Volkswagen will showcase the crossover version of the Up! small car at the 83rd Geneva Motor Show in March 2013. Volkswagen has called this car the Cross Up!. The concept model of the Cross Up! was shown at the 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show where Volkswagen had shown quite an interest to put the vehicle into production. Now that it is expected that the Cross Up! will be put on sale by June or July 2013 in Europe and other markets, can we expect the German behemoth to offer the vehicle in India?
The Volkswagen Cross Up! is based on the Up! small car but is taller and has higher ground clearance to make it SUV-ish. It gets many SUV features like the black body cladding for the bumpers, wheel arches and side sills. The Cross Up! gets roof rails and few new fixtures on the bumper to make it look tougher. The vehicle is shod with bigger wheels and tyres, featuring 16-inch alloys with 185/50 size tyres. The lower part of the doors get protective black plastic moldings which further enhance the look of the car.
The engine which drives the Volkswagen Cross Up! is the same one used in the hatchback which is a 1.0-litre, 3-cylinder petrol engine which produces 74 HP of power, mated to a 5-speed gearbox. There should be no changes to the suspension or introduction of traction control. The interior of the car is livened up with chrome trims for the air-conditioning vents and speedometers with leather-wrapped steering wheel, handbrake lever and gear knob. The seats have a special trim and are available with a choice of red or dark grey with the dashboard finished in the same colour.
The expected price for the Cross Up! is €13,925 which is equivalent to Rs. 10 lakhs. The Volkswagen Up! too is yet to be launched in India and there is no definite news when it will arrive, but the Cross Up! definitely seems to be quite a good option for the mini-SUV loving Indians. Volkswagen might consider bringing in the Up! based compact SUV, the Taigun to the Indian market.
