PoloDriver

Australian motoring website Drive has named the Polo 77TSI as the Best City Car in its Car of the Year 2011 awards. The Volkswagen supermini took the overall title in 2010, and the car was an unanimous choice by the judges for 2011’s accolade, largely due to its ‘great engine, excellent road manners and classy cabin.’ Up against the Kia Rio Si and the Toyota Yaris (both newer rivals), the judges described the latest iteration of the Polo as ‘a little Volkswagen with big car credentials,’ stating that ‘the fifth-generation Polo’s 1.2-litre turbo engine delivers unrivalled performance and refinement for a car priced from $19,850.’

Another Australian website has also praised the Polo highly. Pitting the small VW against its 10 chief rivals in a Light Car mega-test, motoring.com.au stated that ‘There are ample reasons the Polo has won more trophies than the athletics champion at the school sports carnival. It’s earned almost straight As in a category dominated by B and C-grade students. You might argue it’s not fair that one of the richest kids in school gets all the kudos, but in this instance, the $22,350 Polo is worth every cent and has earned each of its accolades.’

The Polo 6R ended 2011 with as much success as it enjoyed in both 2009 and 2010. European sales were up by 1.2 per cent in October 2011 (compared to same month the year before) and it ended the year by being the second best-selling car in Europe, behind its bigger brother, the Golf. The figures – released by industry body Jato on 20 December – speak for themselves. The Golf’s 2011 European sales tally was 449,882, while 329,891 Polos found new homes. Volkswagen’s Passat finished seventh, making the German manufacturer Europe’s most popular in 2011, with 1,550,036 cars sold. Ford was second, its popular Fiesta and Focus models accounting for almost 600,000 new car sales alone. The Polo (including its Vento saloon variant) was a similar success story in India last year, with Volkswagen reporting sales of 74,305 units for the January–December 2011 period.

The most exciting Polo news of 2011 was the final unveiling of the Polo R WRC, with which Volkswagen Motorsport intends to complete in the 2013 World Rally Championship. Signing the first factory driver, Sébastien Ogier was the icing on the cake. Other motorsport series also continued around the world, with the Volkswagen Polo Cup India being renamed the Volkswagen Polo R Cup India, and the Polo Vivo made its track and rally debut. As far as the road car was concerned, it still continued to win awards and make a good impression, especially on us, as we took a Polo GTI on a 1000-mile road trip. Strong sales figures in the UK and further afield continued to add to the Polo’s success. (Bold entries are illustrated by the picture above that particular month.)

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Yes, we know PoloDriver.com is primarily about the Volkswagen Polo, but today’s new model announcement from Audi was just too mad to pass up. Besides, the A1 is closely related to the Polo. So there. What exactly has Audi unveiled? A 252bhp A1, called the quattro, with the engine from the larger S3, a four-wheel drive chassis, and looks inspired by the A1 Clubsport quattro concept, unveiled in May. Limited to only 333 units, there are doubts as to whether the car will be built with right-hand drive and therefore come to the UK – haggle your Audi retailer if you’d like it to be a rare sight on our green and pleasant lanes. And yes, we would.

Performance of the A1 quattro looks to be explosive. The 0-62mph dash takes 5.7 seconds, and the car romps on to a top speed of 152mph. Maximum torque of 258lb ft is available between 2500-4500rpm, while all 252 horses are unleashed at 6000rpm. Standard transmission will be a six-speed manual gearbox mated to Audi’s famed ‘quattro’ four-wheel drive, specially engineered for the PQ25 Volkswagen Group small car platform. Exclusive ‘Glacier White’ turbine design 8.0 J x 18-inch cast alloy wheels with 225/35 series tyres transfer the power to the road, while black brake calipers grip 312mm diameter discs.

Outrageous looks match the outrageous power. The A1 quattro is only available in Glacier White Metallic with a glass black roof, rear hatch panel, rear spoiler, and front grille frame. Two 100mm chromed exhausts poke out from the restyled gloss black diffuser, while strong red accents in the front and rear lights add further menace. The interior features heavily-bolstered sports seats with black ‘Silk Nappa’ leather with contrasting red stitching, brushed stainless steel pedals, a flat-bottomed multifunction steering wheel and individual numbered plaque. Arriving in the second half of 2012, the A1 quattro must have instantly become one of the most-anticpated cars of next year. No prices have yet been released by Audi, but it won’t come cheap. But, now we know that the technology is available, four-wheel drive Polo R anyone?

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