The Volkswagen Up! production version will appear at the 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show, scheduled for next September, with the first version to be a three-door, four-seater model with a range of petrol and diesel engines. The Up family will expand in the future to include a five-door version and a fully electric, battery-powered model in 2013 - the same year the electric Golf and Jetta are expected to appear.

The engine range could be extended to the Volkswagen Polo model as well but we’re left a little perplexed on the price. The Volkswagen Up could have a starting price of about 10,000 euros which makes sense if it’s to be the sub-Polo compact in the VW range, replacing the Volkswagen Fox, currently the smallest VW on offer.

But for that price in Europe you can also stretch to a new Opel Corsa or Fiat Punto and so we’re wondering just how small, or big, the Volkswagen Up! will be. In addition, if a low-cost citycar option like the Dacia Citadine appears on the market, the Volkswagen Up might have to be more small hatch than large-ish minicar to work. Not because Dacia will produce the quality that you get with a VW, but because if you’re looking for a real city size run-around, you might not want to spend 10,000 euros.

Still, as we say, it could be a great little car for Volkswagen and replacing the Fox with something new, that still sits about 6,000 euros below the Polo, could be a needed offering in this segment for VW. There’s no word on whether it will be called the Volkswagen Lupo or not, but we wouldn’t mind something different from its current name. Just imagine a conversation between friends: “hey, I just bought a new Up!” where the exclamation mark doesn’t quite come across….

Source | AutomotiveNews

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A new citycar is to hit the market by 2015 in the form of the Dacia Citadine. The low-cost car company is working on the citycar as part of its model line-up to be complete by 2015. The line-up will also include the restyled Dacia Duster, the Dacia Logan sedan in 2012 and a Logan MPV.

The low-cost citycar could appear with the 1.2-litre petrol engine of the Renault Twingo and could be a four-door, four-seater model. Pricing of the Citadine should be about 5,000 euros making it very competitive in the citycar segment. At the other end of the scale, Dacia is also working on the possibility of a larger sedan about 4.7 metres long, and currently known as the X52. It will most likely be based on the Renault Latitude and would allow Dacia to enter a new segment with a low-cost option under cutting pricing for other manufacturers.

In 2015 the Dacia Sandero should also get a brand new version. A new van and pick-up could also enter the Dacia product family, making for no less than eight new models by 2015. The models, particularly with the Duster SUV and a pick-up, show that Dacia is enjoying some success in overseas markets. It has been doing particularly well in South America where it’s sold under the Renault badge. The Renault-Dacia connection is more tenuous in Europe, but the low-cost option off the back of Renault engines has been a good investment for the Renault Group.

Source | AutoEvolution

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