GTP Cool Wall: 2001-2003 Volkswagen Beetle RSi

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2001-2003 Volkswagen Beetle RSi

  • Total voters
    109
  • Poll closed .
Wiegert

Wiegert

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2001-2003 Volkswagen Beetle RSi nominated by @Master Weasel

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Body style: 2-door hatchback coupé
Engine: AXJ 3.2L VR6
Power: 221 hp
Torque: 236 lb-ft
Weight: 1515 kg
Transmission: 6-speed manual
Drivetrain: Front-engine, all wheel drive
Additional Information:
A limited version of the New Beetle. Aspects that set the RSi apart from the standard New Beetle are Volkswagen's four-wheel drive system 4motion, Remus dual exhaust, modified rear suspension, wider fenders, unique front and rear bumpers, rear diffuser, large rear wing, and OZ Superturismo wheels with 235/40ZR-18 tires. The interior is trimmed with carbon fiber, billet aluminum, and an orange finish. The front seats are Recaro racing buckets. Only 250 Beetle RSi's were built.

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The first "new" Beetle was already a bit of a white elephant, yet as this was heavier and slower than the TT it effectively nicked its engine from, it's really hard to see the point of this. Dragged up to Uncool for me as I have this weird hunch that time will be a little kinder to it, and it will be seen as an idiosyncratic collectible.
 
What the Beetle should have been. Doesn't make it any less uncool, but it isn't SU.
 
With the magic of marketing, automobile product planners can call any body style anything they want.




Though I'm not sure if Volkswagen actually did so.
 
Unpopular opinion time: I think the New Beetle is cool, but it will never be as cool as the original. This, however, is too boy racer-y for my liking.

I know this isn't FWD, unlike that Focus FR200 abomination, but I don't think the wing was a good idea to add on to the vehicle.

Seriously uncool.
 
AudiMan2011
What the Beetle should have been.
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What, even more ostentatious and useless than the normal models?

I find it an interesting part of VW's history, and would love to experience one... but it's massively uncool. Seriously so.
 
Interesting performance credentials but all you need to do is go around to the back and take a look at that damn wing.

Seriously Uncool.
 
On one hand, this is hideously uncool in real life, but in GT6 this is my tuned baby on the Nurburgring, so it balances out to a meh.
 
Obelisk
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Okay.


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That's cool...



...what?
As far as I know, you can't call a 3 door a coupé. The Scion tC, for comparison, is classified as a 3 door liftback and it's far more coupe-like than this thing.

Uncool.
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That hatchback 3-door non sense is why the Veloster is great, an actual 3 door car.
 
The only New Beetle that I actually liked, I love crazed hatchbacks.

Anyway, the New Beetle was never cool and the aero parts on this would make it less cool. Really, if I could drive one; I bet other people would question why I put those parts on the Beetle and well. You know they said on Top Gear with their cool wall "once you say 'no, but', you said too much." So, I had to vote seriously uncool because of that.
 
Obelisk
I was counting the hatch door as well. 3 doors means 2+hatch, 5 door means 4+hatch, etc. Just a playful guess.
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I refuse to refer to hatches as doors and will physically fight you over it.

It triggers me so hard and I don't know why.
 
Quite meaningless car, especially when considering the same engine could be had within Audi TT or Golf R32. Appearance-wise, more special and distinctive than the two though, which is why it doesn't get the worst grade. Uncool.

By the way, one example was built in blue for former VW chairmen Piech. Full story here by Jalopnik.

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Seriously uncool.

A retro pastiche that was already five years too late when it launched and here with a giant wing and big boy bumpers. Yeah, no.
 
Although its kind of OTT, I have always loved this thing. Don't get the criticism against it just being an R32 or VR6 engined TT in a Beetle suit, since this (technically) came before both.

However, these were only ever going to end up in the hands of collectors, and probably will continue to do so. That's not cool. Even less cool is that someone, somewhere paid an exuberant amount of money for what is still a New Beetle.
 

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