Hooray! VW has finally turbocharged the Up

This is the new Volkswagen Up. Or the up! if you’ve no regard for grammar and natural intonation.

“It looks like the old one!” we hear you moan. That’s because this is a mid-life refresh, and with the Up remaining the best city car you can buy - four years into its life - that refresh has been kept mild.

The big news comes from a new engine, a turbocharged 1.0-litre three-cylinder petrol with 89bhp and 118lb ft. VW describes the resulting performance as “truly dynamic”, though it all depends on where your benchmarks lie: 0-62mph takes ten seconds, while its top speed is 115mph.

It’s brisk for a city car, though, and it may be just enough to appease our unfulfilled desire for VW to get its bum in gear and make an Up hot hatch. Its chassis can certainly handle more than the 74bhp it currently has to deal with, though we suspect an additional 15bhp won’t find its upper limit.

It ought to be economical, though, with a quoted 64mpg and 102g/km. Less powerful, non-turbo 1.0-litre petrols remain in the range, meanwhile, as does the electric-powered E-Up.

Elsewhere, VW has also conformed to the motoring industry’s facelift guidelines with new lights front and rear - with daytime LEDs at the front - as well as new bumpers and a fresh bunch of colours.

Other new additions include smartphone integration, automatic air con, a button-festooned steering wheel and a cornering function for the fog lights.

There is also, if you’re feeling frivolous with your cash, the Up Beats special edition (above, in white), which comes with a 300w stereo crafted by Dr Dre. Well, his audio company at least.

The updated Up will make its first public appearance at next week’s Geneva motor show, alongside an SUV concept. Whether either will be enough to give VW executives a relaxed few days remains to be seen…