According to Volkswagen, the world of the small car is in need of a rebirth. They have set forth goals that should be met by any small car including the most space on a minimal footprint, fuel efficient engines or electric drives, intuitive infotainment and operating systems, safety of a large car and most importantly, it must have charisma. VW believes they have met these goals with the new 2012 up!
A specialist for everyday living, the new up! is right underneath the VW Polo size wise. Measuring only 3.54 meters long and 1.64 meters wide, it is a very typical European super mini with characteristically Volkswagen hatch back style. A long wheelbase at 2.42 meters was added to maximize interior volume and space. “If the goal is to maximise space, the ideal form for a small car would be a rectangular box. In the up! we were able to sculpt such a box with a clean and powerful design that does not lose sight of space utilisation,” said Head of Design for VW, Klaus Bischoff.
Under the hood of the up! will be a new 1.0 liter three cylinder gasoline and natural gas engine. For 2013, VW plans on putting a fully electric drive train into the up!. Optional City Emergency Braking will aid in accident prevention. A laser sensor detects the risk of an imminent crash and acts accordingly using the brakes.
First sightings of the new 2012 Volkswagen up! will happen in December of this year. Initially, three versions will be available: an entry, a comfort and the fully loaded. Sadly for U.S. buyers, the up! is currently European only. Since the smaller-than-Golf has never seen U.S. ground, there is serious doubt as to the up! finding its way across the pond.
Source: Volkswagen
