Bratislava to Host VW Up Production

Volkswagen Up, the new city car lineup prepared by the German manufacturer, might be produced by the company's Slovakian plant in Bratislava, sources close to CEO Martin Winterkorn said according to Autonews. A final decision has not been taken yet but Volkswagen board is expected to announce the production facility to be responsible for VW Up following the upcoming annual meeting on April 23.

Basically, the German manufacturer will analyze all possible options when it comes to the production of new series, with Bratislava likely to picked as favorite. The reason is quite simple: the company experienced decreasing sales following the impact of the economic recession in Europe, with sales of VW Touareg and Audi Q7 unveiling high declines.

Both models are now produced in Bratislava so, as a result, VW is likely to reduce the output of these particular vehicles and start production of the new Up.

Volkswagen Up would be the third subcompact car to be produced in Bratislava as the Slovakian facility was responsible for the manufacturing of Volkswagen Polo and SEAT Ibiza.

There are a lot of rumors surrounding Volkswagen Up, especially when talking about the price - the main intention of the German manufacturer is to produce a small car addressed to city driving that would be more affordable compared to its competitors. According to the aforementioned source, the entry-level Up is expected to cost less than 8,000 euros ($10,766).

Furthermore, Volkswagen plans to use dealership networks belonging to its European division to expand the coverage of the model so Skoda and SEAT are also expected to get rebadged versions of the car.

Volkswagen Up was officially showcased to the general public at the 2007 Frankfurt Auto Show in Germany, with mass-production expected to start later this year or in early 2010.