Volkswagen Polo India pre-series production begins

Volkswagen India said that it has begun trial production of its premkum hatchback car, the Volkswagen Polo, at its plant near Chakan, Pune.
The Volkswagen Polo will be launched in India, in 2010.

Photo: Volkswagen Polo

The Minister for Economics, Labor and Transportation of the German Federal State of Lower Saxony, Dr. Philipp Rösler, approved the first welded body of the Volkswagen Polo.

Dr Rösler inspected the first finished body of the car on its way to the paint shop, as he is also a member of the supervisory board of Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft.

”This event today marks the next successful step on the entire effort of the team. With the first body of the Polo taking shape today, we are well on our way to fulfilling our commitment,” Jörg Müller, president and managing director of Volkswagen Group India, said.

The Volkswagen Polo is the German auto manufacturer’s first big play in the Indian market. After considering partnering with the Indian government during the Sanjay Gandhi days, Volkswagen backed off and instead focused on China, where it is stronger than Maruti is in India. They then appeared in India with the Volkswagen Jetta, Passat and Touareg. While the Jetta and Passat are sedans, Touareg is an SUV. But all these models were positioned in the high-end segment – and therefore sold in limited numbers. Both are much loved, and rarely owned. Other cars from the Volkswagen group in India are the entire Skoda range including the Fabia, Octavia, Laura and Superb, and the Audi A4 and A6, Q7… Sorry, I am really bad with remembering those numbers.

We had initially reported on the potential launch of the Volkswagen Polo for India way back in 2006. Can’t believe it has been 3 years and more since then! The car we had featured then as the Volkswagen Polo was the 2006 version – the one which would be launched in India very soon would be the super classy latest Polo, with hints of the Volkswagen Golf’s design.

The fifth generation Volkswagen Polo will be officially launched in India at the 2010 Auto Expo, New Delhi in january 2010.

Volkswagen Polo petrol version will likely have a 1.2 liter engine offering 60 bhp, and a top speed of around 150 kmph. This would be the base version – would 60 bhp be enough for a not so small hatchback like the Polo? I am not sure, but this is too early to make such observations anyway.

A 1.6 TDI diesel engine that can power the Volkswagen Polo to around 170 kmph is also probably going to be offered along with the petrol version.

There are also rumours that Volkswagen’ Bluemotion technology would find its way to the Indian Polo small car, but there is no confirmation of this.

In 2008 April, the Business Standard newspaper reported that the Volkswagen Polo would be priced around Rs 4 lakh in India. Would that be possible? That means the company plans to price the Polo at an even lower price point than the Skoda Fabia – both of which share the same platform, and both of which would be produced from the same plant. A Rs 4 lakh, quality premium hatchback car from a German manufacturer would really be something to look forward to. Even at Rs 5 lakh – considering that almost one year is past since that report – it would eat into the market shares of all mid-range small cars such as the Suzuki Swift, Fabia, Hyundai i20, Aveo U-VA, and the upcoming Maruti Suzuki Ritz.

It has been reported that at the launch of the pre-series version of the Volkswagen Polo, the company has been hinting at a shocking price tag.

And consider this: The Polo is a premkum hatchback, and so is the upcoming Honda Jazz. Honda has no intention of keeping prices – the company plays a premium game with its price tags, usually. So how will the Volkswagen Polo and the Honda Jazz square off? That’s sure going to be an interesting battle.

The January 2010 launch of the car also would suit many of us. Not everyone wants to sink in the money into a new car in the middle of the recession, and a 2010 January launch would probably do the Volkswagen Polo good when it comes to sales.

Volkswagen India plans to start the commercial production of the Volkswagen Polo by the end of 2009, from its Chakan plant, which was inaugurated on March 31, 2009.

“The Volkswagen plant here in Pune is a true example of German excellence meeting Indian spirit and I would like to congratulate the management on the commendable initiative,” Dr. Rösler said.

The maximum capacity of the Chakan plant is 110,000 vehicles per year. The company plans to employ 2500 personnel by the end of 2010.

The 580 million euros (Rs3,800 crore) – Pune plant is the largest investment to date by a German company in the country, Volkswagen Group India said.

The Chakan plant is said to be one of the most modern in the Volkswagen Group.

Reports say that the Chakan plant spans the entire production process from press shop to body shop and paint shop, to the final assembly of the product.

Volkswagen India’s Chakan plant will also start manufacturing the compact car Skoda Fabia, which is currently being made in its Aurangabad plant.

Jorg Muller said, “We will begin with 50% localisation of the new Polo in India and then gradually increase the local content to 80% over the period of next two years.”

“The plant has begun its operations a year ahead of its schedule and we are well on our way to fulfilling our commitment towards to the Indian market,” he added.

The Volkwagen Polo premium hatchback will be manufactured specifically for the Indian market.

The Economic Times has reported that the Volkswagen Polo will come in two petrol and one diesel variants.

Unlike the Volkswagen Polo sold in the European market, the base model of the Volkswagen Polo in India will have air-conditioning.

The Volkswagen Polo will come in silver, white, red and blue colours, and there is a possibility that the car will be available in orange, at a later date.

The company has said that stringent quality checks will be performed at the manufacturing level, so that all problems are identified and fixed before the car goes into series production.