PoloDriver

The Volkswagen Polo rounded off 2016 as the UK’s seventh most popular car by registration figures, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) which has released totals for December. A total of 3,650 Polos were registered in the last month of 2016, while 54,448 registration of Volkswagen’s small car also saw it placed seventh overall in the year’s chart as a whole.

The Ford Fiesta was once again positioned at the top of both the December and overall 2016 charts, with 8,198 and 120,525 cars registered respectively. The Volkswagen Golf was third in the final month of 2016 with 5355 units registered, while a total of 69,742 saw it finish the year in fourth place. Overall, 2,692,786 cars were registered in 2016 – up 2.3 per cent on 2015.

The UK’s top 10 most popular passenger cars during December 2016 and the year overall (sales figure and position in brackets) were as follows:

1 Ford Fiesta: 8,198 (120,525, 1st)
2 Vauxhall Astra: 6,134 (60,719, 6th)
3 Volkswagen Golf: 5,335 (69,492, 4th)
4 Ford Focus: 4,991 (70,545, 3rd)
5 Mini: 4,637 (48,328, 8th)
6 Vauxhall Corsa: 3,938 (77,110, 2nd)
7 Volkswagen Polo: 3,650 (54,448, 7th)
8 Nissan Juke: 3,368
9 Nissan Qashqai: 3,202 (62,682, 5th)
10 Mercedes-Benz C Class: 3,063 (44,184, 9th)

(The 2016 top 10 most popular car absent from December 2016’s sales figures was the tenth-placed Audi A3 with 43,808 cars registered.)

It’s been another busy year for the Volkswagen Polo. On the asphalt and gravel stages of the 2016 FIA World Rally Championship, the Polo has, like 2013, 2014, and 2015, again taken on all-comers to emerge victorious: the 318bhp Polo R WRC has taken the Manufacturers’ Championship title for Volkswagen Motorsport and has also carried Frenchmen Sébastien Ogier and Julien Ingrassia to their third consecutive Drivers’ and Co-drivers’ Championship prizes. Sadly, that success is due to end this year with the announcement that Volkswagen is to quit top-level rallying.

Other Polo-based motorsport series have continued around the globe, though, with Wolfsburg’s small car taking an even larger presence in the FIA World Rallycross Championship. Volkswagen Driver magazine in the UK has also published a series of articles detailing cars in the 2015 AutoMuseum Volkswagen ’40 Years Polo’ exhibition, which were written by PoloDriver.com editor Rich Gooding. A number of Polo special edition models have also been released around the world, while 2016 is expected to be the final production year of the current fifth-generation Polo.

Here, we round up the Polo’s biggest achievements in 2016. (Bold entries are illustrated by the picture above that particular month’s list of events.)

January

– Our cars: 2015 Polo SE 1.2 TSI – report three
– Volkswagen RX Sweden rallycross team unveiled
– Volkswagen launches ‘Race Anywhere’ Polo R WRC smartphone rally game app
– Polo R WRC upgraded and improved ahead of 2016 FIA World Rally Championship
– Volkswagen Motorsport takes victory at Rally Monte-Carlo
– Polo is the seventh best-selling car in the UK.

February
– Polo E80 prototype and Öko-Polo eco models profiled in Volkswagen Driver magazine
– Volkswagen India refreshes Polo and Vento ranges; new sub-compact Ameo launched
– Polo GTI revealed for Indian market
– Sébastien Ogier, Julien Ingrassia and Volkswagen win Rally Sweden for the third time
– Polo Beats special edition announced ahead of 2016 Geneva motor show
– Polo is the eighth best-selling car in the UK.

March
– 1970s early Polos and Audi 50s profiled in Volkswagen Driver magazine
– Future Polo-based T-Cross Breeze SUV concept revealed at 2016 Geneva motor show
– Jari-Matti Latvala and Miikka Anttila celebrate Rally Mexico win
– Volkswagen South Africa launches Polo Vivo Xpress van and Polo Vivo GTS
– Our cars: 2015 Polo GTI – report one
– Polo is the sixth best-selling car in the UK.

