Go to your local Volkswagen dealer and the most he’ll be able to offer is a Jetta with 200 horsepower. A Golf R32 puts out 240 horses. That’s a fair amount of power, but it’s nothing compared to what VW and HPA motorsports have packed into the Jetta R GT Concept. Under the hood is a 3.2-liter V6 with twin Garrett turbochargers that’s good for 550 horsepower. The setup also includes dual intercoolers, modified exhaust and intake manifolds, ceramic-coated down pipes, and an upgraded fuel system. A Direct Shift Gearbox (DSG) transmission is bolted to the motor, with power distributed to all four wheels via VW’s 4Motion all-wheel-drive system, yet another feature unique to the Jetta R GT Concept. Also featured are a race-bred coil-over suspension and a fuel cell. Perhaps the coolest add-on, besides the twin-turbo six-cylinder, is an air jack system – plug an air hose to a connector below the rear bumper and the Volkswagen Jetta R GT is lifted about a foot off of the ground at all four corners, making tire changes quick and easy.

That’s a capable package that requires some heavy-duty stopping power. The braking system consists of WRC-spec Brembo discs and calipers all around, measuring 380mm in front and 330mm in the rear. In comparison, the 2006 Volkswagen Jetta GLI is fitted with rotors that measure 288mm in front and 260mm out back.