Volkswagen A platform
Encyclopedia
The Volkswagen Group A platform is an automobile platform
shared among compact
and mid-size car
s of the Volkswagen Group
.
It was originally based on the engineering concept of the Volkswagen Golf Mk1
, and is applicable to either front-
or four-wheel drive
vehicles, using only front-mounted
transverse engine
s.
Volkswagens based on this platform have been referred to by generation number, ie. the first Golf version would be referred to as an "A1 Golf". Often "Mk*" ("Mark") is substituted for "A*", but this can be misleading: For example, the Mk1 and Mk2 Sciroccos are both based on the A1 platform.
Under Volkswagen's revised platform naming system, the "A4" platform is now known as the PQ34 platform, and what would have been called the A5 platform is officially the PQ35 platform. The new nomenclature is derived as follows:
The smaller A03 platform, used in the VW Polo (6N) and SEAT Ibiza (6K) is based on the A3 platform as well, and shares many components.
front and rear will be present in all A platform vehicles. There is also a derivative version of this platform for 'B'-class cars (with larger variations expected in the future) called PQ46.
PQ35 is intended for compact-size vehicles, and PQ46 is an enlarged version for mid-size vehicles, such as the Volkswagen Passat
. A common misconception is that the PQ46 generation of the Passat is based on the "B6" (PL46) platform. However, this transverse engine
d Passat has little in common with the longitudinal engine
d "B6" Audi A4
.
Current and expected PQ35 platform cars (Typ numbers in brackets):
Current PQ46 platform cars (Typ numbers in brackets):
Automobile platform
An automobile platform is a shared set of common design, engineering, and production efforts, as well as major components over a number of outwardly distinct models and even types of automobiles, often from different, but related marques...
shared among compact
Compact car
A compact car , or small family car , is a classification of cars which are larger than a supermini but smaller than or equal to a mid-size car...
and mid-size car
Mid-size car
A mid-size car is the North American/Australian standard for an automobile with a size equal to or greater than that of a compact...
s of the Volkswagen Group
Volkswagen Group
Volkswagen Group is a German multinational automobile manufacturing group. , Volkswagen was ranked as the world’s third largest motor vehicle manufacturer and Europe's largest....
.
It was originally based on the engineering concept of the Volkswagen Golf Mk1
Volkswagen Golf Mk1
In May 1974, Volkswagen presented the first-generation Golf as a modern front-wheel-drive, hatchback replacement for the Volkswagen Beetle.-History:...
, and is applicable to either front-
Front-wheel drive
Front-wheel drive is a form of engine/transmission layout used in motor vehicles, where the engine drives the front wheels only. Most modern front-wheel drive vehicles feature a transverse engine, rather than the conventional longitudinal engine arrangement generally found in rear-wheel drive and...
or four-wheel drive
Four-wheel drive
Four-wheel drive, 4WD, or 4×4 is a four-wheeled vehicle with a drivetrain that allows all four wheels to receive torque from the engine simultaneously...
vehicles, using only front-mounted
Front-engine design
A front-mounted engine describes the placement of an automobile engine in front of the vehicle passenger compartment.Historically, this designation was used regardless of whether or not the entire engine was behind the front axle line...
transverse engine
Transverse engine
A transverse engine is an engine mounted in a vehicle so that the engine's crankshaft axis is perpendicular to the long axis of the vehicle. Many modern front wheel drive vehicles use this engine mounting configuration...
s.
Volkswagens based on this platform have been referred to by generation number, ie. the first Golf version would be referred to as an "A1 Golf". Often "Mk*" ("Mark") is substituted for "A*", but this can be misleading: For example, the Mk1 and Mk2 Sciroccos are both based on the A1 platform.
Under Volkswagen's revised platform naming system, the "A4" platform is now known as the PQ34 platform, and what would have been called the A5 platform is officially the PQ35 platform. The new nomenclature is derived as follows:
- P indicates a passenger car platform
- Q (quer) indicates a transverse engine
- 3 indicates the platform size or class
- 5 indicates the evolution or generation
A1
A1 platform cars (Typ numbers in brackets):- VW Golf Mk1/Rabbit Mk1Volkswagen Golf Mk1In May 1974, Volkswagen presented the first-generation Golf as a modern front-wheel-drive, hatchback replacement for the Volkswagen Beetle.-History:...
(17) - Cabriolet (17)
- VW Jetta Mk1 (17)
- Volkswagen CaddyVolkswagen CaddyReleased in 1980, the first Volkswagen Caddy is a coupe utility, and van based on the Volkswagen Group A1 platform, shared with the small family car Volkswagen Golf Mk1.Volkswagen Typ is:*147 = LHD*148 = RHD-Caddy debuts internationally as a Rabbit:...
