DriveInside.com | Sunday March 7, 2010
Japanese car company, Nissan, said this week that it would review its sourcing deal with Suzuki only after 2013, when its contract period between the two companies ends. Suzuki has a deal with Nissan to supply the small car Pixo to the latter at a ‘committed transfer price’ till 2013, said Nissan Motor Co Executive Vice-President Collin Dodge. He Read More...
DriveInside.com | Tuesday February 23, 2010
Volkswagen India launched the New Polo in Mumbai this week. The premium hatchback is priced at Rs 4.34 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi) for the 1.2-litre petrol variant and Rs 5.32 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi) for the 1.2-litre diesel variant. Mr. Neeraj Garg, Member of Board and Director, Volkswagen Passenger Cars India, said that the car had received an Read More...
DriveInside.com | Saturday February 20, 2010
Volkswagen India is planning to enter the country’s pre-owned car segment by FY 2012. Mr Neeraj Garg, Director, Volkswagen Passenger Cars, Volkswagen Group Sales India, told mediapersons last week that the company expected a good number of premium car owners to upgrade to VW’s used luxury cars. A Credit Analysis and Research Ltd. report says that Read More...
DriveInside.com | Monday January 25, 2010
Toyota Motor Corporation, the world’s biggest carmaker, witnessed a 13 percent fall in its 2009 global sales, which has substantially reduced the gap between Toyota and number-tw carmaker, Volkswagen. In 2008, Toyota had overtaken US-based auto company General Motors to become the world’s top carmaker. In 2009, however, the Japanese company’s Read More...
DriveInside.com | Sunday January 24, 2010
Czech company, Skoda Auto, a subsidiary of Volkswagen (VW), has decided not to re-position its range of cars in India to avoid competition with VW. Skoda has been present in India for a number of years, and is seen as a maker of high-end cars in the country. Its parent company, Volkswagen, on the other hand, is a more recent entrant in the Indian Read More...
DriveInside.com | Wednesday January 13, 2010
German auto major, Volkswagen, said this week that it would start offering optional customised packages for its cars after the launch of its small car, Polo, in March 2010. The extra features in these packages will include exterior cosmetic modifications and entertainment systems, said Mr Lutz Kothe, Chief General Manager (Marketing and Public Read More...
DriveInside.com | Wednesday January 6, 2010
German auto major Volkswagen (VW) this week unveiled its made-in-India small car, the Polo, at the 2010 India Auto Expo. A sedan version of the car, built on the same platform, will follow in the second half of 2010. The Polo hatchback will be available at VW dealerships from March this year and will come with a 1.2 litre engine with 50 per cent Read More...
DriveInside.com | Monday December 14, 2009
German carmaker Volkswagen AG said recently that it was planning to develop hybrid and electric cars with Japan’s Suzuki Motor in India. The company wants to use Suzuki’s R&D centre in the country for the purpose. VW AG board member, Mr Jochem Heizmann, said that while it was too early to give details of the JV’s concrete product plans, the Read More...
DriveInside.com | Monday December 14, 2009
Volkswagen AG may introduce luxury car brand Bugatti in India in the middle of 2010. The Bugatti Veyron can touch a top speed of 400 km/hr and is expected to be priced between Rs 5 crore and Rs 12 crore in India. However, Mr Kurt Rippolz, the head of communication at VW India, said that it was up to every independent brand to decide on its India Read More...
DriveInside.com | Sunday December 13, 2009
German auto company Volkswagen started the production of its small car Polo in India this week. The five-seater hatchback is being produced at the company’s plant at Chakan, near Pune, and will compete with cars in the already crowded B+ segment, including Hyundai’s i20, Maruti’s Swift and Chevrolet’s Beat. It will come in both petrol and diesel Read More...
DriveInside.com | Thursday December 10, 2009
German carmaker Volkswagen will buy a 19.9 per cent stake in Japanese auto company Suzuki Motor for $2.53 billion, in January 2010. The move will help VW expand its presence in the small-car market in India and other Asian markets, where Suzuki already has a strong presence. The companies said that their strengths complement each other, and as the Read More...
DriveInside.com | Wednesday December 9, 2009
German auto company Volkswagen (VW) this week bought a 49.9 per cent stake in Porsche AG, for 3.9 billion euros ($5.8 billion). It will complete the acquisition 2011. The move is expected to increase the annual operating profit of the Volkswagen Group by approximately 700 million euros. VW said in a statement that there was a compelling strategic, Read More...
