Volkswagen’s latest brand story is not about lap records or Nürburgring times. It is about a C6 quadriplegic racer, a hand-control hot hatch, and how a Golf GTI can become a tool for independence instead of just a weekend toy.
Torsten Gross, whose first car was a 1994 GTI, now steers a 2025 Golf GTI adapted with full hand controls as part of his Just Hands Foundation, using it to give other disabled drivers their first real taste of high-performance driving.
From Diving Accident To Hand-Control Hot Laps
Gross was 15 when a diving accident in 1994 left him with a C6 spinal cord injury and quadriplegia. He later became a rescue scuba diver, a marathon handcyclist and eventually a race car driver, competing in series like SCCA, WRL and International GT in a hand-control Porsche GT4 Clubsport. On track, he likes to say the car does not care that he uses a wheelchair.
That is the feeling he is trying to scale. Through Just Hands Foundation, Gross and his wife organize track days where participants who drive with hand controls can sample proper performance cars in a safe, structured environment. Volkswagen of America has now provided a 2025 Golf GTI to the foundation, which has been fitted with bespoke hand-control hardware and featured in VW’s new short film “Just Hands: For the Love of Racing.” It is a neat full-circle moment for someone whose racing number “94” is a nod to his first-gen GTI.
The choice of car matters. VW’s own engineers have admitted that the priciest special editions are not always the sweet spot. Gross leans into that same idea: what counts is an honest, approachable hot hatch that talks to you through the steering and pedals, not a museum piece.
Performance, Purpose And Where VW Goes Next
Volkswagen is not just handing over a GTI and a camera crew. The Just Hands collaboration plugs directly into its Driver Access Program, which can reimburse up to $1,000 of the cost of adaptive equipment such as hand controls, lifts or pedal extensions on new or certified pre-owned Volkswagens. Gross is now a formal brand ambassador for that effort, advising on accessibility, speaking at internal events and putting a visible face on a part of the car market that usually stays invisible.
There is also a bigger brand context here. Volkswagen is in the middle of rethinking what its halo products should look like. Against that backdrop, a story about a GTI, a racer in a wheelchair and a non-profit might seem small.
VW clearly thinks it is the opposite. The company is betting that performance counts more when it has a purpose attached to it, whether that is giving a first-time track driver goosebumps from the passenger seat or making sure someone who uses a wheelchair can actually buy and adapt the same kind of car they just saw on screen.
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