41 years after the debut of the first Golf GTI, Volkswagen is presenting a compact, sporty car in the spirit of the original hot hatch.

Set to be revealed at the annual GTI Meet for VW fans at Lake Wörthersee the ‘up! GTI’ concept continues the creed of the lightweight and no-frills sports car with a compact format.

It is driven by a turbocharged engine (TSI) with powerful 230 Nm torque. Key data reads like a Golf GTI MkI with weight at 997 kg (yet significantly more high-strength steels and airbags), Vmax: 122mph, 0-62mph: 8.8 seconds. Colours: classic and GTI colours of "tornado red" and "pure white" and the metallic colours "dark silver", "black pearl" and – as a new GTI colour – "costa azul" (blue).

The most powerful up! to date is immediately recognisable with its GTI insignia. At the front for example, the red stripe across the radiator grille with honeycomb pattern - integrated above it is the GTI logo. Here the up! cites the archetypal GTI with features such as the double stripes across the wide side sill panels. The exterior mirror caps are in high-gloss black; the 17-inch alloy wheels have also been completely redesigned. The up! GTI also features sports running gear, lowering the body by 15 mm. A the rear a red strip as well as a larger roof edge spoiler provides greater downforce on the rear axle for optimised handling performance at higher speeds.

The interior, which is a similar in size to the original GTI, includes features as a leather-trimmed sport steering wheel, a GTI gear knob and the classic "clark" seat pattern.

The Lake Wörthersee meet takes place 24 to 27 May.