Carsales Staff•18 Sept 2012
NEWS
Volkswagen up! downsizes to $13,990
Lower than expected sub-$14K starting price for up!, Volkswagen's new babyVolkswagen Group Australia has announced a starting price of $13,990 plus on-road costs for its all-new entry-level model, the up!
The lower than expected sub-$14,000 headline price applies to the three-door version of the four-seat city-car, but the volume-selling up! five-door will also be priced from under $15,000 at $14,990 plus ORCs when it officially goes on sale on October 6.
That makes Volkswagen’s new range-opener up to $3000 more affordable than the Polo, which currently opens at $16,990 for the 1.4 Trendline five-door following the discontinuation of mainstream three-door models in recent months.
As we’ve reported, the up! will be a manual-only model in the absence of a five-speed ASG automated-manual transmission version, which was recently released in Europe but is so far unavailable here due to a combination of supply constraints and negative press reports.
Volkswagen’s first sub-light model in Australia will be a direct rival for the likes of Holden’s Korean-made Barina Spark, which is priced from $12,490 but is also a manual-only model for the time being, as well as Suzuki’s Indian-built Alto (from $11,790) and Nissan’s Indonesian-made Micra (from $13,490).
Notwithstanding the bargain-basement pricing, the Bratislava-built up! will be generously specified.
Standard safety features for the single model grade available will include four airbags, ESP electronic stability control, antilock brakes with brake assist and hill-holder, four seatbelt reminders and the segment-first City Emergency Braking, which automatically brakes the vehicle to avoid a collision at speeds between 5 and 30km/h.
Despite the fact the front-side airbags do not extend to the rear seats, however, Volkswagen expects the car to achieve a maximum five-star ANCAP safety rating, following its five-star Euro NCAP score.
Two options packs will be available, led by the Comfort Drive pack, which includes cruise control, rear parking sensors and a trip computer for $600, while metallic paint will cost a further $500.
The Comfort Style Pack costs $2500 and includes a leather-trimmed steering wheel, parking brake and gearshifter, ‘leatherette’ seat trim with white stitching, 15-inch alloy wheels, front foglights, heated front seats and carpet floor mats.
Further options include a panoramic glass sunroof ($1400) and, for $500, a novel ‘Maps + More’ portable infotainment system comprising satellite-navigation system, Bluetooth phone with audio streaming and a 32GB of SD card music storage.
Standard across the range will be air-conditioning, remote central locking, a six-speaker AM/FM/MP3 sound system, power windows, 14-inch steel wheels, height-adjustable steering wheel and a full-size spare wheel.
With a kerb weight of just 880kg, the up! is 524mm shorter overall than the Polo at 3540mm and is braked by discs at the front and drums at the rear, and offers 251 litres of cargo space – just 10 litres less than the Polo, which also has a lower roof height – and 951 litres with the rear seats folded.
Volkswagen says it plans to offer a capped-price service plan for the up!, which is powered by a 55kW/95Nm 1.0-litre three-cylinder petrol engine that consumes premium 95 RON unleaded petrol at the rate of 4.9L/100km and emits 114g/km of CO2.
Top speed is listed at 173km/h and 0-100km/h acceleration at a leisurely 13.2 seconds.
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Written byCarsales Staff
Our team of independent expert car reviewers and journalists
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Please see our Editorial Guidelines & Code of Ethics (including for more information about sponsored content and paid events). The information published on this website is of a general nature only and doesn’t consider your particular circumstances or needs.
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