Where are you, good intentions? Faded away, the starting flag barely fluttered. The motor sings, driving the tachometer needle to seven thousand, the howl of tires alternates with the echoing “drrrrrr …” on the curbs, wet palms squeezed the steering wheel, the eye targets the start point of the next braking.
And-and-ii, one-zz! My foot kicks on the pedal, my head nods, shaking scraps of thought: … why can't I hear the chatter of ABS? … or did she break? … why then doesn’t drag it, brake discs are more than 300 mm - should even 18-inch “bast shoes” be blocked? … or is you so well tuned that you don’t feel it?
At the sound of "zzz" the muzzle settled and, following the wheel, stared into the turn. High side support rollers prevented the attempt to fall out of the chair - it was not without reason that the GTI designed new seats with a sports profile and many settings. Interesting thing: until I was shot, several times I nearly demolished the cone at the entrance to the S-shaped ligament - you go right on the pole for lateral drift, and the Golf GTI literally sticks to the asphalt and doesn't want to crawl out into any !
However, it should be so: after all, from the usual Golf, he inherited the rear suspension, steering in the corner, and in addition he received a 15 mm reduced ground clearance, increased spring stiffness, shock absorbers and a rear anti-roll bar, effective large-diameter disc brakes and the most sports from eight presets of electric power steering. Wheels even in the "standard" 225 / 45R17, by order and at all 225 / 40R18!
The current GTI is the fifth generation of high-speed cars based on the Golf, but for the first time it is so noticeably different in appearance. A small spoiler on the roof edge, a 70 mm double-barreled issue - the elements, of course, are bright, but feasible even to a small tuning company. The debutant has a new front, with a corporate-style front part with anthracite-black insert in the center and enlarged "honeycomb" grilles of air intakes, as well as a more massive rear bumper skirt.
However, the most serious changes are hidden under the hood: the FSI series two-liter gasoline engine with direct fuel injection into the cylinders was equipped with a turbocharger for adjusting the phases of the intake valves - now it develops 200 hp. A shelf of torque of 280 N.m stretched from 1800 to 5000 rpm! Six-speed gearboxes to choose from - mechanical and automatic DSG (ЗР, 2003, No. 2).
… A long gentle slope unscrews the motor until it rings. One touch of the right petal under the wheel - an instant transition to a note below follows. With a conventional gearbox, even the most trained rider spends about 0.2 s: you need to squeeze the clutch, turn off the gear, equalize the shaft speed with synchronizers, put into operation a new pair of gears, release the clutch. In the DSG, figuratively speaking, two boxes and two clutches are assembled. And two gears are already included in them - one is working, the second is ready. To switch, it is enough to turn off one clutch and turn on the second synchronously - more precisely, even with some lead, since multi-disc designs work in an oil bath and allow some slippage, which results in a smooth, albeit very fast change in gear ratio.
Together with the adjustment of the gear ratios of the transmission, this gave a gain of 0.3 s in acceleration to hundreds compared to a conventional manual gearbox. But the maximum speed is lower by 2 km / h - the DSG shift drive pump is to blame, eating up some of the power. However, all the intricacies of the process are controlled by electronics with hydraulics, while the driver has only two pedals - gas and brake and a pair of levers with “-” and “+” icons under the steering wheel.
By the way, this box works clearly and without delay in the usual automatic mode, which became clear the next day on ordinary roads. Anyway, Golf GTI is not only a powerful sports equipment, but also an excellent vehicle for every day: excellent sound insulation, a spacious interior, rich equipment, high quality finishes. And even the suspension does not seem stiff, although, apart from the speed bumps, there was nowhere to check it. Very comfortable three-spoke profiled steering wheel, slightly flattened from below.
Safety is not forgotten: in addition to the stabilization and tire pressure monitoring systems, there are, for example, active head restraints and six or eight airbags, including full-size side curtains.
… At the end of the straight, the ruby arrows rested at "180" and "7000", then a cool right one, which can be gone without resetting. Just entered, I feel, dragging out, as if smeared with lard - here it would be to straighten the trajectory and leave calmly off the track, since the security zone is the size of three football fields. So no, I started to rest … As a result, this zone flew partly sideways, part back to front - that, probably, there was fun in the video control room …
On the pit line, the first thing I sat down at the wheel is that it is, from the tread are just memories, the shoulder area is gnawed to the cord, where can I stay here!
