Last year, Volkswagen unveiled the Cross Coupé concept at the Tokyo Motor Show, powered by a plug-in petrol-electric hybrid system.

This week, a new Cross Coupé is making its debut at the Geneva Motor Show, but with an even more frugal plug-in hybrid drivetrain.

The Cross Coupé Concept is powered by an alliance of a turbodiesel direct injection engine (TDI) and two electric motors.  Its combined fuel consumption in the New European Driving Cycle is a sensationally low 1.8 litres per 100 km (around 157 mpg).  This translates into CO2 emissions of just 46 g/km, in a powerful SUV with a top speed of 220 km/h (137 mph), 225 kW / 306 PS of power and a kerb weight of 1,858 kg. 

Further information about the Cross Coupé will be available when it makes its debut at the Geneva Motor Show on Tuesday 6 March.

Last year, Volkswagen unveiled the Cross Coupé concept at the Tokyo Motor Show, powered by a plug-in petrol-electric hybrid system.

This week, a new Cross Coupé is making its debut at the Geneva Motor Show, but with an even more frugal plug-in hybrid drivetrain.

The Cross Coupé Concept is powered by an alliance of a turbodiesel direct injection engine (TDI) and two electric motors.  Its combined fuel consumption in the New European Driving Cycle is a sensationally low 1.8 litres per 100 km (around 157 mpg).  This translates into CO2 emissions of just 46 g/km, in a powerful SUV with a top speed of 220 km/h (137 mph), 225 kW / 306 PS of power and a kerb weight of 1,858 kg. 

Further information about the Cross Coupé will be available when it makes its debut at the Geneva Motor Show on Tuesday 6 March.

In the same week that the first right-hand drive models are arriving in UK showrooms, the new Volkswagen up! has added to its growing tally of honours, winning car review website CarBuyer’s Best City Car award, while the Golf Cabriolet has claimed the accolade for Best Convertible.  

Commenting on the awards, CarBuyer Editor in Chief Steve Fowler said: ‘The up! is a simply superb city car – it’s got all the attributes CarBuyer users will love: cheeky looks, mature driving manners, plenty of space, low running costs and a tempting price.  It makes a great case for not needing anything larger.’

He continued: ‘Volkswagen’s latest Golf Cabriolet is the best yet.  It has all the attributes that make every other Golf so brilliant, but with a huge dollop of sex appeal.  It has its sensible side, but it sure knows how to let its hair down – it’s the perfect cabrio for CarBuyer users.’

On sale in the UK since last September, the Golf Cabriolet combines familiar Golf features with a more rakish look and an electrically powered fabric roof which can be folded away in just 9.5 seconds.  Later this year, the line-up expands to include the fastest production Cabriolet yet, with the arrival of the Golf GTI Cabriolet.

The up! distils Volkswagen’s values of quality, safety and value for money in a compact package, from its modern, clean and efficient engines, through its class-leading safety features to its innovative infotainment system.  The three-door model is on sale now, starting at £7,995, while a five-door version arrives before the end of the year.  A fully electric version is also in the pipeline. 

So far the up! has already won the What Car? Car of the Year for 2012 award and been named Top Gear magazine’s Small Car of the Year.

The new up! range is growing, with the unveiling of four up! design studies at the Geneva Motor Show next week, each of which shows the versatility and potential of the cleverly compact new Volkswagen city car.

The up! is as versatile as a Swiss Army Knife, so what better tribute to the host country of the Geneva Motor Show than the swiss up! concept.  Inside and out the swiss up! reflects the colours of the Swiss flag, with Tornado Red paintwork, white mirror housings, a white dashboard facia and red bezels around the air vents.  A leather band across the back of each front seat is provided for storing the eponymous pocket knife.

Next up (or rather next up!) is the winter up!, which is based on the cross up! concept first shown at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 2011.  With snowboards on the roof and cool Pure White and Malibu Blue paint, this concept is all set for the ski slopes.  The raised ride height and underbody protection create a rugged look, while the low weight of the up!, along with front-wheel drive and ESP with electronic differential lock, make it surprisingly agile in slippery conditions.

Like the swiss up!, the x up! is based on the cross up!, but this time equipped for night-time expeditions, thanks to a roof box that comes with built-in searchlights.  Burnt Orange exterior paint is complemented on the inside by two-tone door inserts and hand-sewn up! logos.

