VW Golf GTI Cabriolet unveiled

The 2012 VW Golf GTI Cabrio unveiled - but it won't arrive until summer's over

Ahead of a debut at the Geneva Motor Show we get the first details and photos of the new Volkswagen Golf GTI Cabriolet.

Volkswagen has left it a bit late in the model life of the current Golf to deliver the VW Golf GTI Cabriolet, but better late than never.

With 207bhp and 207lb/ft of torque the GTI Cabrio can whip to 62mph in 7.3 seconds and on to 147mph. Opt for the DSG ‘box and you can only manage a paltry 14mph. Economy is decent if you have a light foot, with VW claiming 37.2mpg, and emissions come in at 177g/km, both a bit worse than the tin-top GTI, but that’s what you get for being flash.

Cosmetically, the GTI Cabriolet really is a GTI with the top chopped off, so you get GTI bumpers front and back and a diffuser at the rear, a red-edged honeycomb grill and 17″ Monza alloys. And just to be consistent you also get Tartan upholstery and a leather steering wheel.

The soft-top on the GTI Cab takes just 9.5 seconds to open and you can do that at up to 18mph. The GTI also gets the automatically deployed rollover protection and a plethora of airbags to keep you safe even with the top down.

Unfortunately, the VW Golf GT Cabrio isn’t going to land in showrooms until the end of the summer – which seems a missed opportunity – and although Volkswagen hasn’t decided what the price will be, we’d expect it to be around £27.5k.