Clarkson Pawns The 650Hp VW Golf GTi W12 Concept - Full Episode

In Top Gear’s latest episode that aired this Sunday, Jeremy Clarkson had the “dreadful” task of driving the VW Golf GTi W12 Concept (click here). Though it may look like nothing more than a… bloated Golf GTi, in fact we’re talking about a total different vehicle as this concept features a mid-mounted, 650Hp 6.0-liter 12-cylinder engine that powers the rear-wheels. According to VW, the GTi W12 accelerates from 0 to 100km/h (62 mph) in just 3.7 sec and it achieves a top speed of 325km/h (202 mph). Did we mention that it’s a one-off concept? Yeah, right, wait until you see what Clarkson put the Golf GTi W12 through in the test track!

Via: Youtube

New VW Tiguan SUV Video: "The Whole Story"

Here’s the newest, and from what the people who handle VW’s online films told us, possibly the last of the Tiguan video series. In this 3-minute long film, we follow the various development stages, ranging from the first design drafts and the Concept-A to the actual production model which premiered at the Frankfurt Show.

Volkswagen Tiguan SUV: New Promo Videos

Volkswagen has revealed two new official promotional videos of the all-new Tiguan SUV featuring the “Sport & Style” version which is designed for a maximum entry angle of 18 degrees and the “Track & Field” edition which is tuned for offroad duty for max entry angles of up to 28 degrees. Check them both out after the jump. -Click “Read More…” below

VW Golf GTI W12: Autocar Takes The Monster Golf For A Brief Spin

Sometimes it really kicks ass to be working for a renowned mag as this video proves. Autocar’s Mike Duff had the chance to take VW’s intriguing Golf GTI W12 Concept for a spin –ok, apparently it was a pretty brief spin but wtf… Equipped with a mid-mounted 6.0-litre W12 Twin Turbo engine derived from the Bentley Continental GT, the 650Hp Golf GTI is capable of sprinting from zero to 100 km/h (62mph) in just 3.7 sec while it reaches a top speed of 325 km/h (202 mph). Wouldn’t it be great if VW actually did go ahead and put this one of a kind GTI in a limited series production? Obviously, most of us wouldn’t be able to buy it, but pipe-dreaming never hurt anyone.

Via: Autoblog.it , Source Autocar

VW Tiguan 3D Promo Video

Volkswagen is hyping up its promotional efforts on the recently introduced Tiguan compact SUV with the presentation of a new video clip. However, this is not your usual “static image and driving scenes” promo video but a 3D animated film featuring both versions of the Tiguan. In the rare case that you missed out on the Tiguan presentation, you can see the official images of here and the press release here. Also, don’t forget to leave us a comment below telling us what you thought about the specific video along with what you would like to see from VW; who knows, maybe someone from Volkswagen might be reading you as we speak…

Thanks for the link Patrick!

It’s Alive! VW Golf GTI W12 650Hp Video

Listen to that turbocharged W12 growl like a hungry lion! The more we see and hear of VW’s stunning concept the more we’re drawn into it. This video was shot during a VW presentation of the Golf GTI W12 650Hp Concept in what seems to be a soccer stadium, so don’t expect any crazy stunts. Just pop up your ears and get ready for an acoustic feast.

Via: Le blog auto

Top Gear Video: Future VW & Mercedes Classics

Richard Hammond recommends two German future classics: the 90’s VW Corrado VR6 and the 80’s Mercedes-Benz 190E 2.3 16v. As Hammond rightly points out, the trick in choosing a future classic is finding a car young enough to still be good to drive and reliable and old enough to be forgotten. And while these two German-mobiles are surely forgotten by most, they're definitely going to be sought out by collectors in the near future. -BBC does not allow Video posting, so click here to see it

Technorati: VW+Coraddo, Mercedes-Benz+190E, Carscoop, blogs, automotive, vehicles

VW Golf "Night Driving": VW's Darkly Beautiful TV Spot

Without doubt, one of the best TV ads we’ve seen. Amazing how ad agency DBB London, managed to create a car advert that stimulated our “driving emotions” without actually showing much of the VW Golf. The dark city scenery is combined with Richard Burton's ominous radio delivery of Dylan Thomas’s play, “Under Milk Wood” which perfectly accentuates directors Noam Murro's breathtaking VW Golf spot. Just makes you want to stay awake till “all the people of the lulled and dumbfound town are sleeping” and take your car for a ride, doesn’t it… Via: Autoblog.com

"And all the people of the lulled and dumbfound town are sleeping now.

Hush, the babies are sleeping, the farmers, the fishers, the tradesmen and pensioners, cobbler, schoolteacher, postman and publican, the undertaker and the fancy woman, drunkard, dressmaker, preacher, policeman, the webfoot cocklewomen and the tidy wives.

