you know how tree-hugging, avid motoring enthusiasts have been through all this while? constantly being torn between performance and yet being eco-conscious at the same time? that sucks. we understand and apparently, the das auto folks totally understand this point and decided it is time to add another Golf to the family – the Golf GTE. yes. GTE – for which the E here stands for, you guess it, electric. if the namesake GTE is of any hint, this is a performance hot hatch and therefore, it would be the hybrid pocket rocket which should ease your conscious a little. we have to be honest in this respect: it will not be completely guilt-free as it still runs on man-processed fossil fuel, but you can always choose the all-out electric mode on its 101 hp electric motor that offers up a modest top speed of 81 mph and travels up to 31 miles. so watch your range.
however, if serious oomph is what you desire, which we should think most Golf drivers would prefer, then the 1.4-liter turbo-four with 148 hp on the tap, plus the electric drive that yields a pretty cool 201 hp and turns out a remarkable 350 Nm (258 lb-ft) of torque should be suffice. couple that to a six-speed DSG gearbox with a made-for-hybrid triple-clutch system, enables the GTE to make the century sprint in 7.6 seconds and on to 135 mph. doing all that with the fuel economy that you can only dream of. the electric motor, which is packed into the gearbox housing, is juiced by a 8.8 kWh lithium-ion battery that gets to full charged in around 3.5 hours via a regular household outlet, or 2.5, from a domestic wallbox. though it does weighs a little heavy, at 1,520 kilograms (3,351 lbs).
aesthetically, it is also a hybrid, so to speak. it kind of combines the elements of the e-Golf and the GTI, including C-shaped LED daytime running lights and aerodynamic horizontal ‘fins’. other details include all-round LED lights, 18-inch alloys as standard for UK model, blue highlights across the interior, and an 8-inch satellite navigation system with electric-centric data. the Volkswagen Golf GTE comes in five-door body style only and is set to hit the UK market in late August. until then, pricing is still a mystery. prior to that, it will be making its way to the Geneva Motor Show for its world debut.
