Volkswagen has revealed the production version of its fastest-ever Polo – the 151mph, 217bhp Volkswagen Polo R WRC.
It has been built to tie-in with Volkswagen’s entry into the 2013 World Rally Championship, and the Polo R WRC was officially unveiled at the launch of the rally team in Monte Carlo.
The Volkswagen Polo R WRC was previewed by the Polo WRC Street concept shown at the VW Group-organised GTI Treffen event in Worthersee, Austria, in May.
The high-performance, front-wheel drive hatch has hardly been changed from that concept to production. Based on the fifth-generation Polo platform, under the bonnet is the turbocharged 2.0 TSI four-pot petrol engine found in the Golf GTI. In this hottest-ever Volkswagen Polo, the powerplant produces 217bhp at 4500-6300rpm and 258lb ft of torque between 2500-4400rpm.
The car has a kerb weight of 1324kg (according to EC measurements, that figure includes a driver weighing 68kg, 7kg of luggage and a 90 per cent full fuel tank) although Volkswagen’s development boss Ulrich Hackenberg – who has driven the car during hot weather testing in South America – said that the Polo R WRC made use of some rally-inspired lightweight materials.
Stressing the link between the road and rally Polos, Hackenberg also confirmed that the Polo R WRC was built to assist with the homologation of the rally machine. The design of the competition Polo must follow the road car version in key areas.
Equipped with a short-shift six-speed manual gearbox, the Polo R WRC can sprint from 0-62mph in 6.4sec, and hit a top speed of 151mph.
The performance of the Polo R WRC should surpass that of its hot supermini rivals, such as the forthcoming Ford Fiesta ST and the class-leading Renaultsport Clio.
The Polo R WRC also has a rally-inspired lower front spoiler with large air inlets, a spoiler on the rear edge of the roof and a rear diffuser, although there's no word on whether the latter adds a significant aerodynamic benefit.
The three-door-only Polo rides on 18in alloys and 215/35 R 18 rubber, and is fitted with uprated disc brakes. The motorsport-inspired interior features WRC-badge seat covers, an Alcantara steering wheel, black roof liner and racing-style pedals.
The exterior gets ‘WRC’ badging on the rear and ‘R’ logos front and rear, while the white and blue/grey livery ties in with the Polo WRC competition car.
Claimed fuel consumption is 38mpg on the combined cycle and CO2 emissions are put at 174g/km.
Just 2500 examples of the Polo R WRC will be built, and the car will only be available in left-hand drive. Advance orders will start on 11 December, with deliveries scheduled to start in September 2013.
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16" brakes?
I take it those are 22" rims on the car then because there's plenty of space around those "16" discs"??!
Simonali - just rechecked the
Simonali - just rechecked the spec on Volkswagen's new motorsport website and it definitely says 18in wheels and 16in discs, although the pictures bear no relation to that. We'll do some more digging...
Matt Burt wrote: Simonali -
I'd imagine it's more likely that the car pictured is more of a styling mock-up, and doesn't have all the real mechanicals underneath.
I applaud the fact VW have
I applaud the fact VW have capitalised on their motorsport connections and produced this car but to make it an expensive limited run model seems a little greedy. Ultimately it is little more than a parts bin special.
All the right ingredients are there, punchy engine, six speed gearbox and subtle body mods, this should feature in the price lists (all be it circa £22,000) permanently.
VW design
Did they style this on a friday afternoon? or just not bother at all? *underwhelmed*