Young girls lie bedded soft or glide in their dreams, with rings and trousseaux, bridesmaided by glow-worms down the aisles of the organplaying wood.... You can hear the dew falling, and the hushed town breathing.

Only your eyes are unclosed to see the black and folded town fast, and slow, asleep..."

"Under Milk Wood", 1954 by Dylan Thomas

Technorati: VW, VW+Golf, Ad, Carscoop, blogs, automotive, vehicles

Weekend Hooning: VW GTI Fans Tear Apart An Opel Astra!

VW GTI meeting Wörthersee 2007; VW presents the sugarlicious Golf GTI W12 and the Golf GTI Pirelli while Audi kicked butts with the “poor-mans” speedster. You can imagine the joy and pride that the VW boyz felt. You can also imagine what happens when cheerful hoons are supplied with endless shiploads of beer and weenies… We’ve only got one question; what the hell is that guy at around 2.10 min from the beginning of the video trying to accomplish with the mini motorcycle?

Technorati: VW, Audi, Video, cars, Carscoop, blogs, automotive, vehicles

Sideways Challenge: Tiff Needell Takes A VW Golf GTI For A Spin

As 5th Gear’s presenter proves in this video, you don’t necessary need a rear-wheel drive vehicle to have a little sideways fun. Wait; did I say fun? Well maybe for Tiff, his co-driver and us viewers, but definetely not for the poor guy sitting in the Golf GTI Edition 30’s rear bench. Not the best place on earth to be when a driver like Tiff decides to steer looking out through his side window.

Update: VW Golf GTI W12 Presentation Pictures & Video

Continuing our report on VW’s super-impressive 650Hp strong Golf GTI W12 Concept, we just got our hands on the full English press release that answers most of our questions concerning the king of GTI’s. But that’s not all. As you can see, we also added high-res images (including the very first picture of the interior) and a short video, all from VW’s presentation at the GTI meeting “Worthersee 2007”. Check them all out after the jump. (Click “Read More…” below)

Golf GTI W12-650 - Key Aspects

• Showtime at Wörthersee: The 325 km/h GTI

• World premiere of the 650-PS Golf at GTI Meeting at the Wörthersee

• W12 bi-turbo engine with 6.0 liter displacement and 750 Nm torque

• 325 km/h fast showcar sprints to 100 km/h in 3.7 seconds

Wolfsburg, 17 May 2007 - Daring to create something unique, leaving conventions behind and awakening passion – these have been at the heart of the GTI concept since its inception. To date, more than 1.67 million car drivers have fallen under its charm. The Golf GTI has been an icon for a long time now. A brand in itself. A label of sportiness. To drive a GTI is to make a statement; across the globe. Since 1982, its greatest fans have been celebrating it every year at the Wörthersee in the Austrian state of Kärnten. Thousands come for this event. Five days of Mardi Gras in May. For this occasion, Volkswagen has put a Golf on wheels that is like no other: The GTI W12-650 showcar. This sports car is a tribute to our GTI friends at the Wörthersee, car fans who made the GTI a legend. It is a concept that was designed just for them.

No Golf has ever been more powerful, or wider, or faster. The GTI W12-650 gives the appearance of having come directly from the racetrack. A Golf that could be the pace car for the 24 hour race at Le Mans. Its name is its mission: W12 cylinders, 650 PS (477 kW at 6,000 rpm). A showcar, no more, no less. At the same time it demonstrates the enormous potential that such a car can offer.

3.7 seconds, 325 km/h, 750 Newton-meter

Its 6.0-liter bi-turbo engine is longitudinally mounted directly behind the driver and front passenger. This transforms the GTI into a classic mid-engine sports car. A six-speed automatic transmission hammers the maximum torque of 750 Newton-meters (at 4,500 rpm) to the rear axle. It catapults the GTI to 100 km/h in just 3.7 seconds. The bi-turbo propels drivers who keep their foot to the gas pedal well beyond the 300 km/h barrier. The speedometer needle does not pause until it reaches 325 km/h. The Golf GTI W12-650 outpaces nearly all other cars of this world.

1.88 meters wide, 235 tires in front, 295 in back

Under the broad 1.88 meter (production: 1.76 meter) width and low 1.42 meter (production: 1.50 Meter) height of its body, engineers and designers have brought together automotive technologies not seen in this combination on any other car. Each component is sourced internally. That in particular is a tribute to the unequaled breadth of technology at Volkswagen AG.

