Audi's not alone in bringing a customized production ride to the 2009 Wörthersee meet. Volkswagon's one-upping the interlocking rings by bringing two production-based concept cars: special Wörthersee '09 versions of the new VW GTI and Polo. The GTI's bodywork is finished in a dark Firespark Red color, offset with black wheels and exterior accents. The red is also used for the GTI's grille trim and to dress up the rims on its black 19-spoke alloys. Nappa leather trims the seats, with red contrast panels and white piping adding some more visual pop.

The VW Polo Wörthersee '09 concept (shown at right) looks like the GTI concept's kid brother, and likely hints at the next-gen Polo GTI's appearance. Finished in Flash Red paint with black rally stripes, the Polo concept sports black 18-inch wheels with polished spokes sit at the corners, while inside, you'll find more Nappa leather appointments. Black surfaces are accented with white contrast panels and red accent stitching.

Both cars get sport exhaust systems and the obligatory commemorative doorsill plates, natch. Will the crush of fanboys rolling into the Wörthersee Tour approve of the two show cars? We'd place our bets on "yes."

Every year, Europe's Volkswagen and Audi faithful head to Austria and descend upon the Wörthersee for the annual GTI Meet, a huge annual gathering of the brands' aficionados. Over the past few years, the Wörthersee Tour has been home to the unveilings of several concept cars, such as the 650-horsepower VW Golf GTI W12 and the Audi TT Clubsport. For the 2009 edition of the meet, Audi has unveiled the Q5 Custom Concept – a slammed, primped and pimped version of Ingolstadt's new compact CUV.

In addition to the obvious cosmetic changes meant to showcase Audi's range of factory accessories, the crossover packs a punch underhood, where a 408-horsepower version of the new, supercharged 3.0 TFSI six-cylinder resides. This configuration is supposedly good for a zero-to-60 sprint of just 4.4 seconds, and the speedo's needle will keep arcing to the right until an electro-nanny kicks in at 155 mph. Other mods to the show car include spendy ceramic brakes to help wrangle all those horses back into their paddock.

The Audi stand will also be home to a boatload of other Audis from throughout the marque's history, including examples as varied as the legendary Ur-Quattro and the much more recent A1 Sportback concept. In addition to the photos in the gallery below, Audi has a 1,500-word press release to go along with them. If you're so inclined, you can subject yourselves to that after the jump.



[Source: Audi]

Click above for high-res gallery of the VW Golf GTI Performance

VW hasn't released any info on the car you see here, which is called the Golf GTI Performance design study, so we'll call it like we see it. A black-and-copper checkered flag motif adorns the hatch, which is enhanced with a widebody kit, lowered suspension, and the expected wheel/tire upgrade. Out back, the GTI's rear bumper cover is covered with more grillework than you'll find on the rump of a Lamborghini Gallardo. A pair of giant exhaust outlet cutouts are also built into the corners. And speaking of Lamborghinis, VW has fitted the Golf GTI Performance with the dreaded "Lambo doors," which look predictably ridiculous here. The exterior color scheme carries through to the passenger cabin, which gets a 2+1 sport seating arrangement and what appears to be a substantial audio system install. Not our cup 'o tea, but it'll probably go over very well with the VW tuners who take part in the WörtherSEMA... er.. Wörthersee Tour.


[Source: Volkswagen]

Click above for high-res gallery of the VW R36 Variant Concept

The Volkswagen and Audi crew are blowing up this year's Worthersee GTI meet in Worther Lake, Austria, first with the introduction of the A3 TDI clubsport quattro concept and damn-near production version of the TT clubsport quattro, and earlier today with the unveiling of the Scirocco GT24. But VAG isn't stopping there. They've taken the wraps off of an Emeril-inspired Passat design study that kicks the already spicy R36 wagon up a notch.

The 300-hp, 3.6-liter V6 remains, but the stock exhaust has been upgraded with a new cat-back unit sporting larger tailpipes. The front brakes have also been swapped out in favor of larger Brembo six-piston units and the wheels are 20-inchers pulled from the Touareg R-Line. All the chrome trim has also been removed and replaced with pieces that match the Passat's Moonlight Blue hue. Inside, race-ready Recaros replace the softer buckets found on the standard model, and they match the two-tone, black-and-white steering wheel, shift boot and even seat belts quite nicely. Volkswagen has made it clear that the Passat R36 Variant Styling Study is exactly what its name would imply, but don't be surprised to find some of these custom bits available through VW's Individual program in the future.