April

– 1982 Polo bb Buchmann profiled in Volkswagen Driver magazine
– Volkswagen India recalls Vento 1.5 TDIs due to ‘inconsistent emission issues’
– 2016 Volkswagen RX Sweden Polo RX rallycross Supercar revealed
– 2017 Volkswagen Polo R WRC technology announced
– Sixth for Johan Kristoffersson and Volkswagen RX Sweden at World RX of Portugal
– Polo R WRCs finish in second and third places at Rally Argentina
– Polo is the sixth best-selling car in the UK.

May
– 1983 Polo Sprint prototype profiled in Volkswagen Driver magazine
– Polo RXs finish seventh and 15th at World RX of Hockenheim
– Special edition Polo Beats hits the UK from £13,910
– Volkswagen RX Sweden Polos in World RX of Belgium final
– Rally Portugal podiums for Andreas Mikkelsen and Sébastien Ogier
– Polo GT Sedan 1.4 TSI launched in Russia
– Polo is the seventh best-selling car in the UK.

June

– 1985 Polo G40 ‘World Record’ endurance car profiled in Volkswagen Driver magazine
– Polo RXs complete World RX of Great Britain in eighth and 11th places
– New Polo Select and Vento Celeste special editions for India
– Double podium and an extended championship lead for Volkswagen at Rally Italy
– Polo RXs finish in seventh and 15th places at World RX of Norway
– Wimmer Rennsporttechnik announce 417bhp Polo R WRC tuning kit
– Polo is the eighth best-selling car in the UK.

July

– Andreas Mikkelsen and Anders Jæger take Polo R WRC to victory at Rally Poland
– Polo scoops Auto Express New Car Awards 2016 ‘small car’ prize
– Fourth and fifth place finishes for Polo RXs at World RX of Sweden
– Polo is the seventh best-selling car in the UK.

August

– Five generations of sports Polos profiled in Volkswagen Driver magazine
– Second place for Jari-Matti Latvala and Miikka Anttila at Rally Finland
– Goodridge Performance launches 2014-onwards Polo GTI 1.8 TSI ‘Phantom’ brake line kit
– PoloDriver.com profiles Belgian-only special edition Polo RX from 1978
– Kristoffersson scores Volkswagen RX Sweden podium at World RX of Canada
– Volkswagen Group announces roll-out particulate filters for petrol-engined cars
– Polo 1.2-litre TDI included in Volkswagen EA189 engine recall
– Sixth-generation Volkswagen Polo spotted testing; ‘hybrid’ platform car to be sold in India
– Polo R WRC takes on Kamaz 4326 Dakar Rally truck in Ouninpohja, Finland
– Cobra Sport announces performance exhaust system for 2014-onwards Polo GTI 1.8 TSI
– Ogier and Volkswagen Motorsport win Rally Germany
– Polo is the sixth best-selling car in the UK.

September
– 1986 Volkswagen Motorsport Polo GT G40 profiled in Volkswagen Driver magazine
– Kristoffersson scores emphatic first team victory at World RX of France
– Polo Vivo expanded production plans announced with building of Kenyan factory
– Pete Hedström pilots Polo RX at World RX of Spain and World RX of Latvia
– Remus stainless steel exhaust upgrade for 2014-onwards Polo GTI 1.8 TSI announced
– Kristoffersson finishes sixth at World RX of Spain
– Polo is the sixth best-selling car in the UK.

October
– 1986 Wintershall VW Polo G40 Cup profiled in Volkswagen Driver magazine
– Ogier and Volkswagen Motorsport victorious at Rally France
– PoloDriver.com tests the Polo R-Line 1.0 TSI
– Kristoffersson claims second place at World RX of Latvia
– Special edition Polo Vivo Storm released in South Africa
– Polo Beats special edition launched by Volkswagen South Africa
– A solid sixth for Kristoffersson at World RX of Germany
– Ogier and Ingrassia claim fourth WRC drivers’ championship title at Rally Spain
– Volkswagen claims its twelfth WRC title in four years at Rally Great Britain
– Polo is the seventh best-selling car in the UK.

November
– Second-generation Polos profiled in Volkswagen Driver magazine
– Volkswagen announces it is to exit the World Rally Championship
– ‘Limited edition’ Polo GTI launched in India for Rs 25.99 lakh
– Polo Beats special edition arrives in Ireland
– Polo Allstar and Vento Preferred special editions launched by Volkswagen India
– Volkswagen bids farewell to Polo R WRC with Rally Australia win
– Polo is the eighth best-selling car in the UK.

