Volkswagen displayed six concepts based on the up! city car at last year’s Frankfurt Motor Show. At the time, the German company told the media that some of them were likely to make it to production, but it did not mention which ones.
The first variant to be given the green light was the electric up! The four-door up! prefigured in Frankfurt by the crossup! was revealed yesterday, and the latest one is the performance-oriented model called the GT up!
The GT up! will have a look of its own that will feature bigger wheels, and a more aggressive front bumper that incorporates a honeycomb-like air dam similar to the one found on the Golf GTI. Volkswagen is expected to tweak the car’s suspension to achieve a sportier handling and stance.
On the inside, the GT up! is likely to get a Golf GTI-like treatment, including a more complete instrumentation and bucket seats.
Volkswagen has not released any technical details about the car, and there are conflicting reports about what will lurk under the GT up!’s hood. Some claim that Volkswagen will bolt a turbo to the up!’s three-cylinder engine in order to bump its power output to about 110 horsepower. Others are placing their bets on Volkswagen shoehorning the 105 horsepower 1.2 TFSI four-cylinder found in the Audi A1.
The GT up! will be revealed in the second half of 2012 and is slated for a 2013 launch, so more information about the car will be available in the coming months.
