Wolfsburg, Germany - A sporting version of the VW Golf using a frugal, common-rail diesel capable of 222 kilometres an hour enters showrooms from next month. VW hopes the fuel consumption will help sell the GTD which shares its suspension set-up and signature honeycomb grille with the petrol-driven GTI. The diesel is claimed to consume a miserly 5.3 litres per 100 km, with CO2 emissions at 139g/km. The GTD takes 8.1 seconds to sprint from zero to 100 km/h (62 miles per hour).
The car comes with six-speed, twin-clutch transmission or a conventional manual gearbox and can be ordered with VW's Active Control Chassis.
To underscore the GTD's sporting credentials, a baffle or "sound generator" in the exhaust system alters the exhaust note as the revs increase. The price of the GTD has been given as 27,475 euros (38,118 dollars), with a surcharge of 765 euros for the four-door version.
