Hot new Volkswagen Polo GTI

AS long as there are European car companies, we’ll always have hot hatches. They are cheap thrills personified, and every new example is cause for celebration.

While Volkswagen was extolling the virtues of its next-generation Polo at its reveal this month, the German company highlighted the technology, advanced safety kit and efficient engines of its 2018 compact car range.

That’s all fine, of course, but we care more about the hot one: the Polo GTI.

Unusual for a next generation new car, the engine size is being increased for the 2018 Polo GTI: the 1.8-litre turbo making way for a 2.0-litre turbo boasting a decent 147kW: 6kW over the current model.

The new car will be longer and wider with an increased wheelbase, plus a tad lower for a sportier aesthetic.

VW promises there will be an optional Sport Select chassis – which could well mean adaptive dampers for the suspension – while there’s the expected red GTI flashes for the specially designed bumpers, radiator grille and optional LED headlights with a red “winglet”.

There’s a high-gloss black roof spoiler, a rear bumper diffuser, GTI-specific twin tailpipes, red brake calipers and 17-inch wheels.

Inside buyers score traditional tartan pattern seat trim, red stitching for the leather steering wheel and ambient lighting as standard.

We can expect the VW Polo GTI, and the rest of the range, to arrive here by early 2018.

Prices and specification are unknown at this early stage, but don’t expect the GTI’s price to differ too much from the current figure of $27,690 before on-road costs.