They’re the same car different badge

Vauxhall Frontera = Isuzu Mu

Isuzu Mu = Isuzu Amigo

Rover 200/400 and Honda Concerto but even then the body work was fairly different.

Fabia VRS is a Goldf TDi with a squirt more power i believe.
even has VW stamped on top of the engine?

the peugot on topgear is a 107/toyota aygo/chit citron C1 and others.

all of which are arse compared to the a Kia Picanto. (not that im biased, but while looking at cars of that size, you notice the difference between having bare metal doors, and fabric covered door inners, and a a 4cylinder 1l revs sooo much quicker and smoother than a 3 cylinder)
not fast but hellish nippy, & good fun around town 😀

the original landrover freelander was built on an allegro floorpan!

Olly the fabia vrs shares the polo floor plan but has the same 1.9tdi pd engine that vag use in many cars. You can get it i power outputs from 90bhp to 150bhp in different cars. The vrs has a 130bhp version, golf tdi has up 150 but not in a specific model.

<nerd mode>
Full vehicle clones
Fiat Grande Punto = Vauxhall Corsa = Alfa MiTo
mk2 Fiat Croma = Vauxhall Signum
Alfa 159 = Vauxhall Omega replacement (cancelled)
Alfa 164 = Lancia Thema = Saab 9000 = Peugeot 605 = Fiat Croma
Mercedes Sprinter = VW LT3x series
Rover 2x & 4x = MG ZR & ZS = Honca MK2 (?) Civic
Rover 600 = Honda Accord
Fiat Sedici = Suzuki SX4
Fiat 500 = Ford Ka2
Vauxhall Omega = Holden Commodore/monaro

Floorpan Clones
Fiat Tipo = Bravo/a = Marea = Coupe = Tempra = Alfa Spider/GTV = Alfa 155 = Lancia Dedra = Alfa 145/6 = Mk1 Punto = Lancia Ypsilon = Barchetta
Lancia Delta (mk1 inc Integrale) = Fiat Strada
Mk1 Panda = Seat Marbella
Mk2 Panda = Lancia Y10
Mk3 Panda = Fiat 500 = Kord Ka
Alfa 156 = Alfa 147
Alfa 159 = Brera/Spider
MK1 Vauxhall Vectra = Saab 9-3
MK2 vectra = Saab 9-5
Mazda3 = Ford Focus
Ford Mondeo (mk1) = Jaguar X-type = mazda 6 (mk1)
Ford Mondeo (mk3) = mazda 6 (mk2)
Lincoln Continental = Jaguar S-Type
Jaguar XJS = Jaguar XK8 = Jaguar e-type in floppy hat and shades (stretching a point, but the drive train is nigh-on identical)
</nerd mode>

Yeah the VAG cars are quite different in reality. Same engines, floor plan, drivetrain etc but the interiors are very different, and the set-up is different too. Seat give you stiffer springs and a more sporty ride than VW, and Skoda are cheaper but with cheaper interiors. Also the engine options are different – there was a 160bhp 1.9TDi Ibiza that I don’t think you could get in the other marques. The overall driving experience was pretty different between the Golf and the A3 that I drove. The shape of seats and cockpit etc was more cocooning in the A3. And rear vis was less too!

Just want to correct RooleyMoor:

The Jaguar XF is not based on a new Mondeo, it is based on the original S-Type (but with significant modifications to body, chassis, interior, powertrain etc etc).

Also, the Jaguar X-Type shares a floorpan and some chassis components with the Mondeo, but is essentially a very different car ( 4 wheel drive vs 2 wheel drive for one (yes, I do know that lower powered X-Types are front wheel drive and share more components with Mondeo’s).

There is a general misconception that if cars are based on each other, they will share the same or very similar driving characteristics. This is generally the area that is tuned out using engine, transmission, chassis calibrations to make different cars feel very different. Most people would be amazed at the difference in the feel of the car that can be achieved by different damper / spring / tyre tunes and engine tunes.

The new Seat Exeo is probably the most blatant bit of ‘platform’ sharing seen for a long time…

…now, where have I seen that before…

Mondeo mk1, mk2, and mk3 have the same suspension and chassis except engine change on mk3.

MAkes parts cheaper.

BMW e39 chassis was so stiff that it was used for older 3 series and newer 5 series. They also used the 90’s 3 series rear suspension on loads of models like the Z3 for a while.

Cheaper.

large418, I did say that I believed that the xf shared the same floorplan, not that it definitely did use a mk4 mondeo floorpan.

As for the x-type, I agree that modifications have to be made for transmission etc. 4wd without a transmission tunnel doesn’t do much for ground clearance!

RooleyMoor,
it’s OK, just as someone who is very closely related to the British car industry, I feel it is very important not to devalue it. Even if innocent comments contribute to the loss of 1 sale, there is an impact to British jobs (especially in the current climate).

thought hot_fiat would be along at some stage…somedays I’m ashamed he was my best man!

shit! and god father to my boy, what have i done!

Some that I haven’t seen mentioned yet which are proper clones.

Daewoo Nexia = Vauxhall Astra
Mini = Riley Elf = Wolseley Hornet

Ford Transit=Eurofighter Typhoon
Transit Connect=BAE Hawk