New VW ID.3 GTI revealed as RWD electric hot hatch
Regarded as the most powerful series-production GTI to come out of Wolfsburg, the newly revealed ID.3 GTI is a very different take on the formula. There’s no TSI engine here, but it seems VW has managed to keep many of the things that made the GTI such a likeable hot hatch.
For starters, it gets a rear-mounted electric motor producing 240kW and 545Nm, fed by a 79kWh battery. And then there’s the part no Golf GTI can replicate. It sends all of that power to the rear wheels, enabling it to accelerate from 0-100km/h in 5.6 seconds… in silence, of course. For context, the Golf 8.5 GTI takes 5.9 seconds to complete the same task.
That alone makes the ID.3 GTI an interesting addition to the GTI family. In terms of range, VW says the new ID.3 GTI will cruise up to 601km between chargers, thanks to a 79kWh battery pack that can be recharged from 10 to 80% at a DC charger in about 30 minutes.
Despite not having a TSI engine under the bonnet, the GTI DNA is still pretty obvious. Up front, there’s the familiar GTI badge, standard IQ. LIGHT LED matrix headlights, a transparent light strip with an illuminated VW badge, and the trademark red strip running between the headlights. It also gets 20-inch alloy wheels as standard, while the mirror caps, roof, spoiler and boot lid are finished in body colour.
Inside, Volkswagen has carried the GTI theme over pretty convincingly, with the familiar black-and-red treatment across the dashboard, seats and steering wheel. The seat designs and various technical details also get their own GTI touches, so it doesn’t feel like a standard ID.3 with a few badges thrown in.
Technology includes a large 12.9-inch touchscreen infotainment system, paired with a new, larger digital instrument cluster. But the bit that really caught our attention is the dedicated GTI Mode button on the steering wheel. VW says it adjusts the drive and chassis settings for maximum sportiness, effectively turning the ID.3 GTI into a maniac. Epic.
The options list is pretty generous too. Depending on the specification, there’s a large panoramic roof, massage and memory-function seats, a 480-watt Harman Kardon sound system, a head-up display and even a removable bracket for fitting a bicycle carrier.
Like most modern EVs, the ID.3 GTI also gets vehicle-to-load (V2L) functionality, allowing you to power external equipment from the car. That could come in particularly handy during power cuts or when you’re out camping and need to run a few essentials without access to a plug point.
As for the big question of whether the ID.3 GTI is coming to SA, Volkswagen Group Africa is yet to comment. Given the brand’s slow rollout of EVs in our market, I wouldn’t hold my breath just yet. If it does make its way here, though, VW may have its work cut out for it convincing local GTI fans that you don’t need a TSI engine to make a GTI. On paper, at least, the ID.3 GTI certainly seems to have the performance and attitude to make that argument…