Lastly, there’s the cargo up! concept, which shows how you can load up the up! for city deliveries, with a huge 1,400-litre or 426kg payload.  Underbody protection and a raised ride height allow the cargo up! to tackle pot-holed city streets, while the rear seats have been removed to create a flat load area.  A bulkhead with the upper half made from Plexiglas separates cargo from driver, while the rear and rear side windows are body-coloured, keeping cargo safe from prying eyes while still allowing the driver to see through them.

The three-door up! goes on sale in the UK on Monday 5 March.  The five-door model is set to join the line-up in the second half of the year.

In the same week that the first right-hand drive models are arriving in UK showrooms, the new Volkswagen up! has added to its growing tally of honours, winning car review website CarBuyer’s Best City Car award, while the Golf Cabriolet has claimed the accolade for Best Convertible.  

Commenting on the awards, CarBuyer Editor in Chief Steve Fowler said: ‘The up! is a simply superb city car – it’s got all the attributes CarBuyer users will love: cheeky looks, mature driving manners, plenty of space, low running costs and a tempting price.  It makes a great case for not needing anything larger.’

He continued: ‘Volkswagen’s latest Golf Cabriolet is the best yet.  It has all the attributes that make every other Golf so brilliant, but with a huge dollop of sex appeal.  It has its sensible side, but it sure knows how to let its hair down – it’s the perfect cabrio for CarBuyer users.’

On sale in the UK since last September, the Golf Cabriolet combines familiar Golf features with a more rakish look and an electrically powered fabric roof which can be folded away in just 9.5 seconds.  Later this year, the line-up expands to include the fastest production Cabriolet yet, with the arrival of the Golf GTI Cabriolet.

The up! distils Volkswagen’s values of quality, safety and value for money in a compact package, from its modern, clean and efficient engines, through its class-leading safety features to its innovative infotainment system.  The three-door model is on sale now, starting at £7,995, while a five-door version arrives before the end of the year.  A fully electric version is also in the pipeline. 

So far the up! has already won the What Car? Car of the Year for 2012 award and been named Top Gear magazine’s Small Car of the Year.

The new up! range is growing, with the unveiling of four up! design studies at the Geneva Motor Show next week, each of which shows the versatility and potential of the cleverly compact new Volkswagen city car.

The up! is as versatile as a Swiss Army Knife, so what better tribute to the host country of the Geneva Motor Show than the swiss up! concept.  Inside and out the swiss up! reflects the colours of the Swiss flag, with Tornado Red paintwork, white mirror housings, a white dashboard facia and red bezels around the air vents.  A leather band across the back of each front seat is provided for storing the eponymous pocket knife.

Next up (or rather next up!) is the winter up!, which is based on the cross up! concept first shown at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 2011.  With snowboards on the roof and cool Pure White and Malibu Blue paint, this concept is all set for the ski slopes.  The raised ride height and underbody protection create a rugged look, while the low weight of the up!, along with front-wheel drive and ESP with electronic differential lock, make it surprisingly agile in slippery conditions.

Like the swiss up!, the x up! is based on the cross up!, but this time equipped for night-time expeditions, thanks to a roof box that comes with built-in searchlights.  Burnt Orange exterior paint is complemented on the inside by two-tone door inserts and hand-sewn up! logos.

Lastly, there’s the cargo up! concept, which shows how you can load up the up! for city deliveries, with a huge 1,400-litre or 426kg payload.  Underbody protection and a raised ride height allow the cargo up! to tackle pot-holed city streets, while the rear seats have been removed to create a flat load area.  A bulkhead with the upper half made from Plexiglas separates cargo from driver, while the rear and rear side windows are body-coloured, keeping cargo safe from prying eyes while still allowing the driver to see through them.

The three-door up! goes on sale in the UK on Monday 5 March.  The five-door model is set to join the line-up in the second half of the year.

The most powerful production Golf Cabriolet ever is set to be unveiled next week at the Geneva Motor Show.

Pictured here for the first time, the Golf GTI Cabriolet packs in all the performance and practicality of the GTI hatchback, and adds the pleasures of open-air motoring for four, thanks to an electrically powered fabric roof which can be folded away in just 9.5 seconds, even while travelling at speeds of up to 18 mph.

Visually, the Golf GTI Cabriolet has all the classic GTI design cues.  The radiator grille has a honeycomb structure with red edging and the GTI badge, while the front bumper incorporates a deep honeycomb air dam and distinctive vertical fog lights.  Side sill extensions help give the GTI a wide, well-planted stance, while a bespoke rear diffuser is framed by a chrome tailpipe on either side.  Smoked LED tail lights complete the look.  As on the GTI hatchback, standard wheels are 17-inch ‘Monza’ alloys.

