Volkswagen Golf GTE Sport Concept: 400hp Plug-in Hybrid unveiled!

To celebrate the 40th Anniversary of the Golf GTI, Volkswagen has unveiled the Golf GTE Sport Concept. Set to make a debut at the Worthersee tuning salon, the GTE Sport is a plug-in hybrid performance car and joins the 265hp GTI Clubsport at the event. 

VW is no stranger to creating a radical concept car based on the Golf - Volkswagen unveiled the GTI Supersport just last month, the second car produced by the German manufacturer for the Vision Gran Turismo project. The low slung shape of the GTE Sport is constructed from Carbon Fibre, as are many of the components on the inside. Open the gullwing doors and you are greeted with a space age interior - behind the wheel resides a pair of paddle shifters to change gear and a digital display to display all relevant information to the driver.

Up front sits the 1.6 TSI engine from the Polo R WRC producing 299 hp fused with two 115hp electric motors (one situated in transmission housing and another at the back). When all power sources are working in synergy, the GTE is capable of producing up to 400 hp, launching the GTE Sport from 0-60 in 4.3 seconds and reaching a top speed of 174mph.

Like the W12 GTI and Vision GTI, the GTE Sport is a radical departure from the traditional Golf GTI and will probably never make it to the streets. There is a plug-in hybrid performance Golf available (the GTE) but at nearly £34,000, the price tag puts it in a very niche market. However, VW does plan to produce the GTI Clubsport, positioned between the GTI and R trims and being the most track-ready Golf in the line-up.