I’ll admit, as a dad of two kids, the Volkswagen Golf Alltrack is deeply attractive to me. It looks good, has all the space I need, drives just like a Mk7 Golf (which is a compliment, the Mk7 Golf is great), and has a nice interior. The only real downside is its ho-hum powertrain. A 1.8-liter turbo-four with 170 horsepower doesn’t exactly get the blood pumping. But that can be fixed by bringing it to Innovative Motorsports for an Audi RS3 engine swap.
Innovative Motorsports specializes in swapping the Audi RS3’s (or Audi TT RS’) “DAZA” 2.5-liter turbocharged five-cylinder engine into any and all MQB-chassis cars. For those of you that don’t speak Volkswagen, MQB is a front-wheel drive, transverse-engine platform that underpins any small Volkswagen or Audi, from the VW Jetta, up to the Audi Q3. This recent video shows off a finished Golf Alltrack build, with the DAZA turbo five-pot, and it’s kick-ass.
In addition to swapping in the Audi RS3’s engine, along with its seven-speed dual-clutch transmission, their Stage 1 “OEM+” DAZA package includes the RS3 rear diff, RS3 Haldex, a custom downpipe, and Innovative Motorsport’s own exhaust. They also offer optional tuning, which can bring power up to about 500 wheel-horsepower. If you want it even spicier, they also offer Stage 2 (700+ horsepower) and Stage 3 (1,000+ horsepower) packages. But this owner went for the Stage 1 package.
The owner of the specific Alltrack in this video already had some mods done to his car, including Öhlins coilovers and a big brake kit. But Innovative Motorsports swapped the big brake kit for a set of RS3 brakes, which not only work better but are easier to get parts for, and set the Öhlins up correctly. They even reupholstered the interior, giving it GTI-like tartan pattern seat inserts, and a Golf R steering wheel with upgraded paddle shifters. It’s even tuned so that everything works properly, with no lights on the dash.
All-in, this is pretty kick-ass Alltrack build. The Golf Alltrack is a great family car but it’s not exactly exciting to drive. With a 500 horsepower-plus RS3 powertrain, and all the great five-cylinder noises that come with it, the Alltrack becomes a genuine performance family wagon.
