By Nauman Farooq

If you are given performance specs such as a top speed of 227 km/h and accelerating from 0-100 km/h in just 8.6 seconds, you’d imagine the car to be very sporty, and you’d be right.

Volkswagen NCC

However, you wouldn’t expect such a car to be very economical. That is what the VW NCC (New Concept Coupe) concept is aiming to change, a sleek and sporty coupe that can also average 4.2-liters/100 km.

The powertrain making such performance plausible is a four-cylinder, 1.4-liter, TSI fuel-injected, gasoline engine, that produces 147hp. Plus, there is an electric motor on-board too, powered by a lithium-ion battery pack (located in the rear of the vehicle for better weight balance), which adds another 27hp.

While it may also feature a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission, the really big news is that thanks to its powerplant, this is the first hybrid powertrain to come out of Volkswagen, who are one of the leading diesel manufacturers in the world.

This change in their strategy points towards them marketing their new products to appeal to more North Americans, afterall on this continent people buy more hybrids than diesels.

People on this continent also prefer buying coupe’s rather than premium hatchbacks; hence the new Scirocco wasn’t introduced here.

The NCC’s sleek exterior also points towards the styling of the new Jetta, which will be launched in about a year’s time. So be in no doubt, the NCC is not just some meaningless concept car, this will eventually become the Jetta Coupe (remember, they used to have them back in the 1980’s).

General consensus at the 2010 North American International Auto Show was that the crowd mostly approved of this concept, with many calling it the “budget priced Audi A5.”

They won’t be disappointed when they climb inside either, because there is nothing budget about its interior. The NCC has a stylish cockpit for four, so this is a true 2+2, like the Mazda RX8. However, the concept cars interior color of “Berry White” might not be to everyone’s taste.

However, with a trunk capacity of 380-liters, you and your three friends can bring their luggage for a weekend away.

Volkswagen might not be saying at this point if and when the NCC will go into production, but to guess around the same time the new Jetta is launched would not be a bad estimate. If it’s also priced like a Jetta, then the competition has got plenty to get worried about.