Volkswagen officially announced in June 2006 production of a new Scirocco model at the AutoEuropa assembly plant in Palmela, Portugal. The new model, identified by the internal type numbers 137 or 1K8, is based on the PQ35 platform of the Golf V and was unveiled at the 2008 Geneva Motor Show. It went on sale in summer 2008 in Europe, with sales in other countries beginning early 2009. The Type 3 Scirocco won "Car of the Year 2008" from Top Gear Magazine.

The 2008 model of the Scirocco received a five star safety rating from Euro NCAPeven after the driver test dummy's head hit the steering wheel when the airbag bottomed out. The model tested was a left-hand-drive three-door hatchback and scored in four areas: