2015 Volkswagen GTI 3-door
Europe’s challenging fuel-economy requirements are pushing the Continent’s automakers down the route of electrification. The first we’ll see of Audi’s approach to this strategy will come in the A3 e-tron, powered by a 204-hp plug-in hybrid powertrain. According to Autocar and confirmed by our sources in Wolfsburg, that same component set will be shared with Volkswagen to be sold in a Golf known at GTE.
Hybridized and electrified econoboxes could be described, at best, as demure, although downright dull probably would be more apt. In an attempt to change this undesirable if well-deserved image, VW will trade on the athletic reputation of its GTI nameplate. The precedent of borrowing from the GTI’s heritage, of course, is the GTD: When Volkswagen launched a turbo-diesel version of its Golf MkI (Rabbit) in Europe in 1982, it was named GTD, hoping to benefit from the notoriety of the GTI.
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Audi’s A3 e-tron is scheduled for a market launch later this year, so we expect that Volkswagen’s GTE likely won’t hit showroom floors until late in 2015. It’s not yet known which showroom floors, exactly, the GTE will grace. Our sources confirm that the car will be built, but where exactly it’ll go on sale hasn’t been determined yet. We’re skeptical that the GTE would make it to American dealerships.