Volkswagen up!

With the improved up! Volkswagen can offer citycar buyers a very competitive proposition indeed. Jonathan Crouch checks it out.

Ten Second Review

A proper Volkswagen - just a smaller one. The up! has enabled the German brand to regain the initiative in the important citycar sector and this improved version sets a high standard for contenders in this class, adding in turbo 1.0-litre power at the top of the range. Frugal, fun, clever and competitively priced, the up! is a key model to consider, not only for those in the market's smallest segment but also for people buying a compact car of any kind.

Background

In concept, Volkswagen's up! was smarter even than the finished product we see here, the original 2007 prototype rear-engined just like the early Beetle as the German designers sought to find more space from an ever-smaller roadway footprint. But such complexity would have made the finished production version as expensive as 'lifestyle' small cars like the MINI or the Audi A1. Which wasn't the point at all. This, the company decided, must be something almost anyone could afford. In any case, it could still be clever even if it was conventional. If the engine could be smaller, the wheelbase longer and the overhangs shorter, the ambitious cabin space goals set by the rear-driven concept could still be achieved.

A basic formula to which has been added all manner of innovation. Depending on its purpose and the preference of its buyer, an up! can guide you with Google. It can brake itself to avoid an accident. It can be a hot hatch. Or, at the other extreme, an electric runabout. It can, in short, be all things to all people. A real Peoples Car.

Driving Experience

Under the bonnet, the main news for up! buyers is the addition of an extra three cylinder petrol engine to the range, a pokier 1.0-litre TSI turbo unit with 90PS on tap. This sells alongside the existing normally aspirated 1.0-litre powerplants most customers will continue to want, these generating either 60 or 75PS. These feature a characteristic offbeat rasp that isn't unpleasant and rather suits this car's rather individual charisma. You'll certainly be hearing plenty of the volume engines if rapid progress is needed, for without a turbocharger to boost torque, the 60 or 75PS units need to be revved quite a bit, peak power not arriving until 6,000rpm, only 600rpm shy of the red line.

The especially frugally-minded will be interested to try the full-electric e-up! version which has a battery powerplant capable of putting out the equivalent of 82PS.

Design and Build

Not too much has changed with the looks of this car. There are re-styled bumpers, a sleeker rear diffuser, door mirrors with integrated indicator lights, revised headlights with LED daytime running lights and smarter rear lights. Otherwise, it's as you were.

The changes made to this revised model inside are even more subtle than those made to the exterior. There's classier background lighting, while plusher models get a redesigned 'Climatronic with Pure Air' air conditioning system and the option of a 'beats with a 300W' sound set-up. Otherwise, it's all very recognisable from before, the cool dished three-spoke steering wheel fashioned from light magnesium and framing an instrument cluster of refreshing simplicity.

Market and Model

Prices, as before, sit mainly in the £9,000 to £14,000 bracket, though the all-electric 'e-up!' will cost you just over £20,000, once the government grant has been substracted from its asking price. As before, there's a choice of either three or five-door bodystyles and the option of a semi-automatic robotised clutch-less 5-speed gearbox as an urban alternative to the usual 5-speed manual. And again, the main combustion engine trim levels are 'take up!', 'move up!' and 'high up!'.

Across the range this time round, there are new exterior colours and a range of roof, design and colour packs to match them. Plus buyers can choose from a range of customisable dashboard designs and specify a 300W BeatsAudio sound system. Smartphone integration's better too.

Cost of Ownership

Any citycar stands or falls on its ongoing costs and here, the up! looks to have all its bases covered. Thanks in part to a low kerb weight of well under a tonne, even the 75PS 1.0-litre models will return a combined fuel economy figure of 60.1mpg with emissions pegged at 108g/km. Opt, as most people will, for the 60PS engine and the figures are better again, at 62.8mpg and 105g/km. Those looking for better economy still will be drawn inexorably to the BlueMotion Technology model which features low rolling resistance tyres, a battery regeneration system and a stop start system that cuts the engine when you don't need it in traffic or at the lights.

If you really want to minimise your running costs, then you'll want to look at the e-up! full electric version. A standard full charge will give you 93 miles of range and takes less than nine hours from a standard 230-Volt, 2.3 kW household socket. On top of this, all e-up!s have a DC fast-charging circuit as standard.

Summary

Overall, the up! remains the very essence of a small, affordable Volkswagen, a high quality class-less car very much in the mould of the original Beetle. One of the lightest small runabouts you can buy, it still manages to feel solid, a triumph of packaging and design that's streets ahead of any citycar the brand has yet brought us.

FACTS AT A GLANCE

CAR: Volkswagen up!

PRICES: £8,995 - £12,880

INSURANCE GROUPS: 1-2

CO2 EMISSIONS: 96-108 g/km

PERFORMANCE: [60bhp BlueMotion] Top Speed 100mph / 0-60 14.4s

FUEL CONSUMPTION: [60bhp BlueMotion] (combined) 68.9 mpg

STANDARD SAFETY FEATURES: Anti-lock brakes with brake assist, twin front and side airbags

WILL IT FIT IN YOUR GARAGE?: Length/Width/Height 3570/1641/1478mm

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