Even if the title sums up the topic, aren’t you interested to know the best selling European car? Did you guess?
Yes it is the Volkswagen Golf that India isn’t getting anytime soon. The sedan variant based on the Golf, Jetta, is however available. When we visited Volkswagen’s Chakan plant last year, we spotted a Golf with European number plates inside the premises. Since then, our readers have seen silver color Golfs in and around Pune.
The Volkswagen Polo, with sales up by 1.2 per cent in October (compared to October 2010) is the second best selling European car followed by the Ford Fiesta came in third for 2011 selling 26,533 units.
IAB readers have spotted VW Golfs testing in and around Pune for almost two years now. We visited the VW Chakan facility in July last year to find out there was a LHD Golf inside the plant with European number plates. The Golf and Jetta share the same platform and VW India has said that at the price point of the Golf, people in India will look for a sedan. That’s why VW launched the Vento instead of the Golf.
The next generation Jetta will be launched in India in the next few months and that vehicle is based on a new platform which will underpin the next generation Golf (Golf 7). VW could be testing powertrains on these Golfs and also don’t rule out the possibility of global testing for seeing how one of Europe’ best selling hatchbacks copes with heat, dust and road conditions of rural India.
Image Credit – Sumeet Jaroliya of Car and Bike Show Facebook Page
When I visited VW’s plant in Chakan, Pune, a couple of weeks ago, I happened to spot a LHD VW Golf doing rounds at the plant. VW has put a few Mk6 Golfs on the streets of Pune too with temporary registration plates, but the one seen here has a European board, possibly German.
As per VW, the Indian market isn’t the best place to sell a premium hatchback as many Indians feel they’d rather drive home a sedan instead of a hatch like Golf. VW could be testing powertrains that may appear on the next generation Jetta coming in 2011 on this Golf mule.
It doesn’t really matter what kind of a product the Golf is as long as there are cars like the City, Verna, Fiesta and SX4. We predict top-end variants of the Golf could end up in the Cruze-Civic-Corolla segment.
VW India’s next project after the Vento, is the sub-Polo hatchback which could be branded Lupo.
Regular follower of Indian Autos Blog Hrishikesh Kankokar is a test mule lover. Living around the Pune area, he gets to spot loads of test vehicles and angry test vehicle drivers, who can’t stand a picture being taken.
But Hrishikesh isn’t letting a frustrated driver stop him from taking snaps. Not yet. His latest catch is the current generation VW Golf in the streets of Pune.
The Golf is close to VW’s heart, but the price is in all possibility, the only factor preventing them from bringing it to India. We have heard in the past that by 2013, VW will launch e-Golf in India. What Hrishikesh has caught here uses a petrol/diesel engine and thanks to the congested roads, the nature of the engine was impossible to ascertain.
VW could launch the current generation Golf in India, but don’t expect it to be under 9 lakh rupees. We don’t see a possibility of it starting at a lower price point even if the localization levels are extremely high. A diesel Golf could be around 11 lakh, and the top-end model could set you back by 13 lakh rupees.
Correct us if we’re wrong.
Could the VW Golf hatch hit showrooms by beginning of 2012? We learn from sources that the next generation Golf debuts internationally by the end of 2012, so our question is why would VW launch a phased out car?
The Nissan GT-R, Honda FCX Clarity, Volkswagen Golf and Fiat 500 took crowns in this year’s World Car of the Year awards at the New York International Auto Show yesterday morning.
Nissan GT-R- World Performance Car of the Year
The GT-R toppled the competition which had all its real and virtual world rivals- Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 and Porsche 911 Carrera.
The 2010 VW Polo was revealed at the Geneva Motor Show last month. It was one of the highly anticipated cars of 2009 given its long standing tradition of serving families with comfort, frugality and reliability.
Indians are new to the VW brand as they recently set shop in India and sell limited cars namely the Toureg, Jetta and Passat. We are rather fond of Skoda and recognize them for their Octavia and Laura, which have found heaps of buyers.
What’s a VW Golf doing on Indian Autos Blog, you might ask, and the simple yet shocking answer is the next gen Golf (pictured above) will be manufactured in VW’s state of the art facility at Chakan. Yes, it will be present in the premium hatchback segment, giving company to Skoda’s Fabia and Chevrolet’s SRV, but not until 2010.
