PoloDriver

The final round of the 2013 South African National Rally Championship was dramatically cut short on 17 November, as bad weather stopped play at the Garden Route Rally. Only six of the planned 12 stages could be completed by rally crews before the inclement conditions proved insurmountable. Five stages were run on day one, while just one – the Montague Pass – proved drivable on the second day. At the point of finish, the field were given positions relating to their standings at that particular point on round eight of the championship.

For Volkswagen Motorsport South Africa’s Enzo Kuun and Douglas Judd, that meant just missing out on a podium place. The Polo S2000 pair come in fourth behind the Team Castrol Toyota Yaris of Leeroy Poulter and Elvene Coetzee. A consistent performance up until that point would have heralded a good finish. Hergen Fekken and Pierre Arries brought their Polo S2000 home four places further down the field, but it was a good recovery, as the car was damaged by a rock on the final stage of day one.

A smooth performance saw Gugu Zulu and Carl Peskin end the rally sixth in their Polo Vivo S2000 and second overall in the S2000 Challenge class. ‘The 2013 season has been incredibly demanding,’ said Mike Rowe, head of Volkswagen Motorsport South Africa. ‘A lot has been expected of man and machine, and the final round just served to underscore how extreme the year has been.’ The highest-placed Volkswagen Sasolracing Polo S2000 driver was Fekken in seventh, with Kuun 10th, and Henk Lategan 11th. Zulu came in eighth.

The final round of the 2013 Engen Volkswagen Cup in South Africa saw Kosie Weyers named as the season’s champion, after clinching the title at the penultimate round in the Western Cape. Weyers had no-pressure races at Kyalami last weekend, while second place in the championship was fought hard by Dewald Brummer and Mathew Hodges, with Brummer emerging on top following a runner-up position in race two. Hodges took 2013’s third.

In race one, Mark Silverwood took the spoils, with Weyers finishing close behind, with Jordan Pepper taking the final spot on the podium. Race two meanwhile saw Lee Thompson cross the line ahead of the chasing pack, followed by Brummer and Trevor Bland. The final round also featured a battle for podium standings in the Masters category. Ettiene du Toit lead the Masters going in the final round and it seemed he would lift the title ahead of Eddie Rodrigues.

In race one Du Toit was unable to complete the event while Rodrigues managed to just make it to the end, completing enough of the laps to claim points and draw level. This put both on an even footing for the final race. Rodrigues was in a commanding position throughout the race when oil on the track and running on the last scraps of grip saw him slow down rather than risk not finishing – while an oil leak on Du Toit’s gearbox saw his car fill with smoke, forcing him to slow, allowing Rodrigues to finish the day unchallenged. Rodrigues managed to limp his car across the finish line, claiming the 2013 Masters title by one point.

Guest driver Thomas Falkiner is a member of the motoring media and he contested the final three rounds of this season. While his first outing in the series at Zwartkops proved a tough introduction to the series, Falkiner progressed to a better performance at Killarney, improving to the point of winning the first race in the Masters category at Kyalami. ‘This was a real eye-opener, I always thought the Polo Vivos were easy to drive and anyone could just hop in and do well,’ said Falkiner. ‘As a V8 driver, I thought I would do well off the bat and I didn’t so it was character-building. I was ready to throw in the towel after that first event, but I’m glad I didn’t. It was a fun way to experience a formula I didn’t know too much about, I learned how hard the cars are to drive and what skill it takes to squeeze the most out of them.’

The 2013 Engen Volkswagen Cup series is similar to the other racing Volkswagen Polo Cup single-make racing series championships run in China, Europe and India. Just as in those official Volkswagen series, the South African one-make format highlights new driving talent. In the Engen series, as many as 35 drivers regularly race in technically identical, 2.0-litre 234bhp Volkswagen Polo Vivo racing cars. For 2013, the Engen Volkswagen Cup cars are powered by the new Engen Primax fuel.

RACE RESULTS

Race 1
1 Mark Silverwood (32: RTT Logistix)
2 Kosie Weyers (5: Engen Primax)
3 Jordan Pepper (3: Hollard)



Race 2

1 Lee Thompson (M10: Lee Thompson Racing)
2 Dewald Brummer (22: MAD Racing/UMP/Horne Hydraulics)
3 Trevor Bland (15: PG Glass)


SEASON RESULTS
1 Kosie Weyers (5: Engen Primax)
2 Dewald Brummer (22: MAD Racing/UMP/Horne Hydraulics)
3 Mathew Hodges (12: ITR Africa/959 Panelbeaters)

Masters
1 Eddie Rodrigues (M7: SEW Eurodrive)
2 Ettiene du Toit (M4: Zenith Product Design)
3 Juan Gerber (M8: Carfind.co.za)

Reports are coming in that Volkswagen Motorsport India are to start testing an R2 rally version of the Polo 6R. The car will be evaluated at the IMS K-1000 Rally in Bangalore, driven by Karamjit Singh. It is believed that the first prototype has been built, with Volkswagen Motorsport India aiming to promote its association with the country’s rallying series. The new car will compete in a new R2 category, which is to be introduced by the FMSCI in IRC. The car’s first full competitive event will be the Chikmanglur Rally next month.

