All GTI, then? During this year’s 24h weekend, Volkswagen is celebrating 50 years of driving excitement associated with the iconic three letters by presenting two major premieres. On Thursday, before a packed crowd at the ring°boulevard, the Wolfsburg-based carmaker gave motorsport fans a tangible preview of its future return to the ADAC RAVENOL 24h Nürburgring in 2027 with the Golf R 24H show car. One day later, at the same venue, Volkswagen officially ushered the GTI badge into the era of electric mobility with the world premiere of the ID. Polo GTI.
“For us, the 24h race is the ultimate proving ground under genuine competitive conditions. At the same time, the Nürburgring serves as our test and development track, and the 24h Nürburgring is where we connect with people who share our passion for performance – which is exactly why this project is such a perfect fit for Volkswagen R,” says Reinhold Ivenz, Head of Volkswagen R. “With the Golf R 24H, we are bringing our vision for 2027 to life at an early stage. Development work on the real race car is already underway. Although we are not revealing much about the technology just yet, fans can already look forward to what will be the most spectacular Golf R ever.”
The new racing version of the current all-wheel-drive Golf R is being engineered to meet the extreme demands of the Nordschleife and is being developed in close collaboration with Max Kruse Racing, which is competing this weekend with three Golf GTI Clubsport cars powered by innovative E20 fuel. The team’s founders, Benjamin Leuchter and former professional footballer Max Kruse, are also taking turns behind the wheel. Leuchter, who also plays a key role as a test and development driver in fine-tuning Volkswagen’s sportiest production models, is leading the team-side development programme for the new race car set to compete in 2027. At the same time, the ID. Polo GTI is already poised for series production use. It will be the first fully electric Volkswagen model to carry the legendary GTI badge.