It's been almost a year since the Golf GTI Edition 50 became the fastest production Volkswagen at the Nürburgring. However, its 7:46.13 hot lap still wasn’t enough to dethrone the Honda Civic Type R atop the leaderboard for the fastest front-wheel-drive cars at the Green Hell.
Not content with the first run, VW took the 320-horsepower hot hatch back to the famous German circuit for another attempt at the record. Mission accomplished. Development driver Benjamin Leuchter crossed the finish line in 7:44.52 to edge out the CTR’s lap time of 7:44.88, established in 2023. Both times were recorded over the longer 20.832-kilometer configuration of the Nordschleife.
Sure, the difference is marginal, but it’s enough for the Golf GTI Edition 50 to be crowned the king of FWD production cars at the ‘Ring. Occupying the last spot on the podium is the Renault Megane RS Trophy-R, which once held the record with a 7:45.3 lap. While the GTI and Civic Type R are still in production, the French hot hatch was discontinued years ago.
View Price on AmazonNo longer available to configure, the Golf GTI Edition 50 carried an astronomical starting price in its home market. Before options, VW asked for $64,220, which is quite steep. However, it’s not a fair comparison since German buyers also paid a 19-percent value-added tax (VAT).
But even a base GTI costs $57,250 in its domestic market, where VW also sells the track-focused GTI Clubsport for $61,500. The R remains the most expensive Golf of them all at $68,250, or an even higher $70,300 for the R wagon. As with all GTIs and Rs, the Edition 50 was offered exclusively with an automatic transmission. The chances of a three-pedal setup returning to the performance models are slim to none, although lesser Golf variants are still sold in Europe with a clutch pedal.
Although gasoline-powered hot hatches are a dying breed, VW has vowed to keep the Golf GTI alive for years to come. Even with the ninth-generation, electric-only Golf arriving later this decade, the combustion-engine GTI is expected to survive into the 2030s.
In the meantime, Wolfsburg is preparing to apply the GTI badge to an electric hot hatch for the first time. The ID. Polo GTI is set to debut later this year.
Motor1's Take: Hot hatches are few and far between these days, so VW’s record appears safe for now. Well, unless Honda beefs up the Civic Type R to reclaim the title. However, the CTR is gone from Europe after the Final Edition marked the model’s swan song, brought on by stricter emissions regulations.
Source: motor1.com
