PoloDriver

Look at these. We’ve managed to get our hands on one of the Volkswagen press packs that the company handed out to journalists at the recent Geneva motor show. Consisting of a bound-in softback book of press releases for the traditionalists and an aluminium lightweight, VW logo-embossed USB stick for the techies, both mediums feature information on the new Polo GTI and CrossPolo, as well as the other models that Volkswagen pulled the covers off at the major Swiss expo.

Tucked away in the gallery section for the Polo GTI, though, we were pleased to find these rendering sketches, which we thought we’d share with you. They show how the car could have looked even more aggressive. The hot-shot Polo which will reach UK shores in August and, as we’ve said before, really looks the business. But, these sketches show what could have been. Final production cars rarely look like the sketches or concepts they’re based on we admit, but there’s real potential with these. We know Volkswagen is considering a new rally programme, so… forest-bound motorsport Polo anyone?

It’s finally here! The April 2010 issue of What Car? magazine on sale now features the long-awaited £14,830 Polo 1.2 TSI three-door squaring up to its premium supermini competition in the form of the style-led Citroën DS3, as well as the Mini Cooper and Renault Clio GT. A mammoth 14-page test covers everything from performance to ride and handling, quality and reliability to space and practicality. What wins? We won’t give the game away here, but praising the new turbocharged engine the magazine says, ‘a small prod of the throttle is all that’s needed to send the Polo surging forward.’ Until the GTI arrives in the summer, could the new 104bhp unit be the pick of the range?

Here’s a cute new TV commercial to promote Volkswagen’s recently-launced ‘Think Blue’ environmental initiative. Using the idea of a young daughter disapproving of her father’s energy-consuming and non-environmentally friendly lifestyle, she soon flashes a smile when he decides to drive the latest Polo BlueMotion.

There’s been no official announcement yet, but scouting around on the German Volkswagen website, we came across another new Polo variant and it’s one which could challenge even the Polo BlueMotion’s economic leanings. Called the Polo BiFuel, the newcomer’s 1.4-litre 84bhp engine runs on both petrol and LPG autogas. Starting on petrol, once warmed up, the twin-fuel Polo then automatically switches its diet to LPG. Fuel choice can then be decided while running by the push of a button.

Driving this way, Volkswagen quotes a maximised total range of 1300km (807 miles) from the car’s 52-litre fuel tank, located in the spare wheel well in the luggage compartment. An LED-display in the instrument panel tells the driver which fuel system is being used. Compared to the standard petrol running, emissions go down 10% when in LPG mode and filling up is easy, as over 5700 filling stations in Germany sell the revolutionary fuel.

The Polo BiFuel is available in the traditional Volkswagen versions of Trendline, Comfortline and Highline, as well as the special-edition Team. All are fitted with the same 1390cc unit (developing 81bhp when using LPG) and five-speed gearbox and although nowhere near as clean as the 87g/km BlueMotion, the Polo BiFuel pumps out 146g/km of CO2 when in standard petrol mode and 132g/km when sipping LPG.

Prices start at €16.325 for the Polo BiFuel Trendline, rising to €17.625 for the Comfortline, topping out at €18.450 for the Highline (€2550 more than the non-LPG equivalent version). All models listed are three-doors; the price rises again for two further openings. Unfortunately, we’ve no definite on-sale dates as the Polo BiFuel has only very recently been added to the Volkswagen’s German website pages. It is also listed in the latest March 2010 technical data and prices catalogue available here, again only applicable to its home market.

Although it will never challenge the BlueMotion in the cleanliness stakes, the BiFuel is an interesting addition to the range and due to the low price of LPG autogas, could prove cheaper to run than its eco-Polo brother. It won’t work in the UK at the moment due to the lack of availability of the LPG it needs to drink, but Volkswagen is certainly has its hands in many environmental pies in Europe; the twin-fuel Polo joins BiFuel versions of the Golf and Golf Plus already on sale.

Establishing itself as a force to be reckoned with last month by driving into the UK’s top 10 best-selling cars for January 2010, the Polo has repeated the feat for February. Released this week, the figures show that although the Polo slipped three places to number seven, its Golf stablemate actually improved its standing, rising to number three from six in the first month of the year.

While the Polo was still 1336 units clear of challenging its class rival Ford Fiesta for the top spot, it sold 301 units more than the eighth best-selling car, the BMW 3 Series. Rising for the eighth sequential month, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders state that the UK’s February’s sales were actually up 26.4%. The full list of what sold what is as follows:

1 Ford Fiesta: 3236 units
2 Ford Focus: 3035 units
3 Volkswagen Golf: 2586 units
4 Vauxhall Astra: 2524 units
5 Vauxhall Corsa: 2391 units
6 Hyundai i10: 1938 units
7 Volkswagen Polo: 1900 units
8 BMW 3 Series: 1599 units
9 Kia Picanto: 1573 units
10 Peugeot 207: 1422 units

These latest encouraging Polo sales figures come just as the German consumer magazine Guter Rat have awarded the Polo the Best Compact Car 2010 award.