Volkswagen India very keen to introduce Up!

Volkswagen India has spoken to the media yet again, expressing interest in launching the Up! city car that stations under the Polo in the German auto major's international lineup.

Speaking to Live Mint newspaper, Dr John Chacko, VW Group's chief representative in India, said a decision on the launch of the Up! is likely to be taken later this year.

The feasibility of Up! is in the study stage and the model is not expected to come out immediately even if it is positive. Volkswagen may not sell the three-door model in India as rear seat travel is common even on cars classified as B1, which the Up! falls under.

Similar to the Polo project which was modified to meet the Indian market's cost expectations, the Up! is expected to go through a program which should make it a more affordable product. Volkswagen may not offer ABS or Airbags on lower and middle variants. The practices used on the Polo is expected to be extended on the Up!.

The Up! is Volkswagen's i10 or Beat and should range in price between 3.5-5 lakh rupees. It may employ a tiny two-cylinder engine to provide it motivation or could draw power from the Polo's three-cylinder diesel. The Polo's 1.2L petrol engine is an available option but at this time it is tough to predict if VW India will introduce a new set of engines or use the currently running motors on the Polo.

Volkswagen is pumping in 2,000 crore rupees for Indian operations mainly to ramp up capacities at the Pune and Aurangabad plants and towards product development. Volkswagen is rumored to be working on an SUV project as well.

[Source - LiveMint.com]