Volkswagen Concept

Volkswagen up! Concept

John Lamm, Road and Track




Calling it no less than the reinvention of the Volkswagen, VW Chairman Martin Winterkorn introduced the up! Concept, a 4-passenger rear-engine hatchback with a flexible architecture that may be used for an entirely new family of vehicles.





This small city car is unmistakably a Volkswagen, with a basic shape and styling cues similar to those found in the larger Rabbit/Golf hatchbacks. The difference is that this vehicle has much shorter overhangs thanks to the positioning of the powerplant, which could be a conventional 2- or 3-cylinder engine or even a hybrid/fuel-cell unit, over the rear axle.





Even though the up! measures just 135.8 in. long and 64.2 in. wide, the cabin has a spacious feel thanks to thin-backed bucket seats that in all positions, except the driver’s, can be folded forward flat or removed all together. In addition, the seat cushions themselves are actually air mattresses that can be inflated or deflated to match the occupants comfort level.





Although the basic controls are simple, the center touch screen incorporates a proximity sensor similar to Apple’s iPhone, which allows for intuitive operation of complicated functions. While the up! is a concept, Winterkorn emphasized that VW is serious about building such an urban car and other variants as well, both for European and export market. In fact, one of the rumors circulating at the show was that development of the next-generation Beetle has been stopped to see if this new rear-engine platform can be adapted to that model.