The chassis components of this showcar, for example, were adapted directly from a super sports car. Mounted on the front axle are 235 tires in 19-inch format, while in the rear there are 295 tires. Naturally, alloy wheels are also used: Due to the gigantic tire dimensions, the brightly machined “Detroit” GTI wheels are “dished” in the direction of the wheel hub and are custom built; the pitch circle with the wheel nuts lies much deeper than the rim circle.

70 millimeters lower, 160 millimeters wider

The axles were “pushed” 70 millimeters further into the body; the wheel well cutouts and gigantic wheel arches are part of the shoulder section, as in a coupe. Klaus Bischoff, Director of Volkswagen Design: “In the rear, the showcar is 80 millimeters wider on each side. However, the body of the GTI easily takes this in. We already have a strong shoulder section here on the production model. We were able to draw it outward even more distinctly, like on a sports car.”

The chief designer continues: “Our goal was clearly defined – despite the somewhat dramatic engineering changes, it was very clear that the GTI was to remain a classic GTI. The design of the Golf is like a fingerprint. If it is erased, the entire character of the car is ruined. That could not be allowed to happen under any circumstances.” That is also why as many components as possible, such as the headlamps, the doors – newly hung due to the wide side skirt – front hood and taillights were taken from the Golf.

C-pillars as part of air duct for engine cooling

“Our greatest challenge”, says Klaus Bischoff, “was to provide the six-liter mid-engine with sufficient air, without watering down the GTI’s side profile. In addition, provisions had to be made for sufficient downforce at the rear axle on such a fast type of car. But for aesthetic reasons we did not want to put an enormous rear spoiler on the car.”

In both cases a trick helped. Klaus Bischoff: “The strongest Golf design elements are the C-pillars. But it is precisely here that we needed air ducts for engine cooling air. Therefore, the C-pillars were redesigned on short order to assume this function of routing air to the engine. In doing so, we simply made the rear windows turn inward. This created two ducts between the windows and the C pillars, on the left and right, through which air flows for engine cooling. We got the rest of the cooling air in front via the gigantic radiators and the ducts connected to them, as well as on the sides via air inlets on the side skirts.” Expressed differently: At first glance all parts of the rear section look like a production GTI, but it was actually redesigned intensively.

Carbon-fiber roof is a diffuser

Innovative body construction has also prevented the lines of the GTI W12-650 from being ruined by a roof-mounted wing. Klaus Bischoff: “This GTI carries its wing internally. The roof is part of an enormous diffuser that supplies sufficient downforce to the rear axle. It consists of a carbon-fiber material and directs the air over and under the rear spoiler to achieve road grip, like in car racing.”

The bumpers of the showcar are powerful and at the same time coherently designed. In the rear, as in the front, the GTI W12-650 is characterized by enormous air inlets and outlets. Two dual chrome-plated tailpipes frame the air outlet in the rear. At the front of the car, the eye-catching straight-line grille between the headlamps, with its red frame, is reminiscent of the first GTI.

Interior with racing ambitions

Every modern-day GTI driver would feel at home right away in this interior. The leather Alcantara covers for the race car bucket seats are newly designed. Three round gauges in the middle of the instrument cluster are also reminiscent of the original GTI. Details taken from car racing, on the other hand, include the transparent “flip-up switch covers” for important functions such as ESP deactivation. To prevent accidental switch activations, the transparent covers are “flipped up” with the index finger before activating the switch underneath. Another reference to car racing is the integrated fire extinguisher in place of a glove box. For weight reasons, the door trim was completely “stripped”; only screens are used, which quite intentionally offer a view of the internal workings of the door mechanisms

Technorati: Volkswagen, VW+Golf+GTI, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, autos, Carscoop, blogs, 2007, images, pictures

VW Golf Mk1 With A 350Hp Suzuki Hayabusa Engine!

Are these guys’ nuts or what? Work of UK based H.R. Engineering that specializes in converting front wheel drive cars to rear wheel drive with any engine option, the heavily modified VW Golf Mk1 has been blessed with a 350bhp turbocharged, 1.3-liter motorbike engine from the Suzuki Hayabusa driving the rear wheels. It's not the first time we've seen something like this as some of you might remember the Smart Fortwo Diablo with the 180Hp Suzuki GSX-R 1000 motor. As you’ll hear for yourself in the videos that we added, if anything, the modified Golf sounds pretty damn sick. -Click “Read More…” for the videos

Via: Autoblog.it

Technorati: VW+Golf, Suzuki+Hayabusa, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, Carscoop, blogs, 2007

Video: VW Manual vs DSG gearbox commercial

Another witty TV ad from VW featuring a couple of kids playing around with their imaginary cars. While one kid is driving a manual gearbox the other has preferred a DSG… Via: germancarscene

Technorati: VW, Commercial, Video, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, autos, Carscoop, blogs, 2007, images, pictures

Un-pimp my Ride aftermath: Kinky Helga “schlaloms” in a VW GTI

Remember those catchy VW GTI “Un-pimp My Ride” commercials? Well, we stumbled across this “new to us” video of that hot German maid named Helga taking us through a slalom course with "Helga dummies" instead of cones. Better watch your “schlalom” cause that S&M vixen seems ready to spank your azzz if you knock over one of her statues or drop below 120 Mph. Woof-woof!

