The smallest member of Volkswagen’s GTI family, the
Up!, has received some mods by the folks at B&B Automobiltechnik. The German tuner has prepped two
power upgrades for the city car. The most affordable one is Stage 1, which will
cost you € 998 (US$ 1,158), in Germany, and raises the output by 21 PS.
As for Stage 2, it adds an extra 32 PS and 60 Nm of torque over the stock turbo’d 1.0-liter three-cylinder
engine, which now makes 147 PS and 260 Nm of torque –
close enough to the third-gen Golf GTi that, in 2.0 16-valve guise, put out
150 PS. Choosing this option requires spending € 1,498 (US$ 1,738).
In the most potent form, the B&B-tuned Up! GTI
sprints from 0 to 100km/h in a respectable 7.9 seconds, or almost a
full second quicker than the stock car. Top speed has also increased to just a
little over 210 km/h, from 196 km/h. The German tuner also added a
stiffer suspension, which lowers the ride height by 30 mm. This upgrade
brings adjustable coilovers that should improve the Up! GTI’s cornering
abilities.
Buying Volkswagen’s smallest hot hatch requires
spending at least € 16,975 in Germany, and £ 14,055 in the
United Kingdom. Although the three-cylinder engine puts out just 115 PS, it tips the scales at just 997 kg , so it’s pretty nifty – and
opting for B&B’s relatively affordable power upgrades should make it even
more enjoyable.
