Volkswagen W12


The Volkswagen W12 was a series of concept cars created by Volkswagen Passenger Cars from 1997 to 2001.
Fandom automobile:Volkswagen_W12

Initial conception

At the request of then Volkswagen Group CEO Ferdinand Piech, Giorgetto Giugiaro and his Italdesign team was tasked to design a Volkswagen sports car, with instructions that it had to accommodate a 12-cylinder engine in a W configuration, be mid-engined, and also be able to be configured with Volkswagen's Syncro all-wheel drive system.
Another reason for its conception was to prove to the world that Volkswagen Group can build a supercar and can build a large and reliable engine for its flagship car models such as the Audi A8, Volkswagen Phaeton, and its sport utility vehicle, the Volkswagen Touareg. In fact, the W12 engine featured in the W12 Nardò concept is closely related to the engines found in the Bentley Continental GT and Bentley Flying Spur.

The concepts

W12 Syncro (1997)

In 1997, at the Tokyo Motor Show, Volkswagen debuted their first sports car concept, a bright yellow W12 Syncro with a 5.6-litre W12 engine producing with Syncro four-wheel drive. This, and the W12 concepts after it, were all designed by the Italdesign firm in Italy. The W12 Syncro had the following specifications:
  • Front track:
  • Rear track:
  • Front overhang:
  • Rear overhang:
  • Engine position: mid longitudinal
  • Layout: four-wheel drive
  • Engine: W12
  • Rated power:

W12 Roadster (1998)

It is an open topped version of W12 Syncro with red body colour, rear-wheel drive.
The vehicle was unveiled at the 1998 Geneva Auto Show. It had the following specifications:
  • Front track:
  • Rear track:
  • Front overhang:
  • Rear overhang:
  • Engine position: mid longitudinal
  • Layout: rear-wheel drive
  • Engine: W12
  • Rated power:

W12 Nardò (2001)

In 2001, at the Tokyo Motor Show, Volkswagen Group released their most powerful W12 sports car concept yet, in bright orange. The engine was rated at and of torque; it could accelerate from a standstill to in about 3.5 seconds, and had a top speed of, weighing.

Records

On 23 February 2002, a Volkswagen W12 coupé took the world record for all speed classes over 24 hours over the Nardò Ring at Lecce, covering a distance of at an average speed of. It is still valid as of August 2025.

In media

The cars have been portrayed in video games, such as Gran Turismo, Asphalt, Project Gotham Racing, GRID, GTI Racing, World Racing 2 and the Test Drive series. The W12 Nardò also featured in a 2013 April Fools joke as the new Volkswagen LeVanto.