PoloDriver

The three letters G, T and I have played an important part in Volkswagen’s history for the past 34 years, and have earned respect from critics and enthusiasts the world over. Huge armies of devoted fans across the globe follow the performance Volkswagens (us at PoloDriver.com included), and events such as GTI International cater for these specific interests. Beginning as a small meeting of Golf GTI enthusiasts in 1988 at Knebworth House, Hertfordshire, the ‘UK’s greatest gathering of of VW and Audi enthusiasts’ is now traditionally run at Bruntingthorpe Proving Ground, Leicestershire over the last weekend in June.

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June 2010 saw a total of 26,810 new passenger cars sold in South Africa. The total number of new passenger car sales in the country increased by 4.2% when compared to May 2010, and by 25.8% when compared to June 2009, bringing the year-to-date June market in 2010 to a level 27.9% above the same period for 2009. And the top-selling car of June 2010? Following on from April and May’s impressive figures, the new Polo Vivo is again the best-selling car in the market.

‘Volkswagen Group South Africa was again passenger car leader with 22.1% share of the total passenger market. Significantly, the Group’s passenger car sales year to date, are 35.6% ahead of the same period in 2009,’ said Mike Glendinning, Director of Sales and Marketing, Volkswagen of South Africa. ‘The uniquely South African Polo Vivo was the number one passenger car Brand for the third consecutive month, selling 2471 units. The no compromise value proposition of the Polo Vivo has clearly resonated with the South African consumer,’ he continued.

The Polo Vivo, which was launched in March 2010 as an entry-level model for the South African market. Available as both a hatchback and saloon with 74bhp/84bhp 1.4-litre and 103hp 1.6-litre units, two trim levels are available: base and Trendline. Costing from R101,500 for the most basic 1.4 model, the Polo Vivo is based on the facelifted version of the Series 4 Polo, built from 2005 to 2009. Changes include front and rear bumpers, as well as a revised front grille and other minor bodywork changes.

Here’s the third of the four TV commercials in Volkswagen India’s ‘Made in India’ campaign for the Polo (watch them all on PoloDriverTV). Similarly to the first and second ads in the series, this 30-second clip uses comic humour to highlight a technical aspect of the car – in this case, the handling – and to convey the message that the Indian-built Polo is tailor-made for Indian drivers, but has the might of German engineering behind it. The ‘Made in India’ campaign also features a wide range of innovative print, outdoor and digital media. The new Polo costs from RS 4.5 lakh, and will face heated competition from the Maruti Swift, Ford Figo, Honda Jazz, Fiat Punto and Hyundai i20.

Volkswagen Polo ‘Made in India’ TV campaign credits
Creative agency: DDB Mudra
Chief creative officer: Bobby Pawar
National creative director: Rajeev Raja
Copy: Rajeev Raja/Hemant Sharma
Art: Ajmal Mohammad
Planning: Michael Follet
Client servicing: Ashish Marwah, Jay Mehta, Punit Bhatt, Vaibhav Bhargava
Agency film department: Tapan Sharma, Anil Sonawane
Production house: Stink
Director: Christopher Von Reiss
Post-production: Redrum
Media agency: Mediacom

The latest version of the Polo BlueMotion has been shortlisted for the WhatGreenCar Car of the Year 2010 award, which the organisers claim is the most scientifically-based green car prize in the UK. Now in its third year, WhatGreenCar uses unique ratings to rank the greenest new cars to come to market, and shortlisted cars are rated for environmental impact, value, driving experience and design.

To be eligible for the award, new models must be commercially available for purchase direct from the manufacturer or order in the UK during 2010. City cars, superminis, small family cars, large family cars, MPVs, executive and sports classes form the initial selection. The judging and test drives of the 10 shortlisted cars takes place on Wednesday 30 June at Imperial College, London, a university specialising in technological innovation. This makes it an ideal place for the judges to assess the final line-up. The overall winner of the WhatGreenCar Car of the Year 2010 awards will be announced on Thursday 1 July.

The 10 cars shortlisted for the WhatGreenCar Car of the Year 2010 award are as follows:

• BMW 320d EfficientDynamics; WGC rating 31; CO2: 109g/km
• Citroen DS3 1.6 HDi; WGC rating: 29; CO2: 99g/km
• Honda CR-Z hybrid; WGC rating: TBC; CO2: 117g/km
• Kia Venga 1.4 CRDi; WGC rating: 33; CO2: 117g/km
• Mitsubishi i-MiEV 47kW synchronous/Li-ion; WGC rating: 10; CO2: 0g/km
• SEATt Leon 1.6 TDI Ecomotive; WGC rating: 28; CO2: 99g/km
• Toyota Auris hybrid; WGC rating: TBC; CO2: 89g/km
• Vauxhall Corsa 1.3 CDTi ecoFLEX; WGC rating: 29; CO2: 98g/km
• Volkswagen Polo 1.2 TDI BlueMotion; WGC rating: 26; CO2: 89g/km
• Volvo C30 1.6D DRIVe; WGC rating 29; CO2: 99g/km

(Note: WGC rating = WhatGreenCar rating)

Edit, 1 July 2010: WhatGreenCar have awarded the Toyota Auris Hybrid its Car of the Year 2010 prize, ahead of the SEAT Leon 1.6 TDI Ecomotive, the BMW 320d EfficientDynamics and the Citroen DS3 1.6 HDi. A missed opportunity we think, as the Polo BlueMotion makes use of existing technology to get the ideal pairing of low emissions and high miles per gallon, while Toyota reportedly uses more harmful environmental processes to manufacture the NiMH battery packs for both the Prius and Auris Hybrid – coincidentally launched today – while posting similar CO2 and mpg values.

The new Polo SEL has been declared the most secure supermini at the recent British Insurance Vehicle Security Awards (BIVSA), presented by Thatcham, the Motor Industry Repair Research Centre, in Berkshire. Claiming honours in the City Car/Supermini category and beating off in-house competition from the SEAT Ibiza and Škoda Fabia, Volkswagen won a raft of awards as well as the overall accolade for the best car manufacturer.

The British Insurance Vehicle Security Awards are hosted by Thatcham and supported by the Home Office, the DfT, What Car? magazine and the AA. Since their launch in 2004 the highly regarded BIVSA accolades have recognised all that’s best in vehicle security, on the newest cars and vans on the market, applauding the work of vehicle manufacturers and raising consumer awareness. Vehicles were judged on a number of criteria identified by the creators of the New Vehicle Security Ratings (NVSR) scheme. Those that had a maximum five stars for ‘theft from’, had double locking, and an ‘E’ insurance suffix (indicating they had a feature that exceeds the required standard) were shortlisted for final evaluation and ranking.

Rod McLeod, Head of Marketing for Volkswagen said: ‘It’s a tremendous achievement for the Volkswagen range to be ranked as the best on the market here and one of which we’re very proud. To win the overall award is proof that security and safety features should not be the reserve of an elite few. Increasingly we aim to extend the technology available on our flagship cars such as the Phaeton right down to the volume models such as the new Polo.’