With 360kW, from a four-pot!
It’s eye-catching and blindingly-fast, it’s loud in both appearance and in motivation: The Volkswagen ART3on, which is the work of Volkswagen ‘apprentices’ as part of their local Apprenticeship Program, aims to showcase their engineering capabilities to the world at the upcoming World Time Attack Challenge at the Sydney Motorsports Park.
Modified to the hilt, the 5-door features significant upgrades under the skin to make it the time-attack beast that it is, starting with a Stage 3 parts upgrade from RacingLine, inclusive of software & hardware changes that have bumped the output from the standard 206kW/350Nm to a staggering 360kW/600Nm, from the same 2.0-litre four-cylinder TSI mill (albeit with things like larger turbochargers). As a result, this sleek lift back can now hit 100km/h from rest in just 3.9-seconds.
“This program is unique to the Australian automotive sector, in that we are collaborating with a part of the industry that we typically wouldn’t, as a subsidiary importer. We have been blown away by the support of our program mentors, who have given generously of their time and their products to help teach our apprentices and build something extraordinary. Not only has the ART30on inspired our apprentices, we hope it will also inspire a new generation of technicians to pick up a trade in Australian automotive.” — Luca Popovac, National Customer Experience & Capability Manager, Volkswagen Australia
In order to harness all that power, there have been huge changes made to other bits and bobs: The suspension is now a bespoke Bilstein system, which hide behind Pirelli P-Zero Trofeo semi-slick rubbers, both of which raise the bar in terms of both controllability and capability of the ART3on in the twisties. The cabin features a roll-cage, a fire extinguisher, racing seats and harnesses, and a fuel cut-off system should the worst occur.
But perhaps the most noticeable change is on the skin itself: Sydney street artist Simon Murray was invited to design a custom wrap for ART3on, which will ensure that it stands out amongst the competition in Sydney this weekend. It’s somewhat necessary we’d say: The eye-catching (or retina-searing depending on your opinion) wrap is perhaps the only truly-significant exterior change on the ART3on, as without it, the only significant exterior change on the ART3on would be its aftermarket wheels.
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