[Carpainter]

Well the rendering looks hilarious. I hope VW will not make a good looking car look that bad.
But what I'm more concerned about is that 2-3 years from now is a long time to go. Many a thing can change in between. The demand for hatch converted to sedan and hatch converted to suv may die down by then. So if they are to bring these cars they will have to bring them ASAP. Or else they should try to build a global portfolio here in India to sustain/gain any success in India.

[ashwin1224]

My guess is that VW could be bringing in the Tiguan to India. I love the looks of it, and if priced well it could eat up market share of a lot of cars.

I really hope VW decides to bring its premium hatchbacks to India, there is a slow but sure rise in demand. Fiat is bringing out the 500 abarth, there is no reason for VW to keep the Golf chained.

[wilful]

Originally Posted by ashwin1224

My guess is that VW could be bringing in the Tiguan to India. I love the looks of it, and if priced well it could eat up market share of a lot of cars.

I really hope VW decides to bring its premium hatchbacks to India, there is a slow but sure rise in demand. Fiat is bringing out the 500 abarth, there is no reason for VW to keep the Golf chained.

Been a lot of talk about VW launching their smaller SUVs in India but we can only believe it when something is finally launched. They seem to be waiting for the market to mature before they get more active. For that to happen, a more sizable segment which is not purely VFM focussed should evolve.

[zenren]

It would be really interesting if government does away with the 4m rule and the associated duty exemption or makes it even stricter. I have a feeling that the rule would make VW CS ineligible for the concession by the time they are ready to launch.

As of now, they've only extended the current norms till March 2015. The current rules were put across to accommodate the inefficiency of our home company Tata Motors, to make Indica come under the small car norms. If A-segment cars like Nano, Eon and Alto become the new benchmark, we would have a more meaningful small car norm. Anything higher doesn't really need a concession from the government in our country.

That would be a welcome move personally and all these ugly contraptions would probably get phased out sooner than we think if they are not eligible for exemptions and have to compete with options that are better looking and slightly longer.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by zenren

It would be really interesting if government does away with the 4m rule and the associated duty exemption or makes it even stricter. I have a feeling that the rule would make VW CS ineligible for the concession by the time they are ready to launch.



As of now, they've only extended the current norms till March 2015. The current rules were put across to accommodate the inefficiency of our home company Tata Motors, to make Indica come under the small car norms. If A-segment cars like Nano, Eon and Alto become the new benchmark, we would have a more meaningful small car norm. Anything higher doesn't really need a concession from the government in our country.



That would be a welcome move personally and all these ugly contraptions would probably get phased out sooner than we think if they are not eligible for exemptions and have to compete with options that are better looking and slightly longer.

As long as there are rules- there will be people trying to find ways to break them. Similarly with auto companies. If they reduce the length rule even further - I'm afraid we are going to see even more weird contraptions based out of smaller hatchbacks rather than the premium ones.

I wonder why they couldn't simply design the tax slabs based on the ex- showroom price instead.

By the looks of it, this new VW compact sedan might end up looking like a Verito Vibe CS in the side profile.

[volkman10]

Some more details of VW's future core products for India - Fast tracks the projects for both cars to hit showrooms over the next 12-24 months.

Compact Sedan:

The design of the sub four-metre sedan is close to being “frozen”, with engineers at the company headquarters in Wolfsburg having worked over the past months on the styling and dimensions of the car within the broader limitation of the four-metre length spec.
VW would go in for a premium positioning for the new compact sedan and the company is expected to price it above Maruti Suzuki’s Dzire and the Honda Amaze. VW’s sedan is expected to hit the market by the end of 2015

CUV(> 4m):

Yet to decide on the configuration -VW is learnt to be debating whether to build the the vehicle on the existing Polo or Up! platform or on its latest, but more expensive, modular Golf platform that it calls the ‘MQB’ platform.

http://www.financialexpress.com/news...ales/1299701/2

[JayPrashanth]

Originally Posted by zenren

As of now, they've only extended the current norms till March 2015. The current rules were put across to accommodate the inefficiency of our home company Tata Motors, to make Indica come under the small car norms. If A-segment cars like Nano, Eon and Alto become the new benchmark, we would have a more meaningful small car norm. Anything higher doesn't really need a concession from the government in our country.

Untrue. The sub-4 meter car category with engine displacement limits of 1.2 liters for petrol and 1.5 liters for diesels, were specifically created to encourage more fuel efficient cars that are compact and that occupy less space on the roads, not to benefit Tata Motors. This announcement came in the 2006 Union Budget.

