New Astra Beats Ford Focus and VW Golf at Millbrook Test Track in Viral Video

Looks like General Motors' UK division is trying its hand at viral marketing with a new video showing 2010 Astra hatchback outpacing a VW Golf MKVI and a Ford Focus at the Millbrook Proving Ground test track in Bedfordshire, England. The driver behind the wheel of the Astra is none other than Vauxhall's own BTCC pilot, Fabrizio Giovanardi. If you turn up the volume and pay attention, you might hear some weird mechanical noises coming out of the Astra but guess that makes it a bit more realistic... Will be interesting to see if Ford and VW play along, but until then follow the jump to watch the video.

Kudos to Mark for the tip!

New VW Golf Plus Crossover BiFuel Goes on Sale in Europe

Volkswagen is extending the model range of its recently facelifted Golf Plus with an LPG-capable version called Golf Plus BiFuel. The compact crossover that can run either on petrol or LPG at the flick of a switch is equipped with a 1.6-liter, four-cylinder engine producing 98HP. The German automaker said that the car needs an average of 9.8 liters of LPG per 100km (159 g/km CO2) while when it uses gasoline fuel, the Golf Plus BiFuel consumes 7.5 liters of Super for every 100km (179 g/km CO2).

The Golf Plus BiFuel features a 55-litre petrol tank and a 43-liter LPG tank, the latter built into the spare wheel well to save space. The LPG tank provides a range of about 440 kilometers while the two tanks offer a combined range of more than 1,100 kilometers or about 685 miles.

The German firm notes that the factory-installed LPG solution for the Golf Plus BiFuel comes with a full warranty for the entire vehicle, LPG components included. The LPG-capable Golf Plus is available for order in the Trendline and Comfortline versions with prices in Germany starting from €22,460.

VW Replaces 1.9 TDI with new 1.6 TDI Engine on the Golf VI Range

Having already introduced its 1.6 TDI engine on the latest generation VW Polo and Seat Ibiza models, Volkswagen has now announced the availability of the newly developed common rail diesel unit that replaces the 1.9-liter TDI on the Golf VI range. In the Golf family, the 1.6-liter diesel that is hooked up to a 5-speed manual gearbox or optionally, a 7-speed dual clutch transmission (DSG), produces an output of 105HP and 250Nm (184-lbs/ft) of torque between 1,500 and 2,500 rpm.

Volkswagen claims that with this engine, the Golf hatchback and Variant models return an average fuel consumption of 4.5 lt/100km (52.3mpg US) while the Golf Plus is rated at 4.8 lt/100km (49mpg US).

In Germany, the Golf 1.6 TDI hatchback is priced from €20,600 while the Golf Variant and Golf Plus 1.6 TDI from €22,450 and €22,275 respectively.

New Volkswagen Golf Estate: Same Car, Different Face

What a busy week it has been for Volkswagen. Following the unveiling of the Scirocco R 265HP, Golf GTI Street 301HP, Golf GTI and Polo Worthersee editions, the German manufacturer today unleashed the new, or shall we say, redesigned Golf Estate. So what's new about the Golf Estate? Well, to sum it up, for the 2010MY, the Estate gains the Golf VI's front fascia and dashboard, tweaked tail lamps, bumpers fully painted in car color in the lower area plus a new 105HP 1.6-liter common rail diesel. And yep, that's about it.

When VW begins accepting European orders for the new Golf Estate this Friday, May 22, buyer will be able to choose from a 1.4 TSI petrol engine with 122HP and two turbo-diesels, the 1.6-liter TDI with 105HP and a 2.0-liter TDI producing 140HP. During the course of the year, VW will enhance the range with the addition of three more naturally aspirated gasoline units developing 80HP, 102HP and another TSI with 160HP.

The base price of the new Golf Estate in Germany, including ESP, six airbags, daytime running lights, roof railing, power windows all around, upshift indicator, power and heated outside mirrors, 1/3 to 2/3 split folding rear bench seat and seatback, central locking with RF remote control, climate control and a maximum 1,495 liters of cargo capacity is € 18,500.

VW Golf GTI Special Edition Concept Premieres at Worthersee

Joining the Golf GTI Street 301HP and Polo sport concepts at the GTI meet in Austria, is the Golf GTI 'Worthersee 09' study. Like the Polo, the hot Golf GTI is more about 'show' than 'go' as it relies on the same 2.0-liter TSI with 210HP as the standard production car. The only mechanical updates concern the lowered sport chassis and the more sonorous sport exhaust system. On the outside, the special edition Golf GTI sports a unique "Firespark Metallic" paint finish along with the new smoked LED taillights and a set of 19-inch high-gloss black alloy wheels with contrasting red color 'rings'.

The hot GTI's interior has been treated with high-end aluminum tread plates with "GTI Wörthersee 09" signature, brushed aluminum trim and glossy black painted frames around the air vents.

