2012 Volkswagen Up! coming to Australia Q4 2012

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By Tim Beissmann | September 12th, 2011

The all-new pint-sized Volkswagen Up! is destined to arrive in Australian showrooms by the end of 2012, with a starting price under-cutting the current entry-level Polo.

At $16,690, the five-speed manual Volkswagen Polo Trendline three-door is currently the cheapest model in the German brand’s local line-up.

Given its diminutive proportions and anticipated basic specification level, the Volkswagen Up! is expected to start around $15,000, making it a close competitor for other sub-light models like the Holden Barina Spark, Nissan Micra and the Suzuki Swift.

Official pricing and specifications will be revealed closer to the Up!’s local launch in a little over 12 months’ time.

At 3540mm long (2420mm wheelbase), 1640mm wide, 1480mm tall, the Up! is 412mm shorter and 42mm narrower than the Polo. The Up!’s wheelbase is just 50mm shorter than the Polo, and at its highest point it is 26mm taller than the Polo.

The Up!’s 252-litre boot is just 28 litres smaller than the Polo’s, and it expands to 951 litres with the rear seats folded down. Unlike the Polo, however, the Up! is strictly a four-seater, with room for just two in the back.

Overseas, the Volkswagen Up! will be launched with two different tunes of a 1.0-litre three-cylinder petrol engine: a base model variant with 44kW, and a higher powered 55kW unit. Volkswagen says they will return combined cycle fuel consumption figures around 4.2-4.3 litres/100km when teamed with start-stop technology.

The 55kW version is the variant most likely to come to Australia.

Volkswagen will also add a 50kW natural gas model to its global line-up in 2012, and plans to launch an electric version in 2013.

Depending on its specification level, the Up! will be available with City Emergency Braking (auto braking under 30km/h to avoid crashes or reduce their severity), a body colour-themed interior, and a Portable Infotainment Device (PID) which integrates satellite navigation, parking, telephone and infotainment functions into a removable touchscreen tablet.

The production version of the 2012 Volkswagen Up! will make its world debut at tomorrow’s 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show.

o

15k and you have a sale

Tommy

not a chance
asin

15k driveaway with a few goodies then yes… but if 15k plus on roads.. then no go.

Jimsim

An R-up! version would be siiiiiiiiiiiiick.
retro fit a 5.0 litre V10 from the toerag. Thing would flyyyyyyyyyyyyyy.
K

The Real people’s car is coming~
Captain Nemo

VeeDud sure know how to build ugly cars. I wonder if they will bring out a Throw Up!edition.
josh

No 3cyl 1L turbo diesel ????

AndyGF

Only in EU?

m2m

Cool!!
Bangel

FANTASTIC city car will sell its head off here , especially to the girls let down by inferior holden sparks and barina rubbish .

scatman

So your buying one yourself by the sounds
Brake Job

Whats was wrong with your Barina??

smokin’r32

I really thought VW would drop the stupid try hard exclamation mark from the name of this thing before it hit the market

Phil

What about the badge on the black one telling you that its “Black”?

FrugalOne

$15k is China money, start running koreans….
voumard

pointless niche market, buy a yaris or a mazda2

Jacob

What if u want something German?

Freddo

You mean unreliable?

Jimmy

Why do you think this is a pointless niche market? Vehicles for people living in dense urban areas would have to be one of the largest and highest growth markets in the world. There are several competitive advantages the Up! has over its Japanese counterparts, like new technology and fuel economy. More people need to drive cars like this, they make a hell of a lot of sense in urban areas.

Banky

The natural gas model will be good for under $18k in Australia.
tj

i imagine it will be noisy as hell driving one of these on freeway.

Phil

Why? It doesn’t use a old air cooled Beetle or Kombi motor.

CRS200

Why anyone would choose this over a Renault Twingo is beyond me.

Wake up Renault Australia!
Μr Gaspo

The natural gas model has a few modifications including a re-calibrated ECU, larger injectors a toilet seat replacing the front seat and a years supply of baked beans.

Banky

Hi Gaspo,
Care to share a link where you got your info?

Golfschwein

I think it’s a brilliant design with universal appeal. Universal means boys and girls in case someone misunderstands. For the anticipated price, it’s the best looking interior, too.

Hung Low

Universally it is safe to say that you are in touch with your feminine side a bit too much these days! Mr metro!

Jacob

Oh Yes!

But did they have to make it so ugly?
Μr Gaspo

Banky,

I have a mole deep in the bowels of VW HO at Wolfsburg. Being deep in the bowels does require a gas mask (OH&S requirement) especially given the Germans penchant for Bratwursts.

On a serious note, the gas model could be fillers via a fueling station connected to your household gas supply… Much cheaper than running a hybrid.
cocnut

beware of expensive service cost and poor reliability.. bet the base model will be a poverty pack with very expensive options which is a standard in other rival cars…. we are just paying for the badge..

Phil

What would be the point of a base model if it were packed with equipment?
Besides, the cheapest Polo comes standard with 8 airbags, ESP, A/C, 6 speaker cd/mp3, power windows, keyless entry etc etc, its far better equipped in base trim than probably anything else in that segment. Service costs PER YEAR are similar to Nissan/Mazda/Toyota once you figure out that you need to pay for a service every 3-6 months where as VW is every 12-24 months.
F1MotoGP

What service cost? Check Nissan website for Tiida. Service for 1 year is $496 ($214 + $282) and 2nd year is $651.
VW Golf 1y $320. Japanese cars must be serviced every 6 months EU cars once every 1 or 2 years!

Hung Low

There is a good reason for that, do you know why?
tj

regardless of what the warranty might be, if you love your car, you are supposed to at least change the oil and filter every 6 month, then your car will love you back.

Phil

@tj well my BMW must hate itself then. It monitors the cars usage since the last service and tells you when the next one is due. So far each service has been around 24 months apart (sometimes longer). Funny though, it hasn’t been sick or commited suicide in 380,000kms.

al

Looks like a COMMON-SENSE car. A rarity in modern days. It’s only missing bumper bars.
I would be interested in the car’s weight, and I hope it comes with manual windows. Good to see it comes in 2-door and Volkswagen offers many colours.
A step in the right direction!

al

Apparently the weight is only around 900kg, which is great!
About the same weight as my old Golf 2 which was an outstanding and reliable car.

dave

Why are car manufacturers so reluctant to bring sub 1.0l models to Australia? 12k tor a 1.0l petrol and I’d be looking seriously, 13k for a 1.0p or less turbo diesel and you have a sale!