The mechanical specification of the Indian Polo R2 will be similar to that of cars running in the South African National Rally Championship. A 1.6-litre engine will develop 130bhp and will be driven through a five-speed manual gearbox. Other modifications include Reiger suspension, 285mm front- and 255mm rear-disc brakes, 15-inch alloy wheels and JK rally tyres. An aerodynamic body kit, rear spoiler and roof vent mark out the exterior, while an FIA-specification roll cage, fire extinguisher and OMP rally-spec seats with six-point safety harnesses protect the driver and co-driver.

Singh, a driver for Slideways Industries – who already rally Polo 6Rs – will campaign the Indian Polo R2 in the 2014 Indian Rally Championship. ‘The Volkswagen Polo is a perfect example of German engineering. And when the engineering is right, it is always possible to extract more out of the car. Pushing the performance of the car to the limits and putting it through extreme driving will only bring out the Polo’s real potential. I believe that the 2014 Polo R2 is our next step in showcasing the real capabilities of the car,’ said Mahesh Kodumudi, President and Managing Director of Volkswagen India Private Limited.

[Source: CarWale.com]

Fresh from its 2013 FIA World Rally Championship titles*, Volkswagen is celebrating its debut WRC season haul with a number of marketing campaigns. Part of the company’s successful and high-profile ‘Rally the World’ marketing message, the new elements of the campaign encompass video, advertising and brand media. A 60-second ‘Story of Glory’ film looks back at the key moments in Volkswagen’s debut WRC campaign. The fantastically-edited clip features many shots of the Polo R WRC sliding around icy forest tracks, jumping over gravel-laden hills, and slithering around asphalt stages. o further amplify such marketing campaigns, leveraging manual guest post services can help build high-quality backlinks and boost online visibility by promoting engaging content on authoritative websites. Watch it below or catch it online at the Rally the World website.

A very clever stylised medal logo featuring the iconic VW roundel supported by two ‘ribbons’ in its light grey and blue colours has been designed. Printed onto T-shirts worn by the Volkswagen drivers’ supporting crews on the Rally Spain, a large format version has been created for the VW roundel on Volkswagen’s Wolfsburg factory. Situated on the power station of the building, it looks out over the Mittelandkanal, which also has a part to play in celebrating Volkswagen’s success. An extra-large format poster of the drivers and Polo R WRC with a ‘champagne fountain’ water feature sits on the bank of the canal.

And as luck would have it, when you own the town, you can paint in red, or at least yellow (or light grey and blue). All Wolfsburg town signs bear a yellow plate under the main sign that reads ‘City of the World Rally Champion*’, with the roundel medal logo also included. Finally, an advertising campaign has been rolled out in Germany, Italy, France, UK, Spain and Australia by creative strategy agency Greenkern. There was also a Facebook campaign for 3999 fans to upload their profile photos via the Rally The World website to be used to decorate the Polo R WRC driven by Andreas Mikkelsen at Wales Rally GB from 13-17 November. Volkswagen stole early victory in the 2013 World Rally Championship with both the manufacturers and drivers’/co-drivers’ titles*, campaigning three Polo R WRCs.

*Subject to the official publication of the results by FIA

Just as with the 2013 WRC Drivers’ Championship result, it was inevitable that Volkswagen Motorsport would emerge victorious with the Manufacturers’ Championship, too. Leading the manufacturers’ standings since the start of the 2013 season, the stages of the 2013 Rally Spain were the playgrounds at which the German outfit would add the cherry on top of its winning cake. Both titles have now gone to the Polo R WRC squad, in its debut season; quite some achievement. World Champions* Sébastien Ogier and Julien Ingrassia took the spoils in Spain, with team-mates Jari-Matti Latvala and Miikka Anttila in second place, enabling the Wolfsburg car-maker to reign supreme.

