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Volkswagen's new Passat Alltrack ready to scale the Alps

Volvo may be stepping up its off-roading game with a greater variety of Cross Country models tumbling out the factory in Gothenburg, but the other (larger) European automaker whose name starts with the letters V-O-L is also broadening and updating its range of road-going automobiles equipped to handle a little soft-road duty. Aside from Audi's Allroad line, Skoda's Scout models and the new Seat Leon X-Perience, the Volkswagen brand itself has recently showcased Alltrack versions of the Golf, Multivan and of course the Passat. And now it's announced a new version of the latter for the European market. Based on the Euro-spec Passat Variant, the new VW Passat Alltrack follows a familiar formula: take a station wagon, equip it with all-wheel drive, jack up the suspension, add some lower body cladding and some new trim and – voila! – you've got a pseudo rough-roader on your hands. Set to debut in just a couple of weeks from now at the 2015 Geneva Motor Show, the new Passat Alltrack is visually distinguished by its new bumpers, underbody protection, beefed-up wheel arch moldings and a ride height increased by over an inch to the benefit of ground clearance as well as approach and departure angles. European buyers who like to leave the road every once in a while (or give the impression that they do) will be able to choose from a range of five engines: two burning gasoline with either 148 horsepower or 217, and three diesels available in 148-, 187- or 237-hp states of tune. The base TSI and TDI engines are mated to a six-speed manual, while the top three are hooked up to a six-speed DCT, but they all come with 4Motion all-wheel drive as standard. All but the base TSI model boast a towing capacity of 1,800 kg, enhanced by a Trailer Assist system that automatically lines the vehicle up to a trailer. It even comes equipped with an off-road mode that incorporates Hill Start Assist and Hill Descent Assist to make any journey across the Alps a breeze. Wolfsburg / Geneva, 19 February 2015 World premiere of the new Passat Alltrack All-wheel drive all-rounder combines the best of on-road and off-road driving - Passat Alltrack: 100 per cent 4MOTION – from 150 PS to 240 PS - Superior off-road performance with off-road mode and all-wheel drive Ten important facts about the world premiere of the Passat Alltrack: 1. Permanent 4MOTION all-wheel drive as standard. 2. Distinctive off-road look with new bumpers, underbody protection, door sill and wheel arch trims. 3.

VW to announce $1B investment in Mexico plant

Big news south of the border could be slated for later this week, as Automotive News is reporting that the Volkswagen Group will announce a $1-billion investment in the company's Puebla factory. The company officially declined to comment, but AN is claiming the investment in the Puebla facility, which has been operating for over five decades, will add 1,900 jobs to the nearly 16,000-strong workforce. According to AN, a person familiar with the situation in Puebla claims the investment will support production of the next-generation Tiguan, slated to arrive in 2017. The Puebla factory currently produces Golf, while total output last year nearly hit half a million vehicles, or about 15 percent of Mexico's total automotive output. News Source: Automotive News - sub. req.Image Credit: Susana Gonzalez / Newsmakers/ Getty Plants/Manufacturing Volkswagen Mexico vw tiguan puebla

Volkswagen considering a four-door, four-seat XL1

According to a report in Autocar, Volkswagen might have more in mind for the XL1 than mining it for advances to grace the next-generation Golf. Aiming to fight the Honda FCEV due for public consumption next year, we're told VW executives have put a four-door, four-seater version of the XL1 - it could be called XL2 - on the drawing board. The impetus is said to come from the top, with VW Group chairman Ferdinand Piëch intent on staying in the deep end of "super-efficent vehicles."
Autocar suspects the necessary changes could raise the weight of the car from 1,749 pounds to 2,068 pounds, which would make it four pounds less than the 2,072-pound Up! we drove a few years ago. Crucially, however, the mag thinks the extra capacity wouldn't change the two-seater's 310-mile-per-gallon rating, with tech tweaks and the aerodynamic benefit of a longer car offsetting the weight. Speculation is that the back seats would be staggered like the fronts in order to maintain the XL1's overall profile.
We recently heard about another XL1 variant that's gone off the radar entirely, the Ducati-engined XLR that we thought we'd see at the Geneva Motor Show and that was said to be going into production, so this one could go the same way. The biggest hurdle to making such an idea a reality, though, could be the price: the current XL1 costs 110,000 euros ($146,116). If VW really is going to compete with the Honda FCEV and the Toyota FCV - $70,000 in Japan - that might be where it wants to start.