The VW Taigun baby SUV that was unveiled at the Sao Paulo Motor Show in late 2012, is nearing its start of production according to the chief designer of Volkswagen, Klaus Bishoff.
Bishoff spoke to Auto Express magazine on the sidelines of the Shanghai Auto Show. He "deeply believes" that the Taigun is heading to showrooms sometime soon.
Bishoff was also particular about the car's global nature. He said Volkswagen is a global company and restricting the availability of a car to one region would be "stupid".
During the unveiling of the Taigun at the Sao Paulo Motor Show, Volkswagen's member of board of management responsible for sales and marketing, Christian Klinger said that a mini SUV like the Taigun would be well suited for countries such as Brazil and India. Soon after the unveiling of the concept, VW's R&D chief Ulrich Hackenberg, on the back of his immaculate track record of convincing the VW management on producing the concepts he pitches at global auto shows, said the Taigun was the next car on his to-do list.
The Taigun is perfectly suited for the Indian market from the configuration perspective. It is under four meters long and has compact engines that qualify it for tax breaks.
The Taigun is based on the Up! platform. It has five doors and is 83mm wider and 8mm taller than the Up!. Its wheelbase is 50mm longer. Besides a bigger cabin and a more comfortable rear seat, the driving position is elevated.
An SUV smaller than the Tiguan, based on the Polo platform, is tipped for a 2014 debut as well.
[Source: Autoexpress.co.uk]
