Smart drive appeal for updated Tiguan

A mid-life refresh for VW’s best-selling model here delivers significant revisions.

 TWO, four then phwoar …. so goes for the roll out of updated versions of the Tiguan, and that’s just the five-seater version.

 Actually, add seven into the mix as well. Later this year we’ll see a facelift of the seven-chair Allspace edition, replicating in the same mainstream trim levels availed to the standard cars.

 It’s a big effort, yes, but worth it, because this car is Volkswagen’s big earner these days, internationally – one built every 35 seconds, six million on the world’s roads – and especially here.

 One in three NZ-new vehicles registered at the moment is a medium-sized

sports utility and Tiguan is doing a great job keeping VW at the forefront of that trend. Since having shoved Golf aside several years ago to become VW’s most popular car in this country, it has also shrugged off Covid-related supply issues to hold top dog status by some margin.

This year the five-door, which achieves 70 percent of Tiguan volume, alone is expected to capture 1100 of the more than 3000 registrations the brand’s national distributor is aiming to snare. That’s a lift on last year, when Tiguan in all formats accounted for 800 out of a total passenger tally of 2877.

Here’s another factoid about Tiguan. It attracts the same level of astounding loyalty as the brand’s original stalwart, Beetle. Says product manager Jordan Haines: “Tiguan buyers stay in Tiguans.”

Going forward, those owners will enjoy a look and quality more closely related to VW’s next size up SUV, also its largest offer in this market. A clear impression from meeting the facelifted ‘Tig’ is that it has a bit more Touareg to its make-up.

A front that used to be quite snub-nosed has, thanks to an entirely new grille and lights, become smoother and classier and, in doing so, has much more in common for facial look with the biggest soft-roader. A complete do-over of the instrumentation has much the same effect, only this time the Tiguan gets ahead, as it has VW’s very latest displays, these shared with the just-arrived Mk 8 Golf. Going the swank new MIB3 twin screens across the dash gives it a real lift. Crisp screen graphics and quick reactivity are hallmarks of the infotainment side, while the driver’s instrumentation, also fully digital, also looks good and a useful level of information is accessed using touch-sensitive steering wheel buttons. It aces over the hatch by having more coherent heating and air conditioning controls. 

Along with the new tech, there’s a palpable lift in the quality. Surfaces that were previously in hard plastics appear now to be rendered in softer, more enticing  materials.

Doubtless the furnishings are just as hard-wearing as ever, given the car’s role is primarily to serve as a family bus. In this respect, it still delivers honestly. The revision has not impacted on body dimensions, but there was no need to: The five chair edition is still a roomy car, with decent accommodation in the second row seat, and a big boot as well.

 To the range itself. The new models arrive progressively; front-drive cars here now, all-wheel-drives in a couple of months, the Allspace versions in the third quarter then, in December, a variant that’s never been tried before but could turn out to be a distinct winner: The Tiguan R (below), an all-out performance flagship with the same kick-ass 230kW/400Nm 2.0-litre, DSG and AWD drivetrain as the latest hotshot Golf R; also timed for late-year introduction.

The cars on hand at present are the base front-drive Life model that costs $46,990 and a plusher, more heavily-equipped R-Line variant, costing $55,990. That’s the one sampled during the launch event.

Both are powered by the same 1.4T engine as Golf uses but each is mated with a six-speed dual-clutch transmission in place of the hatch’s eight-speed auto. Expect optimal economy of 7.6L/100km.

The incoming all-wheel-drives are 2.0 litre turbopetrols, both with seven-speed twin-clutch transmissions. The $59,990 Style AWD model has 132kW and 320Nm and the $68,990 R-Line version has 162kW and 350Nm; the latter has better claimed economy (8.3 litres per 100km versus 8.6) due it taking stop/start. 

The 2021 editions achieve plenty of smarts and conveniences: Even the base Tiguan gets three-zone AC and an electric tailgate. Wireless App-Connect, LED headlights (Matrix type on the R-Line, along with automatic high beam control), ambient lighting also span the range. Wheel sizes enlarge as prices rise; base cars ride on 17-inch wheels, the R-Line 2WD has 19s, the AWD has 20s.

All but the base variant have heated leather seats and can be ordered with a powered panoramic sunroof. Self parking and front and rear sonar is standard and only the entry misses out on a 360-degree camera facility. R-Line has a larger central touch screen than the less expensive variants.

The AWD editions now have hill descent control and driving profile selection (four drive modes); all-paw R-Line has electronically controlled dampers but not the front-drive edition. The cars all come with roof rails and trailer hitch preparation. The front drives can cope with a maximum braked load of 1800kg, rising to 2100kg for the AWDs.

The driving? Just a quick flit, but enough to suggest an R-Line front-drive with this entry engine probably shouldn’t be expected to overly justify the sporty nature of its badging. It’s certainly capable, and maintains confidence through corners, but you’re hauling 1400kg so unsurprisingly this has impact on the dynamics and outright verve; you'd struggle to describe it as an all-out driver's car. But, to be fair, that’s not really a remit for anything other than the outright R, which will deliver 0-100kmh in 4.9 seconds. For the lesser editions, the ultimate ideal is to be roomy, comfy and safe, and on all those points, the Tiguan hits its marks.

Meantime, VW NZ has another Tiguan in its sights; the version running a plug-in hybrid drivetrain. This eHybrid (above) is intriguing.

The ultimate reason for it being is to ace economy and deliver some degree of electric only driving; it achieves both. Economy of 4.7L/100km is possible and the 13kWh battery provides an all-electric range of around 50km at speeds of up to 130kmh. 

However, it sounds like there’s a bit of a fun factor from the drivetrain, too. A combination of the 1.4-litre turbocharged petrol and 85kW electric motor means a total output of 180kW and 400Nm of torque, making it second only to the R in the Tiguan power stakes. All of the grunt goes through the front wheels alone and gets the eHybrid from 0-100kmh in 7.5 seconds.

 It looks the same as a regular mainstream Tiguan, and also delivers in the same trim specs. With the battery under the rear seat, the fuel tank is pushed back and boot space drops to 476 litres, which might seem a bit of a hit.

 Haines says talks are under way with the factory, but there’s no certainty about when it might become available. Sooner the better? “We would love to have a plug-in hybrid, especially as a corporate vehicle.”

ID release timing now into 2023

NZ has been given a green tick from VW Group for accepting need to clean up transport CO2, but there’s no queue-jumping for its tasty-looking electrics.

ID cars are being exported … but the ship won’t be stopping in NZ until early 2023 at best.

BURNED by its diesel emissions scandal in 2015, Europe's largest carmaker is investing around $50 billion in electric vehicles, staking its future on new technology and a dramatic shift away from fossil fuels.

Its ambition is far from half-hearted. Analysts recently conjected the undisputed king of the electric car, Tesla, might well be matched sale for sale by Volkswagen Group as early as next year with the Germans 300,000 units ahead by 2025.

Most will be cars from the VW parent brand, from the already impressive yet still-growing ID family. Also in the mix are Skodas, Audis and SEAT/Cupra cars sharing the parent’s bespoke MEB platform.

What will be New Zealand’s contribution to this historic global assault?

Shockingly, for electric car fans, over the next two years, the official input is very likely to come to … zero.

greg leet, general manager of VW passenger in NZ.

That’s the sobering reality, outlined by Greg Leet, general manager of Volkswagen passenger here.

Asked when the ID brand will officially represent in this country, he has confirmed earlier optimism of anything coming within the next 18 months has been all but scuppered. Introduction in early 2023 at best seems far more probable. 

“I still feel we are one buying cycle away from the ability to buy a fully electric Volkswagen.”

It’s hardly good news for the growing EV fanbase eager now to put their cash behind Europe’s most promising alternates to the Tesla, Hyundai and, primarily in used import ranks, Nissan electric cars that have so far been the mainstay models on the national scene.

VW Group’s inability to serve is not a distributor decision. Leet openly admits he would have at least the ID4 crossover here now if that were at all possible. 

If VW was able, it would be selling the ID4 now. It believes the model would quickly gain much the same popularity as the current local best-seller, the Tiguan.

“There’s an absolute desire to have the ID cars.” If the five-seater ID4 was here now, he believes, it would “very quickly achieve the same volume as its closest ICE (internal combustion engine) cousin.”

That’s the Tiguan, which is forecast to take more than 1000 sales this year. “We have very good aspirations for the ID range.”

But it’s not going to happen. VW’s production is still ramping up; ultimately, ID cars will likely come out of numerous plants, not all in Germany. But, for now, the output is constrained, allocations are strictly decided by the factory – with Europe getting first dibs.

Germany respects that NZ has great Green credential in respect to our electricity generation and that is has developed a solid EV recharging infrastructure.

It is as heartened as Leet has been by the Government’s recent announcement of intent to encourage EV ownership, wean us out of combustion engine products and dissuade support for high CO2 emitting vehicles.

 Though a coat-tailing Climate Change Commission advisory on what NZ needs to do to bring CO2 counts into line with international forecast has caused the car industry some consternation, Leet says the preliminary comment from Government about need to clean up transport emissions is a positive recognition. It finally puts NZ in the same conversation, with the same requirements, that are being tackled in Europe.

“We are all committed to reducing the CO2 footprint. That there’s an absolute appetite from our Government to say ‘we want to be part of this as well’ is treated very seriously by the factory. It is one of the main topics that they listen to.”

Yet that’s not enough for Germany to alter its view that NZ is of lower priority for its new-era products than other countries.

What other elements might change its mind? An actual incentive programme to support purchase of NZ-new EVs would always be handy. Also, a better attitude from Australia. Like it or not, our markets are bundled. Our neighbour has much greater volumes. But – and this is a huge frustration – they just don’t have anything like the same interest in promoting EVs. 

Beyond that, ID isn’t a line that can just be introduced without preparation.

ID production is sill ramping up, bu VW has aspiration to go big. Very big.

“There’s a lot of resource and work required to enable the ID range to different countries. While we are a part of that conversation with the factory, the opportunity for us to have it is still a little while away.

