VW Golf GTI Edition 50 sets new Nürburgring record
VW hasn't revealed exact power figures for the Edition 50 just yet, but the German carmaker has confirmed it will be the most powerful GTI ever put into production. The car will make its public debut at the Nürburgring 24-hour race on June 20 before going on sale in 2026 — exactly 50 years after the GTI nameplate was born.
Buyers will be able to spec the car with an optional Performance pack, which adds a sport-tuned chassis, lightweight forged 19-inch wheels and a set of specially developed Bridgestone Potenza Race semi-slick tyres.
'My record-setting car was equipped with this package,' says Leuchter. 'That was the decisive factor, in my opinion. Three years ago, I wouldn't have believed a front-wheel-drive GTI could beat the lap time of the brilliant Golf R — but now it has. And in less-than-ideal weather, too. That says everything about the set-up and the incredible potential of this GTI.'

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


The Citizen
5 hours ago
- The Citizen
PODCAST: VW Tera to be renamed to Tengo, Tavo, Tiva or Tion
South African public gets to choose the new name for the baby SUV to be built in Kariega. Volkswagen has given the public a choice between four names for the new compact SUV known as the VW Tera in Brazil it plans to build in Kariega. In sticking to its naming convention with all its SUV names starting with the letter T, the names on the table are Tengo, Tavo, Tiva and Tion. But what do these names mean? On this week's episode of the Pitstop podcast, we take a closer look at the four names. ALSO READ: Voting opens: Names for South Africa's VW Tera revealed VW Tera to be renamed According to the German carmaker, Tengo is defined as a 'rich cultural significance in African language and describes qualities like strength, resilience and purpose'. Moving on to Tavo, VW describes it as 'a gender-neutral word meaning good or beloved in Latin and also eight'. Tiva 'means nature in Hebrew and is also associated with vitality, life and energy', the carmaker says. Lastly, the name Tion 'signifies aesthetic appeal and evokes a sense of movement and change'. ALSO READ: What South Africa can expect: Volkswagen Tera detailed in Brazil Kariega plant upgrades The local version of the VW Tera will be built on the same A0 platform as the Polo and T-Cross. The VW assembly plant in Kariega recently underwent a R4-billion upgrade of 100 robots, conveyor belts in the final assembly area and enhancements to the body paint shops to gear up for the new SUV. Production is expected to start sometime next year. The Mzansi VW Tera is set to replace the T-Cross as Wolfburg's smallest SUV. The latter goes out of production next year. It is set to be replaced by the all-electric ID.2X in European markets. The Brazilian-built VW Tera and its sibling in Mzansi will then be offered exclusively for developing markets.


The Citizen
15 hours ago
- The Citizen
Peugeot's GTi revived, but as an ultra powerful electric 208
For the first time in its one-again, off-again 41 year history, the Peugeot GTi name now features on an EV. Peugeot 208 once again wears the GTi name, but this time solely as an EV. Image: Peugeot Announced at the end of May as making a comeback five years after first rumours started emerging, Peugeot has officially revived the GTi nameplate for the 208, albeit solely with electric propulsion. Showcased on the eve of this weekend's 24 Hours of Le Mans, the newly named E-208 GTi also becomes the most powerful GTi-badged hatchback the Lion brand has ever made. Aggressive exterior Building on the aesthetic revisions applied to the standard 208 and by extension, the E-208, two years ago, the E-208 GTi receives model specific bumpers and door sills, colour-coded wheel arch extensions, slotted 18-inch alloy wheels supposed to pay homage to the 205 1.9 GTi, a front lip spoiler underneath the bumper, and 208 letting on the C-pillar. ALSO READ: Peugeot makes it official: GTi coming back in June but… Not stopping there, Peugeot has dropped the GTi's ride height by 30 mm compared to the normal E-208, while also increasing the front and rear tracks by 56 mm and 27 mm respectively. Claimed to be sporty but not overdone, the special applique concludes with an imitation gloss black rear diffuser, a black finish on the sealed grille, red detailing as a further nod to the 205 GTi, and black tinting for the LED fog lamps. Changes underneath and inside The work of Peugeot's Sport division, and reportedly with input of the 9X0 that will once again compete in the top-tier Hypercar class at Le Mans, the E-208 GTi's e-CMP platform has also undergone a series of changes from the standard E-208. As with the exterior, the interiors' main theme is red in a further nod to the 205 GTi. Image: Peugeot Besides the mentioned alloy wheels wrapped in specially designed Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tyres, Peugeot has fitted uprated springs and shock absorbers, a new anti-roll bar at the rear, a limited slip differential and retuned electric power steering. Along with the track width extensions, Peugeot has fitted bespoke Peugeot Sport brakes utilising red-painted brake calipers with four-pistons of a diameter of 355 mm at the front. Sport seats feature red accents, 208 GTi embroidery work and the Peugeot Lion logo integrated into the headrests. Image: Peugeot Inside, the tribute touches to the 205 GTi continue with red finishes on the floor mats, seatbelts, dashboard and doors, red accents plus a mesh pattern on the Alcantara sport seats, perforated leather and Alcantara with red detailing on the GTi-branded steering wheel, and seven ambient lighting colours. Voltage turned up Up front, the retention of the 54-kWh battery pack used in the regular E-208 has come with a considerable increase in power and torque from 115kW/260Nm to 206kW/345Nm. The same unit used in the Abarth 600e and Alfa Romeo Junior Veloce, the E-208 GTi will get from 0-100 km/h in a claimed 5.7 seconds and hit a limited top speed of 180 km/h. Exterior design pays extensive homage to the iconic 205 GTi. Image: Peugeot The claimed all-electric range is 350 km and the waiting time using a DC fast charger up 100 kW less than 30 minutes from 20-80%. A 7.4 kW charger, which will require four hours 40 min of charging from a wallbox, is however fitted as standard. Not for us On-sale in Europe before the end of the year, with pricing still to be announced, the E-208 GTi is not expected to be offered in South Africa at any stage within the next few years. ALSO READ: Peugeot 208 GTi's imminent revival can bring fight to VW Polo GTI

