Volkswagen Ameo Permanently Discontinued in India

Volkswagen Ameo, the German brand’s only made-for-India car has been permanently discontinued in the Indian market. The company unveiled the compact sedan in February 2016 at the Auto Expo. The brand developed the car with an investment of approximately INR 720 crore. Its production began in the month of May in the same year. The base model of the VW Ameo compact sedan was priced at INR 5.24 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi) at the time of its launch. The car belongs to the sub-4-meter sedan segment.

A year ago, Volkswagen announced that it had sold over 50,000 units of the Ameo in 3 years, which is not a good sales figure. In comparison to it, the rival brands were way ahead in terms of sales. Honda shipped 67,715 units of Amaze in 2019 and about 67,584 units in 2018. The yearly sales figure of Maruti Suzuki Dzire is in lakhs.

The sub-compact sedan by Volkswagen, Ameo was loaded with features like ambient lights, cruise control, dual-beam headlamps, 15-inch alloy wheels, flat-bottomed steering wheel, single-folding rear seat backrest, rain-sensing wipers, front and rear power windows with one-touch operation and remote opening/closing windows. But still, the sedan failed to attract the customers in the Indian market.

Mechanically, the Volkswagen Ameo was powered by a 1.2-litre MPI petrol engine which churns out 75HP of maximum power along with 110Nm of peak torque. The engine was mated to a 5-speed manual gearbox. There was also an option for a 1.5-litre TDi diesel engine that produces 110HP of maximum power along with 250Nm of peak torque. It was paired to a 5-speed manual gearbox as standard while the brand also offered a 7-speed DCT transmission as an option.

Back in 2018, the 1.2-litre petrol engine of the car was replaced with an all-new 1.0-litre MPI unit that was good for 76HP of maximum power with 95Nm of peak torque. At present, the Indian division of the brand is focusing on models that are longer than 4000mm in length. The company is planning to launch the Taigun premium SUV in 2021 along with the next-gen Vento Sedan in 2022.

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