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If there was ever one single car Volkswagen needed appeal to the masses again, the Up! is it. It’s all new, cheap, and fun to drive.

If you didn’t know, Das Auto simply means The Car, and if there was ever one single car Volkswagen needed appeal to the masses again, it’s this.

It’s the brand new Up! and it’s quite an important model for Volkswagen. You see the Citi Golf was as part of our upbringing as Orkney Snorkney and Mnet Open Time. It was cheap to run, practical and affordable and at the time it was quite funky to look at too.

It was the default first car of a generation yet also managed to be a car for all generations. It was the people’s car.

It couldn’t last though, the Citi Golf was a relic in comparison to the technological advancements being made in the industry, especially in budget car sector. It had become an outdated child of the 80s and with pressure on for even basic entry level cars to have a modicum of active and passive safety systems, in 2009 it was decommissioned. Sad face.

So why is this new Up! such an important car for VW?

Well firstly it’s all-new (to South Africa at least) and not a budgetised version of an existing model, as was the case with the vanilla Polo Vivo, the model which replaced the Citi Golf.

Secondly, it’s cheap. I know, at R133 500 for the base Take Up! many of you will scoff and call it expensive. But you do get a decent amount kit as standard. And quality German engineering is one of them, and one element you can’t so easily check off a specification list. With the Up! VW has managed to make a small car not feel cheap – certainly in the interior which is solid and very well screwed together.

Specification wise, the entry level Take Up! gets you front and side airbags for driver and passenger, ABS, power steering, remote central locking, daytime running lights, height adjustable driver’s seat, ISOFIX anchorage points and air-conditioning. All for R10 000 cheaper than the cheapest Polo Vivo.

The model I was given to test for the week is the high-spec Move Up! And for the extra 7 grand you get electric windows, electric side mirrors, a rev counter and digital display for trip info, temperature etc and a radio/CD player. And in true test car style, the test unit was also fitted with every possible extra. Sound plus package adds 4 extra speakers, Bluetooth connectivity and a little removable digital interface which connects via Bluetooth and displays your cellphone’s phonebook and music options.

The Driver’s package adds cruise control and front and rear park distance control. Winter package gives you headed seats and front fog lights. Optional items like the panoramic sunroof and the 15” alloy wheels were also fitted and, if you tick all those boxes you’ll end up paying R160 000 all-in, as was the case with the car I’ve been driving. But honestly you wouldn’t want for more any extra mod-cons in a small car.

That’s a large dose of spec! How does it drive?

Both models are powered by this 999cc 3-cylinder engine which only produces 55kW and 95Nm of torque. No doubt you’ll assume that isn’t enough, but I can tell you it is. Even with the air-con blasting the little Up! will keep up with everything around you at 120km/h.

But blasting down the freeway isn’t the Up!’s natural home. No, this little car is at home in the city, where small is best. The Up! is tiny at just 3.5m long and yet on the road it manages to feel far bigger than it actually is. Inside, the same thing, with the large doors and windows and the optional sunroof, it feels very airy and spacious inside.

Out and about the Up! is lots of fun to drive, and in Cornflower Blue livery, it turns heads. What really deserves special mention though is the way the Up! rides though. Most small cars battle over poor road surfaces, hopping skipping and generally bumping around. With their diminutitve wheelbase lengths, tiny wheels and primitive suspension ride and handling are usually first on the list of gripes. But not so in the Up! which manages to take everything in its stride and really has an impressively comfortable ride.

Right, there must be a few gripes, no?

To be honest there aren’t many. The ridiculously thin steering wheels might be one of them, but actually it reminds me a lot of the spindly little Bakerlite wheel you got in the original Beetle. It only has two doors too which might put some people off, and admittedly, space in the back seat is quite tight, certainly for my 6ft frame. It does have a huge boot for its size though. Easily the biggest in its class.

Okay, let’s wrap this up! (Sorry, not sorry)

Having spent a week in it, in a lot of ways though, the Up! reminds me of the original Beetle. It’s a simple, well-engineered small car, and shouldn’t cost an arm and a leg to run either. Over the week I drove it, mostly in town driving it averaged under 6 litres per 100km. Take a longer trip and that will drop below 5 litres per 100km.

While most other small cars, including those made by VW, fade into obscurity the Up! is actually something you want to drive and you’ll be happy to be seen in.

It embraces what VW used to be about, by being cheap, fun to drive and not costing a fortune. It really is a people’s car for the 21st century. Das Auto? No no. Das Volks Wagen.

Thumbs up:
All-new
Relatively cheap
Superior build quality

Thumbs down:
Expensive options

Pricing:
Up! Take up   R133 500.00
Up! Move up R140 500.00 (Driven)