VW BlueSport Roadster:What's the latest?

[RogueTDI]

I photoshopped this ages ago. its not very good.

Looks pretty good!

Dead or not (and signs are it is not totally dead, but in a precarious status) the Bluesport Roadster is something VW should, and needs to, build. I think it would do great things for the brand as a whole, sales and image wise.

Im interested in more up to date discussion on these boards. Not sure a new thread is warranted. I said it then and i still say it now. Id nearly give a nut for one of these. Now comfortably in my 30s, im feeling a reaaal urge to get a grassroots sports car, and a TDI powered roadster like this would definitely get my business, as well as keep me loyal to VW.

[RogueTDI]

I also found the dollowing info, which suggests VW has updated this prototype concept, for 2012, so something MR is still in works, but all depends on predicted sales quantities (which is craziness - VW would win from this car in ways bean counters will never be able to quantify).




An updated Bluesport?

Volkswagen's Bluesport concept was a stunning mid-engine roadster that received critical acclaim when it was introduced at the North American International Auto Show in 2009. Over the years, there were rumors of a production version but that hasn't happened as of yet. Now there's word the company is preparing to unveil a new mid-engine prototype later this year. It remains unclear if the vehicle will follow in the footsteps of the Bluesport, but it will have to have mass appeal in order to reach production.

Read more: http://www.worldcarfans.com/11201163...#ixzz1k8gFn5T4




Five Minutes with Ulrich Hackenberg, VW Board Member for Product Development

Written by: Jason Cammisa on January 13 2012 1:00 PM

We joined a roundtable with Ulrich Hackenberg, member of the board of management for Volkswagen AG, responsible for product development during the Detroit auto show this week. Hackenberg says that localization is the most important thing to VW’s continued growth in the U.S. That means the volume engines we get here, including the new 1.4-liter turbo that will debut in the Jetta Hybrid, will be built in North America. A surprise admission is that the next-generation Golf, which uses the new MQB platform, will bebuilt in Mexico — and that the new Chattanooga plant can also build MQB cars. That means there is potential for the next Scirocco and even things like the Bulli to come stateside. The Future of the VR6 Right now, the VR6 engine’s future is in limbo. It is not as simple of whether or not it will continue on naturally aspirated or gain turbocharging, as it depends on the tax limit on displacement. According to Hackenberg, VW has placesin which there is a need for more power than can be provided by a four-cylinder, but have yet to decide if the VR6 will carry on or will get replaced by a turbocharged five-cylinder to fillthat slot. Currently, the only remaining place that the VR6 resides in our market is under the hood of the CC. If Volkswagen can manage to build the VR6 or its replacement within the U.S. or the North American Free Trade Agreement zone (U.S., Canada, Mexico), the U.S. market will get it. Otherwise, the fate of the VR6 lies only with the possibility of a low-volume, premium application with a high enough price tag to allow the VR6 to be built in Germany and shipped here. A Midengine VW? Hackenberg says that Volkswagen will have a mid-engine prototype car this year. The U.S. market would be important for the car, since its main competition is the Mazda MX-5 and most of that car’s volume is in the U.S. However, despite being liked by the media, these cars would need bigger sales numbers to make it happen. No word on whether or notthe new concept will be an evolution of the BlueSport roadster from a few years ago. One of the largest issues for a mid-engine car is that VW sales people wanted a more American car. Hackenberg says they were pushed to do it, the result of which was the Jetta. “We made it different than it was. And it was successful. We have to less it; we can’t just make cars from the hearts of the engineers.” Before venturing into niche segments, Volkswagen has to do its homework and get the bread-and-butter carsselling in big numbers. Does that mean we can expect more hybrids from VW? Volkswagen has the diesel market cornered in the U.S. — according to Hackenberg, 75 percent of all diesel passengercars soldare VWs. He goes on, “but there are still customers who prefer a hybrid, depending on the area. We have to offer the technologies which are asked for by customers. They’re asking for a hybrid. That’s why we do it.” First up is the turbocharged 1.4-liter gasoline I-4 in the Jetta Hybrid with the electric motor doing what the supercharge did on the twincharger engine. The 1.4T is not related to the EA888 (2.0T) engine, but from a smallerfamilyof enginesthattops out at 1.4 liters and a turbocharger. Expect to see more electrics, too Up! production and e-Golf will bothbeon themarketnext year, and driveability is really good, according to Hackenberg. Even with a limited capacity and range of the batteries limited to 120 to 150 miles, he can see it as a second car for people or a car for the city. The next step is a plug-in hybrid, which VW is developing on the Golf chassis. That car will havean85kW electricmotor and will besimilar to the EV but with the combustion engine from the Jetta Hybrid and have an all-electric range of about 30-35 miles. However, the Golf isn’t the right car for this powertrain; it’s more likely that we’ll see a Jetta plug-in hybrid here. No Polo for the U.S. The Polo is being brought to market in China, but VW has held off on doing so in the U.S. While they are prepared to build those cars in the U.S., all of the parts need to be localized and the sales business case stillneedsto bemade. Right now, the first priority is to get the new Jetta and Passat fully ramped up. The subcompact market will catch up, but it has a lot to do with gas prices at this point. To Hackenberg, everything below the Jetta and the Golf is cheap, and VW isn’t going to givethe Polo away; instead, they will wait for the right moment to introduce the model in the U.S. He says that Volkswagen is “well prepared with the product” and can act very quickly. The importance in getting the Polo right and to continue profitability is localization. (Hackenberg explained that the profitability was thanks to the Passat and the fact that it’s all made locally.)To help with that, VW’snext modular platform — the MQB — will be built in Mexico. It’s completely flexible and can fit under vehicles from Polo to Passat, though the upcoming 2013 Audi A3 will be the first car in production to ride on MQB. The Passat’s plantin Chattanooga, Tennesse has the potential to produce MQB cars, despite the fact that the current car rides on PQ35, thanks to how the tooling has been set up. It’s thanks to this that we could see the next-generation Scirocco on U.S. shores — Hackenberg says that car will ride on MQB, and could, therefore, be easier to certify for the North American market.

