VW Motorsport Going All-Electric, Will Stop Making Golf GTI TCR This Year

Volkswagen seems very serious about its shift to electric mobility and has decided that its future motorsport activities will be electric-only.

While we’re still a long way from VW offering an all-electric lineup consisting of ID models of all shapes and sizes, the brand’s race cars will achieve complete electrification much sooner. VW says it is focusing its motorsport strategy electric mobility, bidding farewell to factory-backed commitments using internal combustion engines.

According to the automaker, the Modular Electric Drive Toolkit (MEB) will be used as a future motorsport platform. Besides the ID.R electric racer, which has already proven itself by setting records at Pikes Peak, Nürburgring, Goodwood and Tianmen, VW Motorsport will develop new motorsport concepts for the ID family based on the MEB architecture.

Watch: VW ID.R Sets New EV Lap Record On The Nürburgring With Time Of 6:05.336

The future: VW ID.R and other MEB-based electric race cars

“Volkswagen Motorsport broke new ground with the ID.R, and with its records around the world it demonstrated the enormous potential of electric drive. Now is the time for the next step towards the future: in motorsport, Volkswagen is resolutely committing to e-mobility and will say goodbye to factory-backed commitments using internal combustion engines,” said Dr. Frank Welsch, Member of the Board of Management of the Volkswagen Passenger Cars Brand with responsibility for Technical Development.

While the ID.R will remain a technological pioneer, in the future the MEB will be the second, production-related pillar in Volkswagen’s motorsport program, he added.

The past: VW Golf GTI TCR race car

The electrification will regard both factory-backed efforts and customer sport programs. VW will pull the plug on the Golf GTI TCR at the end of 2019, when the touring car racer will go out of production. While it won’t get a successor, VW says that customer service and spare parts supply will be guaranteed in the long term.

As for the VW Polo GTI R5 rally car, it will remain in production for privateers for the foreseeable future, but there will be no factory-backed entries.