Origins of the VW
Fox
/ / /
This page is being re-worked \ \ \
Where does the Fox
come from?
The
Volkswagen Fox was developed, styled and made in Brazil. When exported
to North America, "Fox" encompassed 4-door, 2-door and wagon models, but
in Brazil these each had their own distinct name. These were the
Voyage, Parati, Gol and Saveiro.
The
different names are as follows:
| VW
Voyage |
2-door
and 4-door sedan |
| VW
Parati |
2-door
station wagon |
| VW
Gol |
a
hatchback version not exported to North America |
| VW
Saveiro |
a
pick-up truck version also not exported to North America |
The
VW Fox/Voyage and all of it's "brothers" have a unique platform and wheelbase
which is not the same as the Golf, Jetta, Polo or Passat. The platform
is called "BX". It should not be confused with the B1-B5 platform
of the Passat.
What do the different
names mean?
| Voyage |
"Voyage" means trip
or voyage in French. It is unknown why Volkswagen do Brazil
chose to give the car this name. |
| Parati |
Parati is an historic
city by the sea, located in Rio de Janeiro state at the border with Sao
Paulo state. It's a beautiful touristic town, with colonial style
buildings. It's well cared for, and cars are not allowed in the old
part of the city. Brazilian VW intended to tranfer the prestige of
the city to its station wagon. Incidentally, the city's name is actually
spelled Paraty, but VW of Brazil definitely had the prestige of
the city in mind when naming this VW. |
| Gol |
"Gol" means goal
in Portuguese. |
| Saveiro |
The Saveiro pick-up
is named after a medium-sized yacht-like sailing vessel that is typical
of Bahia state. If you want one of these yachts, you have to order
it from the artisans of Bahia state. |
Where has the VW Voyage
been exported?
This section is
currently very empty, because I only know of two other places where the
Fox/Voyage has been exported. If anyone can help me out with information,
pictures, etc., I would really appreciate it!
Argentina
- The sedan version is known as the VW Gacel. It is
assembled in Argentina.
Canada [1987-1992]
- The 2-door, 4-door and station wagon models were available, all known
as the VW Fox.
Chile - The
sedan version is known as the VW Amazon, the pickup version
was known as the VW Saveiro, and is now known as the VW
Gol Pick Up.
Guatemala
- The sedan version is known as the VW Amazon.
Peru - The
sedan version is known as the VW Amazon.
U.S.A. [1987-1993]
- The 2-door, 4-door and station wagon models were available, all known
as the VW Fox.
The Middle East
- Apparently the Fox was briefly exported to the Middle East, but this
stopped with the outbreak of the Gulf War. If any one knows the details,
please let me know..
Specifications of the
various "incarnations"
(I've got more up-to-date information,
but haven't had time to organize it yet.)
|
Model
|
Specifications
|
VW
Voyage/Parati/Gol/Saveiro
Brazil 1980 - present |
Here is some information
about the available engines in Brazil's BX-platform cars.
All ran on either
gasoline or a pure methanol/ethanol mixture.
Wondering about
"alcohol" as a fuel? Read this. |
VW
Fox
Canada 1987-1992
USA 1987-1993 |
- only had a 1.8
litre, 4-cylinder, 8-valve, fuel injected, gasoline engine with catalytic
converter (1987 and early 1988 Canadian models had a resonator in place
of the catalytic converter).
- 1987-1990 had
the CIS and CIS-E fuel injection, and 1991-1993 had the Bosch Digifant
I and Digifant II fuel injection systems |
VW
Amazon
Peru |
- had various engine
options including:
1.6 8v carburated
gasoline |
VW Amazon
Chile |
? |
VW
Gacel
Argentina |
? |
VW Gol 1000
Brazil |
- In 1990, Volkswagen
decided to outfit this car with a 1.6 Ford CHT engine - the same
used in the Escort, replacing the "AP1600" (Alta Performace or High
Performance) - G60.
- In 1993, VW and
Ford (the same holding between 1989 and 1996) adapted this engine to be
1000cm3. The performace of this car is average, but better
than the Opel Corsa with fuel injection. In 1995, VW provided the
Ford CHT engine with a CFI fuel injection, however, it came with a fuel
consumption increase, with the cost of maintenence.
- Despite his more
powerful "brother", The CHT Gol 1000 wasn't available in an Alcohol version.
- In 1996 , the
holding VW-Ford disapeared and the old CHT dropped from the line of production.
So, VW developed a new engine, called AT-1000 (Alta Tecnologia or
High Technology 1000), and started the production of Gol Mi
- In 1997, VW released
the 16v AT 1000 , with 69 HP , the most
powerful 1000 engine
of Brazil. The performace of both engines is good, especially in
the 16v version. Now, an Alcohol fueled 8v version is available on
the market, with 8 HP more, due to the government of Brazil's enforcement
to increase the production of alcohol-powered cars again.
The differences
betwen two versions is a little tank of gas in the
engine's compartment,
to help the first start in cold days (under 50 F) |
What do these models look
like?
Credits
I'd like to send
a big "thank you" to Luiz from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil for providing me
with some of the information about the Brazilian models on this page.
Another big "thank
you" to Alexander Recife from Brazil for VW Voyage information.
More "thanks" to
to Fernando Fuhrken from Brazil for information about Brazilian Volkswagens.
Also thanks to Roberto
Andrade from Peru, for telling me about the VW Amazon.
Thanks to Edgar Soldano
from Concepción, Chile. He owns a 1992 Volkswagen Saveiro there,
and told me about VWs in Chile.
Thank you also to
Alex, originally from Brazil now living in Canada, for more detailed information
about VW's engines in Brazil.
Thanks to Rodrigo
Marassá Ojeda from Brazil for correcting a few things here and there,
and for info about the BX-based cars.
A "thank you" to
Thyago Szöko from Brazil, for informing me of the new 1.0L 16v turbo
engine available in Brazil.
HUGE thanks to Ricardo
Montero from São Paulo, Brazil for detailed engine specs, as well
as many of the pictures (the aircooled Gol, early Voyage, and more!), and
translations!
I took some of the
Voyage, Gol and Parati pictures from this
web page [found from www.guaruja.com].
The web page is for Guarujá Veículos, which is part
of "a holding with 14 companies that has been keeping the leadership and
inovation in the Brazilian vehicle market for 38 years." They are
an authorized Volkswagen-Audi dealer.
Please E-mail
me if you can help me out with info, or with comments, etc.
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