Volkswagen has a knack for developing outrageously fast super hot hatch concepts that have pleased the aficionado’s like us time and again. The 2014 Beijing Motor Show too witnessed the birth of the Golf R400 Concept hatchback that makes every hot hatch fan go down on his knees. Based on the Golf hot hatch, the concept pushes the level of insanity that can be best explored on a race track.
The Golf R400 concept is not very distinctively different from the Mk7 Golf. The hatchback has been lowered by 20 mm and sports 19-inch alloy wheels. The styling has been inspired with the wider wheel arches from the Golf G60 rally car. The R400 sports a rather stealth looking ‘Silver flake’ paint scheme with yellow accents all-over. Inside the cabin, the concept isn’t too drastically different from the production model, but sports extensive use of carbon and Alcantara leather with grey and yellow stitched sports seats.
The Volkswagen Golf R400 is more sedate compared to the older hot hatch concepts of Volkswagen with a 2.0-litre turbocharged inline 4-cylinder derived from the Polo WRC’s racing engine, that is capable of churning out a staggering 400 PS of power (hence the name) and 450 Nm of torque. The Golf R400 manages 0-100 km/hr in just 3.9 seconds, while the top speed is 280 km/hr. The super hot Golf hatch is planted on tarmac with the 4MOTION all-wheel drive system coupled to a 6-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox.
The Golf R400 concept also gets Electronic Differential Locks integrated in the Electronic Stability Program (ESC). There is also the XDS+ system for more effective braking, while the ESC Sport from the production model makes it to the concept. It is unlikely that Volkswagen will put its super hot concept into production as the company hasn’t done so in the past. We still would like to keep our hopes high in case the folks at VW have a change of heart. A limited edition would do no harm as well.