December
– Late-generation Polos profiled in Volkswagen Driver magazine
– Polo R WRC is named as Autosport magazine’s 2016 Rally Car of the Year
– Sébastien Ogier is named as Autosport magazine’s 2016 Rally Driver of the Year
– Polo GTI named Overdrive magazine’s Performance Car of the Year
– Ameo, Polo and Vento Crest Collection special edition models launched
– PoloDriver.com compares the SEAT Ibiza Cupra and Volkswagen Polo GTI
– Value-driven Polo Match Edition launched in the UK
– Polo is the seventh best-selling car in the UK for the month and the year overall
– Over 704,062 Polos are registered worldwide during 2016, making it the eighth best-selling car in the world.

Once again, we would like to thank the loyal readers and followers who have helped make the year another enjoyable one for PoloDriver.com, and hope that you’ll enjoy the developments and stories coming to the website in 2017.

[Click on the ‘Polo 2009-’, ‘WRC’ and ‘Motorsport’ tags in the category drop-down list in the right-hand sidebar of the website to see all entries pertaining to the revised fifth-generation Polo, Polo R WRC, and Polo motorsport activity respectively. Choose other category or month sections for relevant entries.]

Volkswagen UK has enriched the popular Polo range with the addition of the Match Edition model, available to order from Volkswagen Retailers on 21 December. Prices start at £13,315 OTR for the model with enhanced technology, which also comes with a choice of four engines. Among the highlights of the Polo Match Edition is Car-Net App-Connect which integrates smartphones to the car via a USB connection, and allows Apple CarPlay, Android Auto or MirrorLink apps to control the device.

Useful interactivity
Practical information and apps such as Skype and Spotify – can also be accessed by the Car-Net App-Connect system – which also features on the distinctive Polo Beats model – while for Android smartphones, Google Voice Control functionality is also enabled. Car-Net App-Connect builds on the car’s standard Composition Media infotainment system, too, for further useful interactivity.

For MirrorLink users, Volkswagen has developed special apps including Call & Remind for those all-important ‘to do’ lists, as well as Cam Connect, which lets a GoPro® Hero4 camera be placed in the car and a still image shown on the infotainment screen on demand. Video from the camera can also be streamed when the car is moving slowly or is at a halt.

Value-driven
Aside from the heightened technology count, standard equipment on the value-driven new Polo Match Edition is high. Features on the Polo Match Edition include auto-dimming rear view mirror and auto-sensing windscreen wipers, cruise control, a ‘coming/leaving home’ function for the lights, electrically-heated door mirrors, front and rear parking sensors, as well as 15-inch ‘Stratford’ alloy wheels.

Three petrol and one diesel engines power the Polo Match Edition. A 1.0-litre petrol unit starts the range, and is available in 59 and 74bhp forms, while Volkswagen’s familiar 1.2-litre TSI petrol engine with 89bhp provides a little more go, and can be chosen with either a manual or DSG automatic gearbox. A 1.4-litre TDI diesel engine with 74bhp completes the Match Edition range, and Volkswagen states it offers as much as 74.3mpg* on the combined cycle.

For additional details on the Polo Match Edition and the complete Polo range, visit the Volkswagen UK website. Pricing for the Polo Match Edition is below.

2016 VOLKSWAGEN POLO MATCH EDITION PRICES (UK)
1.0 BMT 59bhp, 108g/km, five-speed manual, 3dr: £13,315
1.0 BMT 59bhp, 108g/km, five-speed manual, 5dr: £13,945
1.0 BMT 74bhp, 108g/km, five-speed manual, 3dr: £13,840
1.0 BMT 74bhp, 108g/km, five-speed manual, 5dr: £14,470

1.2 TSI BMT 89bhp, 109g/km, five-speed manual, 3dr: £14,460
1.2 TSI BMT 89bhp, 109g/km, five-speed manual, 5dr: £15,090
1.2 TSI BMT 89bhp, 109g/km, seven-speed DSG, 3dr: £15,835
1.2 TSI BMT 89bhp, 109g/km, seven-speed DSG, 5dr: £16,465

1.4 TDI BMT 74bhp, 97g/km, five-speed manual, 3dr: £15,525
1.4 TDI BMT 74bhp, 97g/km, five-speed manual, 5dr: £16,155

* Fuel consumption and CO2 figures are obtained under standardised EU test conditions (Directive 93/116/EEC). This allows a direct comparison between different manufacturer models but may not represent the actual fuel consumption achieved in ‘real world’ driving conditions. More information is available on the Volkswagen website at www.volkswagen.co.uk and at www.dft.gov.uk/vca

The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) in the UK has released its monthly new car registration figures for November 2016 and once again, the Volkswagen Polo makes the top 10 most popular cars chart. The Polo stays rooted in the number eight position, which is exactly where it was for October. Often criticised for being on the more sensible side of the small car class, you can’t knock its consistency. Overall, 3519 Polos were registered in the penultimate month of the year.