[Source: Volkswagen, Carscoop]

Click above for high-res gallery of the VW Scirocco GT24

If you've ever lingered behind after a professional sports event, you've probably seen some of the athletes graciously staying behind to shake hands and sign autographs while others make a B-line through the fans to the locker room. If the Volkswagen group were an athlete, it would be the former. Every year the German automaker comes to Wörthersee to meet its most die-hard enthusiasts, and never comes empty-handed. You'll recall that last year Volkswagen unveiled the shockingly exotic Golf GTI W12 650 while Audi showed up with the TT clubsport quattro. This year, not only is Audi bringing both the A3 TDI clubsport quattro concept and the pre-production TT clubsport quattro roadster, but Volkswagen has rolled in to town with the Scirocco GT24, the competition version of its new sport-hatch that the German automaker will be campaigning at this weekend's 2008 Nurburgring 24-hour endurance race.

As we've reported previously, power comes from the same 2-liter turbo four that drove the race-prepped GTI to victory at the Ring last year. 321 horsepower and 251 pound-feet of torque are channeled to the front wheels (not all four) via Volkswagen's trademark six-speed DSG, only with beefed-up clutch plates, revised gearing and a lightweight flywheel. Dimensions for the racing version have grown slightly, with an extra 227mm in length for aero stability and 61mm in width to cover the 18-inch racing rims on a wide track, dropping ride height by 75mm. The interior is stripped and race-prepped with a full roll cage, Recaro seats with five-point harnesses, competition steering wheel, electronic instrumentation and fire extinguisher, all in all stripping 178kg from the interior.

While the Scirocco GT24 wows the crowds at Wörthersee and takes on all comers at the Nurburgring, Volkswagen has given us a mouthwatering, knee-buckling preview of what a road-going Scirocco R version could look like. Check out the images in the gallery below and the press release after the jump.

[Source: Volkswagen]

Click above for a high-res gallery of the TT clubsport quattro

Last year at the Wörthersee tour, VW and Audi threw red meat to the fans in the form of the Audi TT Clubsport quattro concept and the VW Golf GTI W12 650. Each was awesome in its own way, and now VW/Audi has set a precedent. For the Wörthersee 2008, Audi had already announced it would be bringing the A3 TDI clubsport quattro concept. Today, it drops shoe No. 2 by revealing a much more production-oriented version of the TT clubsport quattro. This is the same car that was spied out in the open last week. Officially, it's still a concept. Realistically, you know this thing's going into limited production.

The '08 edition of the TT clubsport follows in the '07 show car's footprints. Like its forebear, it packs 300 horsepower underhood (presumably from a TFSI four). That juice is directed to all four wheels via quattro AWD with Audi S tronic (i.e. Audi-ese for DSG) handling shifts. Nineteen-inch wheels shod in 35-series rubber are tucked under the clubsport's widebody kit. Up front, you'll find DRLs and a blacked-out grille, while out back you'll find a diffuser integrated in the bumper. Speedster humps sit beside the roll hoops and the chopped windscreen incorporates little baby A-pillars to help create a near-wraparound look. That's also your giveaway that this is a production car -- do you really think Audi would have bothered engineering a second version with real pillars if it didn't plan on selling it? Inside, the black interior is accented with plenty of aluminum and orange leather accents.

At the end of its press release, Audi tells us "Small-series production of this model cannot be ruled out." Well, duh, guys. You've just come out with a refined concept of a concept. You couldn't telegraph this any more if you wanted to. We look forward to seeing this Audified speedster redux in showrooms and the Autoblog Garage at some time in the not-very-distant future.


