Volkswagen’s communications division has set a new world record by somehow managing to fit 16 people (15 women, one man) into the upcoming up! city car.
How exactly did VW achieve this publicity stunt? (Deep breath) Two people clambered into the trunk, one perched on the dashboard, seven squeezed onto the rear bench, four sat on the front seats and two took up uncomfortable residences in the footwells.
That’s certainly an impressive achievement given the up!’s diminutive size, but there’s an important disclaimer to consider: the record (which was unofficial) was specifically for most people stuffed into the up!. Last year, 20 people fought off claustrophobia for long enough to pack themselves into a VW Beetle, which has a similar amount of interior space, while a staggering 27 have wedged themselves into an (admittedly larger) VW New Beetle in 2001.
Also worth noting is the fact that the up! won’t go on sale until spring 2012, meaning that those outside of VW will have to wait a bit to try for their own records.
So, it may not be the most impressive world record of all time, but, after all, any press is good press.
