Exciting potential news for Golf R fans: the Audi RS3’s turbo five-pot could make it into VW’s iconic hot hatch.
Most of what we’ve heard and seen over the past few years concerned the death of internal combustion engines. No more W12 here, no more V8 there, and ceaseless talk of an electrified future. We covered a substantial part of that discussion here — much to some folks’ dismay — but there’s more good news of late if you are looking to stick with ICE! Not only is Stellantis reintroducing Hemi V8s to its various brands, but Volkswagen could soon bring the Audi RS3’s five-cylinder engine to the Golf R hatchback.
We’re coming up on 25 years since VW launched the original Golf R32, which kicked off the modern ‘R’ brand and took an approach similar to this development: stick a big engine in a small hatchback. That stuff was all the rage in the early 2000s, but even the big daddy of hot hatch brands dropped the 3.2-liter VR6 from the Golf in time, in favor of the 2.0-liter EA888 we have today. Now, according to an Autocar report, the automaker is readying a sort of spiritual successor to the R that started it all — creating the most powerful production Golf in the process in 2027.
To be clear, this particular model may be the last gas-powered Golf in production, as the automaker is expected to move to an all-hybrid lineup and launch a new fully electric Golf before 2030.
Right now, the current Mk8.5 Volkswagen Golf R manages 328 horsepower and 295 lb-ft of torque from its turbocharged four-cylinder engine. If it does indeed get the 2.5-liter EA855 engine from the Audi RS3, however, that figure would go up to 394 horsepower and 354 lb-ft of torque, at least if it maintains the same tuning. With the output bumped up, the resulting Golf R’s 0-60 figure could drop below the four-second mark.
This development is a notable shift from the earlier consensus that upcoming Euro 7 emissions regulations in November 2026 would kill Audi’s five-pot off entirely. The winds are changing, though, and more automakers are at least partially pivoting back toward internal combustion as demand plateaus for electric vehicles (and a substantial portion of the consumer base is just point-blank not interested in buying an EV, as evidenced by Volkswagen’s sliding sales for its ID. series, at least in the US). So instead of dropping the EA855, Audi plans to update the powertrain with new emissions equipment and injection mapping to ostensibly bring it into Euro 7 compliance.
Against something like the Volkswagen Golf R 333, a five-cylinder Golf R would likely bring beefier brakes, retuned suspension and some styling tweaks to set it apart from the existing model. While Autocar makes these claims with relative certainty based on information its received, it’s worth keeping in mind that we’ve yet to see Volkswagen itself confirm the news just yet. The automaker, as expected, won’t comment on future product until it’s ready, so this is something we’ll have to keep an eye on.
If and when it does arrive, we also have no idea whether VW will offer it stateside. Given the current, more welcoming climate toward ICE powertrains (hence the Hemi revival), it probably would find enthusiastic buyers. On the other hand, we do have the Audi RS3 and it already costs $67,395. There’s some wiggle room between the current ($48,325) Golf R and the RS3, but introducing a juiced up R would really push the limits of how much someone would pay for a Volkswagen. I could be completely wrong on that last point — and don’t get me wrong, I hope I am and we see these all over — but we’ll just have to wait and see.
