Photo: X-Tomi Design
Yesterday, Volkswagen revealed the Golf 7's mid-life facelift and said all variants had been shown. But that's not true, since the Golf R, GTD, Alltrack and e-Golf are missing.
While we wait for at least some of them to show up, let's enjoy one of the few body style options left unexplored by the German automaker.
Volkswagen was really proud when it unveiled the Golf Cabriolet in 2011. But perhaps the engineering should have been put on hold for two more years because this convertible seemed outdated almost immediately.
They tried everything to fix that, from SEMA concepts to hot versions with the GTI and even the R's all-wheel drive powertrain. We know nothing has worked because, after five years in production, the Golf Cabriolet is being discontinued by the end of 2016.
But what would it look like if instead of discontinuing it, Volkswagen would launch a brand new generation right now? Well, for starters, we shouldn't be calling it the 7.5, as it would be the fifth incarnation of the car.
It would also look something like this rendering by X-Tomi Design, who may have chopped the roof a little too much for a production car.
Can you imagine what the outcome of a comparison between this and the current MX-5 Miata would be like? We can. Even if they somehow develop a comfortable convertible with a solid rear axle, the 2017 Golf Cabriolet would still be about 300 kilos heavier than the Mazda. It would never be as fun, but the Germans could easily make it faster.
Taking a look at the latest GTI engine, we see that it's gone up to 245 PS and at least 350 Nm of torque. Off the line, the Miata would stand no chance. But even with something like the 1.8 TSI from the Polo GTI, the roofless Golf would be pretty fast.
A brand new Golf Cabrio would also be one of the most technologically advanced vehicles without a roof, comparable to some Audis. But not even that is reason enough to put it into production. Not only would it immediately turn into a money pit but without the engineering purity of a Miata or a Subaru BRZ, it would never serve the halo car role.
Volkswagen was really proud when it unveiled the Golf Cabriolet in 2011. But perhaps the engineering should have been put on hold for two more years because this convertible seemed outdated almost immediately.
They tried everything to fix that, from SEMA concepts to hot versions with the GTI and even the R's all-wheel drive powertrain. We know nothing has worked because, after five years in production, the Golf Cabriolet is being discontinued by the end of 2016.
But what would it look like if instead of discontinuing it, Volkswagen would launch a brand new generation right now? Well, for starters, we shouldn't be calling it the 7.5, as it would be the fifth incarnation of the car.
It would also look something like this rendering by X-Tomi Design, who may have chopped the roof a little too much for a production car.
Can you imagine what the outcome of a comparison between this and the current MX-5 Miata would be like? We can. Even if they somehow develop a comfortable convertible with a solid rear axle, the 2017 Golf Cabriolet would still be about 300 kilos heavier than the Mazda. It would never be as fun, but the Germans could easily make it faster.
Taking a look at the latest GTI engine, we see that it's gone up to 245 PS and at least 350 Nm of torque. Off the line, the Miata would stand no chance. But even with something like the 1.8 TSI from the Polo GTI, the roofless Golf would be pretty fast.
A brand new Golf Cabrio would also be one of the most technologically advanced vehicles without a roof, comparable to some Audis. But not even that is reason enough to put it into production. Not only would it immediately turn into a money pit but without the engineering purity of a Miata or a Subaru BRZ, it would never serve the halo car role.
Google News