haapanen@watdcsu.UUCP (Tom Haapanen [DCS]) (09/10/84)
Here is some information I've managed to find out about the 1985 VW
and Audi models, both U.S. and European.
- The U.S. Golf will be identical to the European version, except for
a different grille and headlights. :-(
- VW of America is projecting 1985 Jetta sales to be almost equal to
their Golf sales. The new Jetta is an amazing package in Europe, so
if they keep the GLI, they'll have a chance... (then again, that's
not saying how many Golfs they'll sell...)
- The 4wd Passat (Quantum in U.S.) is no longer called the Passat
Tetra. Instead, as it was officially introduced, VW called it the
Passat Syncro. (note the lack of an 'h').
- The 16-valve engine will be available in Europe in mid-winter. The
cars will be called Golf GTI 16V and Scirocco GTI 16V. It will have
(in Europe) 139 DIN-hp and a top speed of 210 km/h (130 mph). The
normal GTI has about 112 hp.
- The factory has developed a prototype based on the Polo (which is
smaller than Golf, and looks sort of like a Civic, only better (a
bised opinion :-)). They replaced the FWD 1.3 liter OHC in-line four
(standard Golf-type engine) with a supercharged (!) Wasserboxer engine
in the back (no, not a mid-engine) and RWD. The Wasserboxer is a
water-cooled version of the trusty Beetle engine, with pushrods and
horizontally opposed four. This particular version develops 156
DIN-hp at 5750 rpm from 1.9 litres and a maximum boost of 0.6 bar.
The Polo Sprint (that's what it's called) moves from 0-100 km/h in 8.0
seconds and has a top speed of 207 km/h. It comes equipped with
Pirelli P6s, 185/60VR14 front and 205/60VR14 rear. Factory claims it
has no plans for production. :-( However, the supercharged
wasserboxer is a sure bet to be seen in production cars.
Unfortunately, I can't show you any pictures...
Tom Haapanen
University of Waterloo
{allegra, decvax, ihnp4, utzoo}!watmath!watdcsu!haapanen