Photo: SB-Medien
The Polo GTI will probably never become a cult car, even with more power and a bigger engine. But Volkswagen is giving it the firepower it needs to show the Fiesta ST who's boss.
We can't call it the littlest of GTIs anymore, as an Up! GTI model will come out next year. But offering a 2-liter turbo engine in a supermini frame is a big deal, and we have further confirmation of this fact from Auto Express magazine.
According to them, the 2017 Polo GTI will have a 197 bhp 2.0-liter turbo engine from the old Golf GTI. That's 200 PS, which means it will be down 20 PS on the Golf but also up 8 PS from the current model.
So far, the Polo is the first and only hot hatch confirmed for the MQB A0 platform. There's talk of the T-Roc joining in, but SEAT says "maybe later" and SEAT is a definite "no."
It will be interesting to see how much torque the allow, as the front wheels of a supermini can be easily overloaded. We expect somewhere close to 320 Nm, just enough of a competitive edge but still not the 350 Nm in the Golf GTI.
Volkswagen is nothing without its DSG gearbox, and it will be interesting to see what hapens in this department. The dry-clutch DSG7 current offered is a little dimwitted and can't handle the torque, so they should install the Golf's 6-speed too.
With all this tech, the Polo GTI should be able to sprint from 0 to 100 km/h in less than 6 seconds, our sources say. But we have trouble believing that, considering it would place the little car too high up on the performance totem poll.
There will be better infotainment systems, LED headlights, an XDS diff and bigger brakes. But the big engine is that will set this car apart from the Clio RS and the recently downsized Fiesta ST.
According to them, the 2017 Polo GTI will have a 197 bhp 2.0-liter turbo engine from the old Golf GTI. That's 200 PS, which means it will be down 20 PS on the Golf but also up 8 PS from the current model.
So far, the Polo is the first and only hot hatch confirmed for the MQB A0 platform. There's talk of the T-Roc joining in, but SEAT says "maybe later" and SEAT is a definite "no."
It will be interesting to see how much torque the allow, as the front wheels of a supermini can be easily overloaded. We expect somewhere close to 320 Nm, just enough of a competitive edge but still not the 350 Nm in the Golf GTI.
Volkswagen is nothing without its DSG gearbox, and it will be interesting to see what hapens in this department. The dry-clutch DSG7 current offered is a little dimwitted and can't handle the torque, so they should install the Golf's 6-speed too.
With all this tech, the Polo GTI should be able to sprint from 0 to 100 km/h in less than 6 seconds, our sources say. But we have trouble believing that, considering it would place the little car too high up on the performance totem poll.
There will be better infotainment systems, LED headlights, an XDS diff and bigger brakes. But the big engine is that will set this car apart from the Clio RS and the recently downsized Fiesta ST.
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