Volkswagen has announced its product plans for South Africa at its second product Indaba conference. Image: Charl Bosch
Volkswagen has announced a 13 model product roll-out for South Africa in 2025 between the first and third quarters involving not only the brand itself, but also its commercial vehicles division and sister brand Audi.
Aside from the physical launch of the facelift Golf 8.5 at its product Indaba held at its Kariega plant in the Eastern Cape this week, the first quarter of the year mainly involves the debut of no less than three Audi products, all already detailed but not priced.
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Arriving first, the heavily updated A3 will again be offered as a sedan or five-door Sportback powered by the newer 1.5 TSI Evo engine developing the same 110kW/250Nm as the older 1.4 TSI in the Golf.
Detailed back in November, the 48-volt mild-hybrid assisted unit will be mated to the seven-speed S tronic gearbox, though final model specification remains unknown.
Pricing between R580 900 and R688 100 for the Golf means the A3 will command a significantly higher premium, given that the current variant retails from R682 100 to R806 300.
Arriving next, the first quarter will see the debut of the facelift SQ7 and SQ8, the former joining the already priced standard Q7 introduced last year.
Still to be priced, both jettison the 4.0 TDI V8 for the familiar 4.0 TFSI rated at 373kW/770Nm. Claimed top speed for both is 250 km/h, with 0-100 km/h, in both instances, taking 4.1 seconds.
The Four Rings’ final addition in the final quarter will be the updated RS Q8 unveiled in June last year.
Officially the fastest SUV to have rounded the Nürburgring Nordschleife with a time of seven minutes 36.698 seconds, the RS Q8 uses the same twin-turbo V8 as its S sibling, but with outputs lifted to 441kW/800Nm.
While also limited to 250 km/h, the benchmark 0-100 km/h sprint time takes 3.8 seconds.
As it stands, it remains to be seen whether only the standard RS Q8 is brought to market, or indeed the RS Q8 Performance that develops 471kW/850Nm and completes the 0-100 km/h run in 3.6 seconds.
Excluding the Golf, Volkswagen launches will involve the heavily facelift Crafter van and an entry-level two-wheel-drive Life version of the double cab Amarok.
Starting the second quarter off, the facelift RS3 will make its debut as the swansong for the Volkswagen Group’s five-cylinder 2.5 TFSI engine.
Likely to be offered in both sedan and Sportback guises again, the unit develops an unchanged 294kW/500Nm and will see the RS3 get from 0-100 km/h in 3.8 seconds before hitting a limited top speed of 290 km/h with the inclusion of the optional RS Driver’s Package.
Arriving later, the all-electric Q6 e-tron will expand Ingolstadt’s EV range as one of the first products in South Africa to be underpinned by the Porsche developed Premium Platform Electric (PPE).
Seeming only set to be offered in “SUV” form rather than also in Sportback guise, the Q6 e-tron’s final specification remains to be confirmed, although in Europe, two variants are offered; the standard 55 producing 285 kW and the SQ6 that delivers 380 kW.
In both instances, motivation comes from a 95-kWh battery pack that allows for a range of 625 km, seemingly applicable to the 55 variant.
Completing the second quarter, the all-electric ID. Buzz will officially become the first Volkswagen-badged EV to be sold locally instead of the ID.4 currently undergoing evaluation.
Shown in left-hand-drive, long wheelbase guise at the Kyalami Festival of Motoring last year, the displayed Pro variant makes use of a 91-kWh battery powering a rear-mounted electric motor developing 210kW/560Nm.
As it stands, exact details will only be announced come the second quarter.
Completing the roll-out, the third quarter will see the arrival of the Tayron that replaces the Tiguan Allspace, the special edition Polo Vivo Edition 15 – both displayed at the event in person – and a black styling package for the Polo GTI.
By far the biggest highlight, the all-new Audi A5 will go on-sale as the replacement for the A4, only in sedan guise and likely with the same assortment of mild-hybrid combustion engines as in Europe.
Also set to feature is the performance S5 that makes 270 kW from its electrified 3.0 TFSI V6.
Completing the unveilings is the all-new Transporter developed as part of Volkswagen’s joint venture with Ford.
Similar to the Amarok based on the underpinnings of the Ranger, the Transporter uses the Transit Custom as a base, and in South Africa, will be offered in double chassis cab, panel van, Crew Bus and Kombi bodystyles.
Sourced from the Blue Oval, the Transporter will be powered by a single 2.0-litre turbodiesel engine in three states of tune; 81 kW, 110 kW and 125 kW, hooked to either a six-speed manual or eight-speed automatic gearbox depending on the derivative.
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