PoloDriver

Fresh from winning the Sport Auto magazine’s 2013 Sports Car (Small Car category) award, Volkswagen has released 34 more photos of the purposeful-looking 217bhp Polo R WRC road car. The 2.0-litre, six-speed hot hatchback sees its first European deliveries in September. Prices start at €33,900 for each of the limited production run of 2500 cars needed for homologation. UK availability has yet to be confirmed. Click on the gallery above to see PoloDriver.com’s favourites from the latest batch of pictures of the hottest-ever Polo.

Two-time DTM champion Mattias Ekström finished fourth at the wheel of a Marklund Motorsport Volkswagen Polo R in the rallycross final of the X Games in Munich. In front of a full-capacity audience, Ekström expertly took his 500bhp Red Bull-liveried Polo to the finishing line on the ‘FröttmaRing’, a course specially created for the X Games within sight of Munich’s Allianz Arena. The guest driver also came first in his qualifying race on the 807-metre course. ‘I really enjoyed the rallycross and the performance of the Polo was very good,’ said Ekström after the race. The Swede had already achieved a satisfying fifth place on Saturday, in the race that had had to be postponed from the X Games in Barcelona.

From practice, into seeding and then in the heats, the Swede was incredibly fast. Pitched against Isachsen, Menzies and Lasek, in his heat, Ekström held his own, getting straight into pole position off the start line. Maintaining his pace throughout, Ekström finished the six laps three seconds ahead of his competitors. Moving into the final, Ekström faced a tough battle, with Isachsen almost on top of him on the first corner, coming out from the tussle in seventh. As Deegan exited the race on the second lap, the Marklund Motorsport driver was propelled into sixth, ahead of Block. In the third and fourth laps, Ekstrom stayed close to fifth place Bell, almost passing him on several occasions and eventually clearing him on the fifth jump.

Despite holding his place for a further three laps, Block overtook him on the first corner of the final lap. Ekström kept in close pursuit, managing to tactically claim fourth, passing Block on the very last corner. Ekström placed fifth in round two on the previous day: ‘I’m very pleased with the two days as a whole. I learned a lot, I had a great time and really enjoyed the experience but I can’t deny that the results could have been better. Fourth and fifth is just outside of the medals – I came here with the dream of getting one even though I was entering as a rookie. I cannot say enough of the team and everyone that has given me the chance to do this and I cannot wait for next weekend in Holjes (Sweden).’

Having taken fourth place in round two the day before, the team’s first driver Anton Marklund did not have the same luck as his teammate on the second day. Marklund’s heat started well, with the driver in second position for the first two laps but unfortunately crashed into the tyre barrier after close contact with Arpin on the fourth lap and could not finish. Also in a strong position at the beginning of the LCQ, a restart had all drivers back to the grid on lap two. Extremely close contact on the first corner of the restarted race had Marklund out of the running and unable to continue as the LCQ was restarted for a second time. Clearly disappointed with the result of day two in Munich, Marklund stated, ‘Both me and Mattias had good pace at the start of the day but lots of contact and some bad crashes meant I was unable to make it to today’s final. I’m happy that Mattias has taken his first weekend in rallycross head on and come out with a great result that the whole team is very proud of.’

[Images: QBA/Qnigan.com]

The Polo is still finding favour with UK car buyers according to figures released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). The small Volkswagen was the UK’s seventh best-selling car in June 2013, and correspondingly, the seventh best-selling car in the UK for the year-to-date. The SMMT reported that new car demand is up 10 per cent in the first half of 2013, with private buyers driving growth. New car registrations passed the one million mark last month, growing 10 per cent in the first half of 2013 to 1,163,623 units.

June’s growth was the 16th consecutive monthly registrations rise, growing 13.4% to 214,957 units. Motorists switching to more fuel-efficient cars have helped reduce average new car CO2 emissions to 129.1g/km in first half of 2013, down 3.7 per cent on a year ago. Mike Baunton, SMMT Interim Chief Executive said: ‘June secured the 16th month of UK market consecutive growth, a clear indicator that manufacturers and dealers are delivering desirable new products with tangible cost savings from the latest fuel-efficient technology coupled to a wide variety of very competitive finance offers.’ The UK’s top 10 best-selling passenger cars during June 2013 and the year-to-date (sales figure and position in brackets) are as follows:

1 Ford Fiesta: 11,332 (63,040, 1st)
2 Ford Focus: 9128 (47,675, 2nd)
3 Vauxhall Corsa: 8868 (46,147, 3rd)
4 Vauxhall Astra: 7074 (33,731, 4th)
5 Volkswagen Golf: 5875 (32,131, 5th)
6 BMW 3 Series: 5432 (21,588, 8th)
7 Volkswagen Polo: 4703 (23,287, 7th)
a8 BMW 1 Series: 4678 (20,007, 10th)
9 Nissan Qashqai: 4507 (27,112, 6th)
10 Peugeot 208: 3649 (20,815, 9th)

The rumours still persist. Much has been reported about the Polo being sold Stateside, but as of yet, Volkswagen still limits sales of the car to outside the US. But, MotorTrend reports today that the company could be about to enter the subcompact segment ‘in a big way’. The next Polo will be based on Volkswagen’s MQB chassis architecture, which accepts front-wheel drive, four-wheel drive and hybrid/electric drivetrains, which will bring production costs down, making the car more marketable. MotorTrend reports that a full-electric version of the Polo will become a reality, closely related to the e-Golf which will launch later this year, and that a Volkswagen spokesman has confirmed the MQB Polo’s US availability.

What guise the car will be seen (if at all) in the US is still up for discussion. US car buyers favour traditionally-styled saloons over hatchbacks, but there’d be no worries for Volkswagen on that score. The Polo Sedan is currently sold in Russia and South Africa (to name but two markets), and is marketed as the Vento in India. With such a successful presence in overseas markets, the availability of a notchback version of the next-generation car is surely not up for discussion. Finally, MotorTrend also states that a small crossover version of the new Polo would be heading to US shores, too, taking on rivals from Ford, Honda, and Kia.

[Source: MotorTrend]

The 315bhp Polo R WRC will star at the 2013 Goodwood Festival of Speed, celebrating Volkswagen’s 60 years of importing cars into the UK. The event, staged from 12-14 July at Goodwood House near Chichester, will also see Volkswagen’s latest rally-winning car sprint up the famous Goodwood hill climb. Dr Ulrich Hackenberg, outgoing Member of the Board of Management of the Volkswagen brand responsible for development, will pilot the Polo WRC. Alongside the bespoilered Polo will be the XL1, Volkswagen’s high-tech ultra-frugal car, capable of 313mpg. The latest versions of the Golf GTI and Golf GTD will also be available for Festival of Speed visitors to see. Click here to purchase tickets for the 2013 Goodwood Festival of Speed. Follow Volkswagen on Twitter to find out more details about its present at the event as more details are confirmed.