Volkswagen Australia’s 2018 Apprentice Challenge sets a group of young auto technicians the task of building a race car.
The apprentices must turn the new Arteon sports sedan into a track weapon with the help of Volkswagen Australia’s master technicians as mentors and the goal to break the lap record at World Time Attack Challenge at Sydney Motorsport Park.
In the pursuit of the lap record, the apprentices must also make the 206kW turbocharged, petrol-engined Arteon sprint from 0-100km/h in four seconds – a full 1.6 seconds faster than already claimed by the factory. It’s the same engine used in the Golf R hot hatch.
Help will come from Volkswagen technical experts Jose Diaz and Glenn Staples, workshop manager and master technician Ryan Mulholland, and a list of performance partners.
Bilstein Suspension Australia and H&R Suspension will cover handling and dynamics, stage three engine tuning will be provided by Harding Performance and Racing Line UK, Volksmuller and APR will look after braking performance, Maha Australia will provide dyno and diagnostic testing, and Bond Roll Bars will fit racing seats and roll cage.
Vehicle wrapping will also be provided by Pivot Creative using the street art provided by Sydney street artist Simon Murray.
The all-wheel drive Arteon will take on the 2017 Apprentice Challenge Amarok racing ute which set a lap time of 1:57.01sec.
“It’s vitally important that we recognize our top-tier apprentices with out-of-the-ordinary opportunities like this that showcase the talent we have in our dealer network,” Volkwagen Australia’s national customer experience and capability manager, Luka Popovac says.
“Last year’s team built something remarkable with their Amarok build car, and the reaction from our fans and the wider public was incredible,” he says.
The Arteon will run at Sydney MotorSport Park at World Time Attack on October 12-13.
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