LOS ANGELES -- The three-wheeled GX3 that Volkswagen rolled out on Wednesday, Jan. 4, is more than a concept vehicle, vehicle VW brand chief Wolfgang Bernhard said.
"If this gets positive feedback, we will see this on the streets of California soon," Bernhard said at the Los Angeles auto show.
Asked to rate its production potential on a scale of 1 to 10, Bernhard pegged it at an eight and said it could go on sale in 2007. Such a vehicle would have an estimated base price of less than $17,000.
The two-seater, which VW calls a motorcycle, is powered by a 1.6-liter, four-cylinder engine, rated at 125 hp, mated to a five-speed manual transmission.
But since the vehicle weighs just 1,257 pounds, the engine can push the GX3 from 0 to 60 mph in 5.7 seconds yet still return fuel economy of 46 mpg.
Bernhard said VW is already talking with partners to develop a plan to put the GX3 into production.
The concept was a collaboration between VW's design studio in Southern California, and its Moonraker research team. The Moonraker team is a group of VW engineers and product planners living in the United States to study trends and drivers' preferences. The goal is to develop VW vehicles with more features that appeal to North American buyers.
"We've got to breathe more life into the VW brand," said Bernhard. "The first step in that is the GX3."
You may e-mail Kathy Jackson at kjackson@crain.com
