Volkswagen PH to launch Tharu compact SUV
After seemingly staying quiet from doing any new vehicle launches for nearly two years, Volkswagen Philippines, under the distributorship of AC Motors, is finally teasing the arrival of an all-new model.
In a photo posted on their official Facebook page, the German automaker showed a shadowy teaser of a front fascia with a set of LED headlights together with horizontal lightbars on the front grille. Looking at the German automaker’s current models, the teaser matches the Tharu compact crossover.
Known as the Taos in most markets outside China, the Tharu received a facelift which was revealed earlier this year for the Chinese market. With that, now is definitely the perfect time for the company to introduce the said model. Now we say that this will be called the Tharu simply because Volkswagen Philippines sources nearly its entire lineup from their joint venture with SAIC Motor in China. In addition, the Taos has not yet received the same facelift that the Tharu has received. Anyway, enough about that.
Let’s talk about what we can expect from the Tharu. First, looking at its exterior, it gets follows a similar design language as other models in the Volkswagen lineup like the T-Cross and Teramont. It gets a set of LED headlights with multiple projectors, and an LED light bar in the front grille, a rear LED light bar for the taillights, and what appears to be an illuminated rear emblem.
Inside, the Tharu is nothing but modern with large screens, specifically a 12-inch touchscreen for infotainment with Apple CarPlay and Baidu CarLife, and 10-inches for the instrument cluster. It’s also visibly premium with its black, blue and white tri-color combination.
Under the hood, the Volkswagen Tharu gets a 1.5-liter Inline 4-cylinder TSI engine. This turbocharged gasoline engine produces 158 horsepower and 250 Nm of torque, paired to a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission. Another option is a 2.0-liter TSI with 184 hp and 320 Nm of torque. The former is likely to be the local spec’s engine as it will enjoy tax breaks, giving it a more competitive price.
No launch date has been announced yet for this new model but given that Volkswagen Philippines has began teasing, it could be within the next few weeks. We’ll definitely keep you posted.
