Late last week, Volkswagen announced a performance-oriented variant of its Scirocco hatchback would compete in the Nurburgring 24 hour race, set to begin May 24. Our photographers at the famed race track snapped an exclusive gallery of the upgraded Scirocco, which is set to do battle in the 2-liter turbo category.
During testing, Volkswagen’s Motorsport Director Kris Nissen said the new Scirocco “was in its element from its very first lap around the Nordschleife.” Last year, VW took first place with its GTI hot hatch — the automaker is hopeful it can repeat that performance with the sleeker Scirocco later this month. The racer is propelled by a 300 hp TFSI motor mated to a dual-clutch DSG transmission.
Two-time Le Mans winner Hans Stuck was at the wheel during testing last week. He said he felt “immediately comfortable” in the car. “The Scirocco is one of the most uncomplicated racing cars I have ever driven. It’s really fun, and I am looking forward to the 24 Hours on the Nordschleife with even greater anticipation.”
The Scirocco, which is not due to start production until the autumn, will only be offered in Europe. The weak U.S. dollar prevented VW from importing the car to America, executives have said.
“The racing version of the Scirocco was developed and prepared by our technical staff in record time,” said Volkswagen Motorsport Director Kris Nissen, ‘”and we are well on schedule now that we have successfully completed this first endurance test. The Nürburgring 24 Hours is the ideal platform to showcase the performance capabilities of this exciting coupe.”
05/05, 10:02 PM
posted by:
Jon Luc
Looks nice to me, the race car that is. I’m wondering what the stock one will look like.
05/05, 10:25 PM
posted by:
FordTaurusForever
I liked the Scirroco when it was over here back in the late 1970’s and this looks like a worthy successor. Hey I’d buy it
05/05, 10:32 PM
posted by:
Jordan
are you blind, jon luc? the stock one will look exactly like THE STOCK ONE IN THE SECOND PHOTOGRAPH.
anyway, yes, it looks nice.
05/05, 10:44 PM
posted by:
archknight
Doesn’t matter to Americans, we won’t get a version of the Scirocco & VWOA is stupid for denying us this type of vehicle. If they offered the Scirocco with a version of this amped up 2.0T & AWD, with more aggressive spoiler package, there is no question that they would sell every last one. In order not to “cannibalize” precious GTI sales (flawed logic), they would rather loose more sells by alienating those who don’t want a tall wagon-ish hatchback.
05/05, 10:48 PM
posted by:
A4
swweeet ride
05/06, 12:54 AM
posted by:
Need4SSpeed
The race version looks cool, but I hate the hatch-wagon look to it. Another hatch that we don’t need. This is FWD right?
05/06, 4:06 AM
posted by:
sharpie
If I am not mistaken, it’s the same as a GTI mechanically, so I would assume it’s a FWD. I think it looks better as a “sport” car than the GTI, which looks too close to a Golf/Rabbit. And then we have the A3. I’d rather see a VW Scirocco and an Audi A3 and do away with the GTI. There is nothing to cannibalize if there is no sales. Hmm an AWD Scirocco, that’s an interesting thought. Alternatively, bring us a liftback like the Corrado. Wasn’t that what the Scirocco is supposed to be, a coupe?? The shape of this Scirocco reminds me of the Peugeot 206.
05/06, 4:32 AM
posted by:
Stinky007
Probably the only cool looking VW in production! Too bad that dashboard looks like it’s taken from a minivan. I know the interior quality is very good, but still, the interior design is lacking.
05/06, 4:54 AM
posted by:
Dindel
Coupes need useable rear seats nowadays. The dashboard by the way, is from the Eos, which in turn is related to the ones in the euro-only Golf Plus and the Tiguan. Coupes have always needed economies of scale…
Still it looks terrific to me with those push out fenders.
05/06, 9:49 AM
posted by:
DeansterTJ
I don’t mind it not coming to N. America. The GTi is just fine for this purpose, and is there an R-model in the pipeline? R32? R36?
05/06, 10:12 AM
posted by:
Need4SSpeed
agreed Sharpie, if VW were to bring back the Corrado, and make it RWD (wishfull thinking) although it would most likely be FWD because this is VW we’re talking about, that wouldn’t happen, but then again if it was FWD it’d probably take sales away from the GTI.
But how cool would a RWD Corrado be to compete with the Genesis, Toyota/Subaru shared RWD/AWD car, and 2010 Nissan 240SX?
05/07, 8:03 PM
posted by:
audi-lover
AWSOME!!!!!!!!!