PoloDriver

All new variants of the Polo sold in India will now have dual front airbags as standard, after a non-airbag equipped version failed a Global NCAP crash test. The Polo, along with four other models – including the previous generation Fiesta-based Ford Figo – failed a 64km/h crash test and received zero-star adult protection ratings.

Volkswagen will be the first manufacturer to offer the safety kit as standard on a model in the small car segment. Mid-range Comfortline models will also receive anti-lock brakes (ABS) as standard.

The first-ever independent crash tests of a selection of India’s popular and important small cars displayed a high risk of life-threatening injuries in road crashes.

The best-selling Suzuki-Maruti Alto 800, Tata Nano, Ford Figo, Hyundai i10 and Volkswagen Polo took part in the Global NCAP tests. With a market share of around 20 per cent of total car sales in India last year, these five models were chosen in entry-level form, meaning none were fitted with airbags.

The Suzuki-Maruti, Tata and Hyundai models proved to have inadequate vehicle structures, collapsing and resulting in life-threatening injury risks to passengers. Such was the extent of these weaknesses, the fitting of airbags would not have been effective.

The Ford and Volkswagen cars fared better, though, with bodies that remained in a stable condition. The tests found that if airbags were fitted, occupant protection would be greatly increased.

Volkswagen India’s decision to withdraw the non-airbag equipped Polo meant that it had to resupply a model to Global NCAP to reassess the version with the safety protection, as that would now represent an entry-level model. The variant with airbags received a four-star rating from the independent testing organisation.

Arvind Saxena, Managing Director, Volkswagen Passenger Cars, Volkswagen Group Sales India Pvt Ltd said: ‘We are proud to be leading the cause of driver safety, and we believe the introduction of airbags as standard fitment across all variants of the Polo is a major step forward. Once again, this step underlines our commitment to producing better – and better-equipped cars – for the discerning Indian consumer.’

At the same time, the German manufacturer announced a 2.7 per cent price increase on its Indian Polo and Vento (Polo saloon) models. Effective from 1 February 2014, Polo prices rise by Rs 22,700 and Vento models will cost up to Rs 26,800 more. Volkswagen India puts the price increase down to high input costs and unfavourable exchange rate changes.

Saxena commented: ‘Input costs have steadily increased over the last few months, and exchange rate movements have not been favourable. We have tried our best to absorb some of these, but in order to be able to continue to offer best-in-class quality and technology to our customers, we have now announced a 2.7 per cent rise in our car prices.’

German tuner KW Automotive has announced a range of suspension kits designed for the high-performance Polo R WRC road car. With a 2.0-litre engine developing 217bhp, the limited edition Polo celebrates Volkswagen’s World Rally Championship success.

KW has five coilover kits available, ranging from the Variant 1, 2, and 3, up to the comfortable Street Comfort, through to the track day-focused KW Clubsport. All KW coliover suspension kits are made from stainless steel and have been TÜV tested to allow a continuously adjustment range of between 15-40mm on the front and 20-50mm on the rear.

Variant 1 features a factory-set damping adjustment, while the remaining four kits can be adjusted in either rebound damping or compression and rebound. Camber can be finely-tuned, too, depending on which kit is chosen.

‘As with all of our coilover suspensions, the continuous lowering is made directly on the stainless steel strut via the dirt-resistant trapezoid thread or on the rear axle height adjustment of the Polo’, explains KW Product Manager Johannes Wacker.

‘Through our damper setup that we have developed in numerous road tests, the KW coilovers for the Polo R WRC have – even at maximum lowering and depending on the wheel/tyre combination – excellent driving comfort.’

Variant 3 combines ‘everyday practicality and sporty driving dynamics’, with patented valve technology for the separate compression and rebound adjustment based on developments in motorsport. Sixteen clicks determine the adjustability of the rebound damping, while 12 clicks adjust the the compression.

Enhancing the driving dynamics of the high-performance Polo, KW states that drivers will see a noticeable benefit immediately. The Clubsport two-way coilover kit includes top mounts for amateur sport and drift use. Its dampers are of a higher performance standard than the Variant 3 kit, while the top mounts are added.

Both Clubsport and Variant 3 dampers can be adjusted without any tools thanks to the click adjustment wheel.

The Street Comfort kit meanwhile offers sports handling with long distance comfort. ‘The spring rates and the dampers are characterised by a comfort-oriented setup’, explains Wacker. ‘Despite the increased driving comfort, the Street Comfort allows direct handling.’

The Street Comfort version also has an adjustable rebound adjustment that allows the damping characteristics to be adjusted to be even more comfortable or stiffer for more sports-orientated handling. With 2500 Polo R WRC road cars produced, there could be demand for the KW coilover kits, but as of yet there are no details on pricing.

All KW Clubsport kits have been tested at the Nürburgring Nordschleife, are fully road legal, and also enjoy a valid German TÜV certificate.

The rumours have become more intense over the past few months, but now, finally, the new Polo is here. As expected, and in true Volkswagen tradition, the looks haven’t been altered much. The front bumper now sports new character lines and chrome trim added to the front, while reprofiled bumpers feature at the rear.

There are new light graphics, and LED headlights can now be specified, a class first. A fresh palette of new colours add the finishing touch, along with a new collection of alloy wheel designs.

The Polo has long taken cues from big brother Golf and the refreshed Mk 5 is no different. The interior features a new touchscreen modular infotainment system in the centre console with proximity sensor, just like the Golf.

