PoloDriver

The €33.900 2013 Polo R WRC is just the latest in a line of limited-run Polos made by Volkswagen. An admittedly small line, the German manufacturer has, when it has seen fit, produced special runs of go-faster Polos, inspired by, or to celebrate, motorsport success. The Polo R WRC heralds the arrival of the Polo R WRC competition car which makes its debut in the World Rally Championship next year, and will see only 2500 left-hand drive examples leave the Volkswagen’s R GmbH skunkworks. It may well be the most powerful production Polo ever with 218bhp, but it’s not the first. An even more focused motorsport-inspired Polo left Volkswagen Individual’s production line eight years ago – say hello to the Club Sport.

The Polo Club Sport celebrated the ADAC Volkswagen Polo Cup, a one-make series which visited the race tracks of Germany from 2004-2009. The race cars were proper, stripped-out tintops, powered by 1984cc, 148bhp FSI engines. It differed by having 30bhp more, courtesy of its 1.8-litre, turbocharged engine, ubiquitous in the Volkswagen Group range of cars at the time. A strict two-seater, Volkswagen encouraged potential owners to ‘Experience the fascination of motorsport’. It stated that ‘Stamina, concentration and enthusiasm’ were all part of the Polo Club Sport’s make-up, and going on looks alone, it appeared it could deliver.

Largely identical to the Polo Cup racers, the Club Sport featured external add-ons such as front and rear spoilers, side skirts, 17-inch ‘Aristo’ alloy wheels borrowed from the Golf R32 fitted with 205/45 R17 Dunlop tyres, and a sports-tuned exhaust. Colour choice was as limited as the car itself, with only Flash Red, Reflex Silver and Yellow being the available hues. Inside, the Club Sport was equally as focused. Two Recaro racing seats featured Schroth harnesses, while Alcantara was liberally applied to the headlining, pillar trim, luggage space and steering wheel (which later appeared without the suede-like material in the Polo Fun/Dune). A half-roll cage painted in the body colour completed the motorsport accoutrements, while a numbered plaque informed the driver of his/her place in the very limited production run.

How limited? That’s where the details of the Polo Club Sport get sketchy. Although brochures were dated May 2004, there seem to be no details on prices, production figures (exact or approximate), or whether the car only available to Polo Cup drivers, or the wider general public. We would hope it was the latter, but whatever was the true case, the Polo Club Sport remains arguably the most motorsport-focused road Polo there’s ever been, and has the potential to wipe the smile off the faces of those who think Volkswagen’s premium small hatch is best suited for those shopping runs to the local supermarket. You could drive to the shops in the Polo Club Sport of course, but you’d just have to go via the race track first…

2004 VOLKSWAGEN POLO CLUB SPORT

Engine: 1781cc four-cylinder petrol with turbocharger
Power: 178bhp/132kW (180PS)
Gearbox: Five-speed manual (MQ 250-5F)
Wheels/tyres: 17-inch ‘Aristo’ alloy wheels/Dunlop 205/45 R17 tyres
Exterior: motorsport front and rear spoilers, side skirts, sports-tuned exhaust
Interior: Alcantara-trimmed pillar trim, luggage space, roof lining and steering wheel, half roll cage, numbered dashboard plaque.

[Additional images: AutoBild.de]

A South African-built 2004 Volkswagen Polo Classic (saloon) has reached the one million kilometer (621,000 miles) mark – after 8 years of fault and accident-free motoring. Sixty-seven year old veteran salesman Gerrie Esterhuizen owns the car and awaited the milestone reading with anticipation. ‘We always wondered what would happen when the speedometer hit the million-kilometre mark,’ he said at a VIP visit with his wife Magriet to the Volkswagen factory in Uitenhage, where his car was made.

Volkswagen Group South Africa Managing Director, David Powels, presented the Esterhuizens with a new instrument cluster (above) and their vehicle was given a special overnight paint, dent removal, and general brush-up package under the eye of Volkswagen South Africa’s Production Director Tom du Plessis.

‘After 999999.9 kilometres, the speedometer just shows six dashes, although the trip meter carries on working,’ Magriet commented. She has been Gerrie’s constant companion as he travels as a salesman from their home is Soutpan, near Bloemfontein, over the roads of the Free State and parts of the Northern Cape, North West and Lesotho.

‘We travel up to 800km (497 miles) a day from our home and back, often spending more than 10 hours on the road and seeing clients, mainly in small towns in our sales territory,’ Gerrie said. ‘These days we average between 8000 and 10,000km (4970 and 6213 miles) a month. In previous years we drove more than 12,000km (7456 miles) a month.’

Gerrie and Magriet have kept meticulous records of their million-kilometre driving odyssey, too: ‘We reckon the Polo used 66,666 litres (14,664 gallons) of fuel to get to the million mark. That’s an excellent figure of about 700km (434 miles) per 50-litre tank, or 15km a litre (6.6km/l, 43mpg). Working out the cost over the eight years at an average of R8/l, that’s about R533,000 in fuel costs,’ Gerrie states.

