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Volkswagen Eos finally gets family look facelift

October 8, 2010 at 11:07 am By Jacob Alexander Filed Under Cars, International News, Volkswagen

Volkswagen has revealed the facelifted Eos cabriolet that is set to have its world premiere at the LA show in November. Expected to go on sale in January next year, the car undergoes aesthetic changes to be more in tune with the rest of Volkswagen’s range.

The front gets a new grille, headlamps with LED running lights, new bumper and side mirror design. The back will see the use of a new diffuser, new back bumper and LED tail lights. The original Eos used the Mk5 Golf’s looks; this one takes after the Mk6.

Changes to the inside are minimal with the use of new colours, new dials for the climate control, along with new tech such as a remote control for the retractable hardtop, new colour display and a keyless entry and starting system.

Changes under the hood are also minimal with the improvement in fuel efficiency for the 2.0 litre TDI engine, which sees fuel consumption drop to 4.8 l/100 km. You can expect a full reveal at the LA Auto Show, till then enjoy the picture gallery after the jump.
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Passat BlueMotion sets world record run on a tank of fuel

October 5, 2010 at 1:13 am By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, International News, Volkswagen

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Nothing like one upmanship, indeed. In the latest round of cock a snook in the numbers game, a standard production model 1.6-litre 105PS TDI Volkswagen Passat BlueMotion has set a new Guinness World Record for the longest distance travelled by a standard production passenger car on a single tank of fuel.

The attempt, made in England by a team from The Sunday Times, involved taking the Passat BlueMotion from Maidstone, Kent to the south of France and back. After 1,526.63 miles, or 2,456.87km, the car finally ran out of gas near Calais.

The route comprised mainly French highways, but included some town driving, resulting in an average speed of just over 72.5 kph.

Gavin Conway drove the Passat BlueMotion during the three-day record-breaking journey, accompanied by a navigator and video crew. Following the entire drive in a van was a two-man team from the UK AA, there to witness the journey independently for the Guinness World Records organisation, which accredited the record.

The Passat BlueMotion’s fuel tank was drained before the record breaking journey and filled with 77.25 litres of standard diesel, and the end result was an overall fuel consumption of 89.83 miles per gallon, or if you prefer metric, 31.8 km per litre (3.14 litre per 100km). Which is quite a fetching figure.

Expect attempts by the Teutonic competition to break this record, and not too long in the future. It is, after all, undoubtedly about bragging rights, and right now it’s Veedub’s to rub.

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Paris 2010: Volkswagen Passat gets new company face

September 30, 2010 at 9:10 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under 2010 Paris Motor Show, Cars, Volkswagen

This is the seventh generation Passat, according to the company, although it’s most probably a heavily reworked version of the sixth gen car that’s sold in Malaysia. As expected, it receives the new VW corporate face and a new tail design as well. The men in charge, Klaus Bischoff (VW head of design) and Walter de Silva (VW Group head of design), describe the new Passat as a car with “clean surfaces and an elegant yet imposing stance”.

Every body panel apart from the roof is new, according to the company. The new grille has horizontal chrome fins and are flanked by headlights with LED running lights. At the rear, new tail lights are joined by subtle chrome highlights. Measuring 4,769 mm in length, the new Passat sedan is 4 mm longer than the car it replaces although width and height remains. Clean but dull is my first impression after seeing it in the metal.

The cabin is largely similar to the current car, so there’s nothing to shout about. I found out and tried one unique feature, though. To open the boot, kick the underside of the rear bumper and it pops open! Should be quite handy when hands are full. The ahem, right spot, needs some training to find, but owners have plenty of chance to figure it out. This comes with the keyless entry option.

The petrol engine line-up comprises a 1.4-litre TSI engine with 122 PS, a 1.8-litre TSI with 160 PS and a 2.0-litre TSI with 210 PS. The full fat range-topper is a 3.6-litre V6 with 300 PS. On the diesel front, a 105 PS 1.6-litre TDI is the starter. A BlueMotion package (includes aero mods, Stop/Start and battery regeneration) with this engine combines to achieve 24.4 km/l while emitting just 109 g/km of CO2. This equates to a possible 1,600 km on a single tank of diesel. A 2.0-litre TDI engine is also available in two power outputs – 140 PS and 170 PS. Manual is standard in Europe, DSG is optional.

UPDATE: Live gallery added after the jump, including the wagon bodytype!
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Federal Auto launches flagship ABT showroom in Malaysia

September 28, 2010 at 3:22 pm By Harvinder Sidhu Filed Under Audi, Cars, Local News, Volkswagen

Federal Auto Holdings Bhd. has officially opened an ABT showroom at Glenmarie, Shah Alam. The showroom which is Asia’s largest for the famous German tuner is 12,000 square feet in size and costs over a RM1 million to set up. The ABT dealership is specifically run by Federal Auto Sports Tuning Sdn. Bhd. or FAST which is a subsidiary of Federal Auto. The launch of the new showroom, blessed by ABT Managing Director, Hans-Jurgen Abt himself (son to founder, Johann Abt), comes after the appointment of FAST as ABT’s exclusive local dealer in March 2010. This means that Cartrade-ABT no longer represent the tuner here in Malaysia.