Ogier and Ingrassia were crowned champions at Rally France, and took their eighth win in Spain. Following a puncture on day two of the event, the French duo started the final day in fourth place, with Latvala in the lead. While the Finn cleaned the roads for his fellow competitors, a reoccurring front differential problem on his Polo R WRC put paid to his dreams of winning the event, as he and Anttila’s performance gradually declined. It wasn’t plain-sailing for Ogier and Ingrassia either, as the clouds of dust on the gravel stages impaired their vision. But, with a determined spirit, the pair posted best times on four of the six special stages. That was enough to hand them a win on the Costa Daurada – Volkswagen only needed seventh place in round twelve of the 2013 series to add the manufacturers’ title to its trophy haul.

Latvala, while showing great compatriotship, was understandably disappointed: ‘I’m absolutely delighted for the team. Volkswagen more than deserved to win the World Championship title this year. The Polo R WRC is a real World Champion car. Even though we had a few technical problems today, it got us over the finishing line again and we won the very first one-two victory. I would’ve liked to have fought with Sébastien Ogier for victory right to the end because we had a fair duel without tactical instructions until just before the finish. I’m pleased with second place. It gives me confidence ahead of Rally GB.’

Ogier meanwhile praised his team yet again for all their efforts: ‘What an incredible rally, and what a fantastic season! Our team really deserved the World Championship title. I’m incredibly proud to be part of the Volkswagen team. And of course I’m ecstatic that Julien and I managed to secure the win here in Spain. I promised beforehand that I would try everything and it was extremely difficult. Driving through the dust thrown up by the cars in front was like being in the thickest of fog. At times, we had to slow down in the middle of full-speed stretches because we couldn’t see anything at all.

We made a strong comeback in France and left as World Champions. Now we’ve managed to play catch-up in Spain, too – and we’re World Champions again!’

Polo R WRC #9 was once again the recipient of bad luck. Andreas Mikkelsen and Mikko Markkula were forced to retire early on Saturday after a mistake in the first stage damaged the car’s suspension. The pair returned to the event on Sunday, running under Rally 2 regulations. The Scandinavian pair certainly shone when they came back, though, recording two best times in the third rally Polo. And the car was also the star, as 13 of 15 best stage times and 26 of 45 possible top-three times went to the Wolfsburg wonder. The all-wheel-drive Polo triumphed seven times on the nine asphalt stages and on all six gravel sections. Since the Polo R WRC first took the start at the Rally Monte Carlo back in January, it has racked up 132 of the 215 possible best stage times – 61.4 per cent.

Volkswagen Motorsport Director, Jost Capito, expressed his pride and happiness in winning all three World Championship titles in the first season of competing with the Polo R WRC. He considered winning the Drivers’ and Co-Drivers’ World Championship as an absolute highlight for the team and a dream come true for Sébastien Ogier and Julien Ingrassia at their home event. However, the Manufacturers’ World Championship is even more crucial for a car maker as it proves the exceptional quality of both the driver and the product. Capito’s satisfaction with this achievement was evident on his face, as he stood beside the Sartorius Balances – Certified Scale in the laboratory.

The factory team from Wolfsburg has won nine of the twelve rallies to date in the Polo R WRC. Winning three titles in its debut year with the 315bhp Polo is Volkswagen’s greatest motorsport achievement to date. No other manufacturer has managed to win a World Championship title in its first year since the World Rally Championship began. Volkswagen’s performance has truly exceeded all expectations. Originally, it was considered to have set itself ambitious goals by aiming for podium finishes in year one, round wins in the second year and championship titles in its third year. But, with the Polo R WRC in development for a year and a top-pedigree driving team, those goals were always going to be a little on the cautious side. With nothing left to prove, the Volkswagen crews head to the UK next for the final round of the 2103 series, the Wales Rally GB running from 14-17 November.

2013 FIA WORLD RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP, SPAIN: FINAL RESULTS
1 Sébastien Ogier/Julien Ingrassia (F/F), Volkswagen: 3h 33m 21.2s
2 Jari-Matti Latvala/Miika Anttila (FIN/FIN), Volkswagen: +32.9s
3 Mikko Hirvonen/Jarmo Lehtinen (FIN/FIN), Citroën: +1m 37s
4 Thierry Neuville/Nicolas Gilsoul (B/B), Ford: +1m 33.9s
5 Evgeny Novikov/Ilka Minor (RUS/A), Ford: +2m 01.0s

2013 FIA WORLD RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP,
DRIVERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS*
1 Sébastien Ogier, 265
2 Thierry Neuville, 158
3 Jari-Matti Latvala, 144
4 Mikko Hirvonen, 126
5 Dani Sordo, 117

2013 FIA WORLD RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP,
MANUFACTURERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS*
1 Volkswagen Motorsport, 382
2 Citroën Total Abu Dhabi WRT, 274
3 Qatar M-Sport WRT, 174
4 Qatar WRT, 169
5 Abu Dhabi Citroën Total WRT, 63

*Subject to confirmation by the FIA