“We are part of the roadmap for the ID cars,” he insists. But the factory are very committed to Europe in respect to electrification.”

 In the meantime, then, with the e-Golf now out of production and local supply exhausted, VW NZ is out of the electric car business. It’s best hope of plugging in again in the interim is with PHEV versions of existing core fossil-fuelled cars, notably the Touareg – the incoming R runs mains-replenished battery assist – the Tiguan and the Golf. 

“Our commitment is to get hybrids and PHEVs to support our Government mandate to reduce CO2. 

“While our ICE vehicles are very fuel efficient, we are working really hard to improve.”

Leet reminds he can only speak about the product his operation sells. But all VW Group brand franchises here are held by a common distributor, European Motor Distributors, so they’re close.

So do the local operations for Audi – which, of course, already has electric fare here, on other platforms – SEAT/Cupra and Skoda having any better luck with achieving their own MEB models, already either in production (Skoda Enyaq) or soon to be (Audi Q4 e-Tron, Cupra Born) ahead of VW NZ? Says Leet about that: “I think we will have them (the ID and sister MEB models) at very close timings.”

Of course, NZ is already home to grey import IDs. Barely-driven cars from the United Kingdom, plucked as dealer demonstrators. Some examples of the ID3 hatchback – which VW NZ does not plan to sell here - are here and it’s accepted ID4s will soon join them. How does Leet feel about that? There’s a degree of pragmatism.

Leet says VW NZ will do its best to be of assistance to buyers of grey import IDs, but the official support network hasn’t been developed and, in any event, the ID3 that has so far been showing up won’t be sold here anyway.

“We would dearly love to be the importer of those cars. But we just aren’t. I don’t blame a customer at all for … purchasing these cars. Our approach to it is that these are effectively new Volkswagens, so we want the opportunity to welcome those customers into the VW network as soon as we can.”

There’s been talk that the factory is so disgruntled by grey imports it has signalled they might lose manufacturer warranty protection. Is it that black and white? With ID, the maker has prescribed a particular view, Leet says. 

“The factory homologates cars for the market of destination. These are UK cars.”

That status might become important in event of, say, a recall. Conceivably, under any warranty that might still exist, a UK car would have to be tended to by an accredited UK dealer. Would any owner really want to ship their imported ID halfway back across the world for, say, a software update? Probably not. But what if VW signalled need to undertake a major revision, like a battery change, as Hyundai has now done with its big selling Kona and Ioniq?

Whoever imports has a duty to provide back up to best ability. What chance that will realistically happen? Not for Leet to say. He simply notes: “They are deemed the importer so you would assume they would also undertake some responsibility.”

As things stand, Leet says, those UK cars will be encumbered by sat nav and traffic sign recognition programmed for their place of original sale. ID models are designed to take software updates. Those will likely also be market specific.

Nonetheless, the VW NZ attitude is that it will do the best it can for all owners, regardless of how their cars are sourced. But with ID it is challenging; there’s not the readiness for it as there would be for, say, an ex-Japan Golf.

 “We do want to be in the position that we can look after, and repair, those cars as required. But that takes a bit of work – there is special tooling, there are specific software requirements for these cars” and they demand trained staff. “That takes a while to set up.” VW NZ has not gone down that path yet.  

“As far as the technology to set up for the software … we’re working on that, and are likely to achieve it.

“As far as being able to have panel parts, windscreens and other parts … we’re not quite there yet.”

Logically, too, even when ID has officially established, VW NZ will prioritise parts for the cars it sells new, rather than those it won’t. Something else for those ID3 buyers, in particular, to consider.

VW on the ball with soccer app

A new app for the latest Golf is set to score with fans of European football.

 WOULDN’T it be great to never again miss a goal scored by your beloved top-level soccer team – even when you’re driving?

It’s a question that Volkswagen has taken seriously.

A feature in the latest Golf that has just gone on sale in New Zealand, the Mark 8, is a free “we score” app that delivers live football updates into the car’s cabin.

Users in Europe and the United Kingdom can pre-set three clubs and one national team, and follow their favourites in all competitions.

 Along with live scores – which football fans will recognise from smartphone apps – standings and football news are also displayed in the app. All this information can also be read out using the “text-to- speech” function.

VW assures everything is displayed in such a way that they do not distract the driver from the road ahead.

The app covers the top two divisions and the main cup competition of the relevant country.

In Germany the 3. Liga is also available, while in the UK the Premier League and EFL Championship are included. The Europa League and Champions League are supported, in addition to the European Championships.

VW says the app is supported by the “Discover Pro” and “Discover Media” infotainment systems.

Alongside the “We Score” and “Amazon Alexa” services, customers can also use the In-Car Shop to subscribe to data plans which allow them to use streaming services or a Wi-Fi hotspot. The “We Connect Plus” extension is also easy to order in the In-Car Shop. Further products are in the pipeline.

Why football? At an international level, VW is a mobility partner of UEFA national team tournaments, including the European Championships. It is also supporting seven teams which have qualified for the tournament: Germany, France, Switzerland, Austria, Denmark, Finland, and Russia.

VW’s EV push gets another zap

Volkswagen is ramping up its electrification plans, with boss Ralf Brandstatter pledging that more than 70 percent of its cars sold in Europe in 2030 will be fully electric. But what’s the likelihood of NZ reaping this reward?

This is the only image VW has shared of Trinity, the advanced electric sedan arriving in 2026.

THEY’RE calling it ‘Accelerate’ – but perhaps Volkswagen Group’s latest business strategy raises potential for New Zealand to be left even further behind as a benefactor of this giant maker’s electric vehicle provision to the mass market.

Views expressed by the Europe market giant at a weekend seminar at which new products – including a high-tech sedan, known as Trinity – were also announced are globally exciting.

Emboldened by the reception for its first bespoke electric, the ID.3, Europe’s largest car making cabal has decided to reach further, with a flagship battery-dedicated sedan arriving in 2026 that will “set new standards” for charging times, battery range and other technology.  

VW released a sketch of the Trinity, showing a sweeping roofline that resembles that of the Audi A7. It says the car will deliver a “Level 2 plus” autonomous system and “be technically ready for Level 4.”

There is no formal definition of Level 2 plus, but if the sedan is equipped with the right hardware, upgrading it to a Level 4 system could be done with over-the-air updates.  

Level 4 is just one step below optimal autonomy and defined ability to operate without human input or oversight but only under select conditions defined by factors such as road type or geographic area.

In additional news, VW says it will shelve plans to a small city-based EV, the so-called ID.1, until probably 2025 but will put its ID.Buzz minivan, which draws styling inspiration from the original VW Kombi van, into  production in 2022. 

It has also unrolled plans to develop a “neural network” of its vehicles, pooling their data to assist with future autonomous driving features.

The ID.4 that is still at least a year away from NZ introduction is set to play a big role in VW’s ‘neural network’ programme.

The ID.3 hatchback and ID.4 five door crossover be the first cars to contribute to this, with around half a million examples expected to be on the road within the next two years. But the process will really kick in from 2026, as VW introduces new versions of key conventionally powered vehicles that can also supply data to its cloud system.

“They will communicate and exchange data, on traffic and obstacles,” says VW boss Ralf Brandstatter. “It will be a self-learning system of millions of cars.”

Great news if you’re in a market that VW believes is worthy of achieving priority for these implementations.

Unfortunately, that’s not likely to be New Zealand; we’re well down a list that is topped by Europe, the United States and China.

With exception of product behind the premium Audi and Porsche badges that has been relatively easy to secure, the Group’s electric car availability to our market is already slower than what has been forecast, over recent years, by various CEOs for all the relevant brands that are held by a common distribution rights’ holder, the Giltrap Group’s European Motor Distributors’ operation.

While it’s been great to see the Porsche Taycan and Audi’s e-Tron models, the cars that are really crucial to lifting VW Group’s presence in the EV-sphere are the growing count of relatively affordable models based on the Group’s MEB platform.

It’s these models that are proving much harder to achieve.

Having now lost the electric Golf that gave it credibility with battery car fans, VW NZ is already facing up to not seeing its next EV, the ID.4, until the end of 2022. That’s more than a year later than it originally hoped.

A sister car in the same crossover format from Skoda, the Enyaq, has also been delayed – apparently to a similar timeframe. Timelines for the SEAT E-Born and Q4 e-tron, which are also MEB models, also seem to have become more fluid.

VW boss Ralf Brandstatter speaking at the weekend’s conference.

The only MEB car is the ID.3 that the NZ distributor does not want, arriving through a channel it does not support – and perhaps wishes did not exist.

However, grey importers who buy stock from other right-hand-drive markets for resale here are finding the ID.3 to be a drawcard. The lack of factory support doesn’t seem to be inhibiting consumer interest.

So why the hold-up for official, brand-backed sale? It’s not for lack of desire. But unavoidable realities do temper the situation.

We’ve outlined previously how Covid-19 has disrupted car making and that VW Group has had to prioritise selling electrics in the European Union, to avoid being penalised for failing to reach mandated CO2 targets.

Yet it’s also worth pointing out that potentially local and regional politics and policies aren’t helpful, either.

VW Group is among makers who have decided their electric models deserve to go, foremost, to markets with supportive policy signals for the sale of low or zero-emission vehicles.

Is that New Zealand? Sort of.

 It’s obvious the Government is getting serious about tackling climate change is a positive. Last year, we saw the declaration of a climate change emergency, including a commitment for a carbon-neutral public service, including transitioning the fleet to EVs. In January, Government unrolled the Clean Car Import Standard and signalled an incentive for electric vehicles is coming soon.

The latter is the most crucial element to gaining access to VW’s products. The parent brand is among car makers that believes that initiatives to help make next-gen vehicles more accessible to buyers - notably any measures that lower the relatively high initial cost of an electric vehicle – are vital. 

That view seems to have pushed the local distributor into sounding out similar thought. Last month EMD made a collective statement on behalf of its VW, SEAT, Skoda, Porsche and Audi networks saluting the Government’s plans to lower emissions by switching up local vehicle regulations but also suggesting that the timeline was ‘steep’ and that more incentives were needed to make it work.

