Pure GTI. With its clear design, GTI features and powerful front-wheel drive, the ID. Polo GTI continues the legacy of the first Golf GTI from 1976. These unique systems have been visually and technically reinterpreted: In addition to the front differential lock, the technology also includes the adaptive DCC chassis – also electronically controlled and equipped as standard. Another new feature is the GTI driving profile – which can be activated by a button on the sports steering wheel. All systems are switched to dynamic mode with a single click, and the cockpit is immersed in a specific scheme of colours and graphics. On top of this, the ID. Polo GTI’s high output and maximum torque are generally available at all times to deliver particularly dynamic handling and that unique GTI feeling. As a result, the first electric GTI feels like a quintessential GTI. Pre-sales of the new ID. Polo GTI will start in the autumn.
52 kWh battery and DC charging with a particularly constant charging curve. The ID. Polo GTI is powered by the APP290 drive system. APP stands for the axial parallel position, while 290 indicates the maximum torque. The system is powered by the new Group unified cell in a compact and efficient cell-to-pack design. The NMC battery (nickel-manganese-cobalt battery) has an energy content of 52 kWh (net); it can achieve a WLTP range of up to 424 km and be charged with up to 105 kW at DC stations. Thanks to a particularly constant charging curve, the battery can be charged from 10 per cent back to 80 per cent in around 24 minutes at a DC quick-charging station.
GTI proportions. A GTI from Volkswagen embodies clear design – timeless, balanced proportions and powerful. This was already the case with the first Golf GTI in 1976 and was just as true for the first Polo GTI in 2006. The new ID. Polo GTI seamlessly follows on from this. In terms of body layout, it applies the new Volkswagen Pure Positive design language, creating a compact sports car with a clear and powerful stance atop its standard-equipment 19-inch alloy wheels. The result is an extremely crisp GTI design with proportions reminiscent of a 1976 Golf GTI, albeit one that has been transported into the future.
GTI front end. At the front, it is the iconic red stripe – a feature of this sporty brand since the first Golf GTI – that stretches over almost the entire width of the front end and clearly identifies this ID. Polo as a GTI. Integrated into the red stripe on the left when viewed from the front: the 3D GTI logo. An LED light strip, the illuminated VW badge and the new IQ.LIGHT LED matrix headlights, which are standard in the GTI, are positioned above this as a horizontal bar. Below the stripe, there are vertical LED strips on the outer left and right sides of the bumper which identify this ID. Polo as a GTI. The air intake with a characteristic GTI honeycomb pattern follows slightly lower down. Two red-painted vertical elements are incorporated in the outer area in each case. Their design resembles the towing eyes from motor sports.
GTI silhouette and rear end. The powerful clarity of the silhouette corresponds in every way to the new Volkswagen Pure Positive design language with its elements of likeability, stability and secret sauce. A stabilising element is the straight-lined window shoulder. A positive tension is created in combination with the feature line that runs parallel underneath and only rises above the rear wheel arch, the clear door surfaces and the striking side member – all characteristic features for a Volkswagen and a GTI. The silhouette view reveals the most well-known Volkswagen design feature of the present day: the C-pillar inspired by the first Golf. This states clearly that this is a Volkswagen. The rear end also has a clear design: As a unique feature, the GTI is equipped with a roof spoiler that is divided in the middle. The ID. Polo GTI’s light design is characterised by the standard-equipment IQ.LIGHT version of the tail light clusters, each with two outer three-dimensional LED elements. On the GTI, the transparent area between them and the VW logo are also illuminated in red. The two-part black rear diffuser has a muscular appearance. Thanks to the synergy between the roof spoiler, the model-specific bumper and diffuser, the ID. Polo GTI would be recognisable as a GTI even without the three legendary letters on the rear.
