VW High Up review: Volkswagen’s city car is still streets ahead, Cars, Life & Style
VW High Up review: Volkswagen’s city car is still streets ahead
City cars have come a long way and the High Up shows this like no other
Not so long ago the idea of driving a city car on a daily basis was something akin to that dentist scene in the film Marathon Man with Dustin Hoffman and Laurence Olivier.
Actually no, it was worse than that. With about as much engine power as a hair-dryer and all the creature-comforts of a Victorian prison, puny cars were motoring`s reaction to a consolation prize.
They were simply the set of wheels that you bought and drove when you couldn`t afford anything else and you certainly knew it. A cigarette lighter and intermittent windscreen wipers were about as luxurious as it got.
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Which makes this recently face-lifted Up all the more incredible and surprising, indeed.
Even before its latest nip and tuck, the Up was hardly a slouch in the city car class but when some manufacturers seem to have given up challenging in this market (yes, we mean you Ford), this baby VW just seems to have got better and better.
As we say, the Up wasn`t exactly making up the numbers before. It had introduced fresh levels of refinement and quality to the class and, while it wasn`t ideal, it was night and day compared to what city car buyers had been suggested before.
This fresh Up starts from £12,455
This latest version effectively resumes that concept further and while it may not look much different, with only detail design switches inwards and out (you might notice the fresh front and rear lights), it`s still enough to come as a surprise when you climb behind the wheel.
Included in those switches is a fresh engine option in this High Up; a 1.0-litre, three-cylinder turbo petrol with 90bhp.
In such a petite car it`s enough to get the VW from zero to 60mph in 9.9 seconds and on to a 114mph top speed while still returning 60.1mpg average fuel economy and 108g/km emissions.
Those are respectable enough figures but, as ever, it`s the way that Up goes about delivering them that truly punches its advantage home.
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Whatever you might have been expecting from a diminutive city car of this size, you can effectively rip up into lil’ chunks as the Up is a revelation.
The engine has a delightful off-beat thrum to it and has a good turn of speed up to 30mph that makes it indeed nippy in traffic and around town.
It proves worthy even outside that urban environment, too. There`s a good rail quality and it manages to keep up with swifter traffic on the motorway with ease, which you certainly don`t expect.
The downsides? The gearbox only has five speeds, rather than the more common six these days, but then the engine proves nimble enough to be able to cope with that.
The only real stand-out demerit is the lack of a stop-start system on the engine, which at £12,455 you might expect.
The engine packs a good turn of speed and is nippy around town
The good news proceeds inwards, too. The build quality is excellent and there`s a nice silver pattern to the dashboard with a section of assets colour on the doors to lift the interior somewhat.
There`s no reach adjustment on the steering (only height) and there are only pop-out rear windows but, generally this is a decent place to be and undoubtedly not the short-straw you might imagine.
There are controls for the stereo on the steering wheel, as well. Another surprise comes in the form of just how much space there is inwards the Up.
Nobody is expecting this to be a Tardis-like car, especially at this level, but there`s enough space for adults in both the front and rear – plus the boot is also fairly deep. But perhaps the best endorsement for our Up was when we undertook a brief journey with four adults.
As we reached our destination two of our passengers, usually more familiar with a Golf and Passat, announced that they`d be very glad to drive this Up as their regular transport.
That`s exactly the kind of endorsement that VW would be looking for, and delighted by, with this fresh Up. And, perhaps more telling, it`s also the ultimate way to underline that the Up remains one of the best city cars on the road today.
Price: from £12,455
Engine: Petrol – 1.0-litre, turbo
Power: zero to 60mph in 9.9 seconds, 114mph top speed
