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Volkswagen has long contemplated entering India, but finally laid its rubber prints in the year 2009. Volkswagen started its Indian journey with the Polo in the premium hatchback segment. The company entered our shores with high hopes as they had associated with Suzuki for technology and platform sharing, however, things changed and VW didn’t become what they could have but are merrily chugging along.
VW’s first production offering for India was the Polo in 2010; in 2009, they had the Touareg, Passat and the Jetta. The Polo made for developing nations rolled out of the Chakan plant and the production journey began. The current product portfolio includes the Polo, Vento, Jetta, Passat, Phaeton and the Touareg. The world’s third largest car company is preparing for the coming years and has an array of models planned for the future. India will be one of the crucial markets for them as the volumes in the Indian small car segment are immense.
VW will showcase the future products and with the advent of the MQB platform, which will see a lot of models sharing the same and a lot of global products reaching our shores. At the Auto Expo VW might showcase the Up!, Taigun concept and the Tiguan SUV.
The Up! is a part of Volkswagen’s ambitious project to enter the small car market worldwide. The Up! is based on the New Small Family Platform (NSF) and is powered by a 1.2-litre petrol and a 800cc turbocharged diesel engine. The Up! will be positioned below the Polo and it might be priced from Rs 5.5 lakh onwards.
The Taigun is the company’s take on the crossover segment, the concept shown looks stunning and will be rivalling the Ford EcoSport, Nissan Terrano and the other upcoming crossovers from different manufacturers in the segment. However, it will be only shown as a concept now and the actual launch might be a little later.
They might also unveil the second generation Tiguan SUV which is based on the Golf platform. The SUV’s main markets are Australia, Brazil, China, Europe, Russia and the United States of America. The Jetta’s 1.4-litre TSI-powered petrol engine and the 2.0-litre TDI oil burner mated to a six-speed manual and six-speed DSG gearbox might be the engine options offered. The Tiguan is priced on par with the Passat in the US and a UK market which means it will cost around Rs 22 – 25 lakh in India.
The company will also have the other production cars on display among these exciting unveilings.
