Fiat may enter the microcar ring with a four-seater sub-Panda

This time next week, those of us fortunate enough to go to Frankfurt will likely be passed out after a long day of press conferences, caffeine crashes and schnitzel binges. Two of the more compelling concepts we expect to see in Germany include the Volkswagen City Expert and Toyota's Endo microcar, both of which will likely see production in an effort to provide diminutive, low-cost transport across the globe. Fiat apparently wants in on the action too.

According to Automotive News, Fiat may be developing its own sub-compact runabout, based off the Panda and 500 platform, only with 300mm lopped off. Able to seat four, the concept will be powered by a 65 HP, 900cc two-cylinder engine, but it won't make its debut until sometime next year.

The article also sheds light on both the VW and Toyota vehicles, with the former coming in at about 3,400 mm and the latter stretching a full 3,150 mm. Skoda and Seat, affiliates of Volkswagen, are likely to get their own versions later, both powered by either a two- or three-cylinder engine that lies flat underneath the rear seats. Expect to see variants of the City Expert in both Tokyo and Los Angeles later this year.

Whether or not either of automaker can make a profit on these vehicles is a question that has sparked debate among analysts, but regardless, expect Toyota's Endo to make it to production in 2009 and VW's City Expert around the same time.



[ Via: SEAT Autoblog ]
[ Tag: 500, city expert, CityExpert, endo, fiat, panda, seat, skoda, toyota, volkswagen, vw ]

Volkswagen's plan for expansion includes four all-new architectures

Volkswagen's plan for the next ten years includes streamlining production, cutting development costs and creating four new platforms so it can boost sales to 10 million units a year and give Toyota a run for its money. Architecture development is key to that strategy.

The first – dubbed MQB – will underpin the majority of small cars and some of the "upper-medium" vehicles that the VW/Audi group produces, including everything from the V-Dub Fox to the Passat, the Audi TT and A3, and a handful of Seats and Skodas. The MQB platform will account for over six million vehicles a year when production hits full bore by 2018, and should reduce development times by a year and reduce costs anywhere between 25- and 40-percent.

Those same time and financial savings are also expected when VW begins production of its MHB platform that will underpin the rear-engine minicars based on the up! concepts we've seen at the last three auto shows. Another modular architecture is being developed for mid-engine sports cars for Audi, Lamborghini and possibly a lower-end Bugatti (oxymoron?), while the last platform – MLB – is already being used on the new A4 and A5.

The breakdown of each platform into its own "just right" size, from small to large, mini to luxury, will also allow the VW group to expand its lineup at a faster pace for niche vehicles and to accommodate the demand in emerging markets.



[ Via: SEAT Autoblog ]
[ Tag: audi, bentley, mhb, mlb, mqb, seat, skoda, volkswagen ]

Entry-level, RWD vehicles coming from VW in 2010

More news on the microcar front comes in the form of "confidential planning documents" procured by Automobilwoche outlining Volkswagen's plan for its rear-wheel-drive compacts over the next nine years. VW considers the launch of its new "Small Family" lineup of RWD vehicles as the most important launch since the Beetle was fazed out in favor of the Golf in 1974.

Production of the new minicars will being in 2010, likely utilizing the Skoda plant in Vrchlabi, within the Czech Republic, with 100,000 vehicles destined for Europe sporting the Volkswagen badge, and another 100,000 wearing Skoda and Seat logos. Variants of the uber-compact three-door are expected to come in at about 3500mm long, sporting a price tag under €8,000, with a five-door version, stretched by 80mm and priced around €9,450.



[ Via: SEAT Autoblog ]
[ Tag: rear wheel drive, rear-wheel-drive, RearWheelDrive, rwd, seat, skoda, small family, SmallFamily, volkswagen, vw ]

KВ№ for UK: SEAT Leon Cupra KВ№

Every so often, we wish that Volkswagen's SEAT brand was available here in the US. Sure, the Spanish automaker's vehicles are badge-engineering exercises that raid the corporate partsbin for powertrains, switchgear, and the like, but their styling is unique and some of the packages have definite appeal.

Take, for instance, the just-announced UK-market Leon Cupra K¹. With the stylish Leon Cupra as its base, the K¹ adds an appearance package that is, to put it plainly, pretty bitchin'. Intended to make the car look more like the Cupra BTCC racers, the kit includes new front and rear treatments, side skirts, and a sweet-looking center-exit exhaust. We think the K¹ kit is actually better-looking than the BTCC bodywork. Like its standard-bodied counterpart, the K¹ gets power from a 240 PS (236 HP) version of VW's 2.0 TFSI four-cylinder. That's good enough to give the Cupra a top speed of 153 mph. Hot hatch, indeed.

Press release with UK pricing after the jump.



[ Via: SEAT Autoblog ]
[ Tag: BTCC, Cupra, cupra K1, CupraK1, K1, leon cupra, LeonCupra, SEAT, SEAT Leon, SeatLeon ]

First Drive: SEAT Leon Cupra

Draw up a list of the top hot-hatches in the world. The SEAT Leon Cupra may not be on it – although it might be – but the Volkswagen GTI will most definitely. At least it should, because the GTI is a performance icon, forged over decades of performance tempered with versatility and accessibility. And the current-generation GTI certainly lives up to the legend, burning rubber with the best Germany has to offer. But if this article is about the SEAT Leon Cupra, then why are we talking about the Volkswagen GTI? What do they have in common? Well, almost everything. Almost.

[ Via: SEAT Autoblog ]
[ Tag: autoblog drives seat cupra, AutoblogDrivesSeatCupra, featured, first drive, first drive seat leon cupra, FirstDrive, FirstDriveSeatLeonCupra, seat, seat leon, seat leon cupra, SeatLeon, SeatLeonCupra ]

VW Group's next small-car platform to get AWD across the board

Buyers of the next generation of Volkswagen-developed small cars will have one more option box to tick when placing their order: all-wheel-drive. The new platform, dubbed PQ25, will find its way underneath a handful of new models, spanning the range from the low-end (SEAT), mid-grade (VW) and luxury (Audi). All-wheel-drive won't be an option for the new SEAT Ibiza, but consumers of the next VW Polo (specifically the CrossPolo) might be able to outfit their tiny runabout with AWD, while the Audi A1, due out in late 2009, will continue the automaker's love affair with quattro.

[ Via: Automotive News ]
[ Tag: a1,all wheel drive,all-wheel-drive,AllWheelDrive,audi,audi a1,AudiA1,awd,awd crosspolo,AwdCrosspolo,cross polo,CrossPolo,quattro,seat,volkswagen,volkswagen crosspolo,VolkswagenCrosspolo,vw crosspolo,vw polo,VwCrosspolo,VwPolo ]