APR-tuned Golf R is a 536 Horsepower, Street-legal Touring Car

APR Golf RLMS is capable of 10-second 1/4-miles, smashing lap records and getting groceries on the way home.

Many cars these days, modified or otherwise, feature track-inspired performance. However, few cars are designed for outright track day domination, or even see the track in the first place. This was found to be especially true at the recent SEMA show, where, despite the wings and things, many of the attending cars were garage queens and show cars. This is not one of those cars.

“It’s called the Golf RLMS,” Joe McKay, APR’s VP of Mechanical Engineering, tells 6SpeedOnline as he walks us around the swollen Volkswagen sitting at APR’s booth. The concept is simple enough, people modify their cars for a myriad of reasons, but these days, many are after track-day performance. It’s become common colloquialism for enthusiasts to refer to their rides as “race cars,” so APR took the next step by building upon this Volkswagen Golf R.

The company looked at the emergence of Touring Car Racing USA (the TCR series) in the IMSA Continental Tire Challenge as the perfect template from which to build their Golf RLMS. These race cars are based on production sport compacts and given aggressive, flared bodywork and a relatively simple list of motorsport upgrades, and then raced wheel-to-wheel.

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Of course, those are race cars, and the majority of APR’s business comes from enthusiasts wanting to tweak and upgrade their daily drivers and street cars. So, the Golf RLMS makes it’s distinction by being street legal. Sure, the TCR-inspired, custom widebody kit makes the Golf RLMS some 12-inches wider than a standard Golf R, but, at least, in Alabama, the APR guys are driving this thing to and from work.

It even has an interior, albeit, one with a fancy half roll cage. Look closely and you’ll note the interior has been preserved and perfectly cut out and contoured to fit the cage. It also has a slick, custom-upholstered interior, with Euro-spec Golf R seats wrapped in white leather and alcantara, as well as OMP racing harnesses. A fire suppression system is also fitted.

Of course, despite being street legal, the Golf RLMS is brutally fast. This car is packing a claimed 536 horsepower as well as 474 lb-ft of torque. McKay gives us a tour under the hood, which, at first glance, doesn’t particularly stand out. However, appearances can be deceiving. According to McKay, this Golf R-turned-RLMS has the whole APR “Stage III+” catalog thrown at it. He points out the upgraded turbocharger hiding behind the 2.0-liter four-cylinder EA888 engine. That turbocharger works with an upgraded fuel system (injectors and pump), intercooler, intake and exhaust system to force-feed boost into that little engine. That engine also features their Stage III+ build, which involves upgrading the head with fresh valves, while the block gets new pistons, rods, and other goodies.

McKay says that although the stock motors are really stout and can probably sustain that level of power for a while, the engine build ensures consistent, reliable performance on the race track and under duress. Interestingly, the DSG transmission in this car is largely standard (other than a software upgrade) to prevent overheating or slipping.

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How fast is it? Well, very. APR claims 10-second 1/4-miles, and that this car can do “0-140 mph sprints 15 seconds quicker than a stock Golf R,” which sounds pretty brutal. Of course, this Golf RLMS has been designed around track-day driving, not just dominating air strip 1/2-mile events. To that end, it also features a set of forged APR wheels as well as an APR big brake kit, with two-piece rotors and six-piston calipers. The wheels measure 18×12 and feature 305/30 Toyo R888R streetable competition tires. Additionally, it also has a bespoke APR racing coil-over suspension and fat APR sway bars to finely tune and control roll.

We asked McKay about lap times, and the reality of SEMA resounded in his response. The car was completed just before the show. After SEMA, it’s game time, and APR plans on bringing the Golf RLMS all up and down the East Coast and Midwest for track-day events. Based on what we’ve seen, we’re willing to bet it will be fast. Very fast.

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Jake Stumph

Jake Stumph is a lifelong car enthusiast and racer, and former content editor for Internet Brands Automotive which he joined in 2015. His work has been featured by several other prominent automotive outlets, including Jalopnik and Autobytel.

He obtained a bachelor's degree in Political Science at the Ohio State University in 2013, then pivoted from covering politics and policy to writing about his automotive adventures, something that, he says, is a lot more fun. Since that time, he has established connections with most of the world's major automakers, as well as other key brands in the automotive industry.

He enjoys track days, drifting, and autocross, at least, when his cars are running right, which is uncommon.

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