Volkswagen Golf RS (or RSi?) appears at corporate event
What's an RS? Well, appearances would possibly indicate that it's going to be the production version of the Thunder Bunny Concept (right) from last year's SEMA show. The nameplate mounted to the front bumper identifies the hatch as the Golf RS, or possibly RSi -- the photo resolution's too low to tell. A quick look at the attached Thunder Bunny gallery shows that the bodywork is one and the same, and the RS/RSi car looks prepped for business with its lowered suspension, racing-style seats (which are far more purposeful than the Thunder Bunny's), and 10-spoke Passat R36 wheels shod in meaty rubber. If the gear underhood displaces 3.6 liters, we could be looking at a Golf R36. Any way you cut it, the car's pretty boss, and our interest is piqued.
[Source: UK-MkIVs.net via the WCF Blog]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
ME 5:55PM (3/20/2007)
Same front end as the supposed R36:
http://www.germancarblog.com/2007/03/vw-golf-r36-more-spy-shots.html
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oren 2:59PM (3/20/2007)
love those gold wheels! nice looking car, too bad it will be over weight and over priced....
http://www.montrealvip.com/nightlife.htm
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Steve 3:01PM (3/20/2007)
Too bad it will be overpriced.
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Matt 3:07PM (3/20/2007)
Production model should keep the gold wheels or at least the design of the wheels.The RS would offer a little more variety in VW's rather boring lineup outside of the new GTI. I'd buy one if they put it out...
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Derek Kreindler 5:10PM (3/20/2007)
Notice the Tiguan in the background (its orange)
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yacoub 3:29PM (3/20/2007)
Wow, finally a VW that looks so good I could overlook their reliability issues!
Now just price it under $30k and I'd be interested.
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Carlos 3:33PM (3/20/2007)
So there's a Golf GT, a GTI, an R32, probably an R36, and now an RS as well? Why??
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ruggels 3:34PM (3/20/2007)
"So there's a Golf GT, a GTI, an R32, probably an R36, and now an RS as well? Why??"
Given the amount of cues and clues pertaining to this car, and the recent spy phots, I'm going to go ahead and stake my GTI and 2.0T Jetta that the RS and the R36 are one in the same.
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DPC car videos 3:53PM (3/20/2007)
Looks good even in the first picture with the Audi A4 Ultra Sport wheels, but I think it will be way overpriced just like the R32.
http://www.dpccars.com
DPCcars
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mk 4:07PM (3/20/2007)
the name thunder bunny reminds me of a funny quote:
"it's the most horrible, vile creature...."
-"Where, behind the rabbit?"
"It IS the rabbit!!! LOOK AT THE BONES!"
Gotta love monty python.
I am not a boxy-hatch fan, but those gold wheels are fantastic. I wonder if they are 5x100 bolt pattern, and if they'll fit on a subaru, or like so many VAG applications, the offset is too low for Subaru. I'd put those wheels on my car, forthwith.
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aliasfox 4:26PM (3/20/2007)
I think VW uses a 5 x 112 pattern
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Fukengroovin 4:28PM (3/20/2007)
Wow. Another unreliable overpriced VW?
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steve 7:14PM (3/20/2007)
as much as i like the vr6 engine the whole package ends up being too nose heavy and more of a luxo gt. Yea i suppose the extra 50 forsepower over the 3.2 would help but given the choice the s3 derivative with its agility would be the ticket
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Bob Not 9:17PM (3/20/2007)
11. Notice the Tiguan in the background (its orange).
No, sorry, that's the GTI Fahrenheit edition:
http://www.autoblog.com/2007/02/21/gti-fahrenheit-edition-heats-up-vw-dealerships/
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Alex Nunez 9:44PM (3/20/2007)
No offense to #11 and #14 but I think you're both off the mark. That's a CrossPolo (I believe this was a European gathering that the RS was at):
http://www.autoblog.com/2005/11/25/full-details-vw-crosspolo-premiere/
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Snix 11:47PM (3/20/2007)
How about taking the GTI and putting it on a diet a'la Porsche RS/BMW Alpina with carbon fiber hood and trunk, lightweight carpet/padding, electronics deletion, lighter seats, easy to remove rear seat, lighter wheels, etc?
Now THAT would get my attention......not this nose heavy old skool VR6 GTI.
Oh, and throw a GIAC product and K&N CAI kit in the trunk. Heh-Heh.
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nagmashot 5:04AM (3/21/2007)
#5 why?
GT 170hp
2.0l TDI or 1.4l TSI
GTI 200hp
2.0l TFSI
GTI edition30 230hp (only avaible in Germany)
2.0l TFSI
R32 250hp
3.2l FSI
R36 300hp
3.6l FSI
This Golf RS looks like the R36 testmule seen in Scandinavia some weeks ago during winter tests.
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Bob-o 5:20AM (3/21/2007)
"Too bad it will be overpriced."
Too bad it will be overweight.
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Bob-o 4:37AM (3/23/2007)
"How about taking the GTI and putting it on a diet a'la Porsche RS/BMW Alpina with carbon fiber hood and trunk, lightweight carpet/padding, electronics deletion, lighter seats, easy to remove rear seat, lighter wheels, etc?"
The weight is in the poor chassis design, not the actual accessories. Consider this: how does Subaru put out a Legacy that's lighter than the outgoing model by 50 lbs (~3100 lbs), but still outfit well as a mid-level family car, with AWD? Yet at the same time, a smaller, less equipped compact R32 weighs in at ~3400 lbs? Subaru set out and harnessed GM's hydroformed chassis technology, and coupled with prudent engineers, they were able to create a lightweight AWD mid sized sedan that performed well on all fronts (if you're really curious, find the Best Motoring video where a Legacy GT was pitted against an RS6 @ Tsukuba...and wins).
VW/Audi's mentality is to overbuild everything, which is fine...except the fact that they refuse to design a chassis from the ground up, and instead, continue to slather more metal onto existing designs hoping to add more stiffness. What used to be a good lightweight chassis in 1974 is now almost 75% heavier (and for those of you who know VW & Audi's, you'd know that the chassis and suspensions have stayed virtually identical in the 35 years they've been building watercooled cars).
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charreed 2:09AM (3/22/2007)
The Volkswagen Golf looks like an average Honda Jazz to me. If I were to choose between the two, I'd say I'd go over the latter when it comes to price.
Btw, is its name gonna hop from golf to rabbit? http://vwpartsblog.vdubpartsdirect.com/2007/03/15/the-rabbit-hops-back-again/
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