below a small spoiler wraps around the fascia and a horizontal louver now runs across the large air dam toward the top. The same headlights from the Golf TCR carried over to this model, but a red, horizontal stripe runs from the inboard point to the outer edge of the headlight. The circular VW emblem is backed by a honeycomb grille between the headlights with a red horizontal stripe creating a link between the headlights and a red GTI emblem on the passenger side. It looks like the same hood carries over from the GTR, which was already perfect to begin with, so no complaints there.
To the sides that wide body kit provides for the necessary wheel arch extensions over the wheels, allowing the use of much wider wheels and tires compared to the road-going Golf. The side skirts are non-dramatic units, designed solely with aerodynamics in mind. A mild body line connects the front and rear wheel arches, and the mirrors are two tone, with the housing painted in the same finish as the body and the connecting arms painted black. To the rear, we see the same large, downforce-producing spoiler mounted to the rear hatch. The same taillight units carry over from the Golf TCR, but a red 鈥淕TI鈥?badge has been placed on the driver side of the hatch. That large black cladding runs along the rear fascia, curling at the end and doubling back toward the rear diffuser. Reflectors are now positioned along the lower extension of that cladding. The rear diffuser on the GTI TCR is smooth and doesn鈥檛 have the vertical fins seen on the TCR from last year.
A single exhaust outlet sits at each end of the diffuser. Altogether, this Golf GTI TCR looks ready for the track, and, to be honest, the aerodynamic design is mild enough that I could even stomach driving it on the street. It would be a little extreme for a daily driver, but it would certainly be nice to look out the office window and see this baby in the parking lot, wouldn鈥檛 it? Volkswagen didn鈥檛 release any images of the interior for the Golf GTI TCR, but you can bet that it doesn鈥檛 vary much from the Golf TCR that we saw last year. In the press release associated with this car, VW said to expect a racing seat with head protectors, racing safety cage, and an FIA-approved safety tank. If we look at the picture provided with the Golf TCR last year, we get a glimpse of what the interior looks like.
The dashboard, for the most part remains, as do the door trim panels, but expect the rest of the car to be gutted to make way for the roll cage. The steering while should be removable, and I expect to see a driver drink system as well as the same 14.5-gallon fuel tank from the A3 Quattro that allows for the straight exhaust exits in the rear. The Golf GTI TCR rides on VW鈥檚 MQB platform and is powered by a turbocharged 2.0-liter inline-four that produces 330 horsepower and 302 pound-feet of torque. For comparison purposes, that is 65 horsepower more than the Volkswagen Gold GTI Clubsport. All that power is sent to the front wheels via multi-disk sintered clutch, and a six-speed sequential racing transmission that is shifted by paddles located behind the steering wheel. According to VW, the Golf GTI TCR can hit the 62 mph sprint in 5.2 seconds with a top speed of 143 mph. Volkswagen has yet to drop pricing for its new race car, but Expect it to be priced significantly higher than road-going models. 70,000 bracket, if not a little higher.
Then again, that is a rough estimate, and I may be way off. We鈥檒l update pricing information as soon as we get it, so check back again soon. TCR International Racing is so dominated by VAG that most of the competition comes with similar German Engineering. Models like the Seat Leon and Audi TT are the main competition, but there are a few other models out there. One such model is the 2016 Opel Astra TCR, which debuted at the Frankfurt auto show last September. TCR regulations require no more that 2.0-liters of displacement, so as you would suspect, the Astra TCR is powered by a 2.0-liter four-cylinder. Horsepower output sits at 330 horsepower and 302 pound-feet of torque. That is identical to the Golf GTI TCR, so expect these two to have some epic battles assuming the drivers have what it takes. Read our full review on the Opel Astra TCR here. As far as the Golf GTI TCR is concerned, I鈥檓 happy to see that Golf is making its way into TCR. I鈥檝e always been a fan of the little hot hatch. The base, road-going models are a little slow for my taste, but they are fun to tune and play with, if you know what you鈥檙e doing. Maybe it鈥檚 just something about German engineering, but the Golf has always been my favorite hatch, and I sure wouldn鈥檛 mind owning one of these little racers. Who knows, maybe my next project will be converting a Golf into a TCR racers. That would be a fun project.
