VW Scirocco and Scirocco R go under the knife

New engines and a few slight styling tweaks freshen up the already fresh Volkswagen Scirocco.

The VW Scirocco has gone under the knife for a bit of cosmetic surgery and will now benefit from a number of new engines that are said to improve fuel efficiency. The 2014 Scirocco will debut at the Geneva Motor Show in March.

What VW has changed on the outside is not immediately obvious. Besides ‘modernised’ new headlights, a front bumper that features aerodynamic blades seen on the VW Golf GTI, revised rear bumper and LED tail lights as standard it’s business as usual. Oh, and the VW logo badge on the back can now open the boot.

The sportier Scirocco R benefits from bespoke bumpers and 18-inch ‘Cadiz’ alloy wheels, the latter of which come as standard like they do on the Golf R. On the subject of shiny wheels, the rest of the range has been given a greater selection to choose from.

Six new turbo-charged engines are available. There’s a 125PS (123bhp) 1.4-litre, 180PS (178bhp) 2.0-litre, which replaces the 1.4-litre 160PS lump, and a 19 per cent more fuel efficient 210PS (207bhp) 2.0-litre TSI. The Scirocco R has seen its 2.0-litre increased power by 15PS to 280PS (276bhp).

In the diesel corner there’s a choice between a 150PS (148bhp) and 184 PS (181bhp) 2.0-litre, the most frugal of which can manage an impressive 68.9mpg. VW claims fuel efficiency is 19 per cent better across the entire range even though most engines benefit from a power increase.

A six-speed manual gearbox is standard. A seven-speed DSG can be specified on certain models.

A UK price is yet to be revealed. UK orders will begin in May 2014 and deliveries are expected in September.