Last week I got the chance to spend the day zipping around Johannesburg in the new Volkswagen Up! When the vehicle first arrived I wasn’t so sure about it. At first look it is rather small and almost “bread loaf” like. However, the outside is rather misleading and once inside there is actually a considerable amount of space. The finishes are entry level. There’s not a lot of fancy buttons (though I’m sure you could pay for add ons if you require). However, the important standard stuff is there: passenger and driver airbags, sidehead & thorax airbags for passengers and drivers, ABS, an Aircon and a front loader CD stereo.
I was in the “entry level” version of the Up! (Take Up!) So I didn’t get the bells and whistles that come with the Move Up! (you’ll get all the better techie extras). The small size is a bonus if parking is your nemesis. It’s such a pleasure to get into any parking space.
Driving the Volkswagen Up! around, I was pleasantly surprised. It has a 55kW 1 litre 3 cylinder petrol engine. I presumed I’d be trudging along highways for the day annoying most. But, I was wrong. The Up! is pleasantly zippy for the most part and also, at higher speeds doesn’t rattle (I find entry level vehicles tend to clutter along once you go over 100 kms/h). This is the ideal varsity student car. If I think back to my uni days every second car was either a Citi Golf or a VW Polo. The VW Up! is going to replace those quickly. It’s rather economical on petrol at 4.7 litres per 100km and it’s small size but zippy spirit is the perfect city car. It’s price tag also makes it a bit more attractive than a Polo. The VW Take Up! comes in at a price of R133 500.
It’s all well and good reading my views on the car, but ideally you want to check it out for yourself. In a clever move Volkswagen has partnered up with Uber to give you an opportunity to take a ride in a new VW Up! You can take advantage of Free #UberUp rides this week and spend some time getting to know the little vehicle. All you need to do is enter UBERUP in the promo code section of the Uber app. This will unlock the UberUp view. Toggle over the VW icon and request a ride as usual. You’ll be collected by a Volkswagen Up! So you can get a hands on experience with the vehicle.
You’re still on the free bit right?
Well, if you live in Johannesburg, Cape Town or Durban those #UberUp rides will be free if they’re less than 20 minutes or 20 km. The offer is valid from today (2nd March) until the 8th of March.
Quick heads up – the free #UberUp rides will only be available between 1pm and 9pm in the week and 3pm and 11pm on the weekend. If you’re really lucky you might find a celebrity behind the wheel picking you up. We’ve heard the likes of Sureshnie Rider or Jonathan Boynton-Lee will be moonlighting as Uber Up! drivers for the course of the week.
Disclaimer: I was given a Volkswagen Up! to drive for a day.
