PoloDriver

Long-running UK modified Volkswagen magazine Performance VW features a pair of pristine Series 1 Polos in its ‘Mk 1 Madness’ August 2010 issue, on newsstands now. Part of Belgian pair Kevin Winnepenninckx and Luc Jani’s collection of Mk 1 Volkswagens, both the Miami Blue and Marino Yellow ‘70s cars are flawless and show, that with very few mods, how right the original Polo/Audi 50 styling was at the time and just how pretty those early cars are. As well as the pair of Polos, there is a smattering of Mk 1 Golfs (including a 500+bhp French fancy), a rapid Caddy and advice for giving your Mk 1 a big power performance transplant.

[Images: Performance VW]

One of the defining features of the 1970s was the vibrant colour palette which affected everything from fashion to home furnishings. The bright, flat colours also identified the cars in that decade, too, and the Audi 50 certainly joined in the eye-popping fun. It’s by no means a definitive list, but we’ve updated our Audi 50 ‘Heritage’ pages to document the shades in which the car could be ordered. There are trim combinations, too, and delving deeper, there are some peculiar (and not particularly tasteful) mixes as a result. Ozeanicblau/Cognac from 1976 is one such pairing; Bahamablaumetallic/Tabak from 1978 is another. Point your mouse here to find out how tasteful (or not) an Audi 50 could be.

Audi celebrates its 100th anniversary in 2010, and part of its celebrations include the publication of Four Rings – The Audi Story, a 368-page book documenting the company’s illustrious and at times, ground-breaking past. Available in English and German language versions, Audi has posted new pages on its corporate website to document both the publication and the evolution of its models and, more excitingly, has released vintage colour publicity images of the Audi 50 at various locations.

The ‘new’ photographs depict the car in France as well as at the press launch in Sardinia in 1974, and have a typical Seventies look about them. The 50 is in the Four Rings book, too; a spread on pages 226 and 227 tell the development and production story of Audi’s premium supermini, on sale from 1974 to 1978. An online digital preview is available here; the book is published by Delius Klasing and can be ordered by clicking on this link. Head over to our Audi 50 publicity image gallery to see the new colour pictures.

The current issue of monthly independent VW title Volkswagen Driver features three pages on Rachel Inglis’s 1981 Derby GLS. We saw the car at the recent Stanford Hall event (coincidentally where the photos for the magazine feature were taken) and it really is a stunner. With only 21,000 miles on the clock since new, its paintwork gleams and the interior looks like brand new. Find out more in the June 2010 issue of Volkswagen Driver magazine on sale now.

Following the addition of a gallery of publicity images to our Audi 50 pages in the ‘Heritage’ section of the site this week, you can now find the basic specification of the baby Audi in the same area of PoloDriver. Click here to read about what made the Audi 50 tick, from its engine choices to its tyre sizes. There are also details of factory-fitted optional equipment, from car radios to headlamp washers.