Click above for high-res gallery of the Volkswagen up!
Volkswagen's adorable little up! has the ambitious goal of becoming the next original Beetle, and new info on Auto Express seems to indicate that the Germans in Wolfsburg may be on to something. The up! will feature both gasoline and diesel-powered engines with a minuscule displacement of only .6 turbocharged liters, and a larger 1.2L three-cylinder engine may be planned, as well.
The up! will also be extremely fuel efficient, with U.S. fuel economy numbers near 80 mpg. Perhaps the most eye-catching bit of info is the base price of the handsome little micro: models will sell for as little as £4,500 in emerging markets and more richly equipped European models will start around £7,500. VW is also looking at making both a three- and five-door up! with the exact same wheelbase, as well a roomier MPV version and even a hybrid. VW also says that the 11 foot long up! will also feature the roomiest cabin in its class. Is it just us, or does the amazing little up! almost sound too good to be true? We'll find out for sure next year when the production up! is released to the public.
[Source: Auto Express]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Sam @ Apr 17th 2008 9:55AM
No mention of this coming to North America.
Soccer Mom @ Apr 17th 2008 10:02AM
That is exactly what we needed for a long time - fuel efficient, good looking small cars.
Matt B @ Apr 17th 2008 10:28AM
That will look just as good when they get run over by a SUV, or any real car.
Soccer Mom @ Apr 17th 2008 10:35AM
Sure, at $5/gallon there will be small armies of Chevy Suburbans running after those small cars just to run them over.
eddy @ Apr 17th 2008 10:44AM
Well I have seen a crash between a 1998 VW Lupo and a Mercedes S-class near Aachen. The speed was about 30 or 40 km/h and the G-class crashed into the Lupos rear end. The Lupo did look a little crashed, but the passengers of the Lupo had no serious injuries. So I guess that such cars can be quite save.
Galley @ Apr 17th 2008 10:07AM
I'd be all over the five-door.
JSSJ @ Apr 17th 2008 10:07AM
If the production 3-door model looks anything like the concept I would run to buy one- good looks, affordability, great MPG, RWD (i know, its not a fast car but still)- please bring this one to NA Volkswagen!
Me too @ Apr 17th 2008 10:09AM
What I see on the pictures looks good both from inside and outside. What I read in the article, i.e. MPG and $$, makes it even more attractive.
I want one today!
zamafir @ Apr 17th 2008 10:11AM
I'd buy the five door in a heartbeat, esp if it came with the mmi-ish system seen on the one at the LA show, plus it was actually comfortable inside! And while it clearly was a budget car, it didn't feel cheap inside like the aveo et-al.
Josh @ Apr 17th 2008 10:12AM
Please VWAG, do not stiff the North American market on this. Please.
Kattleox @ Apr 17th 2008 10:12AM
"...has the ambitious goal of becoming the next original Beetle."
People keep trying this and it doesn't work. What "made" the beetle is that it was basically made out of legos. You could put a 1000hp engine in it and it would take only a few hours. You can completely remove the body (13 bolts, I think it was held on by) and but on the awesome bradley GT body. If little sports cars dont suit your taste, then baja your bug. Your beetle was whatever you wanted your beetle to be. However, no auto manufacturer can do that now. They instead have to worry about failure points, safety numbers, and all this instead of how you can customise it into the ground. I don't think we will ever have a car as versetile or loved as the beetle again.
Why not say: Volkswagen's adorable little up! has the ambitious goal of becoming the next rabbit.
Farris @ Apr 17th 2008 11:04AM
Great points, but one small correction: it was 13 bolts per heater channel, then 6 more in the back and 6 more in the front for a total of 25. (I just put my 68's body back on a few weeks ago :D)
And c'mon. I REALLY REALLY want the up! to be released in the US market, but the reality is that we won't see it for a long time...
...at least as long as we still have MPG regulations fighting against SAFETY regulations fighting against EMISSIONS regulations. It's a wonder that automakers can release anything here in the US nowadays.
berthok @ Apr 17th 2008 10:21AM
I don't like the styling of this VW... but at 80 mpg who cares what it looks like!
zamafir @ Apr 17th 2008 10:36AM
Have you walked around it in person? It's a lot like the new jag, quite a bit better in person then in photos, though i fear that rear hatch won't make production as is.
MajorGeek @ Apr 17th 2008 11:01AM
Im happy to see fuel efficient cars in an attractive package. Sure, not the hottest design ever, but more companies have cars coming that look nice. I always found the Prius design horribly ugly as a the current poster boy of fuel efficient cars. The new Honda looks like a Prius on steroids to me, so some originality is nice.
DP @ Apr 17th 2008 12:08PM
This is great. I'm glad to see more entries into the small, efficient, smartly-styled cars. Can't wait for this to become available.
moose @ Apr 17th 2008 12:42PM
If they deliver it as promised in the article (cheap, good styling, fantastic MPG) this could become the i-pod of cars.
Disgruntled Goat @ Apr 17th 2008 1:23PM
So why does VW keep having such a hard time with names? Toureg? Tiguan? Up!? Looks cool but please give it a name that I won't feel like a tool pronouncing.
tuna @ Apr 17th 2008 1:27PM
Toureg and Tiguan hard to pronounce? C'mon...
montoym @ Apr 17th 2008 8:16PM
It likely won't be called the Up! That's just the name of the concept. Really, I think it will be the next Lupo.
VW called the Scirocco concept the IROC(scIROCco), so why wouldn't the up! be the next lUPo?
I beleive the comparisons to the Beetle have more to do with the fact that it's Rear-engined and RWD like the original Beetle. That, and it's aimed at being an entry-level car.