The Golf GTI is 50, so it only makes sense to celebrate it with a limited edition variant. Well, it’s not quite half a century old, reaching the milestone age next year. But we’ll let VW off this time, as the announcement coincides with a rather special race at a rather special track. Given that the new Volkswagen Golf GTI Edition 50 recently broke a record at the Green Hell and the 24 Hours of the Nürburgring this weekend, it does make sense.
Over 49 years and 8 generations, the Golf GTI has become somewhat of a cultural institution. 2.5 million of the hot hatches have rolled out of the factory doors, with the souped-up VW rarely missing a beat over the years.
A Serious Spec Sheet
The Golf GTI Clubsport was a pretty good base to start with, but there have been a multitude of upgrades to take it from madras heat level up to a vindaloo. Volkswagen has fettled with the DCC sports chassis, front diff, and steering to make it more agile and eager to turn in. Add in some semi-slick rubber, and there’s no need for all-wheel drive, even on greasier surfaces.
More power has been extracted from the 2.0-litre turbo four-cylinder, as the new total of 321bhp is 59bhp greater than the Clubsport’s. The Volkswagen Golf GTI Edition 50 also has up to 420Nm of torque, 20Nm more than the Clubsport and 50Nm more than the base GTI.
In practice, this enabled the Edition 50 to lap the notorious Nordschleife in 07:46:13 minutes, breaking VW’s production car record, over a second faster than the time set by the Golf R 20 Years in 2022. The driver, Benjamin Leuchter, who also piloted the special edition R, called it “the most precise and sporty Volkswagen I’ve ever driven”, adding, “Because it’s so intuitive and precise, I have a lot of confidence in the car and can really push it to the limit.”
It Definitely Looks the Part
You can’t spice up a car without giving it a sporty makeover; it’s pretty much the rules. So, Volkswagen has put special trim on the door sills, and finished the roof, mirrors, and exhaust surrounds in black. There’s also a stripe on the side that fades from black to Tornado red.
The Edition 50 can be had in five colours. Pure white, Moonstone grey, and Grenadilla black metallic can be found on other Golfs, while Tornado red and Dark Moss green metallic are exclusive to the limited model.
Inside, there have been a few cosmetic changes, too. The seat belts are red and the sporty seats boast a check pattern, as is tradition, with a line in Racing Green and synthetic velour elements. The steering wheel also gets a GTI 50 logo, in case you forget what you’re driving.
But Wait, There’s More (If You Want)
For those wanting an even more hardcore experience, there’s the option of the GTI Performance Package. Including the Performance chassis, suspension changes lower it by another 5mm and reduce pitch and roll.
Adding to the bundle, there are semi-slick Bridgestone Potenzas, shaving off 1.1kg per tyre, wrapped around 19-inch Warmenau forged wheels, which are 3kg lighter than the standard wheels. To save even more weight and anger your neighbours more, the package also includes an Akrapovic titanium exhaust system, weighing in at 11 kilos less than the standard system.
There’ll also be more GTIs in the future. While deliveries of the Edition 50 will begin in Q1 of 2026, Thomas Schäfer, VW CEO, states, “GTI will naturally live on in the future – without any compromises”. Here’s to another 50 years.
