Volkswagen South Africa lays bare plans for 2020

Volkswagen Group South Africa (VWSA) has set the bar high for 2020. On the back of a myriad new vehicles locally over the next 10 months or so, VWSA plans to strengthen its position as SA’s new passenger car market leader with further innovations such as newly launched service and maintenance plans and a brand new app.

“We don’t expect to show any growth in 2020 taking the financial climate into consideration and have set ourselves the target of maintaining our 2019 market share,” says Martina Biene, Head of the Volkswagen Brand in South Africa.

“This year, 2020, will see the introduction of the Golf 8 which will feature level two autonomous driving systems known as partial automation. The global drive to autonomous driving is a fast paced one and Tesla has already announced it will feature level three on it vehicles by 2021/22.

“We are also very excited with the arrival of our We Connect Go app this year. We understand that the high costs of data in South Africa will always be an issue, but we can’t arrest the world’s digitalisation on those grounds and simply have to keep up with the times,” Biene said.

VW has no plans to offer an electric vehicle locally just yet, but has two electric initiatives. A fleet of e-Golfs and later ID.4s will be sampled locally to enable VWSA to gather as much information as it can on electric vehicles in South Africa. The e-Golfs have already arrived and The Citizen is on the waiting list so expect further information later in the year.

T-Roc

VW isn’t letting the cat out of the bag about its new SUV to slot in between the T-Cross and Tiguan. Similar to the T-Cross last year, VW will premiere the T-Roc first to allow dealerships to take pre-orders in Q2 before the vehicle will make its much-anticipated local arrival in Q3.

The T-Roc made its international debut last year with the R derivative the brand’s first performance SUV. It features a turbocharged 2.0-litre petrol engine with 221 kW of power and 400 Nm of torque sent to all four wheels via a seven-speed DSG. Details of which derivatives will be available will only be revealed closer to the time.

T-Cross

The brand’s popular compact SUV was launched with only one engine option in 2019 spread over four models. In Q2 of 2020, VW plans to roll out two additional powertrain options to complement the 85 kW TSI 1.0 engine. The new range-topping 1.5 TSI Evo engine will produce 110 kW of power and 250 Nm of torque, while a low-output version of the 1.0 TSI engine will deliver 70kW/160Nm.

The 70kW version will offer the gateway to the T-Cross and initially said to cost ‘’below R300 000’’ in 2019, it remains to be seen if that number is still possible in the light of the financial climate.

Golf GTI TCR

With the Golf 8 arriving in South Africa towards the end of the year, the limited edition GTI TCR will be the final sting in the tail of the Golf 7.5. The TCR’s name was derived from the racing car of the same name – and has a proper sports car credentials. It produces 213 kW of power and is claimed to reach 100 km/h in 5.6 seconds. Only 300 units will be available in Q2.

Proudly SA Polo Vivo

Riding on the same platform as the previous generation Polo, which was South Africa’s most popular passenger car in terms of new car sales throughout 2019, no details have been given on what VW terms the new proudly South African Polo Vivo to be available in Q3, but it should be mainly centered around styling and specification levels.

Golf 8

Officially shown to the world via live streaming from Hamburg, Germany, in October, the highly-anticipated eighth generation Golf is set to reach South Africa late in the year, with the slight possibility of only being launched early in 2021 should there be any delays along the line. The first derivative said to be made available locally will fittingly be the GTI, the best-loved Golf in South Africa.

Facelifted Tiguan

The facelifted Tiguan should reach South Africa in Q4, but much like the Golf 8, unforeseen circumstances might well see the third generation of the SUV only being rolled out in Q1 of 2021. Sharing the same platform as the Golf 8, spy pictures of the new Tiguan has revealed similar styling cues as the hatchback. The two will further share similar engines, but we’ll have to wait for more information about what we can expect to see in South Africa.

190 kW Amarok

Already the quickest production double cab available locally, VW adds some extra spice to the 3.0-litre V6 Amarok with a 190 kW model to be launched in Q3. The new model will boast 35kW more than the current 165 kW V6 version and offers up to 200 kW on overboost, while torque will increase from 550 Nm to 580 Nm.

The V6 clocked a time of 8.76 sec during Mark Jones’ performance road test a few years ago and it will be interesting to see if we can achieve the “below eight seconds” claim VW has made ahead of its launch. The launch of the spiced-up version is scheduled to coincide with Amarok’s 10th anniversary in South Africa.

Transporter T6.1

VW is updating its versatile commercial van range in 2020. On the outside the new model will feature new design LED head and tail lights, a new front bumper, grille and fender design, new alloy wheels and new heritage paint combinations. The upgrades will continue in the cabin with the addition of electro-mechanical power steering, new driver assistance systems and digital cockpit and Gen3 infotainment. It will again be available in panel van and kombi models in both long and short wheelbase options.

EasyDrive Plans

In an effort to offer customers additional peace of mind, Volkswagen will be offering newly structured service and maintenance EasyDrive plans, previously called Automotion. The service plans can be purchased at any time for vehicles not older than 10 years that have done less than 300 000 km, while the maintenance plans can be extended within six months after the expiry of the previous plan and there are no waiting periods.

The plans can be extended for up to 10 years or 300 000 km with service intervals at 30 000 km increments. The services can be done at any VW dealer, which will use only genuine Volkswagen parts. VW says the plans offer more affordable pricing and are guaranteed to protect customers from inflation.

We Connect Go

In a world that is becoming more digital by the day, Volkswagen doesn’t intend being left behind in the connectivity race. VWSA says that where vehicles on grounds of their VIN numbers used to be the main players in its data storage system, the focus will now shift towards people instead, with the vehicles owned or driven merely listed in their profiles. Starting with the T-Cross in Q1, all new VW models from the Polo Hatch Comfortline upwards from Q2 will be sold locally with a data plug which can send vehicle related information to your smartphone via Bluetooth.

The offering will also be available through after sales and is compatible with all VW models from 2008 excluding the previous generation Polo Vivo. Via the We Connect Go app, VW costumers will be able to access vehicle information such as fuel level, mileage and trip information and also to send a vehicle service request to a dealer of their choice.

VWSA plans to join commercial partners down the line in a possible rewards programme, but says it will first need to have more than 150 000 users to make it viable for rewards partners.

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