Beijing Auto Show 2014 – Midsize Coupe Concept

Volkswagen has released teaser images of the “Midsize Coupe Concept” which will debut at the Beijing Auto Show. While Volkswagen is referring to this as a midsize car developed specifically for the Chinese market, it is essentially an MQB component platform Jetta concept. Could this give us a glimpse of what the next generation Jetta looks like? Maybe. We look forward to seeing the actual photos in a few days time. Meanwhile here is the short but sweet press release and a gallery of drawings…

Wolfsburg / Beijing, April 2014. It’s a four-door coupé the like of which has never been seen before in this vehicle class: the New Midsize Coupé concept car. Volkswagen has brought the concept car to Beijing for its world premiere at Auto China 2014. The ‘New’ part goes without saying: the New Midsize Coupé is as new as a new car can be. ‘Coupé’ is also unambiguous: the New Midsize Coupé is low in height (1,422 mm) and very wide (1,838 mm), it has a low visual centre of gravity, short overhangs, muscular shoulders and side sections, a dynamic roof line with markedly swept-back C-pillars, a short boot lid and long bonnet. ‘Midsize’ is less obvious. It is normally the term for a car of the Passat class. However, the concept car is just 4,597 mm long and thus shorter than a Passat and shorter even than the Jetta. However, as mentioned the concept car outdoes the other two in terms of its width – and it is thus midsized. So clearly this concept car exhibits proportions of an extremely sporty nature. The team led by Volkswagen head designer Klaus Bischoff integrated these sharp proportions in a body design that makes the New Midsize Coupé a powerful and avant-garde proponent of a new, compact saloon class. The concept has a 220 hp four-cylinder TSI engine, allowing it to sprint from 0 to 62 mph in 6.5 seconds, with a top speed of 152 mph. The car sits on 20-inc h wheels with 245/40 tires.