This is the new Volkswagen ID. GTI concept, a sportier take on the earlier ID. 2all show car and a glimpse into the future of electric driving for car enthusiasts. Sure, it's designed to make a splash at this week's Munich motor show, but this is one concept that is destined for Irish showrooms in the not-too-distant future. Take heart from this line in the official press release: "the ID. GTI Concept is more than just a show car - it is the first glimpse of the exciting GTI future because its series development has already been decided."
Evocative design detailing
The pert design of the ID. 2all concept was universally approved of when it was unveiled in March this year and Volkswagen Head of Design Andreas Mindt suggests that he already had the GTI variant in mind when he penned it. Without straying too far from the core shape of the ID. 2all, the GTI concept mixes evocative GTI cues of the past with a thoroughly modern stance and detailing.
Up front are slender new LED matrix headlights joined by a white light bar, while the VW logo is illuminated, too. Under that is a new interpretation of the characteristic, red-outlined grille with the GTI logo to one side. Vertical daytime running lights at either end of the deep front apron visually widen the car - integrating with the air curtain inlets - and the lower section is finished in matt black. There, Volkswagen has included the characteristic GTI honeycomb grille and - most likely not for production - a little motorsport pizazz in the form of bright red tow eyes and a jutting aerodynamic splitter with the words "NO STEP" stencilled on it.
The muscular front wings are carried over from the ID. 2all - which bodes well for the showroom model - though the GTI gets matt-black wheelarch extensions, presumably allowing for a wider track. They hug the 245/35 R20 tyres fitted to the gloriously detailed 20-inch alloy wheels. The GTI concept retains the tiny door mirrors of the ID. 2all and the five-door shape with the handles for the rear doors 'hidden' at the backs of the glass. A solid C-pillar makes it clear from a glance that this car is a Volkswagen. The GTI badge is found on the front doors and on the more pronounced side sills, while graphics above that disguise the height of the car while linking in with the style of older Golf GTIs.
This theme continues across the back, where the GTI logo takes pride of place, though there's little else about the rear of the concept that looks to the past. The ID. 2all's full-width light strip has been darkened with certain sections illuminated in vivid red - including the VW badge in the middle. A functional spoiler in a similar style to that of the current Golf GTI Clubsport is fitted to the rear hatch and finished in matt black, tying in with the prominent diffuser-like design of the lower bumper.
Not much smaller than a Golf GTI
Based closely on the Volkswagen ID. 2all, the new GTI concept is usefully shorter than the current Golf GTI, though it's wider and a little taller, while its wheelbase is only 30mm shorter. Nonetheless, as it's built on a new platform designed from the ground up for compact, front-wheel-drive electric cars, it has several packaging advantages, as evidenced by the much larger boot (490 litres with all seats in use) and a clever storage area under the rear seats - as first shown in the ID. 2all.
Volkswagen's designers have rather gone to town on how the interior of an electric GTI of the future might look, again, taking plenty of cues from the GTI back catalogue. A showy three-spoke steering wheel, for example, features a lower airbag position than usual to tie in with the style of the wheel in the very first GTI. The new one is flat-bottomed, however, and features lots of extra controls. It comes with an illuminated 12 o'clock marker and the roller wheels appear to be finished a little like the surface of a golf ball.
That, of course, references the gear knob of the early Golf GTIs. The idea is taken a step further in the shape of the 'GTI Experience Control' between the front seats, used to select different driving modes and design themes for the digital instrumentation and the infotainment screen. The former, called the GTI Digital Cockpit, is a 10.9-inch display that can be configured with a contemporary look or the appearance of vintage instruments. The central touchscreen, a 12.9-inch unit, sits above a separate block of controls for the heating and ventilation with a physical volume roller in the middle. It's expected that this layout will be adopted by the production car. Not so certain to see the inside of an Irish showroom are the GTI seats with a built-in 'heartbeat' LED system.
Who cares how fast it is?
Very few technical specifications have been confirmed for the concept as it is more about its design and layout at this stage. Volkswagen does make mention of an electronically-controlled limited slip differential for the front wheels, which is promising, while the GTI Experience Control can alter the electric motor characteristics, the power steering, the synthetic sound produced and, interestingly, the simulated gear-shift points. Apparently, it will be possible to mimic the characteristics of older GTI models in this way.
When Volkswagen unveiled the ID. 2all it mentioned power outputs as high as 226hp, which would be sufficient for a GTI model, especially paired with the instantaneous torque response of an electric motor. A range of about 450km was also bandied about, with recharging at up to 200kW on a DC charger. If a 2024 Volkswagen ID.2 arrives with specifications such as those, looks half as good as this concept and keeps the promised low pricing, it'll undoubtedly be a winner. And a GTI variant will be the cherry on top from the point of view of enthusiasts.