HISTORY OF THE VOLKSWAGEN GTI

The first Volkswagen Golf GTI was unveiled in 1975 at the Frankfurt Motor Show.
The GTI was powered by a 1,588 cc four cylinder engine with K-Jetronic fuel injection it developed 110 hp at 6,100 rpm and 103 lb/ft of torque at 5,000 rpm.  This allowed the GTI, which weighed 810 kg unladen, to hit 60 mph from standstill in nine-seconds before reaching a top speed of 110 mph.
The now familiar mix of a high-revving, responsive four-cylinder engine installed in a hatchback body with the emphasis on driving fun was linked to a pared down interior came as a revelation at the time.
Especially when combined with tartan trim and the now iconic golf ball gearshift.
The car was an instant hit.
In 1984 the Mk II GTI was launched and picked up where the Mk I left off.  A new chassis structure, a 1,781 cc engine developing 112 hp and 114 lb/ft of torque and new styling evolved the GTI and saw it appeal to a new generation of fans.  
In Germany a supercharged G60 version developing 160 hp was sold, an output that wouldn't be bettered in a GTI until 2002.
Three years later the Mk III GTI was launched, bringing with it a new 2.0-litre eight-valve engine and improved aerodynamics over the previous Mk I and Mk II models.  
In 1993 the GTI fitted was with a 2.0-litre 16-valve engine, raising the power output from 115 hp in the eight-valve model up to a more substantial 150 hp and 133 lb/ft of torque to drop the 0-60 mph time to 8.3 seconds and raise the top speed to 133 mph.   
The introduction of the Mk IV GTI in 1998 saw significant changes to the line-up with the first diesel-engined GTI introduced along with two gasoline engines in a total of four different states of tune.  
The Mk IV GTI made significant gains in refinement and safety, in 2002 the fastest accelerating and most powerful GTI produced up until that point was released in the form of the 180 hp GTI 25th Anniversary Edition.  
It was the success of this more powerful vehicle that inspired the introduction of the Mk V GTI.
Launched in September 2004 at the Paris Motor Show the Mk V GTI equipped with a 200 hp engine was not only the most powerful but also the most focused GTI yet produced.  
A new 2.0-litre T-FSI engine linked to a six-speed gearbox and standard Electronic Stabilization Program (ESP) were linked to a new chassis equipped with MacPherson struts at the front and a multi-link configuration at the rear.  The vehicle was 15 mm lower than the standard Golf on new springs, dampers and anti-roll bars.
Visual cues were taken from the original GTI with the return of the tartan interior and the red surround to the grille element; even the GTI typeface used on the badge echoed that of the original.
The wildest GTI ever created, the GTI W12-650, was also based on the Mk V. Powered by a mid-mounted 6.0-litre W12 engine producing 650 hp the vehicle could accelerate to 62 mph in 3.7-seconds and could theoretically achieve a maximum speed of 201 mph.
Production of the Mk V Golf ceased in August 2008.
In total over 1,700,000 examples of the GTI have been sold worldwide since the vehicle went on sale in 1976.