Every year in Austria the biggest VW show in the world takes place. Wörthersee Treffen 09 promises to be as good as any past year, even with the slow global economy. Volkswagen usually does its best to elevate the show every year with a special built car or two for the event. This year is no exception; both a Golf GTI and a Polo have both received special attention to attend the show. In years past, VW has built crazy mid-engined, wide body cars that even the most optimistic enthusiast knew would never see the light at the end of the production tunnel. This year VW has doen something maybe even more exciting. They have built two cars that could very easily be built and sold, all over the world, even here in the US. Well kind of.
The first offering is a MKVI Golf GTI painted in Firespark Metallic. Some of you may call it dark red, but a designer wouldn’t. The color looks good on the subtly sculpted flanks of the GTI and brings out more of the curves not normally noticed on its more utilitarian shape. The special color is carried over onto the grill trim and even as a stripe around the black 19-inch wheels. While VW may be bit behind the curve on the “Time Attack” wheels, we can’t fault the choice of wheels. It is amazing that VW seems happy sticking with the phone dial look of the “huffs” from the MKV on the new GTI, these are a far better choice. Better yet, why can’t all GTIs just come with a set of BBS wheels and we will all be happy?
The Golf GTI Wörthersee 09 appears to have a lowered ride height, something every enthusiast wants, and is reported to have a sport exhaust system. The interior seems to have gotten the most attention however. The leather is trimmed in black and red Napa leather with white piping with the seat centers done in a hexagon material. The dash is trimmed with aluminum and gloss black accents and the door sills show off the cars pedigree.
The second car on VW’s palette is one that could probably be brought to the US, but likely won’t, sadly. The Polo is the Golf GTI’s smaller sibling in the VW line-up. While the GTI version of new Polo has yet to be released in Europe, this may be a glimpse of what is to come. This particular car is done Flash Red with black skunk stripes running the length of the car. The smaller Polo rides on 18-inch Budapest wheels that almost look too big for the diminutive compact. While we can’t say that we find the wheels particularly appealing they aren’t offensive either.
The interior of the Polo Wörthersee 09 received the same basic treatment as the Golf GTI’s. Black and red leather is the main theme but the center sections use a microfiber and leather treatment for a more traditional look. The Polo is also lowered slightly and has a sport exhaust similar to the Golf GTI’s.
The real question is not whether these cars will make it to production, but will the US ever see a proper hatchback Polo GTI. Rumors still persist that the Polo is coming here, but those rumors also include whispers that it will only come over in sedan format. Comparing Jetta sales to Rabbit sales in the US that would make sense, but would that ruin what makes a Polo what it is?
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