Álvaro Koke

Volkswagen previews the new Golf R in the Ice Race 2024

Hans-Joachim Stuck and Johan Kristoffersson drove a camouflaged Golf R in addition to historic rally Golfs

At the end of January, a new edition of the Ice Race in Zell am See took place, a snow event in Austria in which people skate and ski with all types of cars. A spectacular event in which several brands, both German and from other parts of the world, usually make an appearance to delight the fans – an event in which Álvaro Couso/9Republic, one of the most recent guests at the PodCars of Cars & Pizza Club. Volkswagen did not want to miss the opportunity and to do so brought several historic rally Golfs, with 2024 being the year that marks 50 years since the launch of the original model. And, along with the historic Golfs, one that in theory will mark the half century of life: the launch of the new Golf R, a camouflaged unit being able to be seen on the Austrian snow.

Every year, this FAT International event attracts different personalities: without going any further, in the 2022 edition, none other than Max Verstappen was present, months after having won his first world title in that agonizing Abu Dhabi 2021. Verstappen He brought out the 2012 RB8 – which still used naturally aspirated V8 engines with their much more spectacular sound, something common for exhibitions – sharing the track with former European ice racing champion Franky Zorn, this time on his motorcycle. Of interest, this was the first event in which Verstappen wore the number 1 in his car, something that continues to this day after his dominant 2022 and 2023 seasons with Red Bull Racing and Honda.

FAT International’s relationship with motorsport dates back to its beginnings, being a company whose founder is none other than Ferdi Porsche. One day, he remembered the ice racing, with studded tires, that took place in Zell am See between the fifties and seventies, including people skiing behind the cars. FAT International has also been present in motorsport, sponsoring for example the Dauer 962 that swept the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1994 – a Group C car converted to a street car and later converted to GT1.

Thus, in 2019 the Ice Race was ‘reinvented’, at first taking place on a frozen lake like in the old days, although after two successful years, the pandemic and all its side effects complicated things. Since then, instead of a frozen lake, it has been raced on a specific snow circuit. It is more of a party than a race, although there is a competition itself in which almost anything is allowed. To register, all you need are studded tires and the organization then decides the cars and drivers that will participate in the event, looking for the most spectacular and special ones.

The Volkswagen Golf R 2024 in the Ice Race

Volkswagen came with many details for fans, as did Audi, also part of the Volkswagen Group. To begin with, it brought two great drivers from two very different eras. On the one hand there was Hans-Joachim Stuck, the legendary German who went through Formula 2 and Formula 1 in the seventies to become one of the great Porsche drivers in the endurance with the Porsche 962C, achieving two victories in Le Mans in 1986 and 1987 and five podiums, in addition to being world champion in 1985. He was also DTM champion in 1990 and, early in his racing career, became notable for having won the 24 Hours of Spa. Thirteen years after his retirement as a driver he remains an ambassador for the Volkswagen Group, delighting fans around the world with all kinds of cars.

The other is a giant: the six-time world rallycross champion Johan Kristoffersson. The Swede (almost two meters tall, similar to Stuck) has won five of his six world titles driving Volkswagen machines (the only exception was in 2020 when he did it with Audi together with EKS, Mattias Ekström’s team) . A very competitive driver who has also participated in rallies and was a Volkswagen driver in the WTCR during 2019, in addition to having achieved several titles in Extreme E.

But let’s get to the point: the Golf R. Coinciding with the year of the 50th anniversary, Volkswagen wanted to give fans (many of its customers will also come from central Europe, although there will also be in Spain where the Golf has been for the best-selling car for many years) a preview of the Golf R, the most powerful version that is even above the Golf GTI. This has also been anticipated earlier this year, in its case at CES Las Vegas 2024 this January. They have also anticipated the Golf eHybrid and Golf GTE (electric variant) still pending their marketing and arrival at dealerships… but it is the Golf GTI and, especially, the Golf R that interests us most in this case.

The Volkswagen Golf R is expected to once again have the turbocharged 2.0 TFSI engine that delivers at least 315 horsepower (compared to the previous 288), transmitted to all four wheels – a tradition that began more than twenty years ago with the Golf R32 of the fourth generation. A hot hatch with a lot of technology (both the infotainment system and the entire touch screen system) and capable of going very, very fast. When there is an urge to drift, (and a safe situation for it), Drift mode sends much of the power to the rear wheels, although the electronics will try to ‘hold’ the car so that it will not be completely out of control in no time under normal conditions.

In the case of the Golf GTI, Volkswagen has already shown a larger touchscreen than the current GTI (12.9 inches versus 10), revised infotainment system and voice commands, which should also be in the Golf R It will also have a 2.0 turbo four-cylinder, although in this case it will produce about 262 horsepower, about 20 more than in the current model. For purists there is a little bad news, because the GTI will only have a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox, saying goodbye to the six-speed manual that we had until now. In the Golf R, both this seven-speed automatic gearbox and the six-speed manual are offered, this being the one that comes standard and the automatic one as optional.

Apart from the Drift mode already mentioned, the Golf R will have other driving modes such as Comfort, Race, Sport, Special or Individual, which can be changed by pressing the R button on the steering wheel. The diameter of the front brakes also increases compared to the previous Golf R – Volkswagen also offers a Performance pack that adds more driving modes, as well as some aesthetic details and other equipment options.

“The Ice Race is quite a spectacle. Other drivers would need to put on snow chains in these conditions, but for our competition drivers this is where the fun begins. In the Ice Race you meet real motorsport fans and also many people who would otherwise have little contact with motor sport, but who return home with great enthusiasm for it,” commented Hans-Joaquim Stuck speaking about the Ice Race.

“I love driving powerful all-wheel drive cars on ice and snow, especially an R model. It was a lot of fun to sit in the brand new Golf for the first time. I can only say that, although the Golf R has not been presented, underneath the camouflage there is a real sports car that fans of the R brand are going to want,” said Kristoffersson, who was able to test drive the car and get hands-on with it before begin his season in the World Rallycross, where he is expected to continue with the Polo RX1e.

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