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Proton and Volkswagen partnership gets the red light!

June 7, 2010 at 1:38 am By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Malaysian Makes, Proton, Volkswagen

Volkswagen LogoThe results of Proton’s most recent round of talks with Volkswagen are out and the verdict is NO – there won’t be any cooperation, collaboration or partnership of any form between the two companies. This is the second time that a potential partnership between the two companies has fallen through.

According to a media release sent out by Proton just a few hours ago, Volkswagen confirmed that it has other priorities and could not pursue a potential collaboration with Proton. Proton says it acknowledges this decision made by Volkswagen and will continue to work on its ASEAN Multi-Local OEM strategy and pursue its other ongoing projects such as the EMAS project and its Mitsubishi product collaboration deal. It also has other new model developments in works.

So yes, as the Chairman promised not too long ago, the company did reveal the outcome of talks in one to two weeks, unfortunately the outcome is not one that is positive. But nevermind, there is still alot to look forward to from Proton without some form of collaboration with the German giant Volkswagen Group such as the turbocharged Phoenix engine as well as the next generation Persona replacement and the EMAS project, both which are currently being worked on by both Proton and Italdesign Giugiaro.

There is another side to this which is the question – how will Volkswagen setup their CKD assembly in Malaysia now, or do they even still have any CKD plans for Malaysia at all? A CKD assembly deal was one of the potential collaborations rumored to be discussed between the two companies. Back in March 2010, VGM MD Andreas Prinz told the press at the Volkswagen PJ 3S center that it would be finalizing its CKD plans by the first half of this year, with the first CKD models to be rolling out in 12 to 18 months after the announcement.

As for the ‘other priorities’, I have a feeling it’s something to do with attempting to fully assimilate Suzuki and use that brand to both get a very strong foothold in the growing Indian market as well as achieve whatever Volkswagen intended with Proton a long time ago when they were in talks the first time.

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Volkswagen Polo Sedan renamed VW Vento for India

June 6, 2010 at 6:15 pm By Jacob Alexander Filed Under International News, Volkswagen

Volkswagen has announced that the sturdy Polo Sedan design unveiled in Russia last week will be used for the Indian market and will be called the Volkswagen Vento.

Essentially the same as a Polo sedan, the wheelbase has been extended by 50mm over a regular Polo hatch to accommodate better legroom. The car will be produced in VW’s plant in Chakan, Pune. The sedan will get the same 1.6-litre engine seen in the Russian version which produces 105 PS. This will be mated to a 5-speed manual or an automatic transmission depending on the budget. Prices are expected to be anything from 7 to 9 lakhs.

Look after the jump for a more comprehensive picture gallery that has just been released compared to the one shown at the Russian unveiled. This gallery now has interior photos, which show a largely unchanged interior compared to the Polo Sedan.
[Read more...]

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VIDEO: Volkswagen Amarok ‘Elephant’ TVC in Brazil

June 6, 2010 at 5:18 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Videos, Volkswagen

This Brazilian market TVC for the Volkswagen Amarok features an Indian boy (who grows up into a man) going about his life with his trusty elephant who seems to come in useful in so many ways. And then his elephant kind of falls sick or something… time for the dude to get a replacement. Or so I thought… check the video out after the jump, it kinda brought the smile to my face and the Amarok looks pretty damn good too!

The Amarok is a ladder frame truck with a choice of either a 2.0 litre single turbo diesel engine with 120hp and 340Nm or a 2.0 litre sequential twin turbo diesel with 161hp and 400Nm. Not exactly Navara-beating numbers but the engine is smaller at 2.0L versus 2.5L.

What’s interesting is that two different 4WD systems are available – a high-low 2WD-4WD switchable version that we’re familiar with and also 4MOTION permanent all-wheel drive that uses a Torsen differential to distribute drive at a 40:60 ratio so that the wheel with the best traction gets the most power.

Anyway check out the video after the jump.
[Read more...]

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Volkswagen Polo Sedan – alternative rear lamp design

June 4, 2010 at 2:19 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Volkswagen


Click for enlarged image

This is just something for fun – I didn’t quite like the rear end treatment that Volkswagen gave the new Polo Sedan so I gave Theophilus Chin a buzz to see if he could chop it to look better. Here’s what he managed to come up with. Looks better doesn’t it? You can click this link to view an animated gif of the real Polo Sedan’s rear end transforming into this Photoshopped version.

I think one of the best looking Volkswagens with a boot out there (well, not exactly on the roads) so far is the Volkswagen New Compact Coupe Concept, which was unveiled at Detroit and was supposed to preview the upcoming Jetta. Very nice Audi-like tail lamps!

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Volkswagen Polo Sedan makes world debut in Russia!