Under the insulated fully automatic roof are four individual seats covered in the classic tartan ‘Jacara’ cloth upholstery; ‘Vienna’ leather upholstery is optional.  The bespoke GTI multifunction steering wheel is wrapped in leather, as are the handbrake and gear lever gaiter, all finished with contrasting red stitching.  The pedals have brushed stainless steel caps, while there are black ‘Edge’ decorative inlays on the doors and facia.  The hood lining and roof pillar trims are all finished in black.

Under the bonnet is the same 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine found in the GTI hatchback, mated to either a standard six-speed manual gearbox or optional six-speed dual-clutch DSG gearbox and producing 210 PS.  The benchmark zero to 62 mph sprint is covered in 7.3 seconds with either transmission (versus 6.9 seconds for the hatch), while top speed is 147 mph (146 mph for the DSG).

Maximum torque of 206 lbs ft (280 Nm) is available from just 1,700 rpm to 5,300 rpm, at which point maximum horsepower is achieved.  This broad torque band helps to make the GTI an excellent cruiser – even at low revs in a high gear, the reserves of torque make the GTI’s performance easy to tap in to.  A standard EDS electronic differential lock and XDS transverse differential lock help to ensure that the power is easily transferred to the road.

Safety is every bit as much a priority as performance.  As with all Golf Cabriolet models, the GTI comes with automatically deploying rollover protection, front and side head/thorax airbags and a driver’s knee airbag as standard, all of which helped it to achieve a five-star (96 per cent) rating for adult occupancy in Euro NCAP crash tests.

The Golf GTI Cabriolet goes on sale in the UK in the second half of the year.  Prices and further specification details will be announced closer to the on-sale date. 

The most powerful production Golf Cabriolet ever is set to be unveiled next week at the Geneva Motor Show.

Pictured here for the first time, the Golf GTI Cabriolet packs in all the performance and practicality of the GTI hatchback, and adds the pleasures of open-air motoring for four, thanks to an electrically powered fabric roof which can be folded away in just 9.5 seconds, even while travelling at speeds of up to 18 mph.

Visually, the Golf GTI Cabriolet has all the classic GTI design cues.  The radiator grille has a honeycomb structure with red edging and the GTI badge, while the front bumper incorporates a deep honeycomb air dam and distinctive vertical fog lights.  Side sill extensions help give the GTI a wide, well-planted stance, while a bespoke rear diffuser is framed by a chrome tailpipe on either side.  Smoked LED tail lights complete the look.  As on the GTI hatchback, standard wheels are 17-inch ‘Monza’ alloys.

Under the insulated fully automatic roof are four individual seats covered in the classic tartan ‘Jacara’ cloth upholstery; ‘Vienna’ leather upholstery is optional.  The bespoke GTI multifunction steering wheel is wrapped in leather, as are the handbrake and gear lever gaiter, all finished with contrasting red stitching.  The pedals have brushed stainless steel caps, while there are black ‘Edge’ decorative inlays on the doors and facia.  The hood lining and roof pillar trims are all finished in black.

Under the bonnet is the same 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine found in the GTI hatchback, mated to either a standard six-speed manual gearbox or optional six-speed dual-clutch DSG gearbox and producing 210 PS.  The benchmark zero to 62 mph sprint is covered in 7.3 seconds with either transmission (versus 6.9 seconds for the hatch), while top speed is 147 mph (146 mph for the DSG).

Maximum torque of 206 lbs ft (280 Nm) is available from just 1,700 rpm to 5,300 rpm, at which point maximum horsepower is achieved.  This broad torque band helps to make the GTI an excellent cruiser – even at low revs in a high gear, the reserves of torque make the GTI’s performance easy to tap in to.  A standard EDS electronic differential lock and XDS transverse differential lock help to ensure that the power is easily transferred to the road.

Safety is every bit as much a priority as performance.  As with all Golf Cabriolet models, the GTI comes with automatically deploying rollover protection, front and side head/thorax airbags and a driver’s knee airbag as standard, all of which helped it to achieve a five-star (96 per cent) rating for adult occupancy in Euro NCAP crash tests.

The Golf GTI Cabriolet goes on sale in the UK in the second half of the year.  Prices and further specification details will be announced closer to the on-sale date.