The car of Geneva 2008: the Volkswagen Scirocco

From the Audi R8-like front headlights to the sculpted rear, the 2008 Volkswagen Scirocco is a brave-looking car

Adrian Hearn was in Geneva to see the wraps taken off Volkswagen’s sexy new sports coupe.

Geneva Motor Show 2008 features

Supercars | Green cars | The big round-up | New Bugatti Veyron

The biggest unveilings at the Geneva Motor Show 2008 included the stunning new 201mph Lamborghini Gallardo LP 560-4 supercar, the £350,000 Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupe and the spectacular Maybach Landaulet.

But these dream machines were overshadowed by a Volkswagen – and a £20,000 Volkswagen at that.

View more pictures of the Volkswagen Scirocco

Ladies and gentlemen – the Volkswagen Scirocco is back.

And what a sexy car it is. From the Audi R8-like front headlights to the sculpted rear, the 2008 Volkswagen Scirocco is a brave-looking car, and it’s going to cause a sales storm.

Based on the Iroc concept first shown at the 2006 Paris Motor Show, the Volkswagen Scirocco has been billed as the Wolfsburg-based carmaker’s most dynamic and technologically advanced production coupe ever.

All models get an adaptive chassis which allows the driver to choose a balance between comfort and response be it comfort, normal and sport. Opt for sport and everything stiffens up, improving the car’s handling.

You can have the Scirocco with a six-speed manual gearbox but having used the semi-automatic gearbox in the Golf GTI, I’d opt for that – it’s one of the best on the market and is also seen in a host of Audis. It’s also claimed at a later date the Scirocco will be available with VW’s forthcoming seven-speed semi-automatic ‘box.

It might share the same name, but the new Scirocco is a different beast to the Giugiaro-styled model of old. Built between 1974 and 1993, there were seven engines available in total from a modest 1.3-litre to the top-end 1.9-litre which could accelerate form 0-60mph in 8.1 seconds before running out of steam at 129mph.

I loved the old Volkswagen Scirocco (pictured, right) – probably because my parents had one in the mid-Nineties. Designed using a ruler, it was an aggressive-looking car which was surprisingly practical. We once managed a trip to Birmingham to drop my sister off at university carrying four people and her belongings. And that’s not bad for a ten-year old car producing 85bhp.

But this is nothing compared to the new Scirocco. At launch it’s only going to be available with a 2-litre turbocharged engine producing 196bhp. Volkswagen hasn’t given performance figures for the Scirocco, but the same-engined Golf GTI – which uses the same platform – accelerates from 0-60mph in 7.2 seconds and has a top speed of 146mph.

Two further turbocharged petrol engines and a diesel lump will follow the 2-litre Scirocco into production. And if it’s the success we’re all anticipating, let’s hope Volkswagen introduces a range-topping ‘R’ model to sit alongside the lightning-quick Golf R32 and soon-to-be-released Passat R36.

The all-new Volkswagen Scirocco was the biggest unveiling at the Geneva Motor Show, outdoing the show’s sexiest supercars and green machines. And the other models drawing some of the biggest crowds included the sixth-generation Ford Fiesta and Seat Bocanegra concept car – all attainable cars.

The Lamborghini Gallardo LP 560-4, Alfa 8C Spider and Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupe, despite their colossal price tags, breathtaking performance and sexy image couldn’t quite match the enticement of a £20,000 Volkswagen mid-sized sports coupe with an iconic name – and that’s great news for VW.

The Volkswagen Scirocco goes on sale in September.