There is a slightly updated Volkswagen Lavida in China

Volkswagen Philippines was quite a hot topic in 2018. The local distributor revamped the entire lineup replacing familiar nameplates such as the Jetta, Golf, Passat, Tiguan, and Touareg with Chinese-made models: the Santana, Lavida, Tiguan, and Lamando. All models are manufactured by VW’s joint venture partner in China, SAIC. The company is the largest automaker in China. 

We were browsing Volkswagen’s Chinese website to get an idea at what possible new models we can expect or want to reach our shores when we stumbled upon what appeared to be the same Lavida compact sedan we get here, but with changes. The current locally available version of the compact sedan is supposedly basically the same as the Chinese model. We don’t know when exactly the version we’re showing you was launched but it does come with some minor changes that keen observers will notice.

While the overall car looks basically the same, it does have some differences which could be from a minor update that we don’t get here. In front, it has a slightly updated bumper design. The chrome bar connecting the fog light housings is no longer a straight horizontal line. The halogen fog lights have also been replaced with a set of LEDs. The new design gives the front end a slightly more modern look. The rear on the other hand is basically the same. The taillights are slightly smoked according to the website but it isn’t very obvious. The bumper is also slightly different but retains the basic overall shape.

Differences are more obvious on the inside. The aircon vents in the center have chrome strips similar to those of the VW Lamando. The silver trim on the dashboard is also replaced by a more upscale looking faux brushed aluminum trim. The non-touchscreen infotainment system is also replaced by what looks to be a 7 or 8-inch touchscreen display. The seats on the other hand are wrapped in a combination of black and brown leather, and fabric.

Under the hood, the Lavida shown gets a different powertrain. It is a 1.5-liter multi-point injection gasoline engine with 109 hp and 145 Nm of torque. The one we get here gets a slightly smaller 1.4-liter turbo gasoline engine with 128 hp and 225 Nm of torque.

The slightly updated Volkswagen Lavida retails in China for RMB 122,900 or around Php 870,000. There is a possibility that the exact version of the Lavida we currently get is already phased out in China and due to be replaced. There is a completely new generation of the compact sedan available in there and with its looks and features hope it does get launched in our country soon. That would be a different topic though.

Photos from https://vw.com.cn.