Is the world really desperately crying out for another ass-engined machine? An even better question might be: if Volkswagen really wanted to compete with MINI on the diminutive nostalgia front by making a rear-engine compact, why wouldn't they just scale down the new Beetle and put its engine where it was originally intended? Granted, that's a loaded question, since the amount of engineering resources necessary to fit any mill able to get out of its own way into the cramped confines of a new Beetle would be beyond even the most geeky of Deutschland's engineers. But we digress.Our boys at the German Car Blog are helping to spread AutoBild's rumor that VW is planning a rear-engine vehicle to fight it out with the MINI. As GCB pointed out, "...it would certainly fit [sic] Dr. Winterkorn's statement to go into lucrative niches." Sure it would. And if this comes to fruition, we'll eat AutoBild's first road test of the RR V-Dub.
[Source: AutoBild via the German Car Blog]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Greg A. @ Feb 24th 2007 6:08PM
An Autoblog writer using "sic" when quoting another blog! Oh, the irony!
doglet @ Feb 24th 2007 6:09PM
the only way to make money on a small RR with a unique platform and few parts to share is to go high performance and charge a lot. zero chance of a rear engined mini fighter
Atomicbri @ Feb 24th 2007 6:10PM
Well this is interesting. Probably what VW should have done to begin with when they brought the Beetle back in 1998. Maybe VW will have some more adventurous models since Dr. Winterkorn has sent back several models to the drawing board for being to "reserved". Sounds like he wants more out of VW than just a car for point a to b. It will be interesting to see if this pans out. MINI needs some competition. Maybe Fiat should bring us its 500 as well.
tikirob @ Feb 24th 2007 6:41PM
I don't know...Half of Mini's appeal is the retro look.
Rob
http://www.autoshortlist.com
Bill @ Feb 24th 2007 6:47PM
It's so damn ugly they couldn't give it away, less compete with the Mini.
VW continues to flounder.
John Bishop @ Feb 24th 2007 7:49PM
VW never makes any of their good concepts...gx3 and eco-racer come to mind. That being said I love the idea of a rear engine compact that I can afford. Make it less ugly though.
goat @ Feb 24th 2007 8:09PM
At least this would drive the proper wheels, unlike the MINI.
That said, this is probably more a competitor to the smart fortwo.
Hank @ Feb 24th 2007 11:30PM
Imagine the irony. A post about a rear engined car that is more about a bug up someone's snarky butt than the car itself.
Whatever.
GOT @ Feb 25th 2007 4:33AM
That is HOT looking! I like it. Looks sleek and agresive... and nimble like the original Rabbit. I'd buy it.
VW has destroyed the Beetle, the Rabbit, the Type 3, the Type 2, the Golf; they won't bring the Polo or the Lupo to the USA... they do seem to be having troubles here (blame it on VWOA and German chicks).
M. @ Feb 25th 2007 6:24AM
AutoBild is just dreaming. Unless you develop it from scratch a rear engine makes a car less roomy and more expensive.
VM might develop a car to compete with really cheap cars like Toyota Aygo and Dacia Logan, but this will likely use a modified Polo platform and two or three cylinder engines based on the current design. Since this car has to be flexible enough to replace the CitiGolf, the Fox and the Gol they have no other choice.
tiago do vale @ Feb 25th 2007 9:24AM
This has NOTHING to so with the mini segment. For that segment, VW has the Polo (or maybe the Golf, because the Mini is Premium in the B segment).
This car is for the A segment, even smaller than the Fox, so forget abou the Mini, and think about Smart, Citröen C1/Peugeot 107/Toyota Aigo, Renault Twingo, etc..
This small rear engine platform could shared with Skoda, SEAT or eventually Proton, for sall city cars, nd even maybe small roadsters or coupés...
So, it's not because the unique platform can't be shared: It just will not compete with Mini.
I think it's a good ideia if the eventually mak this, to use the platform in a beetle. :) I'd like that. Rear-engines might be the future, afterall. :)
Howard Kerr @ Feb 25th 2007 1:06PM
"Is the world really desperately crying out for another ass-engined machine?"
Apparently, at least one person at AutoBlog thinks we don't need another Porsche 911, another Renault-Alpine, or...at the lower end of the scale, another Fiat 500. The world is already awash in rear engined cars?
Does it really make a difference where the engine is located? In the case of this MINI fighter, putting the engine under the rear seat and driving the rear wheels COULD possibly result in a very efficiently packaged car. But as has already been pointed out, it would pretty much be a "from scratch" car and due to that and little or no parts sharing (it could use a FWD VW engine, lying on it's side) it would be somewhat expensive.
Instead of building a small rear-engined car, that looks like a "normal" two box hatchback, I wish VW would resurrect and update the Karmann Ghia coupe and convertible with the engine amidships or in the rear.
RWD fan @ Feb 25th 2007 3:04PM
Make it a Bus, and put the TDI in the rear. Keep the feel utilitarian, like the original. Try to make it a reliable vehicle, for once.
Barney @ Feb 25th 2007 4:39PM
It wouldn't take much for VW to turn up with a 3 cylinder diesel and take the FWD to the back. Perhaps direct competition with a Smart car but reliability has been a thorn in Volkswagen's line of cars.
FERNAN17 @ Feb 26th 2007 1:20AM
Dont you think they would share the platform with the beetle? or at least theyve thought about it and tried it. Its VW, I dont think theyre that stupid, or youre smarter than hundreds of engineers and thousands of employees
AladdinSane @ Feb 26th 2007 8:49AM
What would really be retro would be to reintroduce an air cooled engine. In fact, VW should just reconfigure the latest "NEW" Beetle into what it should have been all along: a "reincarnation" of the sorely missed, IMHO, original beetle.
Cheers.
Peace!
AladdinSane @ Feb 26th 2007 8:51AM
BTW, I'd buy this machine in a heartbeat!
Peace!
Bob Kelly @ Apr 13th 2007 11:08AM
VW keeps shooting itself in the foot with nagging reliability problems. They haven't mastered the basics of quality control. Toyota runs circles around them. However, they have creative body styles, and the cars are fun to drive (when they are running).