Here’s an experiment: Ask the next 20 people you meet to name a performance car currently built and sold by Volkswagen. You may think they’re giving you a wary stare, but it’s really a look of confusion. Chances are the results will be something like this: A) “I dunno…the New Beetle?”; B) “The Golf R32. And, dude, stop invading my personal space.”; C) “That’d be the Golf GTI.”; D) “Get real. Volkswagen hasn’t built a decent performance car in years.” Given Volkswagen’s list of vehicles available with potent V6 and turbocharged four-cylinder engines, that last statement is quite a stretch, but it’s true that the focus on an all-around performance car has been absent.

Enter the Jetta R GT Concept car, which debuted at the 2005 SEMA Show in Las Vegas. Starting with a basic, front-wheel-drive 2005 Jetta, Volkswagen teamed with HPA Motorsports to build a killer sedan, one fully prepped for the track and sporting 550 horsepower.

Feel free to share that information with the guy who answered D above.