For the legendary 24 Hour race to take place from 23rd to 26th June 2011, one of the absolutely most demanding challenges in motor sport, Volkswagen has developed a 440 HP strong, four-wheel-driven racing touring car on basis of their bestseller Golf. In preparation of this classical endurance race, the new race car from Wolfsburg will also start at three races of the VLN Langstreckenmeisterschaft Nürburgring. The new “Golf24” has already completed some tests in Portugal and in Italy.
“With the new Golf24, we wish to follow up our successful engagements at the Nürburgring 24 Hour Races. The event is extremely popular, it is one of the really true classical motor sport events and represents a very big challenge, also in technical view, due to the extremely long race distance and the unique circuit”, explains Volkswagen Motor Sport Director Kris Nissen. “With our spectacular Golf, we wish to provide an additional highlight for the huge number of spectators– just in time for the 35th anniversary of the GTI.”
The last work’s participation with the Golf at the famous uphill and downhill track of the Nürburgring dates back to the year 2007 when the about 300 HP strong front wheel driven race car finished into eighth place and left many favourites behind. As the competition in this race has very much increased during the last years, it was essential to develop a new technical concept: The new Golf comes with a further developed 2.5 litres, five cylinder turbo engine from the Volkswagen group with a performance of 324 kW (440 HP) and a maximum torque of 540 nm. The transmission to the permanent four-wheel-drive unit is provided by a sequential six-speed gearbox with paddle shift.
