Finally, Volkswagen President Confirms Up! Hatch For India + a New Budget Car!

In the backdrop of slackening sales, Volkswagen is planning to infuse a couple of new models into its Indian lineup. These models include the Volkswagen Up! and another small car that is being called the “Budget Car” as of now.

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If you flip back a few pages, you will see plethora of exclusive spyshots of the Up! hatchback from Pune. However, back then Volkswagen declined any move to launch it in India. However, coming from the horse’s mouth, Volkswagen’s President and MD, Mahesh Kodumudi, this can just be the confirmation everyone was waiting for. Here is what he said in an interview to Financial Chronicle,

India is an important key market for growth for the company and the management is seriously considering many options such as Volkswagen UP, the Budget car to drive volumes,

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This is the Up Spotted in Pune. Click on this pic to see 10 more images & crucial info

At a time when domestic sales of the Polo and the Vento have sagged, Volkswagen did a good job of compensating for that by increased exports from its Chakan factory. However, to break free from the shackles in the domestic market, Volkswagen wants to step in the volume-intensive segment of entry-level cars. These mass-volume cars will be produced in India, and will also be exported to other markets in addition to being sold here.

One of the cars is the Volkswagen UP, which is primarily a city car with a straight-three cylinder engine with multi-point fuel injection. The UP’s proportions and size make it a lovely A Premium/B Entry segment car- tiny and technically sound! It also boasts of an eco-friendly image as it has very low emissions.

The other car is being touted as the “Budget Car” till now, and is a completely new brand that will be spawned under the Volkswagen umbrella. At present, the Volkswagen group includes some mighty names like Audi, Ducati, Skoda and MAN.

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The “Budget Car” will be formally shown the green light for proceedings in the early half of 2014. It was announced at the Tokyo Motor Show last month.

Volkswagen is also aiming to introduce products in other segments of the Indian market. The most talked about is the Compact SUV segment, and all our antennas point at the Taigun; entering into a scuffle with other competitors like Ford EcoSport and Renault Duster. Another plank of their strategy to conquer the slowdown in India is a steady increase in the number of exports to countries like Malaysia.

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