In a very reoccurring trend, the Ford Fiesta again sits pretty at the top of the rundown, with 8382 cars registered in November. Another popular Volkswagen, the Golf, is third, with 4663 units finding their way off the forecourts. The SMMT records that the market growth in November rose by 2.9 per cent, to a total of 184,101 cars registered. Overall, 2.5 million new cars have hit the UK’s roads to date in 2016, a new record.

The UK’s top 10 most popular passenger cars during November 2016 and the year so far (sales figure and position in brackets) are as follows:

1 Ford Fiesta: 9382 (112,327, 1st)
2 Vauxhall Astra: 4829 (54,585, 6th)
3 Volkswagen Golf: 4663 (64,137, 4th)
4 Vauxhall Corsa: 4341 (73,172, 2nd)
5 Ford Focus: 4321 (65,554, 3rd)
6 Nissan Qashqai: 4242 (59,840, 5th)
7 Mini: 3778 (43,691, 8th)
8 Volkswagen Polo: 3637 (50,798, 7th)
9 Audi A3: 3296 (40,817, 10th)
10 Mercedes-Benz C Class: 3203 (41,121, 9th)

It’s been mooted for a long time, but finally the Polo GTI is available to buy in India. The car retails at Rs 25.99 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi), but potential owners will need to be as quick as the 189bhp hot hatch – only 99 units will be available, as the car is a ‘limited edition’ for India. The car was first unveiled in February at the Auto Expo motor show in New Delhi, and differences for the Indian market include raised suspension and better dust-proofing.

16-inch ‘Salvador’ alloy wheels
The Indian-market hot Polo also comes with 16-inch ‘Salvador’ alloy wheels, one inch smaller than the European car. Also only available as a three-door, the high price is because the car comes only as a Completely Built Up (‘CBU’) model, which incurs higher taxes: Completely Knocked Down (‘CKD’) cars are cheaper, as parts of the finished vehicle are shipped to the the country of sale for assembly. Regular Polos for the local market are assembled in Volkswagen India’s Pune factory.

Performance is similar to its European sisters: the 1280kg Indian Polo GTI records a 0-62mph time of 7.2 seconds, while top speed is 146mph. Torque from its 1.8-litre turbocharged TSI engine is the same, too, at 184lb ft/250Nm. A seven-speed dual-clutch DSG gearbox is standard. Equipment includes LED headlights, twin exhaust pipes, ‘XDS’ electronic limited slip differential, ‘Composition Media’ colour touchscreen infotainment system, multifunction steering wheel, and six airbags.

2016 Volkswagen Polo GTI (India)

2016 Volkswagen Polo GTI (India)

Marketed as ‘Volkswagen GTI’
The Polo GTI costs Rs 17 lakh more than its less hot 103bhp Polo GT sibling, which is priced at Rs 9.07 lakh. The Indian Polo GTI is marketed just as ‘Volkswagen GTI’, so Volkswagen India is clearly testing the water before launching any further performance models. The Indian Polo GTI’s closest rival is the 147bhp Rs 9.99 Abarth Punto. As well as Europe, the Polo GTI has also appeared in China: a 131bhp model was introduced in 2012 with a 1.4-litre TSI engine from the locally-made Lavida saloon.

Michael Mayer, Director, Volkswagen Passenger Cars India, said: ‘The GTI is one of its kind in the performance hatch segment and is designed for the petrol heads who are well versed with the GTI philosophy. It seamlessly blends power with comfort that guarantees performance and an adrenaline-packed driving experience. The one who drives a GTI need not to explain anything. He simply drives a statement. Volkswagen GTI remains the icon for all sporty cars and we are extremely proud to bring this phenomenon to India’.