Volkswagen’s Concept Bluesport, one of the stars here at the Detroit show, is a Mazda MX-5 rival based on a new group platform and there’s about a 70% chance of the mid-engine rear wheel drive roadster making it into production, according to VW.
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The decision will depend on whether Seat and Audi can also develop their own versions to give VW Group the right economies of scale.
There is no fancy technology – the 1,200kg roadster has a steel body and uses existing group components with the front suspension, for example, from the new Golf. Everything about the car is production-ready.
The engine for the Detroit car is a 180ps 2.0TDi turbodiesel with six-speed DSG dual clutch transmission. CO2 emissions are just 113g/km with 0-62mph (100 km/h) acceleration in 6.6 seconds and a top speed of 142mph. It has automatic start-stop.
A 1.4 TSI (turbo- and supercharged petrol) version is in the pipeline for the Geneva motor show in March and if reaction here in Detroit and again in Switzerland is positive, then the chance of the car being built will increase considerably.
