Volkswagen Cans Plans for Golf R400 Hyper Hot Hatch

As the world's automakers parade their latest metal at this year's Beijing auto show, Volkswagen is pulling the plug on a hyper hot hatch it showed as a concept there two years ago.

The Golf R400 is a victim of VW's diesel emissions scandal, as is Heinz-Jakob Neusser, the VW R&D chief who announced VW would produce the R400 and eventually resigned after the diesel scandal hit the news.

But never mind that guy. The car was the real newsmaker: essentially, it was a variant of the current Golf R but with 33 percent more power, its name the result of rounding up from the 2.0L turbo motor's 395-hp output.

But all is not lost: according to Automotive News, the decision to can the R400 has the automaker thinking about what the next-generation Golf R will be about; so far, its options include going the easy route of sticking with the proven formula of today's car, or making a more daring move that would see the R drop 135 kg and benefit from a nominal power increase.

Meanwhile, the 395-hp turbo four-cylinder that would have powered the R400 will likely find its way into a number of quick Audi models; Ironically, Audi just yesterday revealed a 400-hp TT RS that uses a turbo five-cylinder.