[Source: Audi]

Click image for photo gallery

The fabulous VW GTI W12-650 show car that was built in just 8 weeks for the 2007 Wörthersee meet is no show pony. We knew that it was a legit runner, as was seen in a video we posted of the car rehearsing its entrance on a grandiose stage setup. What we didn't know at the time was that the GTI W12, despite being a one-off machine, was constructed to really take advantage of the massive power being pumped to its rear wheels. The UK's Autocar got to drive the damned thing on a closed course, and they laid into it pretty well. To keep the car from vaporizing its rear tires, torque is limited to just 50% of max in 1st gear and 60% of max in 2nd. In third, however, it's all there, and when he drops the hammer, the Autocar correspondent sums things up in two words: "Bloody Hell!"

Note to Volkswagen: Build it. A limited run of 650 would seem perfectly appropriate. Follow the jump top watch Autocar put it through its paces, and try not to drool all over yourselves when you hear that wicked exhaust note..

[Source: Autocar via YouTube]

Click image for high-res gallery

Now, don't get too excited. This isn't some VW-produced promo video depicting the twin-turbocharged GTI W12 650 show car pushing ludicrous speeds on the Nürburgring or anything. In fact, it's quite the opposite. Here, we see it doing a run-through for a show presentation at low speed. It definitely sounds mean, though, with an exhaust note that we'd gladly listen to all day. Those aggressive looks haven't gotten old to anyone here yet, either. Come on, VW -- put it on a track with a professional camera crew and give us some real eye candy already. Let's see how it looks and sounds at something better than parade speed (assuming it's capable).

Follow the jump for the video.

[Source: YouTube]

Autoblog Podcast #67 Jaguar Shifter, CTS-V

The enhanced version of Autoblog Podcast #67 is now ready for download or streaming on YouTube. In part one, we talk about the Autoblog redesign and the Dodge Nitro Giveaway. In part two we hit the ground running, with information on Jaguar's funky-cool new shifter and an update on the 2009 CTS-V. Next on the docket is talk of a Lambda-based Chevy crossover and news on what may be the Acura NSX testing on the 'Ring. We finished up with the VW Worthersee event that included the crazy-mad 650 HP GTI. We crammed a whole lot into 32 minutes, and it's definately worth viewing. Remember, parts one, three, and four of the podcast are available after the jump.

Check it out. Per your suggestions, we cut the podcast into four sections for smaller downloads. If you have any more suggestions on how to improve the enhanced version of the Podcast, let us know in the comments. We're working on a better distribution system than shoving all three in our current RSS feed of the audio-only version, so soon you'll be able to subscribe just to the enhanced version's RSS feed.

DOWNLOAD Part One to your desktop (Autoblog Redesign, Dodge Nitro)
DOWNLOAD Part Two to your desktop (Jaguar Shifter, CTS-V)
DOWNLOAD Part Three to your desktop (Lambda-based Chevy crossover, Acura NSX)
DOWNLOAD Part Four to your desktop (VW Worthersee event)

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We've finally poked our respective heads out of our interweb caves and unleashed episode 67 of the Autoblog podcast upon the world. We've been pretty nutty lately with our new, improved site design and our groundbreaking car giveaway, so please forgive our delay at getting back to this. Our first delightful round of witty repartee centers around the excellent spy shots from the last couple weeks, and more specifically Jaguar's new Starship Enterprise looking shift selector. Expanding on the abundance of uberteched European cars, we carp for a while on the proliferation of new and ill-conceived user interface paradigms. Coming back to native shores, we touch on the new CTS-V, which will eschew the need for bumper nuts by a conspicuously bulged hood hiding a supercharged V8 capable of roasting the competition. Speaking of big power, we touch on the rumored NSX mule running around the Nurburgring in S2000 drag, and then concede that we really have no idea. Again, we come back to the US after a quick jaunt to the Continent, and discuss the upcoming Chevy version of GM's Lambda CUV. We're split on whether that's a good idea or not, but we all agree that the Utes themselves are a great product from the General. What the heck, let's go back across the Atlantic to close it out with insane VAG concepts at the Worthersee gathering in Austria, which saw the unveiling of a mid engine twin turbo GTI, the Audi TT Clubsport design study, and the Pirelli Edition GTI that is a real production car. We decided to only consume about 37 minutes of your time, as we'll be back soon. Enjoy the show!

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