As we predicted, the announcement of the Volkswagen Polo R WRC has led to increased hope that a road-going Polo R would be back on the cards.
In a brief interview with Autocar, Volkswagen board member Ulrich Hackenberg said, “You can see how the World Rally Championship programme would increase the probability of an R version of the base model [Polo].â€
However, buyers hopeful of buying the feisty pocket rocket may have to wait until 2013 or beyond to see the Polo R. Hackenberg explains, “It is with the rally programme, not before it. I can’t give a precise date, but it’s along those lines.â€
Autocar currently suggest the Polo R would be front-wheel drive only. We’d like to live in hope that the baby R model could utilise the Audi S1 all-wheel drive system. However, a front-wheel drive precedent has been set with the Scirocco R.
The final question remaining is will Volkswagen try and find more power from the 1.4l twincharged unit found in the Polo GTI, or will they shoehorn a 2 litre engine in there from a Golf GTI? Either way expect power to be 150kW or beyond.
[Source: Autocar]
9 replies on “Volkswagen Polo R speculation heats up”
1.6 litre turbo of course Lima!
Trade in time already for the Polo GTI WAY? I’ll have it 😉
Yes a 1.6T makes sense, but it would have to be a new engine. Will they really make a road-spec WRC engine, as opposed to developing something they already have?
I guess they could.
It will be the new Polo GTI that is only coming out in Turbo instead of Supercharged and Turboed.
so they will stroke that to 1.6 I guess.
1.6T road engine has already been developed.
In what?
S1.
Hmm, don’t recall reading that anywhere. Interesting.
[…] your eyes on this, it’s a Polo R WRC “Street” and it’s packing a 162kW punch thanks to a 2.0 litre TSI engine. […]