Fans of the Volkswagen Golf have likely heard about the Golf R Concept shown at the Beijing Auto Show last month. Today marks the first time, however, that official video of the concept has surfaced. This constitutes our first chance to hear the Golf R concept, and the reason that’s a big deal is the number of horsepower inside the new hot hatch.
The record for horsepower in a 2.0-liter engine like the Golf R’s is somewhere in the low-to-mid 300s. The Mercedes-Benz A45 and CLA45 AMG’s have 355 horses, which is pretty amazing. The concept that Volkswagen showed off in Beijing, however, is said to have 395 horsepower and VW is hinting that that number could crack 400 by the time it becomes a production model.
As you can tell by the sound, nearly every component of the engine is optimized to achieve a number that high. It’s a target so lofty, we can imagine that a single clump of dirt in the fuel line or errant cigarette butt sucked into the air intake could disrupt the system.
It’s also a shrewd move by Volkswagen to the automotive industry, and its media analysts, to demonstrate that turbocharged four-cylinder engines can yield power on a level that previous decades left to the V6s or even V8s of the world. The minuscule size of a golf ball sizzling through the air could be an apt metaphor for an industry long obsessed with the formula that size equals speed.
But enough rumination. Enjoy the sounds of the Golf R and let us know what you think about it.