Also included in the statement, according to the outlet that received and reported on it: “From an importer standpoint, we need to see strong incentives in the form of a feebate to help create demand for these vehicles.”

The ID.6 is designed to lead VW’s ambition in China.

One other dark cloud hangs over all brands hoping to sell NZ-new EVs here. It’s in the shape of Australia.

Production planning for all new passenger vehicles coming here often includes the co-operation of our neighbour. NZ is a tiny new car market – we take just 0.02 percent of the world’s annual car production. Australia is a much bigger player. If we accept the same cars they do, as a combined order, then the factory is far more likely to oblige.

But there’s a catch: Australia itself. It lags embarrassingly far behind the rest of the world on the inevitable shift to zero-emissions transport, mainly because of the intransigence of the federal government. Scott Morrison’s administration has not only shown disinterest – some say it is actively discouraging their update. It  has been given an F for “fail” for its policy efforts to support the uptake, even as data shows that more than half of our neighbour’s driving population is actively considering an EV for their next car.

Meantime, VW Group is raising the pace of change toward an electric future.

At the weekend it said it now expects that 70 percent of its sales in Europe will be pure electric vehicles by 2030. That means it will have to deliver more than one million EVs a year in Europe alone by then to reach that goal. VW also sees EV sales surging to more than 50 percent of sales in China and the US in the same time frame.

 This does not mean it will divest fossil fuelled product by then. However, Brandstatter has revealed that several “core” models – the Golf hatchback, Passat sedan and wagon and Tiguan and T-Roc sports utilities - will all get successors to their current generations, each featuring at least mild-hybrid powertrains and some offering plug-in hybrids with up to 100kk of pure-electric range.

The only electric that is creating vexation is ID.1, based on an adapted platform called MEB Entry. In a statement, VW said, “Plans for an electric car under the ID.3 - with an entry-level price starting at 20,000 Euros - are pushed up by two years to 2025.”

No reason for the delay was given, but VW is said to have been struggling with battery chemistry and achieving a sensible profit margin on the vehicle.

In respect to that, several publications have reported that VW plans to post an operating profit margin of at least six percent as of 2023, despite the higher costs of making battery-powered cars. VW has also said it plans to invest about 16 billion euros in electrification and digital services up to 2025, further cutting into margins.

Market reception to ID product is good. UBS analyst Patrick Hummel recently described the ID.3 as “the most credible EV effort by any legacy auto company so far.” UBS also believes VW's EVs are competitive with Tesla models on key metrics including cost, energy density and efficiency.

The ID.4 is already on sale in Europe, with China and US deliveries beginning later this month. The sleeker ID.5 crossover will follow in the second half of the year. And a seven-seat ID.6 X will go on sale in China soon as well.

It's possible that EV sales for VW Group could top Tesla sales in 2021.

The Beetle – it all began 75 years ago

Volkswagen is celebrating the birth of a global icon.

SEVENTY-five years ago yesterday, a Christmas automotive miracle occurred.

Well, okay, in picking December 27, 1945, as the day when the original shape Beetle was born, Volkswagen is obviously navigating delicately around a turbulent prior period in history.

Like, the birth of the brand itself: Volkswagen is German for ‘people’s car’ and was coined by … well, never mind that.

Even though the history of the car – and, indeed Wolfsburg, the home town of the mighty VW Group that has risen to become Europe’s biggest car making operation – can be traced back to certain political determinations during the 1930s, fact is there were few Beetles made before 1945 under National Socialism and none left Germany.

We’re talking about a day in history that started this wee rear-engined budget car on a post World War II adventure drive that would take it around the world into the hearts of millions.

So, the story goes thus: At the end of 1945, the factory and the car faced a grim future.

Although the car was developed before World War II, only 630 units (then called Kdf-Wagens) were built during the conflict as the factory shifted its attention to the war effort. It was consequently bombed by Allied air forces several times during 1944.

When peace returned, it would have been much easier to level the factory, scrap the Beetle – or ‘Type 1’ as it was then being called - and do something else with the site.

That's almost what happened, but the British government — which controlled the zone Wolfsburg was in after the war — desperately needed vehicles for its personnel to get around.

After examining an early Beetle, officials ordered a batch of 20,000 cars from the factory in August 1945, and they doubled that number several weeks later.

Initially, the goal was to produce 1000 cars a month, meaning filling the order should have taken over three years. It likely wasn't lost on officials that the sizable order would keep workers in a job until at least 1948.

That production even got under way was down to the talent of the British officers put in charge of the programme, Major Ivan Hirst.

It was his farsightedness and talent for improvisation that made it possible to start automobile production in the years of rationing under conditions dominated by shortages, VW says.

“With his enthusiasm for technology and cars, his purposefulness and distinct attitude, he succeeded in transforming a former armaments plant into a civilian industrial company in an impressively short space of time,” the brand says.

Launching production was challenging; raw materials and fuel were difficult to come by, and finding ways to house and feed the workers was a logistical nightmare.

Despite the hurdles, Volkswagen launched series production of the Type 1 two days after Christmas in 1945, and it built a total of 55 cars before December 31.

Cars were largely assembled by hand, so the factory didn't reach the 1000-cars-per-month goal until early 1946. At the time, exceeding that number wasn't possible due to the aforementioned shortages, but production increased significantly as the situation improved.

Introducing the Beetle to the United States in 1949 dramatically increased its popularity, and it helped turn the model into an icon.

Wolfsburg wasn't the only factory that built the Beetle; production also took place in several other German plants, including one in Ingolstadt (Audi’s home town), plus overseas - in New Zealand, Australia, Brazil, Mexico and South Africa, among other countries.

All told, 21,529,464 units were built during a 56-year run, a figure that's nothing short of exceptional when bearing in mind that the first one looked an awful lot like the last one. Volkswagen made thousands of changes to the car, but it never altered the basic design or tweaked the mechanical layout.

Tiguan update: Prepare to say R

VW’s medium SUV is about to undergo a mid-life update, but the four versions arriving in March aren’t the biggest surprise.

FOUR mainstream models in March - an exciting and fresh-to-type new hotshot flagship toward the end of the year. 

That’s the gameplan laid out by Volkswagen New Zealand in respect to the 2021 five-seater Tiguan, a mid-life update introducing four years after this generation went on sale. 

The first-time option of a high-performance model introduces with the flagship Tiguan R (above), which delivers a 2.0-litre turbo petrol four-cylinder engine producing 235kW and 420Nm and zero to 100kmh in 4.9 seconds and an electronically-limited top speed of 250kmh.

Astute VW fans will pick this variant is packing the same engine that features in the Golf R, whose latest version – based on the gen eight hatchback – will likely land in NZ around the same time as the fastest-ever Tiguan.

As with the Golf, the ‘Titan Tig’s’ power is sent to an all-wheel drive system through a seven-speed 'DSG' dual-clutch transmission.

The model’s R-Performance Torque Vectoring system can vary the torque split between the front and rear axles as well as the two rear wheels, like Audi's Sport Differential.

The hero model also wears 21-inch alloy wheels, has 18-inch brakes and a 10mm reduced ride height and features a barking Akrapovic exhaust system.

Further details, including pricing, won’t reveal until much closer to release, but VW New Zealand has expressed excitement about the car’s potential. 

“We think this model will do very well,” marketing and communications executive Shannon Pentecost said.

“For the first time VW will have an impressive R performance range including Golf, Tiguan and Touareg all destined for NZ toward the end of 2021.”

VW NZ’s confirmation of intent to land the R-spec model comes in the wake of it announcing details, including pricing, the four mainstream petrol Tiguans it will have in dealerships from March, these in two trim levels and with or without all-wheel-drive.

The front-drive choices, with a 110kW/250Nm 1.4-litre turbocharged engine, are the $46,900 TSI Life entry-level and next-step up $55,900 TSI R-Line.

Those preferring all-wheel-drive have the choice of a $59,990 TSI Style and $68,900 TSI R-Line. These run with a 2.0-litre turbo four-cylinder, putting out 132kW/320Nm in the Style and 162kW/350Nm in the higher-end variant.

The latter also steps up on the suspension department, with inclusion of the Adaptive Chassis Control system with its electronically controlled dampers to go with its sportier styling. Both four-wheel-drive editions have drive modes. 

The new models are identified by their adoption of VW’s new frontal appearance, notably the chiselled headlights and wide grille that brings it into line with the newest family members. 

They also deliver higher content than the current cars. All models arrive with automated emergency braking, pedestrian detection, adaptive cruise control, blind-spot monitoring, and parking assist, plus hill-descent control.

The interior again features a 10.25-inch digital instrument display and an 8-inch high-resolution touchscreen- standard throughout the range save in the top-spec AWD, with has a 9.2-inch screen - a new steering wheel design with new touch controls, as well as some trim changes and new charging ports, including USB-C. VW’s new MIB3 infotainment system also features. 

It’s not yet clear if any NZ-bound Tiguan variants will feature the new Travel Assist feature, which offers a degree of automated driving, though it requires a driver to keep contact with the steering wheel – even if with a light touch - when it is active and uses touch detection to ensure that happens.

The system uses radar cruise control and lane keeping assistance technology and takes into account local speed limit information, town boundary signs, junctions and roundabouts, and will adjust the vehicle’s speed accordingly.

VW believes this is a safer avenue than actual hands-off autonomy, saying: “Touch detection is a great deal more reliable than steering angle-based systems even on long and very flat stretches of road.”

Also subject of conjecture in respect to right-hand drive availability is another body style option – a sleeker coupe-SUV profile.

So far this fastback shape is only available to Volkswagen’s China line-up, where it is badged as the Tiguan X.

Golf tees off in three hatch models

VW has announced pricing and details of the new Golf, landing in March

GOLF TSI will front with 1.4-litre petrol in two trim levels.

MIGHT one of the world’s most famous hatchbacks be immune to the general consumer shift away from orthodox road cars in favour of crossovers and sports utilities?

