Autocar October 02, 2019

THE SECOND-GENERATION Audi A1 aims to bring hitherto unseen levels of luxuriousness to the supermini class, and with it comes a price to match. The subject of this week’s road test (p36), however, does an unconvincing job of hiding the fact that it’s built on mass-produced underpinnings also used by other – far cheaper – Volkswagen Group models. It leaves us wondering why this Audi costs in excess of £5000 more than an equivalent Seat Ibiza – a huge difference at this end of the market. Practically every car built at any kind of volume in every segment shares a bloodline with other models, of course – economies of scale necessitate it. In the case of smaller cars, where margins are slimmer but development costs are just as great, that architecture…

The next-generation Volkswagen Golf, to be unveiled this month, aims to revolutionise the volume hatchback market with 48V mild-hybrid engines and technology not yet seen in the class. The German maker is betting on the new Mk8 Golf to secure its foothold in the shrinking segment – down 16% globally in the first half of 2019, according to analyst firm JATO – by offering not only class-leading technology but also the lowest CO2 emissions – important for running costs and the brand’s social responsibility standing. VW’s technical chief, Frank Welsch, told Autocar that development is now finished and the Mk8 Golf is currently undergoing quality testing. He said: “We are now in pre-production, in the phase to make sure that one part fits perfectly to another. Everything we did on the prototype is…

It can be easy to overlook the next Golf when VW is making as much noise as possible about the ID 3. Yes, ambitions for global ID 3 sales to reach six figures next year justify the fanfare, but the Golf will remain one of the world’s volume elite: over 730,000 examples were sold last year. That was soundly beaten by the Toyota Corolla, which managed 930,000 sales in the same period, but the Golf still dominates Europe and VW wants that to remain the case. One of the biggest challenges it faces is keeping the Mk7 Golf’s consummate all-round appeal. The sheer variety of engines and trims means its appeal crosses all age groups and many income levels, but the brand’s aim to reduce range complexity could affect this. Meanwhile, it…

THE SECOND-GENERATION Audi A1 aims to bring hitherto unseen levels of luxuriousness to the supermini class, and with it comes a price to match. The subject of this week’s road test (p36), however, does an unconvincing job of hiding the fact that it’s built on mass-produced underpinnings also used by other – far cheaper – Volkswagen Group models. It leaves us wondering why this Audi costs in excess of £5000 more than an equivalent Seat Ibiza – a huge difference at this end of the market. Practically every car built at any kind of volume in every segment shares a bloodline with other models, of course – economies of scale necessitate it. In the case of smaller cars, where margins are slimmer but development costs are just as great, that…

The next-generation Volkswagen Golf, to be unveiled this month, aims to revolutionise the volume hatchback market with 48V mild-hybrid engines and technology not yet seen in the class. The German maker is betting on the new Mk8 Golf to secure its foothold in the shrinking segment – down 16% globally in the first half of 2019, according to analyst firm JATO – by offering not only class-leading technology but also the lowest CO2 emissions – important for running costs and the brand’s social responsibility standing. VW’s technical chief, Frank Welsch, told Autocar that development is now finished and the Mk8 Golf is currently undergoing quality testing. He said: “We are now in pre-production, in the phase to make sure that one part fits perfectly to another. Everything we did on…

Volkswagen’s other family-sized hatchback, the electric ID 3, was revealed at the Frankfurt motor show last month, but VW R&D boss Frank Welsch is already thinking of how to improve it. “There’s still room for optimisation. Just like in combustion-engined cars, look at how CO2 has come down and down and down because engineers have optimised. The ID 3 is a huge step but it’s not the end.” Here are his three key areas. Range “People need range,” Welsch said. Despite the top-end ID 3 offering 341 miles of range, Welsch believes people want more. “We won’t do this by giving people a bigger battery because it’s more weight and more cost. It’s about battery density improving,” he said. Technology “It is not enough to change the drivetrain to electric. We have more room…