January17
Spy photographers have spotted the new Volkswagen Golf/Rabbit wagon in testing. It’s not known if or when this wagon version of the Rabbit will reach the States, but Europeans are already excited about what they call the Golf Estate – also referred to as the Golf Variant.
Volkswagen was attempting to get away from the “conventional” station wagon styling by hinting about a Golf Plus — sort of a small European MPV, but consumers were demanding a “real” station wagon — and now we have proof that it’s much more than just wishful thinking.
We’ll officially see this Golf (Rabbit) wagon when it makes its debut at the Frankfurt Motor Show later this year. Although powerplants won’t be of any surprise, the interior is said to offer greater flexibility than ever before with a foldable/removable rear bench seat, many small-item compartments and even tie-down points – typical features in much larger station wagons. Gallery after the jump…
Nice. Even nicer with 4motion + DSG + diesel.
Exactly Stig… I’d make you in charge of the project. I like small wagons all the way back to the cute.. but dreadful …Chevy VEGA. I went and looked at the Volvo V50 but didn’t get any farther than the window sticker. Who are they kidding?!
j i m
Cool… is this the replacement for the Jetta (Bora) wagon?
Years ago I had a Civic wagon.. man that thing was great.
Of course if they bring it to the US they will call it the Jetta.
Um i think they will call it the Rabbit wagon. It is a Golf (Rabbit). In any case the stig hit the nail on the head. Very nice VW.
Yeh, Rabbits with trunks are Jettas.
It will sell like hotcakes in the States.
im not sure if its going to sell like hotcakes in the u.s….
The US may not get this as wagons are not as in fashion in right now. If they raise the suspension give it biggers tire and call it a CUV it might sell well here .
Wow, looks like a sneaker.
With VW on the brink of extinction, it is surprising to see them adding more and more models to further dilute what I percieve to be a failing brand with little fundage.
Howver it does keep the core VW roots alive. Horrendous reliability? Check. Atrocious build quality? Check. Overcomplicated elctrogizmos only those crazy Germans can appreciate? Check. Seems like a futile attempt to dodge the gunfire coming from Detroit at the moment. Soon enough Bob Lutz is going to pick these guys off, it’s just a matter of time.
VW is going down hard.
XeroBlue — the last time VW imported the Golf wagon they renamed it a Jetta and put a Jetta face on it for the US market.
it will prob be named Jetta. the jetta out sells the golf like 6:1 or something.
wow VW wins a stunning upset for the bland mobile award!
Got vanilla?
The last Golf wagon came to us as the Jetta wagon, so i dont see why this wouldnt.
(Theres a confirmed GLI version as well! thank god :))
I would say it would be a Jetta as well. This way they can charge more and not add such a matronly vehicle to the “spunky” Rabbit line.
The Golf Estate has always been the Jetta wagon here in the U.S. Therefore, it is very likely that this is the Jetta wagon we are looking at (for the Americans).
After the latest Passat I thought it coundn’t get much worse but this even uglier.
I can’t wait to test drive this bad boy… Even though its a wagon(not for me) it’s….Nice.
Didn’t we see pics about a year or so ago with a slightly sportier roofline and a much nicer greenhouse shape?? This looks like they went way conservative, especially the bland bulky taillights. Not nearly as sleek as the new Passat wagon for sure. This will definitely be refasciaed, dipped in chrome and named Jetta for the US.. and the fact they are testing in snow gives hope that we may finally get a 4Motion version this time!
“Gallery after the jump…”
Why is that crap always there? What jump? The pics are a centimeter below that text ya morons. Hardly a jump….
V-dumb in da house, da?
Comment by GMnumberone4ever–Wow what a typical American response. VW is the number one car brand in all of Europe, which last time I checked is way bigger than the US. Sales are up in EVERY country that sells VW including the US (up 4.9 percent over 2005). The GTI was just named car of the year by Motor Trend Magazine. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, four of the ten most fuel efficient vehicles available for sale in the U.S. in 2004 were powered by Volkswagen diesel engines. VW is also working with Daimler/Chrysler to design a new joint mini van collaboration, so yeah if they were so close to dead would a division of your fav company really join up with them to design a car together? Bob Luttz couldn’t pick off an american car company let alone a german one. Need proof, GM’s quality was so piss poor that they had to go out and join up with a german company to improve their image, handling, and performance. Yeah that’s a real victory for GM isn’t it…lol. The GTI was named by Consumer Reports as the top sporty car under $25,000. Also Volkswagen’s performance in the J.D. Power and Associates 2006 Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout (APEAL) Study. Volkswagen scored highest among “nonluxury” brands, finishing fourteenth overall with strong performances by its new Jetta and Passat models. And i could go on and on and on…US cars, GM in particular, are FAR from reliable and Consumer Reports can back that up. So VW close to extinction, I think not.
^BS, VW has as much prescence in Europe as Daewoo. Nobody drove them when I was there and anyone who did was sitting on the side of the road with their damn hazards flashing! Sorry bud, the only cars people drove in London and the surrounding areas I visited were Opels, Vauxhalls and Saabs. There were a bunch of Caddy BLS’s and a few Hummers as well. You’d think GM dealers were the only ones selling any cars in London. BTW, are those silly looking taxi cabs BMW or Mercedes, because they all seemed to smoke alot and were quite a few of them broken down.
Speaking of Hummer, did you happen to notice kids wearing the “Like Nothing Else on Earth” shirts around? All the kids were wearing them. And I asked a few of the kids what their dream car was (being that they lived in the UK and all) and every single one of them said either a Hummer or a Cadillac Escalade. So even in the UK, GM is king, everything else is ****
And then you woke up….isn’t dreaming great?
See my friend, there is this little thing called FACTS that maybe you should check into. Direct from the largest ratings company in the world, AC Neilson, VW is the largest selling brand in Europe. Read about it here: http://www2.acnielsen.com/news/20050404_eu.shtml
and here is a nice little excerpt from the article: “While Volkswagen is currently the leading car brand in Europe and ranked third in global brand ranking, they are under increasing competition from Peugeot, Toyota and Ford which are also top-of-mind brands among Southern European consumers looking to purchase a new car in the near future.”
And another source: http://www.hoovers.com/volkswagen/–ID__41853–/free-co-factsheet.xhtml
This looks EXACTLY like my 2001 3-series Wagon!! Which is actually pretty cool for a wagon. (Tough to make wagons look cool) I love the look on peoples faces when I pass them in the canyons in my 3er. Stealth, baby.