The dealership is responsible for selling official ABT products that range from aesthetic kits such as polyurethane body kits and wheels to engine performance upgrades as well as sports suspension springs. It also covers exhaust and brake upgrades. Apart from catering for the usual suspects, which are Volkswagens, the dealership also offers parts for Audis.

The scope of Volkswagen models that are covered by FAST include the Golf Mk6 (both 1.4 TSI and GTi models), the Scirocco (both 1.4 TSI and 2.0 TSI models) as well as the Tiguan. Golf Mk5 owners should be happy to know that FAST offers upgrades for the previous generation hatchback too.

As for the four-ring cars, owners of the TT, the A4 (both sedan and avant models), the A3 (5-door, Sportback and S3 models), the Q5 and lastly the R8 speed demon will find kits at the showroom. FAST confirmed that all ABT parts can be made available for the above models, with some already in stock.

The company also confirmed that the parts come with ABT’s 1-year warranty (against defects) and mentioned that esthetic upgrades will not harm your vehicle’s manufacturer warranty. However, engine upgrades such as ABT’s high-performance ECU kits can void the warranty. Nevertheless FAST said that it is in talks with the manufacturers in regards to the issue.

In terms of price, we don’t have the full price list just yet but upgrade kits for both the Golf and Scirocco models can be anywhere between RM6,363 for an engine chip tuning to RM43,610 for a complete set which includes a full body kit, sport springs, wheels and tires. An example of an ABT upgrade is the chip tuning for the Golf GTi Mk6, which bumps power from 210hp to 260hp and 280Nm of torque to 360Nm.

FAST plans to open another showroom in Petaling Jaya later this year, followed by at least two more in Penang and Johor Bahru by end of next year. Since we are on the topic, ABT is pronounced as ‘abt’ and not ‘A.B.T’ which is a common misconception. Continue reading to view more images of the launch event.
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VW to open engine plant in Mexico with 330,000 capacity

September 24, 2010 at 1:48 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, International News, Volkswagen

Volkswagen has announced that it will build a new engine plant in Silao, Mexico as part of its long-term expansion strategy in North America. The Silao plant will supply the latest generation of engines to VW’s vehicle plants in Chattanooga, USA and Puebla, Mexico beginning in 2013. The new plant has an annual capacity of 330,000 engines. Investment volume for the development of the new engine as well as for building the site totals US$550 million.

“This investment is yet another signal of the importance of North America to the Volkswagen Group,” said Jonathan Browning, President and CEO, Volkswagen Group of America. “The current expansion of capacity of the plant in Puebla, the upcoming start of production in Chattanooga, as well as the opening of the new engine plant in Silao, clearly shows Volkswagen’s commitment to winning in this market.”

Currently, the Volkswagen Jetta, Golf Estate and the New Beetle are produced in Puebla, Mexico. Production of the New Midsize Sedan (NMS) will begin in Chattanooga in 2011.

The VW Group is planning sales of one million vehicles in the US annually by 2018. The core element of this strategy is vehicles tailored to the demands of Americans, such as the Camry/Accord battling all-new Jetta and the D-segment NMS.

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Volkswagen Group Malaysia: CKD models will not include variants currently sold here

September 21, 2010 at 7:29 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, Local News, Volkswagen

There has been much excitement, and speculation, since the announcement that Volkswagen has signed an MoU with DRB-Hicom to locally assemble cars at the latter’s Pekan plant. Everyone has their guesses (some incredibly sure) on the identity of the three models, but thanks to a statement from Volkswagen Group Malaysia (VGM), we now know that the list WILL NOT include models currently sold in Malaysia. Here’s the verbatim press statement:

Following the announcement in August on the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with DRB-HICOM Berhad to collaborate on local assembly, Volkswagen would like to reiterate the content of the MoU that both parties are still in the early stage of investigating local vehicle assembly. The joint plans envisage the production of Volkswagen models in Malaysia from 2012 onwards.

The matter is still under negotiations and as a policy, Volkswagen will not comment on ongoing discussions. Suffice it to say, the models / variants in negotiations to be locally assembled will not be the models which are currently offered in Malaysia.

VGM’s current range consists of the five-door Polo 1.2 TSI, New Beetle, Golf 1.4 TSI, Scirocco (160 PS/210 PS), Golf GTI, Passat CC, Eos, Tiguan and Touareg V6 SUV.

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Volkswagen Golf 1.4 TSI Test Drive Review

September 15, 2010 at 12:42 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Test Drive Reviews, Volkswagen

The Volkwagen Golf GTI is the dream car of many urban professionals. It’s not priced completely out of affordability, it looks sedate enough and it has 5-doors so it can pass off as a ‘sensible’ type of vehicle to scrutinizing family members, it’s powerful and torquey at all the right rev ranges, and it allows you to experience the latest in automotive technology – dual clutch transmission technology, the concept of engine downsizing, turbocharging, direct injection, the works!

