Built to meet the cost-effective Touring Car Racing
regulations, the VW Golf GTI TCR packs a 2.0-liter turbo four into bodywork
that's 6 inches wider than the road-going version.
It also features an extensive aero
kit, 18-inch racing rims, and a stripped-out cockpit with only the bare
essentials required for the track, and none of the creature comforts you'd find
on in the street version.
With all the restrictions imposed on the TCR class,
there were limits to what VW's motorsport engineers could do. But for 2017, the
GTI generates 350 horsepower with improved delivery. The aerodynamics have been
enhanced for less drag, more downforce, and better cooling. The sequential
gearbox offers better control, and the electric power steering more boost.
That ought to help Team Leopard Racing, defend the international championship it won last year, and Liqui Moly Team
Engstler defend its titles in the Asian series.
VW has sold twenty Golf GTI TCR since introducing it
last season, and expects to sell another 30 this year – at € 90,000 (plus tax) a
pop. And that's not even including the Audi RS3 LMS and Seat Leon Cupra Evo 17
that its sister brands also offer under the same regulations.
