This is Volkswagen’s New Compact Coupé (or NCC for short), a new coupé concept car just unveiled at the 2010 Detroit Auto Show. And although it’s just a show car for now, this gorgeous A5-alike two-door is expected to go into production within the next two years.
What’s special about the new VW NCC?
Under the bonnet is a 148bhp/177lb ft direct-injection and turbocharged 1.4-litre TSI engine, which drives the front wheels via a seven-speed DSG gearbox. But the NCC also has a 20kW electric motor (fed power by a boot-mounted lithium-ion battery) to boost acceleration or enable zero-emissions running.
Together the combo means the concept can achieve a top speed of 141mph and a 0-62mph sprint in 8.6 seconds, but also turn in figures of 67.3mpg and 98g/km. The engine is also disengaged from the transmission when the throttle isn’t depressed, so there’s regenerative braking to charge the battery, and a stop/start system.
But if eco-friendly motoring doesn’t appeal then just gawp at the shape. ‘Just a few precisely placed lines and powerfully sculpted surfaces have created a timeless dynamic and purist elegance that is typical of Volkswagen,’ says chief designer for the Volkswagen brand Klaus Bischoff. Or rather they’ve just aped the look of Audi’s A5 Coupé.
Concept car touches include the 19-inch wheels and LED lights front and back, but the metalwork outside and the 2+2 interior treatment looks ready to roll out of a factory to our eyes.
What about production plans?
The NCC is basically the next Jetta compact saloon in two-door coupé guise. We’ve already scooped the Jetta but the signs are that this two-door iteration is under evaluation as an extra niche model to fit between Scirocco and Passat CC.
VW’s Chattanooga plant in Tennessee will start building a new mid-sized saloon in the next 12 months, and the Jetta and NCC versions could eventually follow suit. The Jetta and mid-sized saloon pair will be biased heavily towards the American market, hence the US factory.
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