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Volkswagen Up Minicar Revealed, 3-Cylinder Engines, 56 MPG

 
8,469 views Aug 21, 2011
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Volkswagen up! production version

HI-RES GALLERY: Volkswagen up! production version

Volkswagen has been teasing us with concept versions of its Up minicar since the Frankfurt Auto Show in 2007, but finally the production version has been revealed and will make its debut at Frankfurt again in September.

The Up (which VW spells "up!") is part of Volkswagen's drive towards greater efficiency in the absence of diesel and electric powertrains by more traditional means: a small, lightweight chassis and tiny engines with below-average cylinder counts.

This means a body no more than 11.6 feet long by 5.3 feet wide and a range of brand new three-cylinder engines.

Those engines will now be mounted in the front driving the front wheels, as Volkswagen's previous Beetle-style rear engine plans proved too expensive for production.

With 59- and 74-horsepower options and Volkswagen's BlueMotion technology, VW quotes a combined economy figure of 56 miles per gallon on the European cycle and low emissions. There are also plans for an electric variant aimed at city dwellers.

Small doesn't have to mean low quality either. Volkswagen has maximized the interior passenger space, all the fittings are up to the usual Volkswagen standards, and the ambiance is improved by use of dashboard fittings that match the exterior color.

Trunk space is impressive at 8.8 cubic feet. A large speedometer should ensure you don't break city speed limits and the interior also features Volkswagen's new "maps + more" system, a mobile Personal Infotainment Device (PID).

The system organizes navigation, telephone, information and entertainment, all controlled via the removable touchscreen device mounted on the dashboard.

Safety tech includes City Emergency Braking. Usually found on much larger and more expensive vehicles, the new VW minicar uses lasers to detect any potential collision risks. At speeds under 18mph, the Up can automatically brake to avoid an accident.

VW is keeping its cards close to its chest for the time being and more details on the Up are likely to be revealed at September's Frankfurt Auto Show, including pricing.

There's no word yet on whether the Up will hit American shores.

[Volkswagen]

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Comments (7)

  1. fb_1001015277 avatar John Briggs Posted: 8/21/2011 9:45am PDT

    So 56 MPG on the Euro highway? cycle. Figure that as a 45 MPG EPA highway and perhaps a 33 city? Good, but no where near the 51 MPG that is already possible in the city in a mid-sized hybrid. SMART ForTwo Redux?
     
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  2. fb_61206378 avatar Antony Ingram Posted: 8/21/2011 3:15pm PDT

    56mpg on the Euro combined cycle, John. No specific highway or city figures yet but generally combined splits the two.
     
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  3. fb_1001015277 avatar John Briggs Posted: 8/21/2011 8:14pm PDT

    Thanks for the correction. If the UP! EPA stickers at 45 mpg combined, that would be amazing. The smart only gets 36 combined which doesn't impress me much.
     
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  4. yorga avatar bastien bouchard Posted: 8/21/2011 9:50am PDT

    I love the design. No complexe "wave inspired fluid contortioned" lines à la Hyundai Elantra or monstruous front end (Audi). Just good proportions, clean lines and reasonnably large and high windows to adequatly see your environnement. The basic tasks that so few designers seems able to encounter theses years...
     
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  5. mouseless avatar grant rant Posted: 8/23/2011 12:03am PDT

    If Mitsubishi never makes a greener Colt, maybe this will do. Although, by the figures quoted, doesn't look like this gets any better fuel economy… so why bother? Oh, that's right, because the government is making them do it, that's the excuse, isn't it? A car this size, hybrid, should be getting 150mpg!
     
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  6. mouseless avatar grant rant Posted: 8/23/2011 12:17am PDT

    my Bad, i thought this was at least an hybrid

    i miss all cars electric already, having to wade through all this uninteresting stuff, i'll be visiting less often
     
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  7. fb_61206378 avatar Antony Ingram Posted: 8/23/2011 5:33am PDT

    Sorry to hear that Grant, but you shouldn't desert us just yet, there's an All Cars Electric link at the top of the page and that filters all the pure electric car news for you. This is the link, if you'd like to bookmark it: http://www.greencarreports.com/news/electric-cars
     
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