GTI interior. The colours red and black dominate the interior of the ID. Polo GTI. Fine yet striking visual details and features developed especially for the compact sports car differentiate the ID. Polo GTI from the Trend, Life and Style models. The red elements immediately catch the eye in the newly developed cockpit landscape. These include the contrasting red topstitching on the new GTI sports steering wheel and the red marking incorporated in the steering wheel rim at 12 o’clock, similar to the marking used in motor sports. A narrow red strip also extends across the entire width of the dash panel. The red topstitching in the doors, on the front outer edges of the standard-equipment premium sport seats (front) and the rear seats match all these details. The upper contact surfaces of the front seats are finished in ArtVelours Eco Soul microfleece. The interior surfaces of the seats are upholstered in a fabric featuring large checks that reinterpret the legendary tartan pattern of the historic GTI models. The red GTI emblem is integrated into the integral head restraints on the front sports seats. This can also be found – and is even illuminated – in the multifunction sports steering wheel. The pushbutton for the new GTI driving profile is integrated there. Pressing this activates a particularly sporty configuration for the ID. Polo GTI. Another new steering wheel feature are the two paddles for adjusting the recuperation levels.
GTI also with ‘retro display’. Like the design of the exterior, the new interior’s basic architecture follows the new Volkswagen Pure Positive design language, which is characterised by great clarity and balanced proportions, among other things. For instance, the cockpit landscape in the new ID. Polo GTI is fully horizontal for a clear and balanced appearance. The Digital Cockpit – the digital instruments – and the infotainment display are arranged on one visual axis. The Digital Cockpit measures 26.0 cm (10.25 inches) across the diagonal and features brilliant graphics. If the driver uses the View button on the steering wheel to activate the retro display, the instruments are transformed into the style of a late Golf I. The infotainment system touch display located in the centre of the dash panel measures 32.77 cm (12.9 inches) across the diagonal and is as large as a premium tablet. If the retro display is active, graphic details in the style of the Golf I are also displayed here. An example: the track display for songs. Tracks are displayed on a cassette – the portable form of music storage popular in the 1980s. In contrast, the mobile key for smartphones is not retro in the slightest; it can be used to open and start the ID. Polo GTI without a key.
GTI space miracle. The new ID. Polo GTI is also a small space miracle thanks to the particularly compact drive modules of the MEB+: this means passengers have 19 mm more interior space available than in the previous Polo GTI with combustion engine. The interior width and headroom have also increased, while the luggage compartment volume has grown by over 25 per cent – from 351 to 441 litres. When the rear seat backrests are folded down, the load capacity increases to 1,240 litres (Polo MQB: 1,125 litres). This extra space makes the ID. Polo GTI more of a dynamic all-rounder than any of its predecessors. Further versatility is provided by the detachable ball coupling. With a drawbar load of 75 kg, this can easily hold a bicycle carrier with two e-bikes. The Vehicle-to-Load function allows e-bikes to be charged directly at the ID. Polo GTI, for example. Thanks to a maximum trailer weight of up to 1.2 tonnes (braked, 12% gradient), the Volkswagen can also pull real bikes on a trailer.
GTI optional equipment. The optional equipment for the new ID. Polo GTI includes features such as a high-end sound system from Harman Kardon with a music output of 425 watts and ten speakers, with a centre speaker for clear voice transmission and a subwoofer. Also available as an option: a large panoramic glass roof. One new feature that isn’t found anywhere else in this segment is the pneumatic massage function for the electrically adjustable 12-way front seats.
Connected Travel Assist with traffic light recognition. Thanks to MEB+ and the latest software, the ID. Polo GTI comes with a large number of state-of-the-art assist systems as standard. Assist systems such as the next generation of Travel Assist will be additionally available as optional equipment. Since the system uses online data4, it has been renamed Connected Travel Assist. The assist system for assisted lateral and longitudinal guidance now also reacts to traffic lights4. If the new Connected Travel Assist function detects a red traffic light, it automatically brakes the ID. Polo GTI to a standstill4 within the system limits. Another new feature is one-pedal driving for rapid deceleration through control of the accelerator alone4.