Technorati: Unpimp+my+ride, VW+GTI, Pimp+MY+Ride, Youtube, Videos, commercial, car+accessories, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, Carscoop, images, pictures

2008 Volkswagen Tiguan Video

Undoubtedly, the most significant debut at this year’s LA Auto Show, the Tiguan Concept is just one-step away from production. Based on the Golf V / Rabbit platform, VW’s answer to the Toyota RAV-4 and Honda CR-V will officially make its premiere as a production model in September 2007 at the Frankfurt Motor Show. Till then, take a few minutes off and enjoy this 4 min long video that we've taken the courtesy to dress with Manu Chao’s 1998 “King of the Bongo” song.

Technorati: Volkswagen+Tiguan, VW+Golf, Youtube, LA+Auto+Show, Los+Angeles, Video, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, images, pictures, Carscoo

LA Show Exclusive: Volkswagen Tiguan Concept

Hold onto your butts because here’s VW’s first ever compact SUV. The Tiguan, which will make its debut at the Los Angeles Auto Show in a couple of days, puts VW right up against the heavyweight players of the category like Toyota’s RAV4 and Honda’s CR-V.

Don’t let the word Concept fool you, as with the exception of a few details like the bi-coloured tires, what you is what you will get when the car goes into production in the 3rd quarter of 2007. Although we admit that we were waiting for something more extravagant –don’t blame us, blame VW and its 2006 Concept A prototype… the Tiguan looks quite good, and it could be easily be characterized as a, “baby Touareg”.

Moving to the interior, for those of you living in Europe, yes you’re right: the Tiguan uses Golf Plus’s (MPV version of the Golf / Rabbit) dashboard! That’s no coincidence as the Tiguan is actually based on the Golf Plus platform which in its turn is based on the Golf/Rabbit/ Touran platform.

Based on previous information I gathered talking with VW people, the Tiguan uses Golf’s simple 4wheel drive system, dubbed 4MOTION. Despite the fact that the prototype is fitted with a TDI engine, the production version is expected to use VW’s wide range of petrol and diesel motors, including the Golf GTI’s 200Hp 2.0 TFSI. In Europe, the Tiguan will most possibly be offered with the new generation 1.4 TSI engine available in 140 and 170Hp versions.

So when is the Tiguan due to go on sale? Sources say it will be available in Germany right after its Frankfurt Motor Show presentation in September 2007 with other European countries following till the end of 2007 - beginning of 2008. As for the US, the most probable launching date is the first quarter of 2008.

Related Article: 2008 VW Tiguan Video

Technorati: Volkswagen+Tiguan, Concept, Volkswagen+Golf, Los+Angeles, LA+Auto+Show, 2006, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, images, pictures, Carscoop

Video: VW Neeza Concept

A futuristic “playstation” style video from VW featuring its Neeza crossover concept that premiered a few days ago in the Auto China car show in Beijing. We took the liberty to spice it up with Baby D’s 1992 hit “Let me be your fantasy".

Technorati: Volkswagen+Neeza, VW+Group, Youtube, Video, clips, concept, Auto+China+2006, China, 2007, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, images, pictures, Carscoop

Volkswagen Magotan Pics & Video – Auto China 2006

Volkswagen, or to be exact FAW-Volkswagen, spared us the surprise with its new Magotan sedan which, as you can see, is nothing more than a Passat with a "fancy..." new name. The Magotan made its world debut at the Auto China today and according to VW, it will go on sale in China sometime in 2007. I’ll spare you all with the press release which has no technical information anyway. The pictures and video speak for themselves. And even though there are no actual pics of the interior yet, you can see it in the video clip.

Technorati: Volkswagen+Magotan, FAW-Volkswagen, VW+Passat, Youtube, video, clip, Auto+China+2006, China, 2007, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, images, pictures, Carscoop

Video-Time: Volkswagen IROC Concept

Well this seems kind of premature as VW just released the official pictures a few hours ago, but we sure don't have a problem. Click at the two following videos bellow and take a closer look at Wolfsburgs new Scirocco -oops, I'm sorry, I mean IROC... concept!

Part-1


Part-2

Technorati: Volkswagen+IROC, Scirocco, 2008, Paris+Motor+Show, 2006, autos, crossover, auto+news, vehicles, cars, automotive, video, clip