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By Jonathan Crouch

Jonathan Crouch looks at Volkswagen's ID.3 GTX Performance EV hot hatch

Ten Second Reviewword count: 47

Volkswagen's ID.3 GTX Performance doesn't send its EV power to both axles like some rivals but still manages to offer a satisfying take on the electric hot hatch genre. And of course that comes with all the usual practical benefits of owning and running an electric ID.3.

Backgroundword count: 114

Just when we'd started to doubt that 'GTX' was indeed a Volkswagen brand aimed at performance (ID.7 GTX and ID.Buzz GTX anyone?), along came this car, the ID.3 GTX Performance hot hatch. The 'EV version of a Golf GTI Clubsport' apparently. It's the brand's fastest-accelerating EV to date. We've already seen this top ID.3 variant's engineering in a rival VW Group model, the CUPRA Born VZ. In this case, it's delivered with packaging that's a little less in-your-face but there's no less intent here. "Volkswagen is transferring the almost 50 year tradition of its compact GT models into the world of electric mobility and driving pleasure is guaranteed" says the brand. Quite a claim.

Engines and Tech Specword count: 243

Volkswagen is offering just one 'Performance'-spec version of the ID.3 GTX for our market, which has 326PS and 565Nm of torque - 255Nm more than any other ID.3. The 62mph sprint occupies just 5.7s, very nearly as quick as the brand's combustion hot hatch alternative, the Golf GTI Clubsport. The top speed of this GTX is 124mph. And the 77kWh battery offers a 369 mile range between charges. Those stats look fine at first glance - until you start to consider the Dual Motor hot hatch EV rivals this rear-driven-only Volkswagen's up against. Namely the 435PS MG4 X-POWER and the top 428PS Dual Motor version of the Volvo EX30. As Volkswagen points out though, grip and power aren't everything and, like its identically-engineered VW Group CUPRA Born VZ close cousin, the ID.3 GTX has been R&D-tuned to out handle the two AWD rivals just mentioned. It gets adaptive damping and revised suspension that sits the car 10mm lower at the front and 15mm lower at the rear. The dampers are adjustable via three driving modes and can be tweaked via the centre screen along a sliding scale, as in a Golf GTI with DCC fitted. The GTX also gets a revised steering tune and a wider set of 20-inch wheels and tyres. There are no changes though, to track widths, suspension geometry or stability control settings - all the things that you might think ought to be different on a serious hot hatch.

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