Volkswagen New Zealand seems to be suggesting that could be the case for the next generation of its Golf; they say pre-registrations of interest in next year’s new car has been strong.

Greg Leet, general manager of Volkswagen passenger vehicles, says there has been a lot of customer interest in the gen eight, whose introduction has been delayed by coronavirus.

The distributor has today confirmed a car once touted as a 2020 introduction will be on sale in March, three hatch formats - mainstream $37,990 TSi Life and $47,990 TSi R-Line plus the  $61,490 GTI – preceding another, the four-wheel-drive Golf R flagship. That’s coming toward the end of year. 

Not on the consignment list for New Zealand is the GTI Clubsport, the replacement for the Golf TCR, which runs the gen eight GTI’s EA888 engine, but in a peppier evo four tune that puts it above the TCR. The gen eight GTI, meantime, makes 180kW and 370Nm.

 The TSi cars adopt a 110kW/250Nm 1.4-litre four-cylinder petrol, married to an eight-speed auto. The Life is on 17-inch rims,  the R-Line takes 18s. The GTI also runs on 18s, but has 19s as a $1750 option.

Golf GTI will land with mainstream models

VW impresses the new-generation car will be the most technically advanced Golf to date – with a full suite of advanced safety features as standard across the range, packaged as IQ driver assistance. This includes city and highway speed autonomous emergency braking (AEB), intersection AEB, radar cruise control and blind zone warning. The Life misses out on rear cross-traffic alert, has a slightly lower grade of adaptive cruise control and doesn’t have park assist.

A digital instrument cluster and a large infotainment screen is standard, as well as wireless Apple Car Play and wireless Android Auto – and fast-charging USB-C ports. All but the base car have factory sat nav.

The direct shift automatics are shift-by-wire so have a smaller toggle to select forward and reverse, creating more space in the centre console.

Although Golf also presents as a wagon, only the hatch has been discussed for NZ and while the range of powertrains spans diesel and an electric-assisted plug-in hybrid, these have not been mentioned. The fully electric e-Golf has been retired because VW now makes the ID line of electric cars, though these are not set to reach NZ until at least the end of 2022.

Golf R will land toward the end of 2021.

ID check: Why VW’s high-powered effort is so tasty

VW’s electric push is global, but NZ is not yet on the A-list. After seeing what’s on offer, you might wish we were.

The eye-catching ID Buzz concept of 2017 is coming out in 2017 as the ID.7. Let’s hope NZ catches this wave.

THE sooner Kiwis get into the new electric vehicle habit, the sooner they will likely get to enjoy a slew of battery-reliant cars set to unleash from Volkswagen. 

That’s long been the indication from VW’s national distributor, which makes clear that markets that show most support for mains-supported models tend to achieve priority from this maker. 

We’re seeing it already; as is well known, this maker is well into a massive EV ambition; investment of around $122 billion in development of EVs and other new technologies over the next five years has been signed off and hardly a week goes by when yet another car in its bespoke electric family, called the ID range, doesn’t seem to pop up.

ID looks brilliant for NZ; but NZ – for all the attraction of being a world-leader in generation of ‘Green’ renewable electricity (thanks to our rich hydro, geothermal, wind and solar resource) – is not yet brilliant for VW.

The reasons why the e-Golf that has modestly plugged VW electric potentials for the past two years has retired with no direct replacement not set to land until the end of 2022 are multifold, but essentially VW is prioritising places where it has to be or where market opportunity is so obvious it cannot afford not to involve.

Europe is top of the list because of tough European Union emissions fleet-wise standards. Electric cars are a vital off-set to achieving CO2 targets. Failure will mean huge fines.

The second is the gold mine. China is VW’s largest single export market – it’s also the world’s largest EV market. VW is putting a lot of focus into launching eight ID models into China by 2023.  

More recently, it is paying attention to the increasing number of countries, of which the United Kingdom is probably the best known to us, that have set dates for the switch to zero emission-only cars.

These and other reasons – the impact of coronavirus on production, the fact that VW’s electric cars come out of a handful of factories, the limitations in making enough batteries - is why VW New Zealand boss Greg Leet expressed opinion a month ago that he expects “late 2022” is now the best bet for when NZ will start seeing ID cars on sale here.

That’s a huge frustration not least because other makes in the VW family that also have electric cars off the common ID platform (called MEB) are less constrained, to the point their own cars are almost certain to beat the ‘originals’ to local sale. For Skoda, that’s the Enyaq, for SEAT the E-Born and for Audi, which is already establishing increasing presence with its big e-trons, that’ll be the Q4 e-tron.

Regardless, when ID does arrive, we can expect to see an explosion of choice – VW has a much wider choice of MEB-based electric models than any other Group make. 

Let’s go through them:

ID.1 and the ID.2 crossover sister ship are city chic runabouts designed as budget EVs.

ID.1 and ID.2: Respectively a supermini and compact crossover intended to sit alongside the combustion-engined Polo and T-Cross respectively that will hit production in 2023 and introduce on a ‘lite’ version of the MEB platform. 

These models have a firm urban, short journey focus so will run smaller batteries, up to 45kWh, and also sell in a lower price bracket. 

Volkswagen CEO Ralf Brandstatter intends pricing start at as low as $NZ33,400 in Europe, so $15,000 cheaper than the least expensive wholly electric new car here at the moment, the MG-ZS.

Already here as a parallel import, but not set to be repesented in NZ-new form, the ID.3 is selling well in Europe and the UK.

ID.3: The first of the family to hit production, a hatchback as important, in VW Germany’s view, as the Beetle and the original Golf.

It’s a core car, already well settled into European sale and doing well straight out of the box: In September, it comprehensively the Telsa Model to be Europe’s top-selling EV.

Right-hand drive production for the United Kingdom has begun, so conceivably were cars available, we could source from there. However, although grey importers seem keen to do so (there’s at least one here already), VW NZ has no plans for ID.3, mainly because it is concerned there will be insufficient consumer interest in an electric hatch.

Still, perhaps VW NZ will review if either ID.3 production frees up, or the private imports sell well or if it likes the cut of ongoing developments for ID.3, rolling out from next year. The core improvement is a modest increase in range – the 77kWh edition will gain an additional 38km, taking overall range to 570km, due in part to software improvements and advances in thermal management and cell efficiency.

ID.4 will be the first of the family to be sold by VW New Zealand … at the end of 2022.

ID.4: Revealed in September and closely based on the ID Crozz concept from 2017, this car is more than being simply a crossover version of the ID.3 – it’s the product onto which VW has pinned most international aspiration.

It debuts as Volkswagen's first all-electric SUV – making it a more obvious option for buyers looking to haul their family around in zero-emissions style than the ID.3, VW NZ believes.

At 4.58 metres long, it positions between the regular Tiguan (4486mm) and the stretched seven-seat Tiguan Allspace (4701mm). Specific interior figures are still to come, but VW claims the cabin will have the same sort of room normally the province of larger SUVs (because, no need for drivetrain packaging; it’s a flat-floored environment). Luggage space comes to 543 litres with the rear seats up and 1575 litres when folded flat. For context, the Tiguan lists 615/1775 litres and the Tiguan Allspace 230/1655.

In its initial form, motivation will be provided by a 150kW/309Nm electric motor drawing power from a 77kWh battery pack, with a WLTP-verified driving range of up to 520 kilometres.

However, VW has recently confirmed intent to add a ID.4 GTX, due to hit right-hand-drive production in mid-2021. GTX is VW-speak for ‘performance electric’; the ID.4 in this format will be dual motor (whereas the standard car s rear motor), so all-wheel-drive, with 225kW and 460Nm. VW is talking 0-100kmh in 6.2 seconds – so, 2.3s quicker than the standard rear-drive ID.4 - a top speed of around 190kmh and a range of up to 460km on a standard 82kWh battery.

Charging on a 120kW DC connection can get the ID.4 to 320km range in 30 minutes, while the 11kW on-board charger can deliver 53km of range in about an hour. 

ID.5 is a fastback ID.4, the styling expected to mirror that of the ID Crozz concept of 2017, seen here

ID.5: Based heavily on the ID.4, but with a coupe-style body. Effectively, then, VW’s equivalent of the Audi Q4. VW gave an indication of the look with a concept, the ID Crozz Coupe. The drivetrain has yet to be revealed, yet most pundits are picking it’ll mirror the ID.4’s. VW has indicated rear-drive and all-wheel-drive versions.

ID.6 will represent as a sedan as well as in the station wagon form seen here, in its ID Space Vizzion concept form.

ID.6: Actually two cars, a sedan and a station wagon. Also in production from next year, these are derived from the ID Vizzion and ID Space Vizzion concepts, most latterly known as the Aero A and Aero B, are based on an updated MEB platform and will arrive in 2023.

The concepts featured an 82kWh battery pack however it’s thought a 111kWh battery could become available, to provide up to 700km of WLTP-rated range.

A rear-mounted 359kW electric motor will standard while some versions will add another electric motor on the front axle to increase output to 449kW. 

VW has suggested the production editions will largely stay true to the look and format of the concepts it showed off at the 2019 Los Angele Motor Show.

As much as station wagons have become a niche choice because of consumer shift to SUVs with similar spaciousness and practicality, that sharp aesthetic is one reason why the car is worth having, says Brandstatter.

The stronger aerodynamic advantage from a lower-slung wagon is the reason why the car can achieve its range, he says.

“Its aerodynamic design ensures a top drag coefficient and an extremely attractive high-tech look. A feast for the senses — and for all tech and design fans.” 

The concept has a very swish interior that Brandstatter has suggested will also be enjoyed by customers, with comment that the production equivalent will have a cabin as noble and spacious as that of the Phaeton – VW’s thwarted attempt at an unlimited luxury vehicle that released in 2002 and failed to resonate.

ID.7 is the production version of the ID Buzz, inspired by one of VW’s most famous models from yesteryear, the Microbus/Kombi.

