Volkswagen India's new compact sedan tailored for India has confirmed its public unveiling at Auto Expo 2016, which is scheduled to be held in February, in Delhi. The German marque also confirmed it will start the production of the car in the first half of 2016 from the Pune plant. The name of the car and other details are under wraps for the show.
A report from MotorOctane says the car will be called Ameo. However, earlier reports suggested the name Bora. Bora is a name Volkswagen used for the fourth-generation Jetta sedan in counties like Australia, Brazil and Argentina in early 2000. Whether Volkswagen goes for an all new name remains to be seen.
The company has invested Rs 720 crore in the development of the new model, designed and made for India. The investment is being used for development, setting up of new equipment and increasing production of the new compact sedan. This is a part of the Rs 1,500-crore investments announced by Volkswagen India at the beginning of 2014.
When launched, the compact sedan will will be pitted against the likes of Swift Dzire, Honda Amaze, Tata Zest, Hyundai Xcent, and Ford Aspire. The design is expected to be in line with the Polo hatchback, and a small boot will be added. Though its specifications have not been released yet, it is safe to assume VW will continue with the current Polo engines that include 1.2-litre MPI and TSI petrol engines and the 1.5-diesel unit.