Following a brief hiatus, the Volkswagen Up city car is back on sale. It’s now available in three distinct flavours – standard, performance orientated GTI and the all-electric e-Up.
The model year changes don’t constitute a facelift, rather a reconciliation of engines and trim levels – but the new Up will be the first car to wear the brand-new Volkswagen badge.
New trim levels in range
Kicking off the range will be models equipped with the 60hp, 1.0-litre, three-cylinder petrol engine. This and the GTI are now the only two petrol models available, with its 75hp sibling and the 90hp turbocharged petrol no longer available.
It’s capable of a combined fuel economy figure of 51.4mpg and CO2 emissions of 124g/km in the unnamed base trim. Gone are the rather Spartan base trims of before, however – now, even the entry-level model comes with 15-inch alloy wheels, smartphone integration, DAB radio and a colour infotainment screen as standard.
There’s also a new camera-based safety aid, which unfortunately involves the removal of the autonomous emergency braking system previously fitted. Lane assist takes its place, while curtain airbags are also now included. All this standard equipment comes for a base price of £12,440.
White and Black Edition models also feature in the range, priced from £13,125 with 16-inch alloy wheels and the roof, mirror housings and dash pads finished in their corresponding colour. There’s also a Beats model, with a 300-watt stereo system and underfloor subwoofer, which costs from £13,490.
Topping off the standard range is the new Up R-Line, which brings sporty styling touches, lowered suspension and black alloy wheels. It costs from £14,280.
All trim levels are five-door only, bar the entry-level and GTI models, which can also be specified with three doors.
Much-loved Up GTI returns
Above this sits the latest Up GTI – a car we rate very highly indeed. The dinky pocket rocket still makes use of a turbocharged 1.0-litre engine producing 115hp, and is capable of 0-62mph in 8.8 seconds.
It’s fitted with 17-inch alloy wheels and checked cloth upholstery, plus red detailing to give it the same retro GTI flavour we’ve come to know and love. It’s priced from £15,895, a fair price jump over its initial £13,750 price tag.
e-Up available to order soon
Pricing is not yet available for the new Volkswagen e-Up, though we can expect it to start a little over the £22,800 of its SEAT Mii Electric sister model, or the £20,400 of the lower-specced Skoda Citigo-e IV.
Like those cars, it uses an 80hp electric motor and 32.3kWh battery pack to provide nippy performance around town and up to 162 miles on a full charge.
The new Up range is available to order now.
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