2010 VW Golf R20T / GTI-R To Get 224kW?

WITH THE EUROPEAN winter season at its end, car makers from around the world have descended upon Germany’s fabled Nurburgring Nordschleife circuit to test out their most recent creations.

A recent addition to the circuit test roster is Volkswagen, with shots of its new performance hatchback, the Golf R20T (or GTI-R), finding their way onto the interweb.  Now, there are some juicy powerplant rumours to go with the photos.

According to the folks at AutoMotorSport.se, the R20T will receive a 2.0 litre twin turbocharged power plant, producing a rumoured 224kw (300hp).  It has also been reported VW is targeting a 0-100km/h time of under six seconds, in addition to an electronically limited to speed of 250km/h.

Details are sketchy at present, but whispers indicate VW will trick out the 2.0 litre engine it currently shares with Audi.

That engine is currently seen in the Audi S3 and the Golf GTI, developing 198kw (265hp) in the Audi hatch and 157kw (211hp) in the punchy Golf.  The top of the range R20T will therefore provide a fairly substantial increase in power compared to its little brother.

The power boost received by the R20T will put it on a collision path with the 224kw (300hp) Ford Focus RS and Renault’s 186kw (250hp) Megane RenaultSport and place the car within the upper reaches of the super-mini stratosphere.

It has been suggested that the R20T, successor to the R32 of the Golf IV and V series', will be previewed at this year’s Nurburgring 24-hour race.

Head of Engineering for the GTI, Rolf Trump, said the decision to steer away from the R32 was prompted by VW’s  belief the car was not economical enough for today’s standards.

"We believe the R32 was a concept that was out of touch with its time. It has very high fuel consumption and the outputs were not adequate.

"An intelligent four-cylinder engine now can deliver adequate performance with much better economy. Fuel economy is definitely the priority now.