Volkswagen compact sedan will not be priced below 5 lakh

Volkswagen India has been sustaining itself on the Polo hatchback and Vento sedan mass market models in the country (apart from exports) and sales are nowhere close to what the automaker had originally anticipated. Nonetheless, the company is working to tap the mass market segment further and has an India specific compact sedan in the making that everyone is looking forward to.

Shedding some light on the upcoming model, Managing Director, Thierry Lespiaucq recently stated that Volkswagen will roll out the new compact sedan next year but won’t price it below Rs. 5 lakhs. The upcoming Volkswagen compact sedan will be based on the Polo platform and will feature a boot for the ideal three box design.

Following the same design language seen on its existing models, the automaker will also retain the 1.2-litre petrol and 1.5-litre diesel engines to claim the small car excise duty benefit. With a starting price of around Rs. 5 lakhs (ex-showroom), the compact sedan will be in a competitive range against the rivals with the most expensive being the Honda Amaze at 5.18 lakhs while the least expensive is the Tata Zest that starts at Rs. 4.86 lakhs (all prices, ex-showroom Delhi).

MD Lespiaucq further stated that Volkswagen’s 120 dealerships across 100 cities are sufficient at present. The German auto giant, however, did state that it will consider ramping up the network once sales cross over one lakh per year. The automaker sold 45,000 units in the country during the 2014-15 financial year and is confident of maintaining the momentum in the 2015-16 fiscal as well. In addition to the compact sedan, the company has promised a slew of launches over the next two years.