The Volkswagen Ameo is the latest entrant in the hotly contested sub-four-metre compact sedan space. A rival to popular cars like the Maruti Dzire, Honda Amaze, Ford Figo Aspire, Tata Zest and the Hyundai Xcent, the Ameo is the German brand’s first car to be tailor-made for India.

Volkswagen has introduced the Ameo with a 1.2-litre three-cylinder petrol engine – the same motor used on the Polo (not the TSI turbo-petrol), and will later add the option of a 1.5-litre diesel engine with a 7-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission.

The pricing for the Ameo ranges from Rs 5.24 to Rs 7.06 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi), and bookings can be made for Rs 11,000. However, before you head out to your nearest Volkswagen showroom, take a look at how the petrol-powered Ameo’s specifications compare against those of its rivals.

Dimensions
Given the inherent four-metre constraint that these cars are built on, they are closely matched in terms of length, with five of the six cars – the Ameo, Dzire, Xcent, Aspire and Zest – being 3,995mm long. The wheelbase could give a better idea of the cars' interior space, and here, the Aspire leads the pack, spanning 2,491mm between the axles. It is followed by the Zest and Ameo, sporting a near identical 2,470mm and 2,469mm. The shortest wheelbase is that of the Amaze (2,405mm).

Spanning 1,760mm, The Zest also has a clear advantage (a 100mm lead over the Xcent) in terms of width, an indication of having the broadest cabin in the segment. It is distantly followed by the Figo Aspire, Dzire, Amaze and Ameo, with the Xcent being the narrowest at 1,660mm.

The Zest also leads in terms of overall height, which is likely to mean better headroom when compared to rivals. Meanwhile, the Ameo, based on the relatively low-slung Polo hatchback, is the shortest here.

When it comes to boot space, the Xcent with its 407-litre boot, leaps ahead of most of its rivals by a fair margin. Only the Honda Amaze comes close with a 400-litre boot. The Ameo’s 330-litre boot is slightly bigger than that of the Dzire’s 316 litres, which is the smallest here.