(pickup truckPickup truckA pickup truck is a light motor vehicle with an open-top rear cargo area .-Definition:...
) (14) - VW Scirocco IVolkswagen SciroccoThe Scirocco is a 3-door Coupe manufactured by German automaker Volkswagen, undergoing two generations of development between 1974 and 1992 and reintroduced in a third generation in August 2008.-Etymology:...
(53) - VW Scirocco IIVolkswagen SciroccoThe Scirocco is a 3-door Coupe manufactured by German automaker Volkswagen, undergoing two generations of development between 1974 and 1992 and reintroduced in a third generation in August 2008.-Etymology:...
(53B)
A2
A2 platform cars (Typ numbers in brackets):- Volkswagen CorradoVolkswagen CorradoThe Volkswagen Corrado is a hatchback coupé developed by German automaker Volkswagen and built by Karmann in Osnabrück, Germany, between 1 September 1988 and 31 July 1995....
(53I) (hybrid platform with B3) - VW Golf Mk2Volkswagen Golf Mk2The Volkswagen Golf Mk2 succeeded the Mk1 as Volkswagen's volume seller from 1983 and remained in production until late 1992. In comparison to its predecessor, its wheelbase grew slightly , as did exterior dimensions . Weight was up accordingly by about...
(19E) - VW Jetta II (19E)
- SEAT Toledo Mk1 (1L)
- Chery A11Chery A11The Chery Windcloud , also known as Fulwin or Fengyun, is Chery Automobile's first car.It is essentially a rebadged first generation SEAT Toledo, a model which was built by SEAT - i.e...
and A15Chery A15The Chery Cowin , also known as Flagcloud or Amulet, is a 5 door, 1,600 cc petrol engine liftback produced in Wuhu, Anhui, China and Russia, Ukraine, Iran and Malaysia by Chery Automobile.... - Vortex CordaTagAZTagAZ is an automotive assembly plant located in Taganrog, Russia. Affiliated enterprises are the Rostov Truck Factory.- History :Construction of the Taganrog Automotive Plant began in Spring 1997, under license and technology of South Korean Daewoo Motors, and was fully financed by Doninvest...
A3
A3 platform cars (Typ numbers in brackets):- VW Golf Mk3/CabrioVolkswagen Golf Mk3The third-generation Volkswagen Golf Mk3 was a car launched in Europe in November 1991 , and in North America in the spring of 1993. The delay in North America was due to Volkswagen's decision to supply U.S. and Canadian dealerships with Mk3 Golfs from the VW plant in Puebla, Mexico...
(1H/1E) - VW Jetta/Vento III (1H)
The smaller A03 platform, used in the VW Polo (6N) and SEAT Ibiza (6K) is based on the A3 platform as well, and shares many components.
A4 (PQ34)
A4 platform cars (Typ numbers in brackets):- Audi A3 Mk1 (8L)
- Audi TT Mk1 (8N)
- VW Golf Mk4/VW R32Volkswagen Golf Mk4Launched in 1999, the Volkswagen Golf Mk4 was the best selling car in Europe in 2001 . The Mk4 was a deliberate attempt to take the Volkswagen Golf series further upmarket, with a high-quality interior and higher equipment levels...
(1J) - VW Bora/Jetta IV (1J)
- Shanghai-VW Lavida
- VW New BeetleVolkswagen New Beetle-Specifications:*Dimension:**Length: **Width: **Height: **Wheelbase: **Curb weight: *Max speed: 177–210 km/h *Acceleration : 6.5-13.2 sec-Body styles:-Engine choices:-Safety:...
(1C/1Y/9C) - SEAT León Mk1 (1M)
- SEAT Toledo Mk2 (1M)
- Škoda Octavia Mk1 (1U)
A5 (PQ35)
The PQ35 platform is designed to be more modular and flexible than previous A platforms. For the first time, a fully independent suspensionIndependent suspension
Independent suspension is a broad term for any automobile suspension system that allows each wheel on the same axle to move vertically independently of each other. This is contrasted with a beam axle, live axle or deDion axle system in which the wheels are linked – movement on one side affects...
front and rear will be present in all A platform vehicles. There is also a derivative version of this platform for 'B'-class cars (with larger variations expected in the future) called PQ46.
PQ35 is intended for compact-size vehicles, and PQ46 is an enlarged version for mid-size vehicles, such as the Volkswagen Passat
Volkswagen Passat
The Volkswagen Passat is a large family car marketed by Volkswagen Passenger Cars through six design generations since 1973. Between the Volkswagen Golf / Volkswagen Jetta and the Volkswagen Phaeton in the current Volkswagen line-up, the Passat and its derivatives have been badged variously as...