DriveInside.com | Sunday December 6, 2009
Volkswagen India launched the ‘New Beetle’ last week, priced at Rs 20.45 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi). The car comes with a 2-litre, 4-cylinder petrol engine, and six-speed automatic transmission. VW India Board Member and Director, Mr Neeraj Garg, told reporters that the company was excited to bring the iconic Beetle to India after its success all Read More...
DriveInside.com | Tuesday December 1, 2009
Volkswagen India has already received 160 advance bookings for its iconic car, the Beetle, to be launched on December 4, 2009. Buoyed by the positive response to the car, the company is expecting to sell at least 500 units of it next year. This is in spite of the fact that the Beetle will be 4 times costlier than the soon-to-be-launched VW Polo, Read More...
DriveInside.com | Monday November 23, 2009
European auto major Volkswagen is all set to overtake Japan’s Toyota Motor Corporation as the world’s largest automaker. It will acquire German sports car company Porsche, as per an endorsement by both the companies last week. Earlier in the year, Porsche had made an attempt to acquire VW, which finally backfired. The acquisition will take place Read More...
DriveInside.com | Monday November 9, 2009
European auto major Volkswagen will be launching its iconic car, the Beetle, in India in December 2009. It will be imported from Volkswagen’s Mexican plant. First launched in 1938, the Beetle went on to become the world’s most-produced car of a single design. It was originally known as ‘Kafer’, which means beetle in German.
Other VW cars Read More...
DriveInside.com | Thursday October 22, 2009
Volkswagen India is planning to launch a new sedan in the country, built on the platform of the VW Polo. The car will be launched in the second half of 2010 as a mass-market product. The hatchback version of the Polo will be launched in early 2010. VW is also planning to bring its iconic car, the Beetle, to India as a CBU. However, it has not yet Read More...
DriveInside.com | Sunday September 27, 2009
European auto major Volkswagen will soon be launching its iconic car, the Beetle, in India. Though the company did not give a time frame for the small car’s launch, it did say that the car would be brought to India as a Completely Built Unit (CBU). Mr Neeraj Garg, who is a member of Volkswagen India Board of Directors, told media persons that Read More...
DriveInside.com | Saturday September 19, 2009
Volkswagen India has received a loan worth 100 million euros from the European Investment Bank (EIB) to set up its manufacturing facility in Chakan, Maharashtra. The financing contract was signed in Luxembourg last week, and will aid the Volkswagen Group in manufacturing small cars in India. Mr. Kurt Rippholz, the head of Volkswagen India Group Read More...
DriveInside.com | Thursday August 20, 2009
Volkswagen India will be launching the Polo in early 2010. The company’s first hatchback in India, the Polo will come with both petrol and diesel engine options. Its sedan version will be launched in mid-2010. The VW Polo will be a part of the rapidly growing premium hatchback segment in India, which includes Maruti’s Swift and Ritz and Hyundai’s Read More...
DriveInside.com | Monday August 17, 2009
Car company Volkswagen will be merging with German sports car maker Porsche by 2011. VW will initially shell out 3.3 million euros to a buy a 42 per cent stake in Porsche. The firms' supervisory boards announced that after the tie-up, VW's Chief Executive Martin Winterkorn will head both Porsche and VW. The merger is a major victory for VW, and Read More...
DriveInside.com | Friday August 14, 2009
European auto major Volkswagen will be launching its iconic car, the Beetle, within the next three months in India. The car will be imported to India as a Completely Built Unit (CBU) and will be priced at around Rs 20 lakh. The Beetle, also called the 'Bug', will come equipped with a 1.9 litre TDI diesel engine, 5-speed manual transmission, rain Read More...
DriveInside.com | Thursday August 6, 2009
The World Bank's private sector lender - International Finance Corp (IFC), will be investing 135 million euros in European car company Volkswagen's Indian facility in Pune. The IFC announced this week that it would make this investment to help create more jobs locally. The financing will comprise 60 million euros from the IFC's own resources and a Read More...
DriveInside.com | Saturday April 18, 2009
German car company Volkswagen may have pipped Toyota to become the world no.1 in auto sales in the first quarter of 2009. The company sold 1.39 million units in the January-March period across 9 automotive brands. Toyota, on the other hand, has estimated a sales figure of 1.23 million units for the same period. The advantage the Germany based Read More...
DriveInside.com | Thursday April 16, 2009
German car company Volkswagen’s new MK VI Golf got the ‘World Car of the Year’ award at the New York Auto Show last week. The ‘Car of the Year’ awards are among the most respected auto awards ceremonies. The jury which selects the winners consists of independent auto journalists from 22 countries around the world. For a car to be nominated, it has Read More...