VW to develop a challenger for the Smart ForTwo
The current European VW Fox
Volkswagen's smallest current model in Europe is the four seat hatchback Fox. At 12.55 ft long, the Fox is nearly half again as long as the Smart ForTwo. Since Volkswagen flamed out in it's bid to take on Mercedes in the upper reaches of the market, new boss Martin Winterkorn has deemed that VW should instead challenge the popular two-seat ForTwo. In an interview with German newspaper Sueddeutsche Zeitung he revealed that he has instructed the product team in Wolfsburg to develop a new car below the Fox. Unlike the Smart, the new VeeDub would be a four-seater, although it is unclear how a car smaller than the Fox would be able to carry four people unless it is unusually tall. In the same interview, Winterkorn indicated that they would definitely be developing hybrid drive-trains for their compact cars like the Golf and Polo.
[Source: Detroit News]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
gary 9:38AM (2/10/2007)
popular? the mercedes smart car has lost millions every single year since its inception. might as well see old yugos as a threat and try to copy them. does anyone at volkswagen have a clue?
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Sam Abuelsamid 3:20PM (2/10/2007)
I said popular not profitable. Smart has never made money, but people do seem to like them.
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Chris M 5:22PM (2/18/2007)
Looks a bit too long to be a direct challenge to the Smart ForTwo. More likely to challenge the Mini.
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Steve C 5:24AM (3/17/2007)
The VW LUPO was smaller & had 4 seats where as the Fox is a similar size to the Polo
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DGate 5:47PM (3/07/2007)
although it is unclear how a car smaller than the Fox would be able to carry four people unless it is unusually tall.
The original Mini was only 10 feet long and seated four albeit not as comfortably as todays standards,guess this writer is too young to remember it.
Dgate
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