After taking a peek yesterday at that miserly Volkswagen Lupo 3L, the thought crossed my mind as to what other interesting models might have existed in the Lupo range. I had a vague recollection there was a GTI version, but I couldn’t remember if it were a concept or indeed a series production car. Sure enough, Volkswagen put a Lupo GTI into production during a time when the original GTI, the Golf, became bloated and started losing its edge. This Lupo GTI was much more in the spirit of the Mk1 Golf GTI, taking a small hatchback and wedging a large four cylinder under the hood, this time in the form of a 1.6 liter lump producing 123 horsepower. This was enough to launch the Lupo GTI from 0-60 mph in under 8 seconds.
For those fortunate enough to live outside of the US and Canadian marketplaces, you can buy a Polo GTI nowadays. However, that Polo is a bit larger than the Lupo GTI, echoing the footprint more along the lines of a Mk2 Golf. I’m still waiting for VW to announce an Up! GTI, but until then, check out this low mileage Lupo GTI for sale near Frankfurt, Germany.
