VW reaffirms 'India-specific' compact sedan on track for 2016 rollout - Report

Media dubs it the 'VW Polo Stuffe.'

Volkswagen India is working on an 'India-specific' compact sedan that will be launched in 2016, the company's managing director Thierry Lespiaucq reaffirmed at the inauguration of a dealership in Coimbatore. The event also saw the handing over the 300,000th Volkswagen car in India.

Codenamed internally as Indian Compact Sedan (ICS), it was speculated that the India-specific model could wear the 'VW Bora' badge and be launched, or at least revealed, at the 2016 Auto Expo to be held in February. The Bora will be based on the same platform that houses the Polo and Vento, that is heavily localized at the plant in Chakan, Pune.

Refusing the reveal too much detail about the upcoming sedan, Mr Lespiaucq also stated that the price point of the model will not be below INR 5 lakh. Only the Tata Zest has a price tag that starts under Rs 5 lakh in the segment. VW's India R&D centre should be burning the midnight oil to bring out the compact sedan within the next year, as the competition in the sub-4m sedan market heats up with the entry of the Ford Figo Aspire and the Tata Kite sedan this year.

The VW PQ25-based sedan will borrow its engines from the Polo's lineup, which includes the 1.2-liter three-cylinder petrol, a 1.2-liter TSI matched exclusively to a 7-speed DSG, and a 1.5-liter TDI paired to a 5-speed manual transmission.

The global car major which entered the Indian mass market in early 2010, managed to sell roughly 45,000 units in the country in the 2014 financial year.

Rivals: Maruti Dzire, Hyundai Xcent, Ford Figo Aspire, Honda Amaze, Tata Zest
Expected Price: INR 5.5-8 lakhs, ex-Showroom
Launch date: Early-2016

[Source - EconomicTimes]