Volkswagen with new full hybrid for Golf and T-Roc

Volkswagen is now presenting a new full hybrid drive at the "International Vienna Motor Symposium" (April 22 to 24, 2026) in Austria's capital. It combines temporary electric driving with efficiency and range. This drive is not dependent on charging cables and a charging infrastructure. The energy for the electric drive phases is generated on board using recuperation, a turbo petrol engine and a generator. The drive is set to be used in the Golf Hybrid and T-Roc Hybrid from the fourth quarter of 2026.

The new full hybrid offers numerous advantages: Compared to a mild hybrid, it enables a higher proportion of electric driving and therefore lower emissions and consumption values as well as reduced fuel costs. Compared to an externally rechargeable plug-in hybrid drive, the full hybrid is cheaper to purchase and does not require a charging infrastructure.

Example Golf: The new hybrid system can be recognized by the designation "Hybrid" and closes the gap between the mild hybrid, which is already available as "eTSI", and the plug-in hybrids. These can be ordered in the Golf under the "eHybrid" label or as the sporty GTE. Volkswagen is thus using an even broader range of electrified drive systems in order to be able to offer the right drive solution for every application scenario and for every customer, in addition to the purely electric ID models.

The new hybrid drive powers the front axle. It essentially consists of the hybrid module, the turbo petrol engine (TSI) and the lithium-ion battery. The hybrid module includes an electric motor as the drive motor, a second electric motor as the generator as well as power electronics, differential and single-speed gearbox. It also includes an electronically controlled multi-plate clutch with its own control unit, via which the TSI is coupled into and decoupled from the drivetrain.

Also integrated into the front end: an electric air conditioning compressor and an electric brake booster (eBKV). The high-voltage battery tailored to the hybrid drive with NMC cells and a capacity of 1.6 kWh (gross), which is standard in HEV vehicles, is integrated into the vehicle floor at the rear of both the Golf and T-Roc.

The interaction between the turbo petrol engine (1.5 TSI evo2), the two electric motors and the high-voltage battery has been designed to achieve a good balance between efficiency, dynamics and comfort. The electric motor responsible for the drive replaces or supports the turbo petrol engine in all phases in which it offers increased efficiency. For example, when starting off, at low speeds and therefore also in city traffic, the Golf Hybrid and T-Roc Hybrid are often purely electric and therefore very quiet on the road.

The three operating modes of the drive

In general, the drive offers three operating modes, which are automatically activated by the vehicle depending on the application profile:

Drive by electric motor: Driving at low speeds solely by electric motor, the TSI is switched off.

Standard drive; electric motor plus generator: driving with the electric motor. The TSI is active but disconnected in order to generate energy for the electric motor via a generator in an optimum operating window and thus extend the electric range.

Parallel drive: petrol engine and electric motor - the TSI is active as the primary drive from approx. 60 km/h on country roads and highways; the electric motor supports the turbo engine, for example as a booster when accelerating.

The three driving profiles

Drivers of the new Golf Hybrid and T-Roc Hybrid will be able to choose between three driving profiles: "Eco", "Comfort" and "Sport". In the "Eco" driving profile, the maximum system output is limited to 70 percent and the boost function is deactivated in order to reduce energy consumption. The "Comfort" profile does not limit the system power and allows boosting. In the "Sport" driving profile, the sporty characteristics are achieved by the drive switching to series operation earlier, so that full power is quickly available.

No official data is yet available on fuel consumption. In a near-series study for the Golf eHybrid, Volkswagen determined the energy consumption (weighted combined) at 12.8-12.1 kWh/100 km plus 1.3-1.1 l/100 km; fuel consumption with discharged battery combined: 5.3-5.0 l/100 km; CO₂ emissions weighted combined: 29-25 g/km; CO₂ class weighted combined: B; CO₂ class with discharged battery: D-C. (aum)