Expect to see the production version of Volkswagen^s Concept C convertible at this year^s Frankfurt Motor Show in September.
The vehicle will go on sale in April, May or June of next year in the U.S. In a recent phone interview with Inside Line, a VW spokesperson said he did not believe the vehicle has been named, although it has had a "working title" of Eos.
The name "Eos" is not likely to go on the production model, as that is the name for a family of Canon cameras. But although the vehicle^s name may be undetermined, VW appears to be finalizing its powertrains. When the convertible goes on sale in America, it will have one engine option: a turbocharged, 2.0-liter, 200-horsepower power plant that VW will also use in its forthcoming Golf GTI hot rod.
VW may give the convertible a 2.0-liter, 150-hp engine in other markets, but not in the U.S. Rumors suggest VW is preparing a hot-rod, "R36" version of the convertible, which would have a 275-hp engine. "That^s what we^d like to see happen," said the spokesperson.
The "R36" designation is a variation on the "R32" badge worn by a hot-rod, all-wheel-drive version of the Golf compact. Regardless of what happens with hot-rod derivatives, VW will build the regular version of its forthcoming convertible in Portugal. The car will seat four and use a retractable hardtop. Its estimated price is $30,000.
