VW Golf GTE gets official ahead of world unveil in Geneva

Car is good for 31 miles on electricity alone

Volkswagen has gone official with details on its new plug-in hybrid car called the Golf GTE. The car will make its world premier in the flesh at the Geneva Motor Show next month. The Golf GTE earned a rating of 157 mpg on the European Driving Cycle combined test.

The plug-in hybrid has an internal battery pack that is good for 31 miles of driving on electricity alone as speed sup to 81mph. I’m sure if you drove at top speed the range would be much less than 31 miles. The GTE has a 1.4L turbo engine producing 148hp. That engine is paired with an electric motor that produces 101 hp.

Combined the electric and gas systems produce 201 hp and 258 pound-feet of torque. The GTE is no exotic car when it comes to performance, but it has decent performance. The car can reach 62mph in 7.6 seconds. It has a top speed with the gas motor of 135 mph.

The internal battery pack can be charged in 3.5 hours from a wall outlet or about 2.5 hours from a public charging station. The power is sent to the road through a 6-speed DSG automatic transmission. The car weighs 3360 and the battery is 265 pounds of that weight.

The GTE is a stylistic merging of the GTI and e-Golf. Klaus Bischoff explains the differences: “The presence of the electric drive is visually expressed by the prominent C-signature of the daytime running lights on the Golf GTE. Meanwhile, all other front design elements bridge to the GTI.”