June 3, 2010 at 12:24 am By Paul Tan Filed Under International News, Volkswagen

Volkswagen has finally unveiled the sedan version of the new Volkswagen Polo, and the designers have definitely got the styling right, as the new Polo Sedan has none of the awkwardness that’s usually associated with turning a hatchback into a sedan. This is probably thanks to the new Polo’s mostly straight cut lines. Not the nicest rear end though.

The Polo will be produced in Kaluga, Russia. It had its world premiere in front of 200 high-ranking guests in Moscow on Tuesday. The Russian spec car uses a 1.6 litre inline-4 engine that produces 103 horsepower and can be mated to either a five-speed manual gear box or a six-speed automatic gearbox with Tiptronic sequential shift functions.

The engine is designed for Russian fuel quality and is a rather basic engine – unlike modern Volkswagen engines that have FSI, TSI, TFSI, and etc, this engine is a regular 1.6 litre Otto cycle engine, just like the one found in our market’s New Beetle, but Volkswagen’s press release says this engine is new. Notice that there isn’t even a 6-speed or 7-speed DSG transmission to keep the costs low.

The car has your usual safety features are also available on the car for the base ‘Trendline’ model such as two airbags, headrest and three point safety belts for five passengers. Higher spec models will get ABS, ESP and side airbags as standard. The full set of safety features is only available on Highline. It’s a shame that ABS is not a standard feature, only available on the mid-range Comfortline. But could probably be normal for typical Russian vehicle specs.

Just like the new engine with Russian fuel, Russian climate and roads were taken into account when developing the new sedan. Long term tests were conducted in different climate zones along with roads in different regions of Russia.

To counteract tough conditions the Polo Saloon will use a galvanised non-corrosive body and suspension that has been tuned to handle a rough ride. A ‘robust paint’ has been used on the exterior along with high durability chrome parts to cope with the harsh environment.

The sedan will be priced starting at just over 10,000 Euros, which translates to about just over RM 40,288 and likely upwards for the higher spec models. This new Polo sedan is clearly designed to be an affordable car for emerging markets such as most of the ASEAN countries.

Which country in ASEAN will host the assembly line for the new Polo sedan? Trial production in India has reportedly already started in Volkswagen’s Chakan plant, which also makes the Polo hatchback, Jetta and Passat.

Look after the jump for the 4 hi-res photos they’ve released so far.
[Read more...]

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Italdesign-Giugiaro to work exclusively with VW?

May 26, 2010 at 1:12 pm By Jacob Alexander Filed Under International News, Volkswagen

Volkswagen LogoThe announcement that VW has taken up 90.1 percent stake in Italdesign will come as a sigh of relief to its workforce. VW has stated that there will be no redundancies among the 800-strong work force. This takeover though may be bad news for other auto companies as apparently, it has been said that they will gradually relinquish relationships with other auto manufacturers such as BMW. Giugiaro has been credit for alot of the design and engineering work on BMW’s second generation MINI.

This would mean that they would eventually be designing exclusively for Volkswagen. “VW Group assured us [we would] keep our freedom and identity – we will keep our creative independence.” according to a spokesman from Italdesign. He also went on to add that Italdesign would also retain its technical engineering departments and would still be based in Turin.

“Giugiaro said it was a decision he took thinking of the opportunities looking to the market, which is becoming more and more global. Because we are a small company, we were fighting in such a big market – it could be a risk.” added the spokesman. The spokesman also confirmed that they will be working progressively with every brand within the VW group.

Though workers and employees of Italdesign will be safe, it would be a shame that the design and engineering concepts of the company will not be available to other fledgling automotive manufacturers. But if this even happens it’s likely to be slow and progressive and should not affect current contracts.

Source

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It’s official: Volkswagen’s Lamborghini buys 90.1 percent stake in Italdesign Giugiaro

May 25, 2010 at 7:31 pm By Jacob Alexander Filed Under Cars, International News, Lamborghini, Volkswagen

It has finally been officially confirmed that Volkswagen Group and Italdesign Giugiaro S.p.A. (IDG) will be joining hands in a new era of motoring engineering and design.

An official press release has been circulated about the details of the new partnership today. This includes the previously mentioned fact that VW will take a 90.1 percent stake in the company which will include the brand name, rights and patents. Thus the remaining 9.9 percent, a very odd number, will be owned by Giugiaro.

Interestingly, the share is being acquired by Audi’s Italian subsidiary Lamborghini Holding S.p.A. This could purely be a pen on paper business decision or it could be the start to something more wonderful and magical, one that any motoring enthusiast will start dreaming about. The similarities between the two are of course the fact that they are both Italian and have a flair for producing ridiculously beautiful machinery.