The centre console has added colour, too, with some models enjoying a silver finish as seen on the limited-run Polo R WRC road car. There’s a new Golf-like three-spoke steering wheel, too, along with refreshed heating and ventilation controls.

If the interior has touches of Golf, the array of technical developments also have echoes of VW’s mid-size hatchback. An Automatic Post-Collision Braking System, Driver Alert System, City Emergency Braking technology and radar-operated Automatic Cruise Control are all part of the new Polo’s make-up.

A new Sport Select switchable suspension will make its debut on a Polo, too, and together with a new electro-mechanical steering system promise improved dynamics. Volkswagen says that its ‘democratising technology’ and if that sounds familiar, the German company heralded it was ‘democratising luxury’ back in 2000.

The big news is what powers the new Polo. A brace of EU6-compliant engines nestle beneath the new VW supermini’s bonnet. Volkswagen promises improved fuel efficiencies of up to 21 per cent with the new powertrains which start with a pair of three-cylinder 1.0-litre units. Developing 59 or 74bhp, they replace the ageing 1.2s, while new TSI units of the same capacity produce either 89 or 109bhp.

Further up the Polo ladder, the BlueGT has a 10bhp power boost to 148bhp. A new 189bhp Polo GTI will arrive later, which, we’re informed, will have the option of a manual gearbox, a feature the 6R GTI has so far been denied.

Diesel lovers a catered for by a pair of new 1.4 TDIs. With outputs of 74 and 89bhp, the three-cylinder units replace the previous 1.2 and 1.6-litre engines with the same outputs. The most startling news of all is that the UK Polo BlueMotion will now be a petrol model only.

Fitted with a new 1.0-litre turbocharged three-cylinder engine, the eco model will return 68.9mpg on the combined cycle, and will emit just 94g/km of CO2. The continent sees a new and improved 82g/km diesel BlueMotion introduced.

There’s no news yet on the recent prototyped ‘R’ model with a rumoured 248bhp, and Volkswagen has stayed away from the term ‘facelift’. That’s precisely what this new Polo is, though, but a thorough one at that. The new model will be available this summer in the UK, with order books opening in April. First deliveries are expected in late July.

Full prices will be announced nearer the on-sale date, although VW states it aims to sell the new Polo to a very similar, if not the same, price as the old one. We’re in Wolfsburg at the new Polo press launch so will bring you full details of the new car very soon. Check our Twitter feed for the latest coverage.

On-off. On-off. It’s long been rumoured, but now – at last! – a four-wheel drive super-Polo might just about to become a reality. Volkswagen held a driving event for the forthcoming 296bhp four-wheel drive Golf R this week and, it would appear, sneaked in a couple of Polo R prototypes.

Journalists were given the chance to take them for a spin around a Swedish frozen lake. We saw the first drive on Autocar, where the 250bhp Polo was described as ‘composed, controllable and hugely entertaining’. At last!

Exact details are to be confirmed, but the Polo R is touted to put out al least 250bhp from it’s 2.0-litre TSI engine. The four-wheel drive Audi S1 is believed to have settled the business case which so far the car has lacked. Both share chassis and therefore the four-wheel drive system which, for the Polo, has necessitated a new multi-link rear suspension arrangement.

Autocar states that performance is more than brisk, with 62mph coming up in around six seconds. The black and white prototypes which have been pictured were running a six-speed DSG gearbox (and winter tyres on smaller alloy wheels).

With the Audi S1 believed to be unveiled at the Geneva motor show in March, it’s possible the Polo R could be rushed through once evaluation has been completed to debut at the same event. A facelifted model of the Volkswagen supermini is also rumoured to be making an appearance in Switzerland.

Very different mechanically to the 2500 front-wheel drive Polo R WRC road cars (front-wheel drive, 217bhp, six-speed manual) launched to make the Polo R WRC rally eligible for the World Rally Championship, the Polo R could make a real halo car for the almost-40 year-old sub-brand and become the great handling, super-quick super-Polo we’ve only ever dared dreamed of before.

A popular, perfect pairing. That’s how the Volkswagen Polo Vivo and Polo 6R can be seen during 2013. Named South Africa’s top-selling cars last year, the duo sold almost 64,000 units between them, helping Volkswagen Group South Africa deliver over 9.7 million vehicles.

The Volkswagen brand sold 83,627 units in the country alone, with 35,041 Polo Vivos finding new homes, while 27,953 fifth-generation Polo 6Rs left dealer showrooms. Both cars are produced locally at Volkswagen’s Uitenhage factory, consistently top the sales charts, and account for nearly 14 per cent of the local market.

Volkswagen Group South Africa ended 2013 as the market leader of the passenger car segment for the fifth consecutive year with the total sales of 102,962 units, up 3.9 per cent. This gave Volkswagen Group South Africa an impressive overall market share of 22.9 per cent.

Volkswagen’s passenger car sales growth of 3.9 per cent was more than double the total passenger car market growth of 1.8 per cent in 2013.

The Polo Vivo was launched in March 2010 as an entry-level model for the South African market, replacing the Series 1 Golf-based CitiGolf, and is available as a three or five-door hatchback and four-door booted saloon with 74bhp/84bhp 1.4-litre and 103bhp 1.6-litre petrol engines.

Costing from R132,200 for the base-model 1.4 hatchback to R171,000 for the top 1.6 Polo Maxx, the 2013 Polo Vivo is based on the revised version of the Series 4 Polo (9N3), built from 2005 to 2009. The fifth-generation Polo (6R) is available as a three and five-door hatch, in addition to the four-door Polo Sedan.