Could have this been VW's Ecocar?
It could have been one solution, if Volkswagen had applied for Thailand's Ecocar project two years ago, which it didn't.
The Up! you see here in these official photographs is the market-ready version of the concept cars that came in various guises over the past two years. It is intended to replace the Lupo A-segment car in Europe.
Although the concept sported a rear-drive, rear-engine platform, that package would have proved too costly to make on a commercial basis, hence the widely used front-drive, front-engine layout.
- Would it have been a threat to the Brio or March?
If you take the body into consideration, the Up! should only score modestly because it has only two doors. The Brio and March have four doors and the latter has bigger dimensions overall than the Up! _ yes, Thais value metal and space.
Up! is VW’s smallest car.
- What engines does the Up! offer?
VW has announced two engines initially: a 3-cylinder petrol with either 60 or 75 ponies capable of 23.8 and 23.3kpl, respectively. Auto stop/go is standard. The other motor is a natural gas variation that ups the record to 31.3kpl.
But here's the sticking point: these figures are only representative of the manual gearbox version; an automatic hasn't been announced yet.
Volkswagen has also announced a pure electric version of the Up! for 2013.
Fascia has a portable infotainment device.
- Hmm... is the Up! a cost-cutter?
Sure, A-segment cars have utterly small margins, so it's imperative that makers contain costs as much as possible.
But VW is boasting two selling points. One is a Volvo-style automatic emergency braking below 30kph if the driver is not paying attention to the road. The other is the so-called Portable Infotainment Device fitted on to the fascia to operate various digital functions.
And Honda really needs to look closely at the rear end of the Up!. A good rear view _ when it's foggy or rainy _ shouldn't be compromised in even the cheapest of cars.
Credit: Bangkok Post (www.bangkokpost.com)
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