On the one hand, you have the ultra economical hatchbacks on the market that sell you on their safety, fuel economy, and relative utility. Falling into that category would be cars like the Honda Fit, Toyota Yaris, Nissan Versa, and Chevrolet Aveo. On the other hand, you have cars that may be small in stature but want to bring a lot more performance to the table. The epitome of this latter philosophy is the Mini Cooper (particularly the "S" variant) from the German folks at BMW. Well, it seems that we're going to have ourselves a good old-fashioned Bavarian battle, because fellow German automaker Volkswagen is said to be working on a performance-oriented compact hatchback of their own and I'm not talking about the Rabbit. What sets this rumored vehicle apart is that it is not only rear-wheel-drive, but it also seems to have the engine in the back as well.
This is a drastic change from the current direction that most automakers are taking these days. We're seeing many more front-engine oriented consumer vehicles, and even when you take the plunge into the exotics, they go with just a mid-engine configuration. The unnamed VW project is said to be placing the power plant squarely over (or behind) the rear axle, possibly attempting to capturing a niche that isn't exactly being filled today: a rear-engine, rear-wheel-drive performance compact that is actually affordable.
I like it. As an idea, anyways. I like the Rabbit too, considering that it's about the same price as a well-equipped Yaris or Fit, but it comes with a much more powerful engine. Will the VW Mini fighter cannibalize some of those sales? Well, we won't know until this car gets launched (if it gets launched).
A pdf scan of the car, featured in Auto Bild, can be found here.
