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29 April 2010 ~ 0 Comments

2010 Polo Sedan: to be called Vento
in India?

Latest reports from India suggest that the new Polo Sedan could take the name of VW’s Series 3 Golf-based saloon, the Vento. Autocar India states that as the name means ‘wind’ in both Italian and Portugese, the new Polo notchback would follow the longstanding Volkswagen tradition of calling its cars after prominent winds. The current issue of the magazine also hints that the car will go on sale in July, and that the company is aiming for 25,000 units to be sold each year.

The wheelbase has reportedly been extended by 50mm to allow for better legroom, while the platform and bodywork are similar to the Polo hatchback as far as the B-pillar. The notchback rear body panels – which house a massive 500-litre boot – are said to be well-integrated with the rest of the car, and if Autocar India’s latest mock-up photos are based on fact, then the new Vento could be the best-looking Polo three-box since the original Derby of 1977. Engines are expected to be 104bhp 1.6-litre petrol and TDI units. The common-rail TDI unit could then also be dropped into the Indian-market Polo hatchback to mirror models in Europe, the magazine states.

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28 April 2010 ~ 0 Comments

Victory for Kuun/Hodgson and the Polo S2000 on the 2010 Sasol Rally

The ADAC Volkswagen Polo Cup may have been usurped by the Volkswagen Scirocco R-Cup in Germany, but the Series 4 Polo is still enjoying a successful motorsport career in, among other places, South Africa. Last weekend, Enzo Kuun and Guy Hodgson took their Polo S2000 to victory in the 2010 Sasol Rally, the third round of the 2010 Sasol South African Rally Championship. Scoring the best time in six of the 16 special stages, the duo were 30 seconds ahead of second-placed Johnny Gemmell and his Toyota Auris S2000. Rounding off the 2010 Sasol Rally top three was the fellow Polo S2000 pair of Jan Habig and ex-Dakar co-driver Ralph Pitchford.

The Sasol victory is the latest in a line of podium places for the Polo S2000 in 2010. Kuun and Hodgson finished second in the 2010 Toyota Dealer Rally on 26-27 March, 5 seconds behind the Ford Fiesta S2000 of Conrad Rautenbach and Peter Marsh, while Habig and Pitchford’s car didn’t complete the event. In total, 12 Polos contested the rally, in the A6, A7 and S2000 classes. Meanwhile, in the first event of the season, the 2010 Total Tour Natal Rally on 6-7 March, the Polo S2000 of 2009 champions Hergen Fekken and Pierre Arries took the top spot, with Kuun and Hodgson’s car very close behind. Habig and Pitchford’s Polo S2000 came in eighth.

The factory-backed 2010 Polo S2000s are competing in BP Ultimate livery until later in the season, when a squad of new shape Polos are rumoured to appear, possibly on the Volkswagen Rally in July. Although BP has ended its sponsorship of the official Volkswagen trio, it remains as fuel supplier. The next round of the 2010 Sasol South African Rally Championship is the Rally of South Africa on 28 and 29 May, which will be held in the Ermelo region of Mpumalanga.

[Images: QuickPic]

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27 April 2010 ~ 0 Comments

Volkswagen Polo Cup India 2010:
record entries recorded

The latest phase of the Polo’s motorsport career is due to start in India on 30 May 2010, when the inaugural round of the Volkswagen Polo Cup India takes to the track. Running as part of the 2010 JK Tyres National Racing Championship, the series has attracted 1,100 entries for the 20 starting places on the grid. These will be filled by a four-tier selection process, which started with initial administrative checks, reducing the number of 16 to 24 year-old drivers to 713, which, after interviews, were slimmed down further to 450. Winning drivers will each punt a 129bhp 1.6-litre TDI Polo Cup car around circuits in Chennai and Coimbatore. The debut of the series will take place on a street circuit around Pune, where the Indian-market Polo is built.

Sanjay Sharma, head of motorsport at JK Tyres, said that to discover the rising stars, the remaining young drivers will undergo further tests in Polo simulators flown in from Germany. ‘The simulator runs are for absolute rookies with no racing experience. They will then graduate to four-stroke go-karts and then to two-stroke where they will be joined by drivers with some racing background. We will then shortlist 40 candidates who will take part in the final evaluation process in Coimbatore on May 15 and 16 when they actually get to drive the Polo Cup car. While JK Tyres will provide some support, the evaluation will be done by experts appointed by Volkswagen,’ Sharma informed the Indo Asian News Service.

The Volkswagen Polo Cup India is the newest championship run by VW, which runs similar series in Europe, Japan and South Africa. The entry fee for the six-round championship is Rs 240,000 which covers the cost of fireproof racing overalls, a helmet, HANS (Head And Neck Support system) and service back-up as well as hospitality during race weekends. The series champion will be decided on cumulative points that range from 60 to two for each of the six rounds. The championship will be run in a controlled environment that disallows any set-up changes or modifications to the car with the exception of a three-way adjustable front stabiliser and tyre pressures.

[Source: Indo Asian News Service]

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25 April 2010 ~ 0 Comments

New Polo: heading to Australia

The Polo’s word domination continues. The car is already a hit in Europe and some countries in the Middle East as well as the Far East – now it’s the turn of Australia. The outgoing Series 4 has been sold on the far flung continent since the mid-2000s, but now, the fifth-generation is on the horizon. Prospective Australian new Polo buyers can register their interest, ahead of the car’s market launch in May. It has also been reported that the new GTI version will be landing later, too. If you want to be one of the first Australians to be in the know about Polo, head over here to find out more.

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22 April 2010 ~ 0 Comments

Polo 1975-1981: Audi 50 specification

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.

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