PoloDriver

Following on from last month, the Polo has once again recorded a top 10 chart position in the UK’s best-selling cars, according to figures just released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). February 2012 saw Volkswagen UK sell 1518 units through its retailer network, making the Polo the eighth most popular car on these shores. Its stablemate the Golf was third with 2857 examples finding homes, while in a surprise entry, the larger Passat polled three places lower in sixth, shifting 1565 cars. The Ford Fiesta was again top of the supermini heap, with the Vauxhall Corsa coming in as runner-up.

New car registrations fell 2.5% in February to 61,868 units, says the SMMT, with supermini totals falling in February but up for the year-to-date by 2.9%, representing 35.0% of the total market. ‘The February new car market was broadly in line with industry expectations with a welcome increase in private retail activity,’ said Paul Everitt, SMMT Chief Executive. ‘The March market will provide a much better indicator of industry health than the relatively low volumes traditionally seen in February.’ The top 10 UK best-selling cars in February 2012 and for the year overall (sales figure and position in brackets) are as follows:

1 Ford Focus: 3713 (9356, 2nd)
2 Ford Fiesta: 2899 (10,723, 1st)
3 Volkswagen Golf: 2857 (6849, 3rd)
4 Vauxhall Corsa: 2855 (6479, 4th)
5 Vauxhall Astra: 1589 (4929, 5th)
6 Volkswagen Passat: 1565 (3592, 9th)
7 Vauxhall Insignia: 1547 (4266, 7th)
8 Volkswagen Polo: 1518 (4416, 6th)
9 BMW 3 Series: 1474 (3476, 10th)
10 Nissan Qashqai: 1377 (4004, 8th)

Once again, Volkswagen Group South Africa leads the way in the South African new passenger car sales charts. The Polo Vivo in both hatchback and sedan guises was again the top-seller with 2651 units, but the fifth-generation, locally-made Polo 6R wasn’t far behind, with 2470 examples sold. 6033 Polo 6Rs were also exported from Volkswagen Group South Africa’s Uitenhage factory, which also manufactures the CrossPolo.

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 R106,100 for the base-model 1.4 hatchback to R153,200 for the top 1.6 Trendline Sedan, the 2012 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 both a three and five-door hatchback, in addition to the traditionally-styled four-door Polo Sedan.

It’s soon to celebrate its 37th birthday, but today the Volkswagen Polo was announced as the best-selling supermini in Western Europe, based on new registrations by automotive data and marketing solutions organisation Polk. The fifth-generation Polo was launched in 2009, and has won numerous international prizes, including ‘European Car of the Year 2010’ and ‘World Car of the Year 2010’, as well as a ‘Red Dot Design Award’. The car has also won 22 out of 22 comparative tests both in Germany and overseas.

Dynamic design, driving fun, comprehensive safety equipment and a cutting-edge engine line-up mark out the latest Polo, although class-leading quality and refinement still have their part to play, just as they did when the first generation was launched in March 1975. The second-generation Polo arrived in 1981, while the third generation model came in 1994. The series four Polo was ushered in during 2001, bringing with it a whole host of safety features and technology, which its successor has comprehensively built upon.

‘After a very successful 2010, 2011 proved to be an outstanding year once again for the Polo. To be the number one in the supermini segment all across Europe demonstrates that the Polo is the first choice for many customers. In Western Europe alone, more than 340,000 vehicles were sold,’ says Xavier Chardon, Head of Sales Europe of the Volkswagen Passenger Cars Brand. The international popularity of the Polo is reflected in the best-seller’s production locations. The latest Polo 6R is currently manufactured at, and sold from, seven global locations in Europe, Africa, South America, China, India and also Russia.

[Image: Massimiliano Sermisoni Fotografie]

The Polo continues to endear itself to new car buyers in 2012, according to the latest batch of sales figures released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). In January, it sold 2898 examples, a figure up on December’s tally, meaning it retains its sixth place in the UK bestsellers chart. Its larger stablemate, the Golf, was three places higher selling 3992 vehicles, while the reigning champion, the Ford Fiesta once again took the top slot, with 7824 units finding homes. Continuing the trend from 2011, the supermini segment once again took four of the top 10 positions, and showed the largest rise of volumes last month.

Overall, the SMMT states, UK new car registrations rose by 0.03% or 42 units in January 2012 to 128,853 units. The total was boosted by the private market, up 2.7% on January 2011 and further growth in the fleet sector. ‘The January new car market held firm with 128,853 registrations, up on January 2011, a welcome sign of stability in uncertain economic times,’ said Paul Everitt, SMMT Chief Executive. ‘2012 is set to be an exciting year with record numbers of new models coming to market filled with innovative technology that will save the motorist fuel, enhance comfort and further increase levels of safety and security.’ The UK’s top 10 best-selling cars for January 2012 (and therefore the year so far) are as follows:

1 Ford Fiesta: 7824
2 Ford Focus: 5643
3 Volkswagen Golf: 3992
4 Vauxhall Corsa: 3624
5 Vauxhall Astra: 3340
6 Volkswagen Polo: 2898
7 Vauxhall Insignia: 2719
8 Nissan Qashqai: 2627
9 Audi A3: 2380
10 Peugeot 207: 2364

Volkswagen Group South Africa has made a strong start to 2012, as the Polo Vivo and Polo took the country’s top two positions in the passenger car sales chart for January. From a total of 35,428 vehicles, the budget Polo Vivo sold 2964 units, while the fifth-generation Polo 6R swept up 2644 sales, an astonishing combined figure of 15.3% of the passenger car market. ‘Total vehicle sales of 9803 in January saw Volkswagen Group South Africa (VWSA) top the total market in the first month of the year – with a 21.3% market share. Its market share in the passenger vehicle category was even more pleasing, at 25.5% with sales of 9003,’ said VWSA Sales and Marketing Director, Mike Glendinning.

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 R104,065 for the base-model 1.4 hatchback to R156,220 for the top 1.6 Trendline Sedan, the 2011 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 both a three and five-door hatchback in addition to the traditional four-door Polo Sedan.