ID.7: Set to enter production in 2022, this is the model that has every VW fan particularly excited, if just because of the styling.

The ID Buzz passenger and IZ Buzz Cargo design studies of 2017 that foreshadow the ID.7 plainly draw lots of inspiration from one of VW’s most iconic models, the original Microbus. VW has vowed to keep that spirit alive with the production versions. Conventionally hinged front doors, automatic rear-sliding side doors, wheels up to 21 inches in diameter, according to a recent report by the website for British motoring weekly, Autocar.

ID.7 is destined to be the largest car coming off the MEB underpinning; there are standard and long wheelbase formats. VW has only shared dimension of the first, citing a 4962mm length, 1985mm width and1896mm height.

 The generously dimensioned interior will stretch to 2860mm in length; the passenger model will have seven seats, in three rows.

It’ll be produced in rear or all-wheel-drive and run an 82kWh battery. The large frontal area will impact on range expectation, Brandstatter has warned. “It won’t have 700km but something around 400km.” Still, any sacrifice for this styling is worth it, right?

Autocar reports that ID.7 will provision with the widest range of colour and trim opportunities. Special touches will include a smiling emoji symbol within the door handles, an ice scraper and bottle opener within the front middle stowage box and an umbrella graphic that is made visible within the base of the windscreen when the wipers are in operation.

ID.8 is at this stage just for China and will likely only be built there. This is the ID Roomzz design study from last year’s Shanghai motor show.

 ID.8: A very plush large SUV, purely for China at the moment, derived from the ID Roomzz concept displayed at last year’s Shanghai Motor Show. The concept featured a 82kWh battery and a cited 450km (WLTP) range, with capability of replenishing within 30 minutes to 80 percent of battery capacity on a 150kW (DC) set up.

The design study runs two electric motors a system output of 225 KW, this allowing 0-100kmh in 6.6s and a 180kmh top speed.

No ID, no access - so VW going PHEV for a while

Wolfsburg’s preference to push EVs into Europe and China means another fully electric replacement for the now-departing e-Golf mightn’t be seen for ages.

VW NZ prefers to kick off its ID electric car push with the ID.4, above, and has no plans for the ID.3 below. It’s a semantic, as no ID cars seem set to available here until late 2022 anyway.

 E-GOLF supply will be exhausted by the end of the month and Volkswagen NZ will not have anything from the ID range until perhaps late 2022, so it’s increasing faith in another direction.

There’ll be intent to push plug-in hybrid fare; mainly in the mainstream – Mk 8 Golf here from the start of 2021 includes a PHEV and so does the Tiguan – but also with a performance flagship, the Touareg R.

When VW Group is now ratcheting up its electric vehicle roll-out and others in the family are playing their cards - Audi with an increasing e-tron penetration, Porsche with Taycan, Skoda NZ the Enyaq and SEAT the El-Born – it potentially galls that the parent’s own brand cannot present anything from the ID line locally for a while. A long while.

The ID.3 hatch is already well settled into European sale and is now starting right-hand drive production, including for the United Kingdom (the sourcing point for at least one grey import example), however that car has already been dismissed for NZ. VW NZ prefers the ID.4, a crossover.

No matter. Opportunity to secure any ID models for at least the next 20 months seems pretty much non-existent. 

VW is prioritising production of its own fully electric cars for its home markets, so as to meet tough European Union emissions standards. In addition, it is putting a lot of focus into launching eight ID models into China by 2023. On top of this, the coronavirus pandemic is also having an effect, likely at multiple levels.

“Volkswagen Group is trying to provision as much of the European markets’ demand as they can,” says VW New Zealand boss Greg Leet, in explaining why  “late 2022” is now the best bet for his own roll-out. 

“There are CO2 targets that need to be achieved and that has been the factory’s first and foremost mission.”

 Leet acknowledges that, with a Labour Government, potential for shift and progress on emissions standards here is also likely. That’s not unwelcome to his brand.

 “We are really supportive of emissions standards and what they might look like in NZ. No doubt the new Government will be working through that and putting measures in place to encourage that. We’re talking with the factory about what that might look like. 

“But we currently are not going to be looking to achieve launching that ID model until the back end of 2022.”

Why ID.4 over ID.3? “ID.4 is the model that is subject to discussion with us at the moment … we see it as the greatest opportunity. It’s an SUV orientated car for a start.”

 Frustrating this is stretching out? Sure. But it’s life and, so, VW NZ has shifted immediate focus to a PHEV.

“We are in discussion … there are couple of options, a few different options. None by any means are guaranteed yet, but we are in discussion.”

Golf GTE is being considered.

The generation eight Golf, which launches in February in two mainstream petrol formats, followed by a GTI a month later and a Golf R in the last quarter of 2021, is also engineered as a PHEV, the GTE, whose sporty orientation does hold appeal.

Then again, the brand might prefer to leverage battery-assisted, mains-replenished drive potentials with a sports utility, as this product type is now to dominant choice with Kiwi new car buyers anyway.

The medium-sized Tiguan could be that car. The NZ line is selling more strongly than the Golf and this penetration is set to improve all the more when a new flagship, the performance-oriented Tiguan R (pure petrol, rather tha PHEV, like its Touareg big brother), comes in late 2021. 

In July, VW Germany announced intent to add a Tiguan PHEV, as part of a facelift process. 

While the Golf 8 PHEV is being offered in two versions with 150kW and 180kW system power, the Tiguan eHybrid will only be offered with the more powerful 180 kW PHEV.

 The variant has a 1.4-litre petrol engine producing 115kW and the electric motor making 85kW. The 13 kWh battery will provide a range of 50 kilometres, as measured by the WLTP standard.

The plug-in hybrid is only available with front-wheel drive, but not in the four-wheel-drive version. The PHEV is also only to be offered in the standard Tiguan, but not in the slightly longer all-wheel-drive version.

Leet would not be drawn on talking about his preferences, but said PHEV technology provides a good opportunity for the brand here.

Just securing Golf 8 is very much a relief; the original, pre-Covid timeline would have had that car snugly established by now. 

“It’s no secret that, as with manufacturers, Covid has thrown a spanner in the works,” Leet says.

He says the parent has done a magnificent job, not just re-establishing production rates since emerging from a lock-down in March but also having to basically start afresh with prioritising the order of individual market provision.

Some places that were doing well before Covid had not recovered; others – NZ included – had come back very strongly and were going gang-busters.

“We’ve been a little bit hamstrung with product being available having to feed in really big markets,” Leet says.

local e-Golf supply will be exhausted by the end of the month. The car went out of production in March.

“While it’s easy to think that a country needing maybe just a few hundred cars (and that’s NZ) won’t make a big difference in the overall picture, what I’ve learned in the last few months is that single cars have become as important to the manufacturer, in regard to where they place, as the 100s or 1000s have in the past.” 

Leet says the resurgent private buyer interest in new cars is great for VW NZ; while the passenger car market in total ins down 23 percent, that’s simply a reflection of the rental car market, which VW barely feeds, having stopped.  

“We’re still flying. Our market shares have increased and where we have had product, we are selling more of it.” The demand for all the SUV models has been extremely high; in October it registered more than 80 Touaregs, an unprecedented monthly return. It now expects stock levels to be tight until new the arrivals land early 2021. “We are simply running out of stock.”

There’s been no need for a runout of Golf 7.5; supply will be exhausted before Golf 8 comes, initially in Life and R-Line formats. Full spec and price have yet to be released. Byt these will both run the 110kW engine. The GTi is taking the 180kW 2.0-litre engine and provision here with the seven-speed DSG and electronic differential lock that for now restricts to the TCR, based on the outgoing car. In respect to GTI, don’t hold out hope for the new hotshot Clubsport recently revealed in Europe, as TCR replacement. It’s not available to NZ.

“It’s not a trainsmash for us is not having that car.”

Skiddy times for Golf R fans

New looks, 235kW turbo engine and …. drift mode.

VOLKSWAGEN has released its inner Hoonigan with the 2021 Golf R, finally revealed today.

In addition to ticking the required boxes in respect to being the most powerful and quickest Golf – no surprises there, obviously – it also unloads a function that VW previously steered clear of offering on its four-wheel-drive street racer.

As with the Mk 8 GTi, the R has a ‘Vehicle Dynamics Manager’ system which controls the ‘XDS’ electronically-controlled front locking differential, ‘DCC’ adaptive dampers, all-wheel-drive system and other electronics systems in tandem to sharpen driving dynamics.

As an option – in Europe at least – there’s an ‘R Performance’ package, which increases the top speed from 250kmh to to 270kmh, and adds 19-inch wheels and a larger rear spoiler, with the latter intended to increased downforce. 

The package also introduces two new drive modes: Special, which softens the adaptive dampers, and Drift mode, which shuffles greater percentages of the engine’s torque to the rear axle to break traction and enable controlled drifts.

Why ‘Special?’ It’s a set-up to cater for the undulating surface of the Nurburgring Nordschleife. Using it enables to shave 17 seconds off its predecessor’s lap time around the demanding circuit. Obviously not an easy reach for Kiwi owners, but still.

Under the bonnet is the same 2.0-litre ‘EA888’ turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine that powered its predecessor, now producing 235kW of power and 420Nm of torque (from 2100-5350rpm).

Drive is routed to all four wheels via a choice of six-speed manual or seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmissions, though the former will be limited (at launch, at least) to North American markets.

The Golf R benefits from the same new-generation, Haldex-type all-wheel-drive system as the related Arteon R and Tiguan R.

The R Performance Torque Vectoring that allows up to 100 percent of the engine’s torque to be distributed between the front and rear axles, or between each individual rear wheel, in milliseconds.

Volkswagen claims a 0-100kmh sprint time of 4.7 seconds.

Under the skin, the new Golf R sits 20mm lower to the ground than standard Golf models, thanks to retuned suspension with 10 per cent stiffer springs, revised control arms and wheel mounts, increased negative front camber, and unique anti-roll bars.

Hiding behind the alloys is a set of larger performance brakes, measuring 360mm up front and clamped by two-piston aluminium callipers.

