http://www.pistonheads.com/lotus/default.asp?storyId=24744 The only solace being the admission of weight saving ... eventually !
Not a good look for the future of the R then. Let's hope they don't decide to go down the diesel route. An option for both like the GTI would be acceptable.
A twin turbo 2.0 TDI with ~230+hp and 450+Nm attached to a well sorted DSG possibly 7 speed, could make for an exciting drive in a lightweight car. And still return very good MPG. But still rather tame... Attach a 70hp electric machine to that and you have something worthy of calling an "R" product. However this would be expensive.... Direct injection petrols sound almost the same in everyday driving as a modern diesel anyway.
That article is dated 23 November 2011. Slightly more interesting article here mentions Golf R Estate http://www.whatcar.com/car-news/hot-volkswagen-r-models-planned/1228435
I don't mind a performance diesel - VAG has got a brilliant 3.0 V6 diesel they use in the A4 / A6 / Porsche Panamera and lots of other stuff, they're also working on diesel versions of the RS / R Audi stuff
Maybe, but they still havent got the throttle response and rev range to make things fun. I wish they would start developing hybrids properly in the same sort of vain as Le Mans racers, i.e electric being a boost to petrol performance and increases in fuel saving. Or torque filling to give turbo charged engines the throttle response and torque curves of a NA car.