. A common misconception is that the PQ46 generation of the Passat is based on the "B6" (PL46) platform. However, this transverse engine
Transverse engine
A transverse engine is an engine mounted in a vehicle so that the engine's crankshaft axis is perpendicular to the long axis of the vehicle. Many modern front wheel drive vehicles use this engine mounting configuration...
d Passat has little in common with the longitudinal engine
Longitudinal engine
In automotive engineering, a longitudinal engine is an internal combustion engine in which the crankshaft is oriented along the long axis of the vehicle, front to back....
d "B6" Audi A4
Audi A4
The first generation Audi A4 debuted in 1994, with production starting November 1994. It was built on the Volkswagen Group B5 platform, which it shared with the fourth generation Volkswagen Passat . It had a front-mounted longitudinal engine and front-wheel drive...
.
Current and expected PQ35 platform cars (Typ numbers in brackets):
- Audi A3 Mk2 (8P)
- Audi TT Mk2 (8J)
- Volkswagen TouranVolkswagen TouranThe Volkswagen Touran is a compact MPV based on a vertically-stretched fifth generation Volkswagen Golf Mk5, and sold in Europe and other select markets. It was launched in 2003 to fill a gap in Volkswagen's model lineup, below the Sharan large MPV...
(1T) - Volkswagen CaddyVolkswagen CaddyReleased in 1980, the first Volkswagen Caddy is a coupe utility, and van based on the Volkswagen Group A1 platform, shared with the small family car Volkswagen Golf Mk1.Volkswagen Typ is:*147 = LHD*148 = RHD-Caddy debuts internationally as a Rabbit:...
(2K) - SEAT AlteaSEAT AlteaThe SEAT Altea is a compact MPV produced by Spanish automaker SEAT, S.A. and named after Altea, Spain. The vehicle was designed by the Italian Walter de'Silva and launched in 2004 as the first example of SEAT's new corporate look...
(5P) - Volkswagen Golf Mk5 / GTI / R32 / Rabbit Mk5Volkswagen Golf Mk5The fifth generation Volkswagen Golf Mk5 , built on the Volkswagen Group A5 platform was unveiled at the Frankfurt Motor Show in October 2003 and went on sale in Europe one month later. To commemorate this, Wolfsburg was renamed "Golfsburg" for a week. It reached North American markets in June...
(1K) - Škoda Octavia Mk2 (1Z)
- Volkswagen Golf Plus (5M)
- SEAT Toledo Mk3 (5P)
- Volkswagen Jetta Mk5 (1K)
- SEAT León Mk2 (1P)
- Volkswagen EosVolkswagen EosThe Volkswagen Eos is a four-seat retractable hardtop coupe convertible, introduced in 2006 as the successor to the Volkswagen Golf Cabriolet. The Eos is Volkswagen's first production coupe since the last Corrado in 1995....
(1F) - Volkswagen TiguanVolkswagen TiguanVolkswagen Tiguan is a compact crossover vehicle initially built by the German automaker Auto 5000, but now built by Volkswagen, based on the PQ35 platform of the Volkswagen Golf. Production started in the winter of 2007 in Wolfsburg, Germany, and started selling shortly after...
(5N) - Volkswagen Scirocco (13)
- Volkswagen Golf Mk6Volkswagen Golf Mk6The Volkswagen Golf Mk6 is the successor to the Mk5, and was unveiled at the Paris Auto Show in October 2008. Volkswagen released pictures and information on 6 August 2008, prior to the official unveiling. The vehicle was released to the European market in the winter of 2008...
(5K) - Škoda YetiŠkoda YetiThe Škoda Yeti is a five-door five-seater compact SUV model built by the Czech car manufacturer Škoda Auto. It was introduced at the 2009 Geneva Motor Show in March, as the division's first entry into the popular SUV market...
(5L) - Škoda SuperbŠkoda SuperbThe Škoda Superb is a large family car primarily built by the Czech car manufacturer Škoda Auto as its flagship car. The versions produced from 2001 to 2008 are based on the platform of the Volkswagen Passat, but are elongated by , and shares its major mechanicals and powertrain with the Passat,...
(3T) - Audi Q3Audi Q3The Audi Q3 is a five-door compact coupe crossover by Audi that is expected to debut commercially in 2011. The car will use the Volkswagen Group A5 platform of the Volkswagen Golf Mk5, the same as the Volkswagen Tiguan/SEAT Tribu small SUVs. The Q3 will slot above the proposed Audi Q1 mini crossover...
- Volkswagen Jetta Mk6 (NCS)
- Volkswagen Beetle (2011-)
Current PQ46 platform cars (Typ numbers in brackets):
- Volkswagen Passat (3C)
- Volkswagen Passat CCVolkswagen Passat CCThe Volkswagen Passat CC is a 4-door coupé version of the Volkswagen Passat. It debuted in January 2008 at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit...
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