Lighter brakes shave 1.2kg of unsprung mass off the car’s kerb weight, complemented by a further 3kg loss thanks to a lighter aluminium subframe.

Other available performance features include variable sports steering, an optional, 7kg-lighter Akrapovic exhaust system, and five additional drive modes: Comfort, Eco, Sport, Individual and Race.

Golf GTi specials running hot

The Golf GTI celebrating motorsport success that recently released here has already been shown up by an equivalent in the next-gen line still months from NZ launch.

two levels of heat - the golf gti tcr (above), a sizzler final fling version of the seventh generation line still offered in New Zealand, has just been gazzumped by the gti clubsport in trhe gen eight line already in Europe.

AS Kiwis are seeing off the seventh-generation Golf GTi with a hot version that’s an ode to motorsport, Volkswagen’s home market is preparing for an even spicier equivalent in the all-new family arriving here next year.

The announcement several days ago from VW headquarters in Wolfsburg, Germany, of a Clubsport version of the really new – as in, generation eight model that is set to replace the variant still on sale here – Golf GTI has been a surprise.

Generally, VW practice has been to deliver fizzed up specials of the world’s most famous hot hatch only after the core versions have settled into sale. 

In this instance, though, the Clubsport – a name that could probably be legitimately promoted in NZ by VW because the original user, Holden Special Vehicles, ceases to be at the end of this month – is being introduced just a few months after the latest GTI has hit production.

When, or even if, the Clubsport reaches NZ is up in the air. The new Golf that it derives from is coming, of course, but has been delayed until 2021, Covid-19 delays having ruined the original plan to have it here by Xmas.

Meantime, VW New Zealand is working to push out remaining stock of the seventh-gen car that, of course, was discontinued in Europe months ago.

Part of that runout has been to bring in the Golf GTI TCR, a $65,990 special edition with an interesting back story, in that it celebrates the brand’s success in a motorsport category that has been promoted as a potential for NZ, yet has yet to reach the grid.

That’s the FIA’s Touring Car Racing motorsport formula; VW won the TCR title when the series was running red hot in Europe and seemed set to become the next bi thing globally. You might recall seeing the cars run in Australia last year. The concept was set to also come to NZ … but, then, Covid hit. Also, some brands also pulled back their support. One of those being VW. 

The end result is that it has a Golf GTI TCR that celebrates being in a category it no longer involves in at manufacturer level. 

Whether that really matters is moot. NZ has 40 TCR units and basically all have been accounted for. So it’s also done a great job of keeping this evergreen hot hatchback competitive. The allure is more power – whereas the regular GTI makes 180kW the TCR has 213kW. 

That’s courtesy of it having a version of the 2017 GTi Clubsport Edition 40’s ‘EA888’ 2.0-litre turbo four pot that’s been updated with new software management, furnished with a couple of extra radiators, and made WLTP-emissions compliant. 

gen eight GTI retains the famous EA888 engine.

The TCR also gets VW’s electronic locking ‘eDiff’ as standard, but it adds the sizable composite brake discs and 17in calipers of the old GTI Clubsport S, as well as forged 18in alloy wheels. It comes as standard with passive suspension developed from that of the GTI Performance, with revalved, firmed-up dampers, and with shortened, stiffened coil springs that drop the car 5mm. 

Nice car, right?

The new (meaning, in case you’re confused, gen right) GTI Clubsport also seems set to have the same status. 

Most of the exterior changes to the very latest, still in Europe Golf GTI that denote it as a Clubsport model are designed to enhance the car's aerodynamic performance. There’s a redesigned bumper incorporating a splitter-like lower spoiler and larger open area for engine cooling. The default wheel is an 18-incher, sitting on 225/30 R18 tyres, but potentially it will have 19s in export form. 

A side sill graphic sets the Clubsport apart, though its most prominent feature is a new two-tier roof spoiler at the back. Restyled exhaust outlets are further apart than in the regular GTI and the diffuser between them has been redesigned.

It also runs that EA888 engine, but in an evo four tune that increase the power to 3223kW and pushes torque to 400Nm, so a 30Nm gain on the optimal claimed for the standard gen-eight Golf GTI and 50Nm more than the TCR has.

That's all sent to the front wheels via a seven-speed DSG dual-clutch automatic gearbox and the official 0-100kmh time is six seconds (0.3 seconds quicker than the standard car).

Considerable changes have been made to the chassis, starting with a 15mm reduction in ride height. The McPherson front struts and four-link rear axle layout are retained, but there is increased positive camber on the front and the variable ratio steering is more direct.

Like this cabin? the new Golf has stepped up considerably in respect to the interior.

As in the regular GTI, there is the XDS 'electronic differential lock' system and the electromechanical locking differential called VAQ (for 'Vorderachsquersperre' in German, meaning simply 'front axle differential lock').

Both are under the control of the Vehicle Dynamics Manager system that debuts on the gen eight GTI, as are the shock absorbers of the optional Dynamic Chassis Control (DCC). All of this has been ramped up for the Clubsport with an emphasis on response, reducing understeer and allowing higher cornering entry and exit speeds and traction on a racetrack.

Actually, there’s a special driving profile that has been optimised for driving at one particular racing circuit. Surely you know it’s name?

Anyway, according to Benjamin Leuchter, a racing driver employed by Volkswagen to help develop the Clubsport's driving dynamics, the Clubsport when put into ‘special’ mode is up to 13 seconds per lap faster than a regular GTI around the Nurburgring Nordschleife.

'Rangerok’ - making the best even better

The VW-Ford ute twinning programme will be a win-win for Kiwis.

Ranger, above, and Amarok coming off a common platform will be a win for both, their distributors suggest.

SLEEPING with the enemy will deliver exciting potentials and no obvious problems.

 That’s mutually-held thought from Ford and Volkswagen’s national distributors in response to additional information about the parent brands’ commercial vehicle marriage of convenience that has particular repercussion for the country’s favourite one-tonne traydeck.

Probable release next year of a new Ranger, followed from the start of 2022 by a new Amarok heavily based on the new Ford, is just the opening shot in the makers’ agreement. 

Volkswagen will also lend Ford its MEB electric vehicle and Caddy van architectures in exchange for a foot in the door with US automated drive pioneer Argo A1 (in which Ford has a stake) and the brands will share a one-ton commercial van platform in a deal that will deliver up to eight million vehicles.

The probability of all these undertakings creating impact on the Kiwi scene seems high.

However, in the here and now, focus is on the utes and, given their huge popularity here – not least for Ranger, the Kiwi choice for five years – it’s the new ‘Rangerok’ that is making headlines.

Ford New Zealand communications manager Tom Clancy and Volkswagen New Zealand Commercials boss Kevin Richards are optimistic about how this wll play out.

As much as brand pride demands that each proclaims their current offers to be the best in this hard-fought business, both have enough admiration for each other’s products to agree that a combined effort can only deliver an even better result.

“It’s definitely very promising,” says Clancy. “Whatever we can leverage from VW will be fantastic; they build nice vehicles.” 

He’s driven the current Amarok, which the present Ranger outsells by a factor of more than five-to-one, and likes it.

“It’s very good … it has lots of good points but perhaps delivers to a slightly different market.”

 He foresees the new association producing even more positive potentials than the now-ended relationship with Mazda that spawned the current BT-50 did, simply because the German maker is so much larger and more powerful. 

Richards has the same mindset about the brands being powerhouses. Also, there was no doubting current Ranger’s success was based on it being a well-considered and properly-developed product.

“If you have to partner with anyone in a JV (joint venture) then you partner with the market leader. And that’s what we have chosen to do.

“I legitimately think we have the best ute in the present market because it has been engineered and built 100 percent in Germany.”

Notwithstanding that, Ford clearly has costing advantage from making Ranger in Thailand.

Those plants might well continue to be the source point for next-gen Ranger, but not the new Amarok – latest detail about how the deal works pinpoints a Ford plant in South Africa as having the job of building new Amarok.

That bodes well, Richards says. German-built means good quality but at enough cost to “have given us a ute that is in the upper echelons of pricing.

“What the new deal does is give us a little bit more competitiveness in a segment which is ultra-competitive. It levels the playing field from that regard.

“Also, being from South Africa could mean that we will be right at the top of the queue for supply, as they are a right-hand drive market.”

Clancy says it was heartening the team in Melbourne that had driven the current T6 design were again running the new programme. 

“I cannot go into the likely specific vehicle benefits because we just don’t know about those yet, but the team over in Australia has obviously proven their capabilities, they’re really good at what they do.

“It’s pure speculation about what we will pull out of their vehicles of terms of engineering and design but, overall, it’s definitely very promising.”

Notwithstanding that VW has made clear that the terms of the alliance allow it to achieve “a medium pickup truck engineered and built by Ford”, this still allows the Germans to tune their own product to meet their own demands.

Richards says Wolfsburg headquarters have made clear that VW engineers are working alongside the Ford team and dedicating to tuning the Amarok so that it retains crucial VW DNA, as much in its driving feel and look. This will not be badge-engineering by any means, he says.

“This doesn’t feel as though it will be allowed to get to that level. There’s a way of making joint ventures work and the greater disparity you can have between the two products inevitably leads to the greater success.”

He is certain Ford and VW will have carefully analysed this in light of the poor experience Mercedes Benz had from trying to develop the X-Class from the current Nissan Navara. 

“I’m sure that, if nothing else, that exercise has given them a real set of key learnings and I’d be very surprised if we (VW) didn’t take something away from that.”

So he simply cannot see Amarok entering as “a VW badge on a Ford Ranger”.

“They need to have their own identity and from the feedback I’m getting from Germany, we can expect to see some significant VW design cues integrated. I imagine Ford will want to retain their own identity, and understandably so, and we will retain ours.

“One of the good things about Amarok that has influenced its desirability and maintained its customer base is that it is quite sophisticated in terms of how it drives. I feel that is something we will want to maintain. We might maintain that sophistication and allow Ford to take theirs into a more rough and rugged territory.”