Read more: http://rumors.automobilemag.com/five...#ixzz1k8gSbfxG


Source:

http://sportscarforums.com/f9/vw-blu...r-30373-4.html

[Fritz27]

I wouldn't be shocked to see the Bluesport come along. The MQB seems really flexible and with VWoA making some decent cash on the American-spec Jettas and Passats and presumably a large-ish crossover to compete with the Explorer/Pilot/Highlander then I could see VW bringing a couple of more niche products, especially since there wouldn't be a lot of cost involved in them underneath the sheetmetal.

[RogueTDI]

... Hackenberg says.

"What we did [with the concept] was create the appetite, and this year we will drive it." He says he'll have an extensive drive of the BlueSport in the coming weeks, probably someplace in South Africa. The car is in pre-development.

"I drove it Wednesday. We always do a pre-drive. We did it here. It was quite cold, minus 15 [Celsius, or +5 Fahrenheit], and I had it open." Top-down.

"The sense of this car is to emotionalize the Volkswagen brand. We want to be premium under the popular brands. You must have some cars that are really emotional. And that's why I think we need such a car."

Read more: http://www.motortrend.com/features/a...#ixzz1tRWLddnP

Yes, exactly, so head engineering guy understands the purpose and importance of this car. Glad to see that.

[Dav8or]

I had a 1988 MR2, mid engine under powered two seater. Was it fast...no but a lot of fun to drive and didn't burn much gas. I would love a chance to drive a torqued diesel light weigh. Just make sure the trunk will take a weekend worth of luggage for two.

[RogueTDI]

[gizmopop]

I had a 1988 MR2, mid engine under powered two seater. Was it fast...no but a lot of fun to drive and didn't burn much gas. I would love a chance to drive a torqued diesel light weigh. Just make sure the trunk will take a weekend worth of luggage for two.

The performance of the 1988 MR2 was inline with its competition of the day, the CRX .

The Bluesport has a target weight of 2600+ lbs.
It's target market is that of the Miata ($20-30K range).
Any engine currently available in the U.S. would be suitable for this car, be it the 2.5 I5 170hp, the 2.0 TDI 140hp/236 torque(or the 170hp version available in Europe) or the 2.0T (200hp).

[.2.Slow4U.]

I know this is old, but my wife swears she saw one of these on the beltway yesterday. Any news on if this is coming for sure? We live 20 min away from VWOA headquarters in Herndon, so it wouldn't be surprising if they had one or two of the firsts running around...

[RogueTDI]

wow. Very interested in your sighting. And still very interested in the Bluesport.

[2VWatatime]

I know this is old, but my wife swears she saw one of these on the beltway yesterday. Any news on if this is coming for sure? We live 20 min away from VWOA headquarters in Herndon, so it wouldn't be surprising if they had one or two of the firsts running around...

There's at least one Golf Cabriolet tooling around - saw it not long ago near South Lakes HS (just south of VW HQ)

[gizmopop]

There's at least one Golf Cabriolet tooling around - saw it not long ago near South Lakes HS (just south of VW HQ)

It doesn't surprise me, you will always see rare VWs around their buildings.

A friend of mine saw the Blusport out and about around Coral Gables a few years back. If it is still being seen around 3 years after it debuted on the Car show circuit, it can only be a good thing right?

As for the Golf Cabriolet, it could be here for various environment testing, or they could be considering it for our market, I'd prefer the Golf Cabrio (in GTI trim) before the favored Beetle Cabrio, but I'd prefer the Blusport above all.

[Fritz27]

Considering someone is still tooling around in a W12 Nardo in Wolfsburg, I don't think it means much of anything.

[AuForm]

The Cayman/Boxster is getting expensive and powerful enough to create a market for a bluesport chassis model. VAG likes to build chassis across different brands. They've all got twins.

If they keep it light and simple they can keep the engines small enough to stay in the affordable roadster niche without cannibalizing Boxster sales. Simplicity and modularity with the Golf platform can keep production costs reasonable even if sales don't reach 50.000 units per year - which I think would be rather optimistic.

Since we're running out of resources, economy of scale is going to stop making sense (since you're dramatically increasing your resource cost). Economy of efficiency should be the new goal - although the stock holders are really into that scale thing.