Volkswagen and Autostadt at the
Edelweiß-Bergpreis hill climb race:
historic Golf and Scirocco in the spotlight

Volkswagen is celebrating 50 years of the Golf this year and will have two very special classic models on the starting line to mark the anniversary: the Golf I GTI Group 4 ‘Pierburg’ and the Golf II GTI Group A ‘World Champion’. Both vehicles will be driven by motorsport professional and Volkswagen test driver Benny Leuchter.

The Autostadt team is bringing the legendary VW Scirocco Group 2 by Oettinger to Berchtesgaden, together with a rare 139 PS Rally Beetle 1302.

The Golf I GTI Group 4 ‘Pierburg’
The original Golf GTI ‘Pierburg’ – named after the main sponsor – was equipped with a modified GTI engine with a two-valve head. In 1980, the driver team of Per Eklund and Hans Sylvan achieved countless top rally results in Group 2 with this Golf GTI. Starting from the second race in the 1981 German Rally Championship, a 16V cylinder head from Oettinger compliant with the Group 4 regulations could be used. This Oettinger cylinder head is equipped on the GTI “Pierburg”. The car used in the hill climb race was rebuilt true to the original with a body in white in 2011. It made its first successful rally appearance in San Marino the same year with its legendary original crew of Per Eklund and Hans Sylvan.

The Golf II GTI Group A ‘World Champion’
The Golf GTI used in the 1986 FIA Rally World Championship was one of the most legendary vehicles to race during the Volkswagen Motorsport era. Taking a brief look back: Volkswagen impressed on the international rally scene with this second-generation Golf GTI. In 1986, the driver team of Kenneth Eriksson (Sweden) and co-driver Peter Diekmann (Germany) secured the title with the Golf GTI in the inaugural World Rally Championship for Group A vehicles. In accordance with the event regulations, Eriksson/Diekmann’s GTI underwent extensive technical modifications at Volkswagen Motorsport in Hanover. These changes included reducing the weight to 880 kg and increasing the output to 176 PS. The GTI was carefully restored in 2009. Since then, it has taken part in historic racing events such as the Edelweiß-Bergpreis.

The Scirocco Group 2 by Oettinger
The legendary VW Scirocco Group 2 by Oettinger from the Autostadt collection is the only original vehicle left from the racing era of the late 1970s, when the Scirocco dominated the race track in the 1.6-litre class against competition from BMW and Ford. The Scirocco Series 1 was the first car based on a series production model from Volkswagen to achieve success on the race track. The Scirocco and Formula Vee mark the start of Volkswagen’s official commitment to motorsport. The four-cylinder in-line engine delivers 170 PS at 7,000 rpm and reaches a top speed of 200 km/h.

Volkswagen Rally Beetle 1302
The Autostadt’s line-up is complemented by the 139 PS Rally Beetle 1302 (1970), which is also part of the Autostadt ZeitHaus collection. With the four-cylinder boxer engine at the rear, individual wheel suspension with suspension struts at the front and torsion bar suspension at the rear, the Rally Beetle reached a top speed of 170 km/h.

Note for the editorial teams: Up-to-date pictures of the four Volkswagen models at the 2024 Edelweiß-Bergpreis Rossfeld Berchtesgaden are expected to be available in the Volkswagen Newsroom from Sunday, 29 September.