What’s also heartening is expectation that another V6 will be in the mix, though this time it will be from Ford.

Suggestion is that current Amarok’s six-cylinder, which now puts 190kW in all current versions sold here, is to be dropped for a newly-developed Ford Power Stroke 3.0-litre V6 turbo diesel, recently bolted into Ford F150 pick-ups, where it produces 186kW and 596Nm. This will also replace the Ranger’s 3.2-litre five-cylinder. The models seem also set to continue with a four-cylinder turbodiesel.

Continuing in V6 will be great for Amarok, given the current edition now primarily sells in that format, Richards acknowledges. 

However, keeping a smaller engine in the mix as well is also important. He says it is interesting that Ranger is doing so well, now, with its 2.0-litre biturbo – basically, it’s a proof of VW being on the right track – if perhaps a little prematurely - when it released Amarok a decade ago in the same format.

“Since we brought the V6 in for Amarok in 2016 it has made up a huge proportion of our sales over the 2.-litre. Ford having gone the other way, from starting with the 3.2 and now offering the 2.0-litre is really interesting.

“I think we have established the V6 in the market as the product to have and I we would like to keep it.  My git feel is that we will get another V6 and it will continue to achieve the lion’s share of sales volume.”

Notwithstanding, indication from within the partner brands is that the new platform is designed to accommodate something new to both models - a high-performance plug-in hybrid (PHEV) drive – also excites Richards.

“I think a plug-in hybrid … gives a ‘best of both worlds.’ It would be something we would be exceptionally interested and I think we have a lot of customers who drive our product currently who would be interested, because it would suit their lifestyle.

“We have a strong Auckland customer base and the ability to drive all week on electric when you might have a 12km route that takes 90 minutes to accomplish … well, it’s perfect. You could save the conventional power for the weekend driving. That rings a lot of bells.”

That a PHEV would also likely introduce petrol power to Amarok holds no problems. It’s a recognised application and also might give the model a chance of competing in North America.

“I don’t think it would hinder the Kiwi appetite to try it (PHEV).”

Release timings? Nothing exact, but it’s thought Ford as programme lead gets dibs, akin to the Isuzu/Mazda arrangement which gives the D-Max a market introduction advantage of some months over the BT-50.

Clancy declined to add fuel to thought about this leaving Ford with an expected ETA of late-2021. “We have no information about launch timings.”

He says Ford NZ remains delighted by current Ranger’s massive imprint on the NZ scene and expects it to continue being a strong seller for the remainder of its production cycle.

Richards also confirms current Amarok’s availability will continue right up until the new one arrives.

Meantime, the EV sharing programme has fuelled conjecture that Ford could deliver 600,000 electric vehicles atop the MEB architecture, which is the basis of VW’s ID programme. 

Ford’s vehicle will be designed and engineered by Ford in Cologne, Germany, and is expected to become a smaller sister ship to its own all-electric Mustang Mach-E, which will be introduced in 2021.

Additionally, the companies will both work with Argo AI to form distinct, highly capable autonomous-vehicle businesses based on Argo AI’s self-driving technology, a pitch which will create the world’s largest geographic deployment potential of any autonomous driving technology to date.

Ute outlook Pt 3: The big Blue

Our national obsession for utilities, especially family-minded dual-cabs, knows no bounds. The market is booming at the moment, and filled with plenty of strong options. Yet surely you’re also keen to know something about what’s coming up next, when and from whom? Here’s the final section of our three-part analysis.

will there be a new Raptor? It’s still unknown.

My, how the motoring world goes around.

Back in 2011 when Ford Australia unveiled the T6 Ranger ute that it had designed and engineered all by itself, it flew journalists to some God-forsaken place in South Australia’s Flinders Range for the big reveal.

In among the Rangers at the launch event was a Volkswagen Amarok. The Ford people explained that the VW was there because during the Ranger’s development they had benchmarked their new ute against it.

High praise indeed for the Argentine-built ute produced by Germany’s Volkswagen Group. And the benchmarking worked, too – Ranger immediately became one of the world’s most popular one-tonne utes.

In New Zealand it is the topselling ute, consistently edging out its arch-rival Toyota Hilux. In fact it is the top selling new vehicle full-stop – last year there were 9485 of them registered, well ahead of Hilux’ 7126 sales and way ahead of the most popular passenger vehicle, the Toyota Corolla with its 6804 sales.

And Amarok? The hard truth is that the Volkswagen has struggled. It account for just 1 per cent of the Kiwi commercial market last year, with 653 sales. And that figure was less than 1 per cent of the Amarok’s global sales of 72,500 last year, which in itself was very modest when compared to the hundreds of thousands of sales recorded annually by the likes of Hilux and Ranger.

Given the very high costs of development of any new-generation vehicle, it made sense then that Volkswagen Group would look to forge an alliance with another manufacturer to share development of the next Amarok.

That’s what has happened. Last year the group signed a contract with Ford Motor Company to develop new light commercial vehicles.

current ranger has been vital for ford nz

In other words, instead of Ford using the Amarok as a benchmark during development of a brand-new T7 Ranger, it is now developing the next-generation Volkswagen ute.

Under the terms of the new alliance, Ford is responsible for creating the two ute models, while Volkswagen Group is responsible for development of both brands’ next-generation vans.

The ute project is being led by Ford’s Australia-based Asia-Pacific Product Development Centre, and it is already well advanced. Unofficial word is that the new Ranger will be launched late next year, and the Amarok slated to arrive in 2022.

Although both companies – Volkswagen particularly – are currently spending a fortune electrifying their future vehicles, this isn’t going to apply to the utes. Instead, Ford is concentrating on developing a range of suitable petrol and diesel engines for Ranger and Amarok.

Media reports out of Australia suggest that instead of being powered by the current 3.2-litre five cylinder diesel, which won’t meet latest emissions regulations, the new Ranger will feature a 3.0-litre single turbocharged Power Stroke diesel V6.

The latest version of this lightweight engine is under the bonnet of the F-150 pick-up in USA, and in that application it offers 186 kilowatts of power and 597 Newton metres of torque.

There’s also talk the Ranger will also get a 2.7-litre twin-turbocharged ‘Nano’ EcoBoost petrol V6 that debuted in 2018 aboard the F-150 in the US, and it develops 242kW and 542kW. But at this stage it seems unlikely this petrol Ranger will become available for New Zealand.

 There’s no word yet as to whether the new Amarok will feature the same powertrains as the Ranger.

Parts 1 and 2 of this series can be found in the news section.

amarok has been a solid performer and the v6 is admired. will it continue?

Covid-19: For VW, crisis highlights old school values and new age strengths

Life under Level 4 has accelerated the biggest European distributor’s digital planning. How far might it go?

Can a major car brand really be run from a laptop? In times of needs must, the outcomes have been heartening.

 PANDEMIC lockdown has influenced a major car distributor’s view about the relative values of ‘clicks’ and ‘bricks’.

Like so many businesses, Volkswagen New Zealand has taken its office structure into the homescape since the country closed for business on March 26.

It might not be too much of a stretch to suggest that, as result of the shutdown and social distancing, this massive machine – it’s the largest importer of European automotive product – is operating from laptops on kitchen tables.

Enforced change has asked for fresh ways of working and thinking, plus accelerated reliance on online tools, some in the works for quite some time, one or two considered unnecessary in times of normality. The Covid-19 crisis has left no choice.

All in all, general manager Greg Leet has been impressed by how this unexpected needs must exercise is running. It has so cemented trust in systems and e-commerce approaches he believes what’s working has continued merit once all this over. “When we get back to work, it would be terrible if we did not take the learnings of these dramatic times along with us.”

Greg Leet.- the Covid-19 shutdown has taught a lot about digital operating systems and flexible working practices.

Does this raise broader discussion about brand-retailer-customer interactions. For instance, when we’re in a situation where it’s impossible for the traditional – that is, in basic terms, a customer going to to a showroom, is this now the time when more effort is required to essentially bring the showroom to them?

There’s no argument that, since we’ve been placed in our bubbles, we’ve become more computer-reliant than ever; web traffic in the past few weeks has soared to unprecedented level. Surely we’re not all watching funny pet footage?

All this has hit at a time when it’s hardly a secret that the car world is becoming increasingly reliant on digital solutions, with inevitability of more to come. As Leet puts it, what’s happening and being increasingly thought about right now is an acceleration of what was always going to be.

The exceptional circumstances of the moment have acted as a catalyst for consideration of change. No-one is under any illusions about the impacts of coronavirus, not just now but going forward. Any return to life as it used to be will be slow and measured.

Working through new potentials and opportunities has keep VW and its agents – in New Zealand, that’s Giltrap Group – brainstorming busily at corporate level, Leet acknowledges. Examining the fuller potentials of flexible working environments and technology leveraging has been fulfilling.

“What this (crisis) has done is allowed us to take stock of some of the future thinking that we’ve been working with. We have found opportunities from these challenges.

 “The customer journey is going to be, and should be, different as an outcome of what we have been going through. I think our dealers (also) have an opportunity to become more present in a customer’s environment.”

As to that. Whatever it entails, this hastened journey down the virtual highway won’t diminish the human element nor would it bypass the core historic destination: The established franchise network.

On the first, Leet says for all the merits of online, it’s been an incredible staff effort that has been key to keeping the brand on the road these past few weeks. All that starts at the top; family business, family values.

VW New Zealand’s usual home is this Auckland headquarters.

“There’s been a lot of discussion around ensuring our staff’s health and well-being. When these times come and when the chips are down, the values of an organisation really shine through … I feel pretty bloody lucky to be working in an organisation led by those guys (the Giltrap family). It’s just phenomenal. It’s people first, no matter what. 

While inaccessible to the public, the national franchise network has remained a stalwart; there’s been a lot going on behind those closed doors, within the constraints expected with Level 4.

“The contact between us and our dealers is still as much as it would be any other day. The content of our conversation, of course, is a little different. 

“But we are supporting and enabling them to make sure that their staff and customers are safe in their environment.”