Furthermore there's a pair of newly designed front sport seats in contrasting black and red nappa leather with "Berry White" leather piping for the outer surfaces and seat center panels made out of a special material called 'Hexagon'.

VW Golf GTI VI Street: Volkswagen Apprentices Build 301HP Study with Unique Mods

And the news just keeps on coming from the Worthersee GTI meeting in Austria. This time it's the new Golf GTI VI study that is the result of the collaborative work of five Volkswagen apprentices: Stefan Becker, 22, Mehmet Cosgun, 20, Saskia Müller, 20 and Michael Riefenberg, 19. Dubbed Golf GTI Street, the modified hot hatch features numerous mechanical and styling upgrades including a more powerful version of the 2.0-liter turbocharged engine that has been tweaked to deliver an output of 301 horsepower, up from the standard 2.0 TSI's 210 horsepower. The four-pot is hooked up to a six-speed manual transmission.

The young apprentices sharpened the Golf GTI's handling by tuning the suspension that now comes with a hydraulic height adjustment feature while they also added a beefier brake system borrowed from the last Golf R32. The hatch now rides on a set of 19-inch BBS alloy wheels shod in 225/35 R19 Pirelli rubber.

Beyond the extra power and chassis tweaks, the Golf GTI Street features a two-tone black and white color theme with twin white rally stripes that extend over the bonnet, the roof and back to the rear, a modified front bumper, rear spoiler, tinted rear windows and a new exhaust system with twin tail pipes.

We don't have any photographs of the interior, but according to the German automaker, the GTI Street's interior has been enhanced with a full leather treatment while the apprentices also equipped the car with a new audio system plus an X-Box gaming console.

VW Golf Reclaims Its Place as Europe's Best Selling Model in April, Fiesta Sales up 59.2%

With srappage schemes boosting sales across key European markets, VW's Golf reclaimed its crown from Ford's highly successful Fiesta as Europe's best-selling car in April. According to the data provided by Jato Dynamics, the sixth-generation Golf's sales totaled 49,488 units in April representing a 10.9% increase over the same month a year ago. The Fiesta, that topped the European charts in March, finished second continuing to increase its sales across the continent, up 26.7% year-to-date and 59.2% for the month of April for a total of 43,253 sales.

Beyond the VW Golf and Ford Fiesta, small cars dominated the list with the ten best selling cars in Europe in the month of April with the Opel - Vauxhall Corsa taking third place with 35,754 units (+3,7%), the Fiat Punto finishing fourth with 34,340 cars sold (+12.1%) and the Peugeot 207 fifth with 32,310 units that represents a significant -24.9% drop in sales from a year ago. The VW Polo, Fiat Panda, Ford Focus, Opel - Vauxhall Astra and the Renault Clio complete the top-ten list.

Brand wise, VW retained its postion as Europe's best-selling marque in April but with sales down 1.2%, versus 2008. Ford maintained a close second, while Fiat moved up to take third place from Opel - Vauxhall, recording a 6% rise in total sales for April, the only brand to do so this month.

"National government scrappage schemes are really starting to have an impact, both in the sales volumes in different markets and in the type of cars being sold", commented David Di Girolamo, Head of JATO Consult. "The bigger picture shows the size of the drop in new car sales across Europe and we'll continue to monitor this closely for signs of a wider improvement."

Volkswagen Golf GTI Commercials “Unpimp my ride”

Hilarious!

Volkswagen breaks a North American campaign for the new Golf GTI that takes a poke at MTV's Pimp My Ride

Featuring a German vixen who seems to have walked straight out of the 70’s, and a German engineer filling Xzibit's Pimp my Ride position, Volkswagen’s Golf GTI new series of commercials take a poke at MTV's successful “Pimp My Ride” show.

The German duo shoot a car out of a catapult in one spot, crush a car with a crate containing the new GTI in another. In the third commercial, they crush a car with a wrecking ball. At the end of these ads, Stormare spouts such gems as "Representing Deutschland", and "German engineering in da haus", and the ads end with the voice-over "Pre-tuned by German engineers".

"There are people that think the culture has gone too far and there’s a bit of a backlash from the Hollywood version. In some way they ruined what was a very organic and very cool thing," said Alex Bogusky, chief creative officer at Miami-based Crispin Porter + Bogusky, a unit of MDC Partners. Targeting males 18 to 49, the campaign includes Internet, outdoor and print iterations, rolling out nationally over the next couple of months.

"Our goal is to make VW famous and relevant again," said Kerri Martin, director of marketing development at VW. "If the Beetle is the heart of the brand, then the GTI is the soul of the brand. It hits on all four things that really have made Volkswagen famous over the years: affordable, German engineering that is fun to drive and a distinctly European style."

Volkswagen Golf GTI: Catapult

Volkswagen Golf GTI: Crate

Volkswagen Golf GTI: Wrecking ball



Volkswagen, Golf+GTI, Commercials, Unpimp+my+ride