Updated on 21st July 2014
Volkswagen wants to have a greater share in the India automotive market and it intends to do that by entering the lucrative compact SUV and compact sedan segments by 2016. The Volkswagen sub-4 metre sedan will not be the Vento with the boot chopped off, according to a report by the Economic Times.
What this means is that Volkswagen will use the same platform that underpins the Polo and the Vento, but the product will be given its own styling to set it apart from the aforementioned cars. Heavy localisation of part will help Volkswagen take on the likes of the Hyundai Xcent and the Maruti Suzuki Swift Dzire.
We will update this story as more news comes in. Stay tuned.
News Source: Economic Times
Updated on 20th May 2014
Volkswagen, after a very promising start in 2009 managed to gain a good reputation in the relatively short period they have been in the Indian car market. But over the years, the manufacturer’s product portfolio has been ageing fast and is in a dire need of an update. With the competition posting better results with new products, the company needs new products and the ability to price the existing ones competitively. Talks of a Volkswagen sub-4 metre sedan have been running for a while now and a report by the Economic Times claims that the car is internally named the “Polo Stuffe”. VW is trying to push production plans for what it says will be the world’s third largest market -India- for their passenger cars and the utility vehicle market by 2020, all this while maintaining its core brand values. ”We want to nurture and build the VW brand, rather than blindly go after volumes,” said Mahesh Kodumudi, MD, VW India.
Volkswagen cars are expensive to manufacture and are priced slightly more than their rivals as quite a few components including the engine are imported. Hence creating sub-four metre products would help Volkswagen price the cars competitively owing to the government’s concession for these cars.
The new car will slot in between the Polo and the Vento. Like the Polo, it will be based on the PQ25 platform and is also expected to be offered in the hatchback’s engine line-up. The Polo Stuffe will be positioned in the lucrative compact sedan segment, pitted against the likes of Maruti Suzuki Swift Dzire, Honda Amaze, Hyundai Xcent and the upcoming Tata Zest.
The German manufacturer has also announced an investment of Rs 900 Crore over the next five years to set up a diesel engine manufacturing facility and expansion of its operations in India to achieve 90 per cent localisation for its products. Volkswagen will also relaunch the Beetle and a new sub-four metre crossover, which might either be the Taigun or a new SUV based on the T-Roc concept.
Source: Indian Auto Blog
