GENEVA MOTOR SHOW: VW Golf GTE revealed

Volkswagen has taken the wraps off its first ever plug-in hybrid performance hatch, the 150kW Golf GTE, which will make its world public debut at the Geneva motor show on March 4.

As we reported last September, the GTE nameplate reflects the combination of electrification in a GTI-style Golf ‘hot hatch’ for the first time.

The good news is the plug-in hybrid GTE can travel almost 1000km on a full tank of petrol and a full charge of its lithium-ion battery, consuming a claimed 1.8L/100km as it goes.

The bad news is that Volkswagen's local arm says it's "no chance" of coming to Australia due to the lack of interest in plug-in hybrid and electric vehicles.

Powered by a 1.4-litre turbo-petrol four-cylinder engine that pumps out 110kW/250Nm, the Volkswagen Golf GTE is augmented by an electric motor that adds 75kW/330Nm, for a combined total output of 150kW/350Nm.

This provides the Golf GTE with a claimed 0-100km/h sprint time of 7.6 seconds, a full second slower than when we last independently tested the 162kW Golf GTI, at 6.6 seconds (VW claims 6.4 seconds).

The GTE has a top speed of 217km/h, which probably won't do for some German drivers who frequent the country's autobahns. The normal GTI is limited to 250km/h.

Pitched as a high-tech, fuel-savvy alternative to the Golf GTI, the new GTE is powered by an electric motor fed via an 8.8kWh lithium-ion battery. The battery can be fully charged in two and a half hours from a high-output wallbox or public charging station.

The German car-maker claims the tree-hugging warm-hatch can reach speeds of 130km/h without engaging the petrol engine, and has an EV range of 50km. That rises to 940km in combination with the petrol engine.

Volkswagen Group Australia spokesman Karl Gehling told motoring.com.au there's no chance of the car coming to Australia in the short or mid-term, simply because there's no demand for electric or hybrid vehicles.

"If there were changes in the market in the future we would consider it, but for the foreseeable future we are not looking at importing it."

Volkswagen is also trying simplify its model range, another reason the GTE is not on the shortlist.

"We don't need the model complexity," stated Gehling.

Like the GTI and GTD models, the interior of the Golf GTE features de rigueur tartan upholstery but now with blue highlights. There are also blue accents on the steering wheel and gear shifter. The gearbox is a six-speed DSG twin-clutch automatic.

A sports body kit is part of the package, including lower front and rear fascias and side skirts, while 16-inch alloy wheels are standard in Europe, but the car in the photos is fitted with optional 18-inch wheels. New-look LED fog lights also attempt to denote the car's e-focus.

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