Although Volkswagen's design studio would be your best bet to get a glimpse of a future model like the seventh-generation Golf, an official video would be the last place you'd expect to actually see it. But as we all know, gaffes happen all the time. Such is the case with the Golf VII as what appears to be a full-size clay mock-up of the compact hatchback was spotted on the promotional film for the Frankfurt Show L1 concept car.The clay model, which we believe shows a possible design direction for the next Golf seemingly inspired by the firm's latest models such as the Scirocco (notice the more pointy nose-job and the more narrow headlamps), can be seen in the background at 4:41 minutes into the video.
We had stored the original promotional video of the L1 Concept on our computer during the Frankfurt Motorshow days, but just for the heck of it, we headed over to VW's official press site to download the specific video again.
But guess what; the scene with the clay model of what we and many others reckon is a design proposal for the VW Golf VII, has been chopped and cropped in this version! If anything else, that should count for something...
In typical Fiat fashion, the Italian automaker took its time to release a full gallery of its cosmetically refreshed and mechanically updated Grande Punto that has been renamed to Punto EVO for the 2010 model year. Unveiled for the first time at this month's Frankfurt Motor Show, the Italian supermini gets newly styled bumpers and lights at the front and the rear while a redesigned three-piece grille and new alloy wheel designs complete the exterior updates.Meanwhile, the cabin receives a comprehensive makeover with a redesigned dashboard that features a new instrument cluster and center console plus new seats and fabric options.
Beneath the skin, the Punto Evo features a wide range of Euro 5 engines, including a second-generation 1.3 MultiJet diesel that offers an improvement of around 2 percent in fuel consumption and CO2 emissions and a new 1.4 MultiAir gasoline unit that utilize electrohydraulic valve management to reduce fuel consumption by controlling air directly through the inlet valves without using the throttle.
Fiat claims that the 1.4-liter's MutliAir system cuts emissions by 10 percent while delivering 10 percent more power and 15 percent more torque than the regular 1.4L engine/
The revamped supermini also gains a new Blue&Me-TomTom infotainment system. European sales of the Punto EVO will begin in the second half of October.
