Within a couple minutes, some of the gearheads at VW saw the potential and had the genius idea that it needed more power and even better handling. They started with the Golf-based Scirocco, stole a 1.6L engine from the Audi and turned the power dial up to 100. It was a yet untapped market, and the VW brass sent it to its debut at the 1975 Frankfurt Motor Show, and then on to production. God bless them.
Differences from the Golf were subtle on the surface: a front lip spoiler, black accents on the doors and wheel arches, a red pinstripe around the grille and the now legendary GTI badge, which stood for Gran Turismo Inizione (Grand Tourer Injection). With the 1.6L engine and fuel injection, production models hit the roads with 108 hp and 103 lb-ft of torque. That’s pretty paltry compared to today’s hot hatches, but it was over double the base model’s output, and the thing weighs about as much as a paper cup, 810 kg to be exact (okay, that’s a pretty heavy paper cup).
If you’re sick of hearing all about how great and raw and pure a driving experience the original Mk1 GTI is, well, don’t click on this link, but it’s as good as they say. This show was crawling with them, with everything from bone stock originals in varying conditions to heavily modified blue-ribbon cars and everything in between. My personal favourite Mk1s were the matching red and white ’80 and ’83 (or at least so the license plates would suggest) without any embellishment except for retro alloys that offer a modern take on the original wheel pattern. I’ll take the white one for my VW Dream Garage, thanks.
Before we move on to the next generation a moment to appreciate a couple of Golf derivatives: the Scirocco (1974–1992) and then Corrado (1988–1995) and then Scirocco again (2005–), sleeker coupe models based on the Golf, which were well represented in every lot and on every street. An early first-generation Scirocco in not quite mint condition was just parked at the back of one grass parking lot, the little imperfections of this simple silver coupe revealing a life well lived, and its unmolested form showing just how right Giugiario got this one.