To top it all off, it actually looks good to most of us, and whoever doesn’t adore the looks will most likely not necessarily dislike it either. Because it’s such a relatively safe choice while at the same time ticking many positive checkboxes, it’s no wonder that the Golf GTI has gained such success in Malaysia.

But still, the new Mk6 Golf GTI’s price tag of over RM200k might be a hindrance to some. The previous generation of Golf featured a sort of warm hatch model – the Golf Sport/Golf GT, powered by Volkswagen’s 1.4 litre TSI engine. The significantly smaller engine produced a very nice 170 PS, which is about as much as the 2.5 litre inline-5 that VW uses in the American market Golf (known as the Rabbit there).

There’s no Golf Sport as of yet with the Mk6, but what we have is something with performance levels that are quite close – enter the Mk6 Volkswagen Golf TSI, powered by Volkswagen’s award winning EA111 1.4 litre TSI engine, making 160 PS and 240Nm of torque. This is a seriously very interesting engine, for one, the more powerful variants of it employ twin-charging, which basically means it uses two force induction devices to push power up to well over the 100 horsepower per litre mark.

Look after the jump to read our full review of the new Golf TSI.
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VIDEO: Volkswagen ‘Think Blue’ Clip for Paris 2010

September 14, 2010 at 2:12 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Volkswagen

This three minute animation is part of Volkswagen’s Think Blue campaign and was produced by Sehsucht and BM8 for Volkswagen to be shown at the 2010 Paris Motorshow in early October. Blue is basically the new green. It basically shows a blue world (litreally) with people living green lifestyles, not just with environmentally friendly vehicles (that so happen to all be Volkswagens) but even in the office we see a lady opening the window for ventilation instead of using air conditioning.

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JE Design wide body tuning kit for the VW Touareg TDI

September 6, 2010 at 3:16 pm By Jacob Alexander Filed Under Cars, International News, Volkswagen

Both the Mk1 and current Volkswagen Touareg are among the more macho looking big 4X4s in the market, with square edges and a buff body. Here, tuner JE Design enhances this image by adding a wide body kit that consists of a new sport radiator grill, front spoiler, front and back wheel arch kit, rear apron insert, roof spoiler and a rear hatch blend, all made of polyurethane (PU).

Adding to the design are 22-inch aluminium wheels, a dual exhaust and a suspension lowering kit, which reduces ride height by 35 mm. For those with individual tastes, the rims can be finished in shadow silver with a polished front surface, matte black with a matte silver front surface, graphite shiny silver with polished rim and matte graphite silver with polished rim.

Under the hood the Touareg’s 4.2-litre TDI engine is given a revised engine management system, which increases power from 335 hp to 404 hp. This has also positively affected pulling power; now with 930 Nm from the previous 800 Nm.

The extra power propels the Touareg to 100 km/h in just 5.4 seconds on to a top speed of 269 km/h. The company claims that the upgrades are achieved without affecting the standard car’s emissions. More pics after the jump.
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Volkswagen Group said to be interested in Alfa Romeo, but Fiat wont give it up so easily!

August 28, 2010 at 9:03 pm By Jacob Alexander Filed Under Alfa Romeo, Cars, Fiat, International News, Volkswagen

It seems that VW may be looking to buy an Italian brand, if reports from Autonews is to be believed, despite there being word in the past that VW already had all the brands it can handle. Two VW executives have said that VW are “seriously interested” in buying Alfa Romeo.

Another unidentified manager at VW also revealed to Automobilwoche: “Alfa is a globally recognized brand with sporty genes and a great tradition. If such a treasure could be had, we must not hesitate… too long.” This comes despite Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn stating: “Our appetite for buying in Italy is fully satisfied.”

As much as VW would like to buy the Italian brand, parent company Fiat aren’t interested in selling. A high-ranking Fiat exec revealed to the publication, “We have no intention at all of selling the brand to Volkswagen,” opting to stick to the turnaround plan Fiat (and Chrysler) has laid out for Alfa Romeo.

This would involve selling 500,000 Alfa Romeos a year, which is said to be an ambitious target if still under Fiat. ”Maybe Alfa could get to a half million unit sales a year, but only after the brand is sold to Volkswagen,” said one analyst from Credit Suisse automotive research department.

”Alfa plans to sell 85,000 units in the United States in 2014, therefore Fiat’s plan really means it wants to boost sales in Europe from 100,000 units to more than 400,000. I do not see how they will be able to steal so many buyers from their German competitors, “ said another analyst in Milan, laying out the facts.

Unfortunately no one really knows the Alfa’s financial predicament at the moment, as Fiat doesn’t separate financial results for its brands, but sources say that Alfa has lost between 200 million and 400 million Euros a year over the past 10 years. Thus if Fiat’s turnaround plan for Alfa doesn’t work, VW could be a viable option for the company.

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