Aircooled VW South Africa

Citi's end in sight

By David Furlonger

Volkswagen SA will stop building the CitiGolf next year, says MD David Powels. He denies reports that production of the car, which has been built at the company's Uitenhage assembly plant in the Eastern Cape, for over 30 years, has already halted.


"The CitiGolf is certainly coming to the end of its lifecycle," says Powels. "I'm not prepared to say exactly when we will stop building it, but its replacement will arrive in 2010." VW dealers are still selling about 1 000 CitiGolfs each month.


The Citi was the original Golf. The latest version, Golf VI, is imported into SA. This is the only country where the Citi is still built. It is one of two cars produced in Uitenhage. The other is the Polo, both for the domestic and export markets. VWSA has not identified the Citi's replacement but its German parent has embarked on a number of small-car projects in recent years, including an emerging-market car aimed initially at India, and a range called the VW Up.


VWSA has spent R3,5bn in the past 18 months to modernise its Uitenhage plant and realign its product manufacturing strategy. Two years after launching its own truck and bus assembly facility with black economic empowerment partners, the company has shut it down. VW vehicles will now be built in Durban by MAN.
Hmmmmm

... and about time for a car designed in the early 70's and still so overpriced!! to VWSA

Good riddance!

I'm all for the Citi's demise,but do you think that the replacement will be just as "cheap" as the Citi?Somehow I doubt it,and as an entry level car for young first time buyers and someone who can't afford a more expensive car,they were good and reliable.

Yes the technology might be 40 years old or the design out dated,as can be said for the luxury spec on the Golf,but look what we put up with.Cars that are between 30 to 60 years old and is the most basic form of motor engineering,EVER.They break,parts are a pain to source and the up keep is a daily project.

Let's hope VWSA realises there is a need for affordable cars and that the replacement will be a little better than the Citi at the same reasonable price.

Apparently the replacement for the Citi is called a VW Metro and is a stripped down version of the Polo 9N

They should rather bring the Brazilian Fox or Gol. Or Parati. Have a look at VW do Brasil's site and see what interesting cars they have

I would have rather bought the VW Brazilia in 1973 than the VW Golf..... but then again thats just me...

When VW commissioned a design to replace the Beetle, VW Brazil designed the T4 Brasilia, but the German Golf design was rather adopted...and I would love to get my hands on a Brazilia to slam and rim like the guys at T2 / T3 Detectives in the UK did to their Kerb Snake.. check the white one in the pics below...

Blitz...anyone...dont you have one for me????

Those Brasilias are nice, but I hate the suspension on the white one Just a mild lowering job would have looked nicer!!!!!!!!

besides the price, i still think the mk1 rocks

I took my Jetta in for a service today at VW in Potch. On the floor I saw something reallllly weird. A brand new very old car. Can you still remember the old 80's mark 1 GTS? Well they have made it again...

new stickers: check
new wheels: check
fancy ad campaign: check
clueless muppets rushing out to pay over the odds for a "new" model: check

i think that badge looks better on the original. saw the new one today at vw dealer on blaauberg rd. gts was pretty much the gti with no fuel injection. mk1 gti is still the

VWSA has been threatning to end the Golf 1 for more than 15 years so have heard all this before.
Was the Polo Playa (actually a Seat) Golf 1 replacement some 12-15 years ago ? it came and went and the Golf 1 is still here.
BTW thas GTS at around R103000 is way overpriced.
Saw a original CTI at a car dealer selling for R50000 ??? reason ??? only 23000 km's on the clock. If I had the cash I would have got it, showroom condition, drove past on Sunday and it's gone.

Ii think it is very sad, it a whole era coming to a end, but on the lighter side they will soon become collectables, I am from Uitenhage and yes they have been threating this for years, but according to people i no working there they are busy making the last thousand or will soon be, they will also becoming out with speacial bag as you coul;d say collecter addition and will come with paper to prove it. But i do stand to correction as this is just the rumer going around.