For many students of automotive utopia, the ultimate undertaking might be an online purchasing platform enabling customers to configure and purchase new vehicles remotely.

That process has been toyed with before and found wanting by Toyota New Zealand, which had little luck some years ago when touting Prius and 86 editions that couldn’t be bought from a showroom.

Last week VW in Australia followed a similar route with a structure that makes every new VW model – including commercial vehicles – available to order online. As with the NZ experiment, the process allows buyers to configure their selection and lay down a deposit before a designated dealership takes over to the rest of the process. In Australia, once the deposit has been received, the dealership is in contact within 48 hours to complete the purchase and manage the vehicle delivery. Here legislation requires going to a dealership to sign a sales agreement.

Virtual showrooms as an adjunct to the actual thing increased development of on-line tools that already allow customers to assess and tailor a product they’re considering is an international emergent with potential, Leet says. Additionally, there’s a logic to enhancing those experiences during a time when social distancing makes anything more personal simply impossible.

In the same way, having ‘sales geniuses’ giving a tailored guided tour to a vehicle by video link, which Skoda in the United Kingdom has introduced in the past week as a way of limiting social interaction, is also a good idea even in times of normality.

“We are definitely thinking about those things and even, too, to the likes of how of internal training might look like from a video perspective.”

Cars are essentially computers on wheels already, and the advance to the electric ID models will just bring more digital engagement.

That has already begun, with VW NZ having provisioning ongoing sales and technical training by video link during shutdown.

Regardless of what can be achieved via e-means, the traditional still has a core role. Dealer outlets lend strength and fuel credibility and, as much as direct selling works for some products, vehicles are different, simply because of the emotional connect. See, touch, drive, talk.

Were it not for Covid-19, today’s showroom-centric chat would surely reference this week’s national introduction of a fresh brand stance, pitched around the new look logo from Germany first unveiled last September. Months in the planning, an effort that would undoubtedly have become subject to a lot more raa-raa were it not for the pandemic could not be diverted because of it.

Aside from the latest badge that, the brand says, has reduced to its essential components and with a new flat 2-D look to become “perfectly recognizable in a digital landscape”, this brand design exercise includes a new female brand voice, a new website, and a complete overhaul of each local dealership, set to be implemented in the months to come.

That a roll out theming to new beginnings has timed just when coronavirus is costing the parent a staggering $US2.2 billion in lost revenues every week is wholly happenstance, yet poignant nonetheless.

Covid-19: Additional VW models still on track for NZ

Golf Mk8 has been delayed a couple of months but we’ll have plenty of new diversions from VW NZ in the meantime.

FOUR high-profile Volkswagen products are still tracking true for New Zealand though volume count for several might hit speed bumps as the year unfolds.

This from the brand’s New Zealand boss, Greg Leet, who says while the Covid-19 pandemic and national lockdown certainly haven’t made life easy, neither has it completely thrown impending introductions of the T-Cross and T-Roc – crossovers with huge volume potential through giving VW solid standing in the sub-Tiguan compact sector -  the Golf GTi TCR and a new Touareg V8.

 Though new car sellers are bracing for 2020 to be a tough year, with stock supplies looming and growing likelihood that registrations could be down by at least 40 percent on the bumper 2019 tally, the Auckland distributor’s intents not only remain more or less on track but could yet be further emboldened by heartening by latest news from Germany.

Notwithstanding the huge hit the global car industry has taken from coronavirus – first with parts supply problems and then with complete production shutdowns – Volkswagen Group is already looking set to imminently re-open some plants in Europe, albeit with social distancing measures in place.

On top of this, prior to the virus’s impact, it was already re-establishing  models that had been delayed or briefly curtailed last year as result of the brand being challenged to  meet Europe’s WLTP emissions testing requirements.

Also, while the national sales network is closed to the public, the Auckland-centred head office has remained busy – albeit with staff working from home – in planning life beyond lockdown, including localised implementation of the latest, simplified VW logo, which became official today.

Additionally, products built and shipped out of plants, mainly in Europe, have already landed or are set to ship in soon, so will be available to the public as soon as is allowed.

The first big T-Cross shipment landed just days before the nation went to Level 4 on March 26, so just a handful of the Polo-based front-drive model made it into dealerships – but more are awaiting dispersal.

The car (above) initially represents in $34,240 Life and $38,490 Style formats, with a turbocharged three-cylinder petrol that produces 85kW of power and 200Nm of torque and mates to a dual-clutch automatic transmission, with these to be joined by an R-Line, taking a 110kW/250Nm 1.5-litre four-cylinder. VW NZ has also secured 42 examples of a launch special, in First Edition trim, this also with the smaller engine and a bespoke trim. This costs $39,990. 

Meantime, the T-Roc, which shares a Golf platform, is now tracking for local release in July – three months later than expected, because the first NZ-bound consignment missed a sailing through being held up at the Spanish border.

It will also provision in three levels of specification, topping with a continuation of the R-Line trim that briefly availed last year with the surprise introduction of cars originally built for the United Kingdom that were subsequently made available as a one-off taster for NZ.

The Life and Style models feature the same 1.5-litre as T-Cross, with identical outputs, while the R-Line keeps the 140kW/320Nm 2.0-litre already experienced in those 150 examples already here and also holds the same price: $51,990. The Life and Style models, meantime, sticker at $39,990 and $44,990. As with T-Cross, T-Roc runs with a dual clutch transmission. But it’s also going to have all-wheel-drive in the top spec.

The cars adopt similar stylings but in different sizes. T-Cross is a longer overall (by 54mm) and in wheelbase (by 13mm) than the Polo and is 112mm taller, but only fractionally wider (at 1750mm) than VW’s smallest hatch. T-Roc is around 250mm shorter than the Tiguan, and otherwise similar in stance to its donor.

A First Line special edition part of the Touareg V8’s introduction; this $149,990 edition packs delivers with the 48-volt active roll stabilisation system that is a $7500 cost-extra on the mainstream alternate, which will retail for $141,990. The First Line also has a Black Pack trim and a top-level Dynaudio sound system that, again, aren’t standard to the cheaper variant. 

Of course, the main attraction is the powerplant, a version of the mighty eight-cylinder turbodiesel that has until now restricted to richer fare, in the shape of Audi’s SQ7 and SQ8 and the Bentley Bentayga.

VW NZ anticipates keen interest in the twin-turbo 4.0-litre unit that stands as a new-era equivalent of the V10 turbodiesel that figured in the first generation Touareg and was developed at the behest of Ferdinand Piech to simultaneously elevate the diesel engine and the VW brand.

The incoming unit isn’t the premium version, in that it doesn’t take the electric supercharger that Bentley’s rig also achieves, but with 310kW and 900Nm nonetheless generates 87kW more power and 151Nm more torque than the old 10-cylinder, and of course utterly gazumps the current V6, which in strongest format makes 210kW and 600Nm.

Also set to satisfy sporting tastes is that Golf GTI TCR, probably landing in July and intended as a swansong not just to the current GTI but also to the Golf 7.5 range – though, in that respect, because of coronavirus the current line will now be around for the remainder of the year, rather than replaced in October by the Mk 8 form in October.

Leet’s new plan now is to introduce new generation in January. Hopefully. Meantime, VW Germany will keep making the 7.5 version for NZ - on the same line that is otherwise pumping out the next generation for many other markets – with an R Limited model also coming to keep up mainstream interest while the TCR targets hard-out enthusiasts.

 The latter should move through the showroom as quickly as it nails all the usual performance tests.

Named in recognition of a brand involvement in Touring Car Racing  that has since discontinued, the special dethrones the GTI 40 Years as the most powerful Golf GTI ever. In that it has a permanent peak power figure of 213kW from its 2.0-litre turbo-petrol four-pot engine – as opposed to the 40 Years, which could only reach the same power on overboost.

Peak torque comes in at 350Nm, the same as with a regular GTi. The grunt is delivered exclusively to the front wheels via a six-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission – so, not the seven-speed going to some other markets.

Dynamic deftness is enhanced with it using a limited-slip differential on the front axle, a firmer suspension set-up that rides 5mm lower than the GTI, a unique adaptive chassis control system and beefed-up front brakes.

It also announces with a unique engine note provided by the bespoke exhaust system. VW reckons on 0-100kmh in 5.7 seconds. That’s 0.6s quicker than the 40 Years and just 0.9s shy of the R.

Price? It’s still being finalised, but should be just over $65,000. And availability? Well, best be quick: Just 40 units are earmarked.

Visually, the TCR is distinguished by its honeycomb decals, 19-inch alloys wheels and black roof, plus three exterior paint colours – Pure White, Pure Grey and Tornado Red.

The interior treatment includes Alcantara accents on the gear lever and door trim inserts, black and red cloth upholstery, GTI steering wheel with perforated leather on the hand positions and a red 12 o’clock marker.

Other exclusive standard equipment includes LED headlights with dynamic cornering function and dynamic light assist.

These features build on a standard GTI provision which includes GTI body styling, electrically folding exterior mirrors, keyless entry and start, an 8.0-inch infotainment system with sat-nav, active info display, city autonomous emergency braking (AEB) with pedestrian monitoring, adaptive cruise control with lane keep assist, traffic jam assist, emergency assist, blind spot monitor, rear cross-traffic alert and a rearview camera with park assist.

Speaking of kit. Even though the T-Cross will seem a bit pricier than some compact rivals, it also promises to perhaps have a longer features list than usual, with all high-level safety and driver assists standard, including pedestrian and cyclist monitoring. Adaptive cruise control, lane and side assist, a rear view camera, park assist and park distance is also standard.

Meantime, VW here is considering further additions to these families, but says the T-Roc convertible has already been decided against while performance-tuned R version is perhaps several years away.

Also unlikely to be seen for a while yet is the Touareg R Hybrid, revealed internationally in February and VW’s very first R model to have a plug-in hybrid powertrain, in this instance delivering ability to run solely on electric power at  up to 140kmh and for 30km range thanks to a lithium-ion battery pack mounted beneath the boot.