Nichola Beckford/Contributor

After narrowly missing out on the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) Sport Compact Car of the Year Award to Toyota’s GT86 last Monday (October 31), Volkswagen returned strong with its shot at the 2023 title by unveiling its own performance study on the opening day of the 2022 SEMA Show, on November 1, at the Las Vegas Convention Centre in Las Vegas, Nevada.

“We worked very closely with our parts and accessories division to be here at the show at times when it makes sense for us. This was a really big year for us in terms of so many of these popular enthusiast cars having big anniversary moments. There was just a lot of news for us to share,” said William Gock, product communications senior specialist at Volkswagen of America.

With race car driver Tanner Foust, the Volkswagen GLI Performance Concept was revealed to an eagerly awaiting audience as the SEMA showroom North Hall doors were opened to attendees and the media. The unveiled car injects some speed and visual flair into a base 2022 Jetta GLI, giving owners a potential starting point for modifications. On the outside there is a custom body kit. The front gets a deeper chin spoiler, and blacks out the centre grille bars before transitioning smoothly into two-inch wider fenders. The front fenders are vented to the rear while garnished by carbon fibre. At the back a dual exit exhaust system pokes out from a Honeycomb rear lower valance.

The two large visual changes are the wheels. Twenty inches all around, the wheels are forged GRZ Monoblock with custom finished AERODISC covers for that total German race car look. They’re wrapped in 255/30 series tyres upon which the Jetta sits low over them due to TrackSport adjustable coil-over suspension. Behind the front wheels are six-piston callipers with 380mm Carbon Ceramic rotors. The brake lines and fluid were upgraded to match. The second large change is the Matte Black vinyl wrap that fades into King’s Red metallic paint. Volkswagen’s famous Texagon theme is integrated into the exterior paint.

Now that the GLI looks the part, it must drive the part. The Jetta shares much of its mechanicals with the Golf, gaining it the name — a GTI with a trunk, from its first launch in 1984. Under the bonnet it shares the Golf GTI’s turbocharged 2-litre four-cylinder motor.

“The Golf GTI, sometimes known as the Rabbit GTI has been the bread and butter of our enthusiast culture forever, but there were always the people who were not just quite ready for the hatchback, preferred a sedan and back in 1984 we first introduced to the American market the GLI which was affectionately called the GTI with a trunk. It was everything, similar styling and performance, but just in sedan format. It was a big success back then, it’s been a big success over the years, now with its fortieth anniversary coming up we thought it was time to celebrate it and give it a little extra attention. It’s always been sort of the little brother of GTI, but we wanted to give it a chance to shine,” Gock said.

In standard form the engine makes 225bhp, but the Performance Concept boasts a tune up that raises power figures to 350bhp. This is all done with parts supplied by build partner RacingLine, which Gock explained has made them available for sale.

“Some of the bodywork is still in concept form as we’re still experimenting with 3D printing, so we’re not quite ready to sell things like the body components, but in terms of the brakes, performance upgrades, the suspension, that’s all available to be acquired for your own car.”

Inside, the practicality of the Jetta isn’t forgotten, with just light modifications for high speed passenger comfort. The front seats have been replaced with Recaro Pole Position ABE seats, refinished to match the Texagon theme.

As enticing at the GLI Performance Concept is to the enthusiast community, the juxtaposition could be clearer, as the Volkswagen booth proudly embraced the electric future with sport utility vehicles such as the ID.4. Gock believes both can co-exist as Volkswagen has a long history with owners that modify their cars beyond its production lifespan.

“We are going all in on EVs. We’re dedicating billions and billions to it. But if you look at the VW enthusiast community you see we have cars from the very first generation of GTI still on the road, still with owners who are continuing to build them, do bigger, better, wilder things with them. So these cars from the early ones to the modern day ones, they’re going to be around for a while, and our enthusiast base is going to be around for a while. We want to support them the best we can, even with all the efforts going to EVs.” he said.

The next step for Volkswagen is to transfer the qualities that make the Golf and Jetta, such a hit with its fans.

“It’s a little early to talk on that, but we’re hopeful. EVs are fun to drive. It’s instant torque when you get on the throttle. They have a lot going for them as you see with the concepts we have here at SEMA.”