IDG an VW have cooperated on many project which include the Golf Mk1, along with concepts such as the Passat, Scirocco and the Audi 80. A comprehensive development framework agreement was concluded in 2008 and VW will continue to work with IDG on projects such as the VW Up! family model.

“With this shareholding in Italdesign, we are participating in one of the most renowned design and development companies with one of the richest traditions in the automobile industry. Italdesign is the flagship for creative Italian automobile design and has been instrumental in shaping the face of the automobile industry worldwide. As the creator of the Golf I, Giorgetto Giugiaro laid a new foundation for Volkswagen design in the 1970s,” said Prof. Dr. Martin Winterkorn, Chairman of the Board of Management of VW.

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Volkswagen buying over 90 percent of Giugiaro?

May 25, 2010 at 4:15 pm By Jacob Alexander Filed Under Cars, International News, Volkswagen

Volkswagen LogoAccording to Automotive News Europe sources, Volkswagen AG will officially announce their take over of Italdesign Giugiaro S.p.A on Tuesday (European time, not our time) as mentioned in previous articles. If things go through, Volkswagen will be buying up a huge 90 percent stake in the design company that had a hand in cars such as the original Lotus Esprit. The Giugiaro family will retain 10 percent of the family business that surrounds Italdesign co-founder Giorgetto Giugiaro and his son Fabrizio, 45, who heads the design and model division. The move will further help in VW’s plans in strengthening its global brand.

Source

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VW: Audi S1 on the way but no Polo R to avoid clash

May 24, 2010 at 9:58 am By Jacob Alexander Filed Under Audi, Cars, International News, Volkswagen

Technical chief of the Volkswagen Polo GTI, Dr. Ernst Linder has confirmed that Audi will roll out the S1 next year, and because of that there won’t be a Polo R to avoid clashing. The good doctor however revealed that a Jetta R is in the works.

Linder said that the range topping A1 will get a 178 bhp 1.4-litre Twincharger engine and a seven-speed DSG, as per the Polo GTI. No quattro though, the S1 will be front driven. On the Polo R, he said: “From the technical point-of-view, of course we can do something, but from the financial point-of-view it makes not so much sense. It would be too expensive and we have the S1. The S1 will have 178 bhp and it’s a very sporty car. If we put much more horsepower in the (Polo), we need something like four-wheel-drive. This is a technical feature that is very expensive.”

He did not let slip any technical information for the Jetta R. But since the standard “Golf sedan” isn’t even out yet, the performance version should be quite some time away from surfacing.

Source

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Volkswagen may buy over Italdesign Giugiaro?

May 20, 2010 at 1:55 pm By Jacob Alexander Filed Under Cars, International News, Volkswagen

Volkswagen LogoVW has almost 10 car brands under its wings and is planning to introduce a further 60 models (including multiple variants and facelifts) this year alone. Volkswagen is slowly building up its repertoire of technical knowledge and car brands in its bid to become the largest automaker by the year 2018. This in turn should reflect a sales figure of 10 million units a year. Thus to achieve that goal VW has to assimilate skills from already established companies.

It may be doing just that as according to Automotive News Europe, two confirmed sources have concurred on the rumour that Volkswagen will be buying a controlling stake in Italy’s largest design and engineering firm, Italdesign Giugiaro. Yes, this is the same ItalDesign Giugiaro that is working with Proton on the next generation Proton Persona replacement as well as the Proton EMAS range extender electric vehicle.

Funny how things work out the way they are – Proton was first in talks on working with Volkswagen, then they ended up working with Giugiaro, but now Volkswagen is rumoured to be buying over Giugiaro. This is supposed to be impending news so you can expect an announcement as early as next week if it really happens. Both Italdesign and VW have refused to comment on the matter.

Italdesign was co-founded by Giorgetto Giugiaro in 1968 and is owned by him while his son Fabrizio is the design and model head. The company has 975 employees and 800 computer aided design workstations in its Moncalieri head quarters. The company known for its world class design, have been involved with the design of cars such as the Alfa Romeo 159, the Alfa Romeo Brera coupe, the Fiat Grande Punto , the Suzuki SX4 and of course the new Proton Persona replacement and the concept Proton EMAS.

As the company doesn’t disclose its figures (it is a private company) there are no official stats on how well the company does. The latest data, which was from 2008, stated that the company’s revenues increased by 6.2 percent to 136 million Euros which broke even.

The Italian firm’s design work is a selling point for most car manufactures and is always advertised by their respective client. Engineering tasks have often been kept confidential and the only credit they were allowed to take was for the second-generation R56 Mini hatchback as well as its convertible and Clubman wagon counterparts.

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