When anyone speaks about a GTI, you know exactly which brand they are talking about.
The Volkswagen Golf is famous for bearing the GTI nametag but there are other manufacturers other than VW that also have a GTI model in their ranks, and they are just as fast.
Fast Frenchie
In a bid to go toe-to-toe with the likes of VW, Peugeot had to introduce a hot hatch of its own. They had the base of which to build – namely the 206 and 208 – but it needed a name to make it the stand-out model. So they figured, why not tear a page directly from the books of the folk over in Wolfsburg.
This is where the 205, 206 and 208 GTi was born. Sticking to one particular model, the 208 GTi, under the bonnet lurks a turbocharged 1.6-litre turbo engine that pushes 147kW and 275Nm. It makes the same power as the fifth and sixth-generation Golf GTI’s and with a smaller engine as well.
It might not be as popular as its German rival but still represents another GTi alternative for those who like the French connection.
Baby Godzilla
Believe it or not but Nissan also has its very own GTI model but is actually more of an opponent to the Golf R. The Pulsar GTI-R never made its way to South African but people knew about its potency under the bonnet. There is a reason it is called baby Godzilla.
It was basically a hatchback of the local Sentra but had a turbocharged, 4-cylinder engine kicking out 169kW and 280Nm. All of this power was sent to all four wheels, through an ATTESA all-wheel-drive system – the very same system used in the almighty Skyline GTR.
The Golf GTI remains the king of the crop but these models go to show that VW is not the only one with GTI goodness in the locker.