Two unique Volkswagen Golfs built by some of the company's youngest staff members have been unveiled at the 37th annual GTI meeting held in Lake Wörthersee, Austria.
Every year Volkswagen select some of their best upcoming apprentices from all areas of the business to submit ideas and ultimately design and build 'their dream golf'. Last year apprentices built the first electrified Golf, but this year the company doubled down and competed two Golfs.
The two cars were developed over nine months from ideas submitted from apprentices in 12 locations around the world. The design of both vehicles was driven by a mixed team of men and women with skills in crafting, digital development and production methods such as 3-D printing. They also programmed a dedicated app to control various functions from a smart phone or tablet.
“During the creation of their dream Golf, our apprentices learn about the complexity of automobile production and many future-oriented topics," said Volkswagen's head of education and training, Andreas Strutz.
"They also gain practical experience in the application of digital technologies, control and systems technology and the networking of vehicles with the Internet.”
“For this unique vehicle project, we select especially committed young talents and give them the opportunity to learn from experienced colleagues at an early stage.” This year, the project was supported by departments including design, technical development, the pilot hall, the seat center, plastic parts production, the paint shop and the multimedia center."
Golf GTI Next Level from Wolfsburg
The Golf GTI Next Level was designed by a group of Wolfsburg-based apprentices who clearly wanted to make their Golf as fast as possible.
Powered by a 2.0-liter gasoline engine with an output of 302 kW and equipped with a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox, the Golf GTI Next Level certainly lives up to its name.
With a base coat of classic Golf white silver metalic paint, the GTI's bodywork is amplified with deep black pearl on the rear and contrasting foils with forked arrow graphics. Like the body kit including the rear diffuser and the interior strips of the forged aluminum wheels, these foils are painted by hand.
The apprentices developed the design of the exterior and the interior parts on computers, including the side trims and the mounts for loudspeakers and subwoofer, before fabricating them using 3-D printers. In addition, the apprentices programmed special apps to control the electric-powered opening cargo floor, the retractable LED monitor and the LED underfloor lighting.
All members of the GTI Next Level team were between 19- and 23-years-old.
Golf Variant TGI GMOTION
A team of 14 apprentices from Volkswagen's Zwickau vehicle plant and Chemnitz engine plant in Germany unveiled the second Golf concept with a more go-anywhere theme, the TGI GMOTION.
Powered a 96 kW 1.5-liter natural gas engine, paired with a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox and integrated all-wheel drive system, the GMOTION was designed to combine a sporting character, elegance and off-road capabilities.
The show car is painted in matt and gloss colors. The Bentley colors ice, hallmark and St James red pair with the standard Golf color deep black pearl effect.
All decorative trim pieces in the interior feature chrome paint and sports seats have red stitching, sewn honeycombs and an embroidered GMOTION logo.
The trainees installed a chassis with coil-over suspension - which can be lowered by up to 40mm - a 4-piston brake system, as well as adapting the underbody and the exhaust system to all-wheel drive.
All members of the Golf Estate TGI GMOTION team were between 18- and 22-years-old.
Not bad for a bunch of unqualified kids, eh?