{"id":766292,"date":"2026-06-28T19:24:30","date_gmt":"2026-06-28T19:24:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/766292\/"},"modified":"2026-06-28T19:24:30","modified_gmt":"2026-06-28T19:24:30","slug":"china-comes-for-volkswagen-golf-gti-illawarra-mercury","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/766292\/","title":{"rendered":"China comes for Volkswagen Golf GTI | Illawarra Mercury"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"ChinaChina comes for Volkswagen Golf GTI<\/p>\n

China is now taking aim at the world’s affordable performance icons, with a cut-price hot hatch looming that could tempt buyers from a Hyundai i30 N or Ioniq 5 N and a VW Golf GTI or R.<\/p>\n

The model in question is the Leapmotor<\/a> B05 Ultra, which has been revealed in China as an all-electric hot hatch<\/a> producing 180kW and 320Nm, and sprinting to 100km\/h in just 5.9 seconds.<\/p>\n

That is just the beginning, with the Chinese hot hatch to be handed over to Stellantis’ (and specifically Alfa Romeo<\/a>‘s) chassis engineers to deliver a European-class hot hatch that could be a true bang-for-bucks bargain.<\/p>\n

Read more<\/p>\n

That’s the word from Leapmotor’s Head of Commercial<\/a> Operations in Europe, Danilo Annese, who says the “sky is the limit” for the Ultra.<\/p>\n

“It is not sure that it will be exactly the one you see in China. In the sense that it is Ultra and it should be Ultra,” says Annese.<\/p>\n

“We are discussing that (Europe’s Ultra) is not that car. It is not the Chinese car, (that) is a body kit. And we want to do it a little bit better than that. But the sky is the limit. Let’s see what we can do.”<\/p>\n

“We are working on the other things now to see what we can have as a package.”<\/p>\n

It is understood that the changes aren’t just limited to chassis tuning, but could also include bespoke hardware, and a further power<\/a> boost.<\/p>\n

“Those are the discussions,” Annese says.<\/p>\n

The export-ready B05 Ultra will be ready in the first half of 2027, with the softer variant – named simply the B05 – launching in Australia at the end of the year.<\/p>\n

Pricing promises to be sharp, too, with the first B05 launching at around $35,000 in our market.<\/p>\n

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