What's all this then?

This is Worthersee, in Austria, home to an annual festival that celebrates all things Volkswagen GTI.

Looks a bit crowded.

Indeed. It's rather like a rock festival, but instead of elderly gentlemen dressing in inappropriate denim, it's all about the various hot versions of Volkswagen, and Volkswagen Group products. This year, as every year, VW's apprentices have been encouraged to create one-off cars for the show, and they've brought along this G-Motion Golf Estate and a 'Next Level' Golf GTI.

The 'Next Level' appears to have arrived from the 1980s...

Yes, those arrow-head graphics are a touch eighties right enough, but the paint (white silver at the front, black pearl at the back) is rather more modern, and there's better news under the bonnet. There, you'll find a 411hp version of the trusty 2.0-litre TSI engine, a powerplant that had once been rumoured for series production, but which was killed-off by lack of funds due to 'Dieselgate.' In the back, the apprentices have binned the seats and installed a massive sound and entertainment system, for which they've used digital design and 3D printing techniques. Oh, and they've also created apps to control both that entertainment centre and the under-car LED light show.

Sounds tacky. But fun. What about the estate?

This one is rather less powerful (131hp from its 1.5 TSI turbo engine), but rather more environmentally friendly. In fact, the apprentices have tweaked this one to run on compressed natural gas, hence the G-Motion badge. VW says that it "shows that alternative powertrains are not only suitable for families but also for business use." On the engineering front, it gets adjustable coilover suspension that can be dropped by up to 40mm, four-piston brakes, four-wheel drive and a new exhaust system. Oh, and some of the paint has been nicked from VW-owned Bentley.

Anything else?

"During the creation of their dream Golf, our apprentices learn about the complexity of automobile production and many future-oriented topics. They also gain practical experience in the application of digital technologies, control and systems technology and the networking of vehicles with the Internet," says Andreas Strutz, Head of Vocational Education and Further Training Vehicle Construction of the Volkswagen brand. "For this unique vehicle project, we select especially committed young talents and give them the opportunity to learn from experienced colleagues at an early stage."