PoloDriver

The Volkswagen Polo Vivo was once again the top-selling passenger car in South Africa last month. In hatchback and sedan (saloon) guises it claimed the top spot with a total of 2547 sales, according to the latest figures released by the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa (NAAMSA). The fifth-generation Polo also did well in May 2011, coming in second, with 1935 units finding new homes. The new Polo Sedan was included in the figures, the first time the latest addition to the South African Polo range has appeared. The nearest challenger to Volkswagen South Africa’s dominance was the Ford Figo (a last-generation facelifted Fiesta), which sold 1128 examples.

Volkswagen South Africa also exported 9408 fifth-generation Polo hatchbacks in May 2011 (all right-hand drive models are manufactured at the company’s plant in Uitenhage). Total Polo 6R sales mean that it’s third overall in South African total vehicle sales (as opposed to passenger car sales) for May 2011, with a 4.7% market share. The Polo Vivo is second in total vehicle sales, with 6.1% of the market, while the Toyota Hilux claims 6.2% of the total market, only selling 11 units more than the Polo Vivo. The South African car market saw an increase of 6% in May 2011, with 41,555 registrations recorded.

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 1.4 hatchback to R156,220 for the top 1.6 Sedan, the 2011 Polo Vivo is based on the revised version of the Series 4 Polo, (9N3) built from 2005 to 2009. The new fifth-generation Polo is also available as both a three and five-door hatchback in addition to the recently-launched four-door booted Polo Sedan.

A grueling Toyota Dealer Gauteng Rally over 10-11 June produced solid if not spectacular results for the BP Volkswagen rally team. Championship defenders Enzo Kuun/Guy Hodgson finished third on the fourth round of the 2011 South African National Rally Championship, posting a second fastest time in the last stage of the event. Another safe performance was driven by Hergen Fekken/Pierre Aries, who came in fourth, after starting five places further down the field. Meanwhile, Jan Habig and Robert Paisley’s rally only lasted three stages. A control arm bolt in their rear suspension failed and the right wheel of their Volkswagen Polo Vivo S2000 was dragged behind the car. Continuing with just three wheels for as long as they could, they had to call it a day after posting just two stage times.

The news was better for the team of Giniel de Villiers/Ralph Pitchford. Delivering an outstanding performance on the Gauteng event, they sprinted from the start, and finished second overall at the end of day one. Gearbox problems brought their dynamite pace to a halt, though, and the the BP Volkswagen team of technicians replaced the ‘box after stage 13, during the routine service. A small lateness penalty didn’t stop the duo from completing the final stage of the event, but then an engine mounting broke, and engine damage from the slipping timing belt forced them out of the event. Gugu Zulu/Carl Peskin campaigned their S1600 Polo Vivo through ten stages, before forced to bow out with a sheared control arm bolt. S1400 runners Megan Verlaque/Lirene du Plessis claimed victory in the smaller-cc class.

Other top ten Volkswagen Polo finishers included the pairs of Nicholas Ryan/Armand du Toit in seventh, and Japie van Niekerk/Simon Vacy-Lyle in ninth, both teams in Polo Vivo S2000s. Christoff Snyders/Celeste Snyders took 20th place in their Polo Vivo S1600, while S1400 Polo pilots Henk Lategan/Pierre Jordaan finished one place below. The BP Volkswagen Polo rally team will now prepare for their traditional home event, the Volkswagen Rally, to be held on Friday and Saturday, the 15-16 July in Port Elizabeth.

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This caught our eye. We’re used to modified Polos gracing the pages of UK tuned Volkswagen magazine Performance VW, but maybe none like this. Richard Vale’s modified Polo is no tuning parts special. An early version of the blown coupé, Vale’s white G40 has been built with the sole purpose of taking on hill climbs. Harewood Hill Climb near Leeds being one of them. Competing in class 1B for modified production cars up to 2.0-litres, the 750kg, near-200bhp ex-Polo G40 Cup racer regularly takes on its larger rivals and emerges victorious. Find out what raft of modifications make Vale’s Polo a stripped-out special by grabbing a copy of the latest (July 2010) issue of Performance VW magazine, on sale now from all good stockists. UK readers who prefer to get their modded Volkswagen kicks digitally can read the magazine on their Apple i-devices by visiting the iTunes App Store and downloading the Performance VW app.

[Image: Performance VW]

While the latest set of sales figures released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders show that the Polo may have slipped out of the monthly top 10 best-selling cars in the UK list, it’s standing firm at number seven for the year-to-date registrations with 19,467 units sold. The Ford Fiesta is still top dog, shifting 42,184 examples, while Vauxhall’s Corsa posted a tally of 30,792 units. Last month, registrations of superminis posted their first rise in figures since June 2010. Other notable statistics from the SMMT’s figures show that the Golf was the best-selling diesel model and that the new Passat has crept into the top ten for the first time this year with 2981 units sold, no doubt helped by the increasing fleet market.

Overall, UK new car registrations declined minimally last month, with May 2011’s sales figures just 1.7% (2664 units) down on the same period last year. Registrations over the first five months of 2011 were down 7.3% to 846,513 units. However, the SMMT forecasts that the market is on track to achieve its full year forecast of 1.93 million units. ‘New car registrations for May 2011 were down just 1.7% on 2010 levels, with strong performances in the fleet and business sectors,’ said Paul Everitt, SMMT Chief Executive. ‘Consumers remain cautious, but with significantly improved fuel economy, service plans and more affordable finance, there is great value on offer across the market.’ UK fleet market sales were up 11% in May. The UK’s top 10 best-selling cars (number of units sold) for 2011 year-to-date are as follows:

1 Ford Fiesta: 42,184
2 Ford Focus: 35,770
3 Vauxhall Corsa: 30,792
3 Volkswagen Golf: 27,615
5 Vauxhall Astra: 27,161
6 Vauxhall Insignia: 20,021
7 Volkswagen Polo: 19,467
8 BMW 3 Series: 17,332
9 Nissan Qashqai: 16,074
10 Peugeot 207: 14,968

Fresh from day of driving the latest Volkswagens last Wednesday, here is our first drive report of the 2011 Polo GTI. We tested both three and five-door versions, and can report that the 178bhp performance Polo is a real firecracker and a lot of fun. Yes, it costs £18,795 (which is twice as much as our Polo GT Coupé did in 1994), but as a cut-price Golf GTI, it’s an enticing proposition. See how we got on driving around the leafy lanes of Berkshire by clicking on the magazine graphic below, or if you can’t see the preview, visit this link. The fifth of our special digital ‘mini-magazines’, check out the PoloDriver bookshelf for our previous four titles. The first issue features mini-tests of the current Polo range in general, while the third is an account of our first drives of the SEL 1.2 TSI and 1.2 BlueMotion TDI.

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