Volkswagen ID.3 GTX Debuts As The Golf GTI’s All-Electric Twin

Meet the all-new Volkswagen ID.3 GTX—the Golf GTI’s all-electric twin with up to 322 HP.

It is no secret that Volkswagen is developing a new all-electric hot hatch based on the manic ID.GTI concept, which reportedly will begin production later this decade. Fortunately, hot-hatch enthusiasts won’t have to wait until 2026, as the new and potent ID.3 GTX is here to sate their appetite for EV hot-hatches.

The new VW ID.3 GTX is powered by a single, rear-mounted and driven (RWD) electric motor setup with varying power outputs.

Available in both the standard GTX and the more potent GTX Performance guises, the new ID.3 GTX is essentially built upon the standard ID.3 EV hatch, featuring a single rear-mounted and driven (RWD) electric motor setup with varying power outputs. On the standard GTX, this motor setup churns out 282 HP (210 kW) and 545 NM, allowing a decent 0-100 KM/H sprint finish of six seconds—0.2 second faster than the facelifted Golf GTI Mk8.5.

Meanwhile, the top-spec ID.3 GTX Performance boasts the most powerful single electric motor setup ever produced by VW, with a total system output of 322 HP (240 kW) and 545 NM. With its impressive century sprint time of 5.6 seconds and a V-Max of 200 KM/H, the ID.3 GTX Performance is one of the fastest single-motor EVs out there, capable of outpacing the Tesla Model 3 RWD on a straight line.

Juiced by a sizable 79-kWh battery pack, the ID.3 GTX boasts a decent WLTP range of up to 600 KM.

Both models are juiced by a sizable 79-kWh battery pack that is mounted within the car’s centre floor for better weight distribution. This unit garners the ID.3 GTX with a decent WLTP range of 600 KM, while the 175 kW DCFC allows them to be charged from 10-80% in just 26 minutes.

Beyond the improved straight-line performances, the ID.3 GTX has also been bestowed with tweaked suspension setups, with the more potent GTX Performance getting the adaptive DCC dampers that promise better handling performance with minimal compromise on ride comfort.

Aside from the sporty GTX body kit, the ID.3 GTX also comes with optional IQ. Light LED matrix headlights and taillights, the latter featuring several lighting signature options.

As per any ID GTX model, the ID.3 GTX is bestowed with several added sporty features inside and out. Key exterior design features present on this hot-hatch include the redesigned front bumper featuring a bigger air intake with diamond-pattern inserts, optional IQ. Light LED matrix headlights with boomerang-shaped LED DRLs, plus a sporty rear bumper diffuser hued in gloss black to match the side mirror caps, window frame, and rear spoiler.

Also special here are the snazzier 20-inch ‘Skagen’ alloy wheels the ID.3 GTX rides on, with all four of them shod in 215-section tyres for the standard GTX, while the top-spec GTX Performance comes with a wider 235-section set of rubbers.

The crowning jewel of the ID.3 GTX'3 red-and-black cabin is the optional ergoActiver performance seats.

The GTX-ification continues as we get inside the ID.3 GTX’s cabin, where it has been laced with tons of contrasting red accents and stitches. Starting with the optional ergoActive performance seats, both of them come with a red GTX badge and stitches that contrast against the black Alcantara suede. Aside from the optional sporty seats, the sporty steering wheel also comes with the GTX emblem while donning the same red-black colour combo as the rest of the cabin.

The rest of the ID.3 GTX’s cabin remains relatively similar to its non-GTX twin, including the 12.9-inch central infotainment display with ChatGPT integration and new sliders for climate control, while the finicky touch-sensitive buttons seem to be present on its steering wheel instead of the revamped physical buttons we saw on the Golf Mk8.5.

With the introduction of the ID.3 GTX, Volkswagen has officially tip-toed into the burgeoning European EV hot-hatch market segment.

The all-new Volkswagen ID.3 GTX marks the marque’s official entry into the EV hot-hatch market segment in Europe, where the GTX-badged hatch will go against the likes of the Cupra Born VZ, as well as several smaller EV hot-hatches like the Abarth 500e, plus both the upcoming Alpine A290 and Mini Cooper EV JCW.