Volkswagen managed to get four awards from the prestigious What Car? contest. The famous 2012 Volkswagen Up! claimed Car of the Year as well as the best City Car award. Other two victories are for Small Family Car – Volkswagen Golf VI and the coveted Safety Award.

"The Volkswagen up! sets new standards for a car at £10,000.  It's a city car that can seat four adults, while offering new levels of refinement, quality and maturity at this price; none of its rivals feels quite so grown-up.  Buyers will be looking for even more for their money than ever in 2012, so the up! is a worthy winner of the What Car? Car of the Year.", said What Car? editor-in-chief Chas Hallett.

The Safety Award was in large part the result of the availability of Volkswagen's innovative City Emergency Braking system on the Up!.  Although safety features are no longer the preserve of larger, more expensive models, the judges were impressed by this particular example of ‘big car' technology filtering down to a smaller model.  The system uses sensors to scan the space ahead, then applies the brakes automatically if it detects that the car is about to hit an object in front.  City Emergency Braking costs from just £225.

The Up! is available to order now, with prices starting at £7 995 (RRP OTR) and with the first models arriving in showrooms in March.

2012 Volkswagen Up

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2010 Volkswagen Golf VI Match

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Source: Volskwagen