PoloDriver

Continuing its 2010 sales success, the Polo Vivo once again topped the passenger car market in South Africa last month. Volkswagen Group South Africa sold 2986 Polo Vivos in January 2011, comfortably securing the number one selling position. The company also leads the market in both total vehicle and passenger car sales, in a market up by 24% when compared to December 2010. ‘Volkswagen Group South Africa captured 24.1% of the passenger market – starting the New Year on a very positive note,’ said Mike Glendinning, Director of Sales and Marketing, Volkswagen Group South Africa.

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. Available as both a three or five-door hatchback and four-door booted saloon with 74bhp/84bhp 1.4-litre and 103bhp 1.6-litre petrol engines, two trim levels are available: base and Trendline. Costing from R104,065 for the 1.4 hatchback to R156,220 for the 1.6 Trendline Sedan, the Polo Vivo is based on the revised version of the Series 4 Polo, built 2005 to 2009.

Another day, another Polo GTI group test. The recently-introduced Volkswagen UK press fleet Polo GTIs really are seeing a lot of action at the moment. Following the recent evo magazine hot hatch group test, the new issue of the UK’s Auto Express pits the latest Polo GTI against rivals from Citroën and Škoda. In our opinion, the £19,410 178bhp Polo GTI certainly looks the part when compared to the £16,300 DS3 DSport and £16,260 Fabia vRS, but which car gives the best hot hatchback-like driving experience? While the DS3 DSport is down on power by 30bhp when compared to the Polo and its in-house rival Fabia – which use the same 1.4-litre TSI engine – does it put its typically French driving characteristics to good use? Buy a copy of Auto Express Issue 1151 to find out.

[Image: Auto Express/Otis Clay]

The new issue of evo magazine sees the new Citroën DS3 Racing square up to its rivals, one of them being the new Polo GTI. Over roads in South Wales, ex-Autocar hack Chris Harris and the team tests the hot Polo (for the first time in right-hand drive on UK roads) against the 204bhp DS3-R, the 208bhp Mini Cooper S, the 198bhp Renaultsport Clio and the 189bhp Vauxhall Corsa VXR. Surprisingly, the 1390cc TSI-engined Polo scampers to 62mph faster than its four rivals and sits towards the lower end of the price range, too, at £19,410 for the five-door tested here. The main criticisms? As with other recent tests (revised online Autocar first drive here), the DSG-only option comes in for some flak, as does the GTI’s more refined nature. Which car is victorious? Watch the video (unfortunately we couldn’t embed it), and read the full group test in issue 154 of evo, out tomorrow, 2 February.

The award-winning Polo is now available from £99 per month with up to three years’ free servicing. From now until 31 March, all Polos – with the exception of GTI and BlueMotion models – are available with £500 off the list price. That brings down the entry-level Polo S 1.2-litre with 59bhp and three doors to £9495. With Volkswagen Finance’s popular Solutions PCP package, this equates to monthly payments of £99 per month – including up to three years’ free servicing (7.9 per cent representative APR). This latest VW reduction applies while stocks last and can be varied or withdrawn at any time.

Volkswagen states that the offer applies to all Polo models purchased from stock through a Volkswagen UK Retailer and registered before 31 March 2011. If an alternative funding method is chosen, the free servicing package is available for £299. The fifth-generation Polo was launched in October 2009. Named both European Car of the Year 2010 and World Car of the Year 2010, Volkswagen UK sold 45,282 Polos last year, making 2010 the model’s best-selling year since 2003. For full details and terms and conditions, visit your nearest Volkswagen Retailer, call 0800 333 666 or go to www.volkswagen.co.uk/polo.

[Source: Volkswagen UK]

‘From super frugal to extra spicy! VW told us back in March (Issue 1107) that there would be no performance flagship Polo – but sources have now confirmed plans to produce a hardcore R.’

Source: Auto Express, 26 January 2010 (Issue 1150)

The latest issue of the UK’s Auto Express magazine reports a story that we thought was dead. The news weekly reports that Volkswagen bosses have now confirmed that the Polo performance flagship, the R, will follow the Golf and Scirocco versions into showrooms ‘early next year’. The ‘confirmation’ comes at a good time; the internet is still awash with rumours that the Polo R is on the cards, and following the good reviews and encouraging customer demand for the latest 178bhp Polo GTI, a 220bhp version of the Polo could sell. We got the denials straight from the horse’s mouth last May when Volkswagen UK rebuffed any possible Polo R development.

The current Auto Express story states little that we didn’t already know. The projected Polo R will more than likely develop 220bhp from a new 1.6-litre turbocharged TFSI engine, dispatching the 0-62mph dash in ‘around six seconds’, and have a price sticker of around £21,000, only £2500 more than the £18,790 GTI. Despite Audi developing a quattro four-wheel drive version of the Polo’s platform for the S1, any Polo R would be front-wheel drive only. Is there any truth in the latest rumours? We’re a little sceptical, but all will be revealed in due course. The reported possible demise of the Polo GTI’s 1.4-litre supercharged and turbocharged TSI engine could be a pointer, though.