VW Lamando
GTS
Volkswagen’s Chinese joint venture with SAIC wanted to make a four-door
coupe (to go up against the Mercedes-Benz CLA), which was sized similar to the
Jetta, but with the sleek looks of the Passat-based CC. The result was the New
Midsize Coupe concept in 2014, followed by the production Lamando a few months
after.
The VW
Lamando GTS is a performance variant of the China-only VW Lamando sedan. It
sports an uprated version of the China-made VW Golf GTI’s EA288 2.0-litre TSI
turbocharged engine.
At the front,
the bumper now gets larger air intakes, while the upper grille gets a red
GTI-like stripe amidst the honeycomb grille. Sportier-looking wheels along with
side skirting and gloss black mirror covers are part of the package here as
well.
Back side, the Lamando GTS gets a fixed rear wing, rear vent cutouts and rectangular
exhaust tips integrated into the bumper. Like the standard car, the Lamando GTS
retains its black-painted roof here.
No mention on
the car’s powertrain but the Lamando GTS is rumoured to pack a 2.0 litre TSI
turbo-four engine with 220 PS and 350 Nm, paired to a seven-speed wet-clutch
DSG gearbox. The standard car comes in 1.4 and 1.8 litre TSI mills, with the
smaller capacity engines mated to a five-speed manual, while the larger 1.8
litre gets a seven-speed dry-clutch DSG.