IOL News
18 hours ago
- IOL News
Liverpool bank on 'world-class' Wirtz after record deal
Here we go Germn midfielder Florian Wirtz is set to complete a move to Liverpool in the Premier League. Photo: Franck Fife/AFP Image: Franck Fife/AFP The golden boy of German football is set to become the new prince of the Premier League as Florian Wirtz prepares to join Liverpool from Bayer Leverkusen for a club-record fee. Fresh from winning a 20th English top-flight title, Arne Slot's Reds have broken the bank to land a rising star already labelled as one of the world's best by former Reds midfielder and Wirtz's former coach Xabi Alonso. British media reported on Friday that the Premier League champions had agreed a club-record deal worth up to £116 million ($157 million) to secure the services of the attacking midfielder. Liverpool can now agree personal terms with a player coveted by a number of top European clubs. Get your news on the go, click here to join the IOL News WhatsApp channel. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad loading Wirtz's abundant potential as a teenager sparked a row between his hometown club Cologne and Leverkusen five years ago when Leverkusen, who are backed by pharmaceutical giants Bayer, swooped to sign him at 17. Cologne argued that a gentleman's agreement not to poach youth team players had been violated, but Leverkusen said Wirtz was a first-team signing and within months he had made his Bundesliga debut. His rise was interrupted by a cruciate knee ligament injury in March 2022 that forced him to miss the next 10 months. By the time he returned, Alonso had been installed as Leverkusen boss and together they would spearhead the club's greatest days. Leverkusen ended Bayern Munich's grip on the Bundesliga in stunning fashion, romping to the title and the German Cup without losing a single match in the 2023/24 season. Wirtz netted his first career hat-trick on the day the title was sealed against Werder Bremen, on his way to being crowned Bundesliga player of the year. "Flo is one of the top players in the world, he's world class," said Alonso, who compared his protege to Lionel Messi in terms of his understanding of the game. "Why is Messi so good? Because he knows how and when to play simple passes. Messi says: 'You're in a better position? Here, there you have the ball'," said Alonso, a hero of Liverpool's 2005 Champions League triumph. "It's not always about making the most brilliant move, but the best and smartest. Florian can do that. That's why he's so good." 'The full package' Both star player and coach committed to staying with the Leverkusen project for another 12 months, but defeat in the Europa League final to Atalanta to round off the 2023/24 campaign was a sign of things to come. Bayern restored their grip on the German game last season but could not convince Wirtz to follow the lead of many others in joining from their Bundesliga rivals. Instead, he made it clear his preference was a move to the Premier League champions and the chance to add his name to Liverpool's cast of legends. "A huge talent, huge future in front of him, so Liverpool is the place for him," said the club's former captain Steven Gerrard. Despite 57 goals and 65 assists in 197 games for Leverkusen, Wirtz will begin life at Anfield in the shadow of Mohamed Salah. But the Reds are banking on Wirtz's creativity to help maintain the 32-year-old's prolific goalscoring numbers and ease the burden of carrying the Liverpool attack. The club's previous record signing, £85 million recruit Darwin Nunez, has failed to deliver and could be sold to help recoup some of their major outlay on new faces. Liverpool will hope Wirtz can handle the pressure of his price tag and the physicality of the Premier League to ensure there is no second season slump under Slot. Former Germany head coach Hansi Flick is in no doubt about what the midfielder has to offer. "He's simply an outstanding technician, loves to play, is very creative, has a good shot, runs hard and is quick," he said. "He's the full package." AFP Get your news on the go, click here to join the IOL News WhatsApp channel.