Photo: Kolesa
Collectors say the Mk1 Golf GTI is the best of the best, but for thousands of teens who are just getting into cars, there's nothing like the Mk2. It's a magical hatchback with a timeless design and ample opportunities for affordable mods, the opposite of its modern counterpart.
The Golf 8 is dull and unimaginative. It's probably still the best compact car in Europe, with huge improvements in the electronics department. However, it also looks a little boring, especially now the GTI version is out.
Oh, the GTI. This was supposed to be the young, effervescent kid of the family. But with the 8th generation, it feels like the hot hatch is suffering from depression. There's not a single stand-out design element, not even a decent not to four decades of predecessors.
Enter the "Vintage Golf 8 GTI." This is a rendering from the Russian website Kolesa, which brings back the 3-door body and also includes four round headlights we absolutely adore. Round lights are the second-best thing you can have at the front of a car, after pop-ups. Just ask the Dodge Challenger!
The idea is based on a pretty old rumor. Back over a year ago, German forums talked about an internal project from VW called the Golf Light. It was supposed to have retro styling and simple features offered at an affordable price.
The hatchback was supposed to start from around €12,000 and be offered only with the 1.0 and 1.5 TSI, so no TDI. The AWD and DSG options from the regular Golf would also be stripped. It's obvious that the project never got final approval, even though the Skoda brand has relatively high success with the Scala hatchback that fits in the range just under the Octavia.
Kolesa's rendering is not only a Golf 2-inspired design but also a GTI. Even if the car doesn't exist, you have to wonder what would power it. The Mk2 GTI initially got a 1.8-liter with 107 horsepower but steadily got more and more grunt. Sadly, that displacement isn't offered by Volkswagen anymore, but the 1.8 TSI turbo unit was pretty nice, perhaps even hot hatch-worthy.
Oh, the GTI. This was supposed to be the young, effervescent kid of the family. But with the 8th generation, it feels like the hot hatch is suffering from depression. There's not a single stand-out design element, not even a decent not to four decades of predecessors.
Enter the "Vintage Golf 8 GTI." This is a rendering from the Russian website Kolesa, which brings back the 3-door body and also includes four round headlights we absolutely adore. Round lights are the second-best thing you can have at the front of a car, after pop-ups. Just ask the Dodge Challenger!
The idea is based on a pretty old rumor. Back over a year ago, German forums talked about an internal project from VW called the Golf Light. It was supposed to have retro styling and simple features offered at an affordable price.
The hatchback was supposed to start from around €12,000 and be offered only with the 1.0 and 1.5 TSI, so no TDI. The AWD and DSG options from the regular Golf would also be stripped. It's obvious that the project never got final approval, even though the Skoda brand has relatively high success with the Scala hatchback that fits in the range just under the Octavia.
Kolesa's rendering is not only a Golf 2-inspired design but also a GTI. Even if the car doesn't exist, you have to wonder what would power it. The Mk2 GTI initially got a 1.8-liter with 107 horsepower but steadily got more and more grunt. Sadly, that displacement isn't offered by Volkswagen anymore, but the 1.8 TSI turbo unit was pretty nice, perhaps even hot hatch-worthy.
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