‘But the cost of maintaining the car has been so low we can’t calculate that. We have had two new fuel pumps fitted – one at 200,000km (124,274 miles) and the other at 800,000 (497,097 miles), but the engine has never been opened since we bought the car at Alan Hudson Motors in Nelspruit. Its clutch, starter, alternator, exhaust system, radiator and oil pump are all original. We always ensure that genuine VW parts are used when the vehicle goes for service. I have never experienced such outstanding reliability in any other car I have driven.’

[Source: Volkswagen South Africa]

Volkswagen Group Japan released a statement on 16 November, stating that 50,736 Polos were to be recalled to have a side airbag wiring system defect fixed at no cost to the owners. The report revealed that cars built between August 2004 and August 2009 (so we assume 9N and 9N3 models) will have the problem, which causes the a 0.015 second delay in the airbag sensor’s deployment. Volkswagen Group Japan were keen to stress that no accident has been induced by the problem, and that it found the defect through in-house investigations. Only right-hand drive models are affected, and cars in the UK and Australia are likely to be recalled in accordance with regulations in each individual country.

[Source: www.pddnet.com]

With darkness hours about to get longer with the end of British Summer Time this weekend, Volkswagen UK is supporting TyreSafe’s winter tyre campaign with the launch of its own winter tyre programme. A cost-effective way for drivers to get the right winter tyres on their Volkswagen, a set of four tyres can be fitted to existing wheels, starting from £250 fully fitted. In addition, complete winter tyre and wheel sets are also available. The 15 to 19-inch alloy wheels specified in the programme have been designed to offer maximum anti-corrosion resistance to snow and salt, and start from £725 including fitting.

Volkswagen Accessories is also offering a similar programme on mainland Europe. For the Polo, the five-spoke ‘Sima’ alloy wheel is offered in both 14 and 15-inch sizes, with Semperit Master-Grip 185/60 R14 82T (€149.00) or Michelin Alpin A4 185/60 R15 88T EL (€179.00) tyres. The smaller rims and tyre set fit Series 4 (9N and 9N3) Polos built from 2002-2009, while the larger pairing fit all current 6R Polos, including standard, GTI, and Cross Polo models. As well as tyres and wheels, Volkswagen also offers durable high-quality nylon tyre/wheel storage bag – cost is £25 inclusive for a set of four.

As most people drive to and from work in the early morning and late afternoon, when temperatures are even lower than the daily average, Volkswagen states that winter tyres are recommended over summer tyres for up to six months of the year. Winter tyres use a rubber compound optimised for temperatures of less than seven degrees celsius. Conventional tyres become stiffer at low temperatures, but the winter compounds remain softer and therefore better able to maintain grip. They also benefit from a special tread pattern that optimises water displacement and additional grooves, called sipes, which help to maximise traction.

Winter tyres therefore help to provide better grip whether under cornering, braking, or acceleration, and whether the roads are wet, icy, snowy or simply cold. According to safety organisation tyresafe.org, they can reduce braking distances by up to 11 metres in icy conditions, and around eight metres (or two car lengths) on snowy roads. For more precise information on UK specifications, visit your Volkswagen Retailer or www.volkswagen.co.uk and for further details on the benefits of cold weather/winter tyres visit www.tyresafe.org/wintertyres.

There’s still life in the Series 4 Polo yet. Volkswagen do Brasil has just launched the ‘Novo Polo’ and ‘Novo Polo Sedan’, latest versions of the facelifted Series 4 Polo, sold from 2005-2009. Essentially the same as the South African-market Polo Vivo, the 2012 Novo Polo and Novo Polo Sedan get a more corporate-looking Volkswagen front grille and bumper, giving the car a much more current VW ‘face’, while the interior features a silver painted dashboard, as found on Series 4 facelifted Polo GTIs from 2006. There’s also a version of the VW multifunction steering wheel, bringing things up to date.

Engines are carried over from the outgoing model, and it’s here where the cars are differentiated from their once European counterparts. Brazilian-market Series 4 Polos have long been fitted with the 100bhp 1.6-litre petrol engine, and also the 115bhp 2.0-litre engine, presumably tracing its roots back to the Series 3 Golf, built between 1992 and 1998. No diesel options are offered. The hatchback range consists of six five-door models: Novo Polo 1.6, I-Motion 1.6, Bluemotion 1.6, Sportline 1.6, Sportline I-Motion 1.6 and the top-of-the-rung Sportline 2.0. The four-door Novo Polo Sedan comes as Novo Polo Sedan 1.6, I-Motion 1.6, Comfortline 1.6/2.0 and the Comfortline I-Motion 1.6.

Basic models are equipped with airbags and air-conditioning, I-Motion cars upwards feature power steering, while Bluemotion variants (I-Motion and Comfortline in the Novo Polo Sedan range) add a CD/MP3/SD card/Bluetooth/USB radio system and 6J x 15 ‘Castille’ alloy wheels with 195/55 R15 tyres lifted from the latest fifth-generation 6R Polo range. The Novo Polo hatchback range kicks off at R$44.390,00 for the 1.6-litre model, while the booted Novo Polo Sedan is available from R$47.770,00. Visit www.volkswagen.com/br for further details. With the latest modern Polo range being sold in other South American countries such as Argentina (along with a facelifted Fox), you have to ask the question why is Volkswagen do Brasil sticking with the older, more outdated car?