In fact, Tata Motors had to scurry back to the drawing board after Mr. P. Chidambaram, the then finance minister of India, announced the new excise duty norms, and come up with the downsized and anemic, 1.2 liter petrol engine for the Indica. The Indica 1.2 Petrol came many months after the budget. The Indigo CS came a couple of years later and Tata Motors pioneered the segment. So much foresight, yet so little high quality execution to match.

Secondly, about excise duty rules changing in 2015, they could, but they only involve the additional sops that the former UPA government announced in the interim budget of 2014, which the new government has just extended for a few more months. As an excise policy, the sub-4 meter rule isn't likely to change anytime soon.

Cheers,

Jay

[volkman10]

After bringing the hot hatches in the form of GT's to India, Volkswagen is mulling hotter Polos for India.

VW India may bring the new 150bhp Polo GT or may even import the quick 189bhp Polo GTI.

At a speculated price of 17 lakhs, it is hard to imagine whether will be viable at all.

It can either choose to import the new 150bhp Polo GT or go the whole hog and bring the seriously quick 189bhp Polo GTI. The new GTI is really quick too. Going from 0-100 takes just 6.7 seconds, and the car is likely to get adaptive dampers. As it happens, both engines have currently been homologated for sale in India on other products from the group. The 1.4 TSi used on the new GT currently also powers the base Skoda Octavia, and a slightly de-tuned version of the 1.8 TSi can be found under the hood of the larger 1.8 Octavia too

http://www.autocarindia.com/auto-new...ia-392539.aspx

[amit]

We don't have to be geniuses to understand how many 17 lakh rupee Polo's VW will manage to sell in India. People will prefer to buy the 180bhp Octavia TSi saying it has the same engine & power plus we get a bigger car (i.e.) a sedan over a hatchback.

[ampere]

I think they now need a different form-factor in their portfolio. The same Polos and Ventos even if in red-hot variants may not bring out the much needed boost. A blip yes; a boost no.

[DieselFan]

what VW needs today is one or two indigenously built SUVs in their portfolio. This surely is being missed. Maruti is bringing in S-Cross/XA alpha, Hyundai iX25 and i20 Cross which will again capture some of the Polo/Vento market, Punto/Linea market and other Hatch/sedan market. Yes people are hoping to see more of SUVs but due to lack of the same are opting for Hatch or a sedan. If VW doesn't see this and plan for the same, they are sure to lose marketshare to the top two.

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by ampere

I think they now need a different form-factor in their portfolio. The same Polos and Ventos even if in red-hot variants may not bring out the much needed boost. A blip yes; a boost no.

The portfolio is indeed a bit stale, but something like a Polo GTI may bring the brand in a different light. They cannot really compete with the likes of Suzuki and Hyundai with the regular Polo and Vento. With the kind of products they have, it’s hard to fight for number dominance. It maybe a good idea for them to realign the brand with Polo GT TSI/TDI models sitting at the base and higher performance models above. If that experiment works, it may ignite the entry of other VW models (e.g.; Golf) into the Indian market. IMO, this approach is better than thinking of compromised India-specific models like the sub-4m Vento.

[sidhu_hs]

I just hope that this rumour is not based on a conversation that went like this:

This is how it typically goes:

Reporter: Do you have plans to bring the GTR to India?
Official: It's something we have considered for the future (realspeak: Not feasible)
Reporter: Nissan might bring GTR to India!

Originally Posted by volkman10

VW India may bring the new 150bhp Polo GT or may even import the quick 189bhp Polo GTI.

At a speculated price of 17 lakhs, it is hard to imagine whether it will be viable at all.

1.2 TSI is offered in international markets as an option on Polo but GT TDI is an India only offering.
So if VW goes the whole hog and introduces the Polo GTI, I just hope they launch an India specific GTD too with Laura's 2.0 TDI, 6 speed DSG, ESP, all round discs, 16 or 17 inch wheels, et al!
VW, !
Even at a price of 15 - 17 lakh, I won't even think twice before trading my three month old Elite i20 CRDi for GTD(IF and when launched!).

[magikrider]

If they bring the Golf instead of a Polo GT and GTI, with similar engines and pricing, then we might have many buyers. A Golf GT and Golf GTI at around 17 lacs or so will be really interesting. A fully loaded GTI, even at 20 it would not be a bad buy.

[ampere]

Originally Posted by vb-san

IMO, this approach is better than thinking of compromised India-specific models like the sub-4m Vento.

Agreed. They should get more global products out here. But they also need to work out their strategies on local presence. Simply put a global product with spares coming EU/Mexico etc would not suffice in terms of pricing. Will also need to keep a close watch on what govt does for manufacturing sector in the coming years.