We first saw the mildly updated for 2012, Seat Exeo, at last year's Frankfurt Motor Show and now both the sedan and ST station wagon variants of the previous generation Audi A4-based model are available for order in the United Kingdom.

Prices start from £19,480 RRP (recommended price on the road) for the base sedan model fitted with an 118bhp (120PS) 2.0-liter turbo diesel. Other engine options include two more 2.0-liter TDI diesels with 141bhp (143PS) or 168bhp (170PS) and a 2.0-liter TFSI turbocharged petrol with 208bhp (211PS).

Exactly one week after Skoda unveiled the five-door version of the Citigo and two weeks after VW did the same with the Up!, today it was Seat’s turn to launch the more practical version of the Mii, its own take on the German group’s new city car.

Like its two other siblings, the most significant change compared to the 3.56-meter long three-door version is the addition of the rear doors and, according to Seat, a slightly lower window line.

At an event held today at its headquarters in Wolfsburg, Germany, Volkswagen revealed its new "Modularer Querbaukasten" or MQB platform that will form the base for the upcoming seventh generation Golf as well as a large number of other mainstream models.

The MQB is by far the most important platform architecture in the group, as it will be used in the next generations of the Volkswagen Polo, Beetle, Golf, Scirocco, Jetta, Tiguan, Touran, Sharan, Passat, and CC, as well as the soon-to-be revealed Audi A3, and all the other derivatives from Seat and Skoda.

A key feature of the platform is its flexibility in terms of wheelbase length, track width, wheel size and seating positions. Other dimensions such as the distance between the pedals to the wheel center are always the same and provide a unified front-end system.

Some three years after Seat launched the fourth-generation of its Ibiza series, the Spanish subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group announced a mid-life facelift for its supermini that will receive its world premiere at the Geneva Motor Show this March.

The update concerns all body styles including the three-door SC to the five-door hatchback and the ST station wagon.

On the outside, the Ibiza gains a new face inspired from the company's recent concept cars like the IBE Coupe, IBX small crossover and IBL sedan.

Parts and platform sharing has been a common practice in big automotive groups. Volkswagen, which has been pioneering this method among its brands since the early ‘90s, has mastered the art. Still, there is always room for improvement...

The VW Group wants to push the envelope further with a much broader parts sharing program among the various brands and models in its empire, starting with the new Audi A3 that will be launched in 2012.

Whereas the rest of the European carmakers such as PSA Peugeot and Citroen and the Fiat Group are facing troubled times, the German auto industry is enjoying one of its most prosperous eras ever.

On Thursday, Europe's largest automaker, the Volkswagen Group, announced that it has earned more in the first nine months of 2011 than in the whole of 2010.

The company's operating profit surged to €9.0 billion (US$12.5 billion) from January through September, up from €7.1 billion in fiscal 2010 and €4.8 billion in the same period last year, which represents a staggering 86 percent increase.

The Volkswagen Group is defying the economic crisis and gearing up to set a new sales milestone this year. For the first time in its history, the German maker sold 6.11 million vehicles (5.36 million if you exclude the Scania truck division) in the first nine months of the year, marking a 13.9 percent increase over the same period in 2010. Read more »

The world premiere of the VW Up! at last month's 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show last month was only the beginning for the German group as after the recent presentation of the Skoda Citigo, Seat is next in line to gain its version of the small city car with the Mii.

The new Mii is the Spanish firm's first offering in the segment after the termination of the Arosa mini in 2004, which was also based on a VW model, the Lupo.

As is the case with the Skoda Citigo, the only visible differences between the Seat Mii and the VW Up! are their front end styling, alloy wheel designs, tail lamp graphics and the interior trim colors and options.

It may have an unsexy name, but Seat's latest creation, the IBL concept, is anything but lackluster when it comes to its styling.

The sharp looking study is a Ford Mondeo-sized sports saloon created to show off the latest evolution of Seat's design DNA, and while the Spanish brand says it does not pre-empt a specific model, its styling philosophy will be applied to the firm's future portfolio.

The Volkswagen Group has readied a little something for everyone at this year's 64th International Auto Show in Frankfurt, from the tiny Audi Urban concepts and the production VW Up!, to the striking Seat IBL study and the brand new Porsche 911.

At a special preview event in Frankfurt, the VW Group rolled out some of its most important goods including the new Bentley Continental GTC, the limited edition Lamborghini Gallardo LP 570-4 ST Trofeo, the Audi RS5 facelift and A2 Concept,while the Germans even brought along the bespoke Bugatti Veyron L'or Blanc.

Hop over the jump to check out a high-resolution gallery with more than 70 photos.

Seat had told us that it would be unveiling a "new and exciting" concept car at the upcoming 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show, but a Spanish fan club beat them to it by publishing the first official photograph of the study, which it claims found on the pages of Spanish newspaper ABC. We asked around and can confirm that the scanned image is indeed is official.

Next up in our list of automakers that are a planning a surprise debut for this year's edition of the Frankfurt Motor Show, which runs for the public from September 15 to 25, is the Volkswagen Group's Spanish division, Seat.

The automaker released a teaser of what looks to be a compact sedan or liftback model covered in a red sheet with the only piece of information that we get from Seat being that it's a new and "exciting" concept car.

Starting from this fall, the Volkswagen Group's Spanish division Seat will offer a revamped version of its former Audi A4-based Exeo series that includes the sedan and estate (ST) models in Europe.

The subtle styling enhancements on the outside include a revised face with new bi-xenon headlights and LED daytime running lights, a honeycomb style grille insert, plus new 17 and 18-inch alloy wheel designs.