The latest seventh-generation Volkswagen Golf hatchback was formally launched last fall at the Paris Motor Show.
It's now on sale in Germany, but the models to be sold in the U.S. will be unveiled for the first time in two weeks, at the New York Auto Show.
They'll go on sale during the first half of next year as model-year 2015 cars, because VW's Puebla, Mexico, assembly plant is still being converted to add Golf production alongside the Jetta sedans already built there.
We already know that the new Golf is larger, lighter, and more fuel-efficient than the outgoing current model.
It will feature a number of electronic safety systems not previously offered on a Golf--including collision avoidance and lane-departure warning.
An announcement from the New York show organizers offered a few new details about the 2015 VW Golf that hadn't been public before.
At the New York International Auto Show, Volkswagen is debuting all three of the Golf versions that will go on sale next year: the entry-level TSI model; the thrifty TDI Clean Diesel; and the sporty GTI.
The TSI and GTI use new versions of the EA888 turbocharged and direct-injected four-cylinder engine, while the TDI gets the new EA288 diesel engine.
That means that not only will the Golf and its hot-hatch GTI sibling be all-new cars, but they'll also have all-new engines.
2014 Volkswagen Golf
The 2015 Volkswagen Golf TDI will get an all-new EA288 turbodiesel to replace the aging 140-hp, 2.0-liter four-cylinder used in today's Golf TDI models.
And it will likely use urea-based Diesel Exhaust Fluid for emissions control, which the current Golf TDI engines do not.
The standard gasoline 2015 VW Golf will use a direct-injected, turbocharged engine from the new EA888 engine family.
So far, U.S. buyers have seen that engine only as a 1.4-liter version mated to Volkswagen's hybrid system in the 2013 Volkswagen Jetta Hybrid that went on sale early this year.
For more details on the 2015 Volkswagen Golf and all the other launches and concepts at the show, follow our New York Auto Show page.
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