The lights have been turned off at the 2013 Frankfurt Motor Show and the mammoth task of dismantling the huge displays has begun. To recap what you may have missed here’s a selection of 120+ pics reminding you what was on show.
Category: Volkswagen
The current model 6R Polo has kicked a lot of goals for Volkswagen. It’s won plenty of awards the world over in both convenient city runabout and hot hatch modes. Now, four years into its model cycle it’s time for a refresh.
Based on the image above you can see Volkswagen won’t be making any radical changes to the Polo’s exterior. Word is there might be some more dramatic changes inside the cabin, but there’s no spy shots at this stage to confirm those rumours.
While we don’t have any concrete info on this, and while acknowledging the car above is wearing GT Blue Motion badging, ours eye have pricked up at its squat stance, black wing mirrors and beefy dual-tipped exhaust.
All things that add up to the possibility this could be a four-door version of the Polo R WRC. Perhaps not, we’ll see.
[Source: World Car Fans | Pic: SB-Medien]
Volkswagen ace Sebastien Ogier enjoyed a commanding weekend around Coffs Harbour winning 19 of 22 stages on his way to a dominant Rally Australia victory. It’s his sixth win of the year and came within a whisker of confirming his maiden world championship.
In order for Ogier to claim the title in Australia he needed to finish nine points or more ahead of Ford’s Thierry Neuville. And for much of the event, with Neuville in third place out of Mikko Hirvonen’s reach in second place, the stars seemed aligned for Ogier.
However, Hirvonen’s Citroën suffered a puncture on the final stage and cost him enough time to promote Neuville into second place. It was rotten luck for Hirvonen who has endured a difficult year. He is a three-time winner of Rally Australia and was enjoying a good rally and looked set for a comfortable second place.
The mathematical chance for Neuville to upset Ogier now hangs on by a single point, although most now expect Ogier will have the luxury of confirming his world title in front of his home crowd in next month’s Rally de France-Alsace.
Elsewhere in the field Jari-Matti Latvala suffered a puncture to his Polo R WRC on the opening day which put him out of contention. He was able to earn some decent points for Volkswagen in the manufacturers’ championship, though, coming home in fourth place. Young Volkswagen driver Andreas Mikkelsen put his name in the spotlight ending Day 1 in the lead of the event. His inexperience showed and he finished the race in sixth place.
For Citroën it had subbed out Rally Germany winner Dani Sordo for Kris Meeke. In the early stages Meeke was repaying that faith on the difficult Australian gravel running well and looking secure in third place. On Day 2 a small mistake sent Meeke down a steep embankment and his car rolled several times. The Citroën crew did an amazing job to rebuild the car overnight and Meeke was able to rejoin the rally on the final day. Unfortunately he made another error and ripped the right rear suspension from his car. The 34-year-old Irishman cut a forlorn figure at rally’s end.
A quick shout out too for Coffs Harbour local Nathan Quinn who was competing in a Motorsport Italia MINI JCW WRC and brought it home in one piece in eighth place collecting four world championship points.
Photos, videos and official press statements from both Volkswagen and Citröen are all yours after the break.
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Volkswagen Golf VII R photo gallery
Volkswagen has belatedly confirmed its new Golf R will be on show in Frankfurt next week and with the announcement comes 24 new pictures of the car. Featuring a 221kW/380Nm 2.0 litre four cylinder turbo and Haldex V all-wheel drive system the Golf R can accelerate to 100km/h in 4.9 seconds.
The Mk7 Golf R will go on sale in Australia in the first half of next year and we do expect it’s engine will be detuned to 206kW for our “hot climate” market, in line with the Audi S3. Like the S3, the Golf R will only be available in Australia in five-door configuration.
UPDATE: You can use Volkswagen’s Golf R visualizer to view the car in different colours etc (our tip: get the 19″ Pretoria alloys).
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VIDEO: Der neue Golf R
Volkswagen is wasting no time in using the promotional possibilities provided by runaway WRC star Sebastien Ogier. Here he teams up with a cleaner to bring us some rather awkward chemistry behind the wheel of the new Golf R.
[Thanks to Brandon for the tip]
Volkswagen’s media team brings us a snapshot of this very cool Mk1 Golf rally car. It’s owner is 53-year-old Dietrich Kissel and he looks very happy with his back to basics machine. And who can blame him, having 160hp (120kw) to play with in a car that would be lucky to weigh 900kg would be a lot of fun.
[Source: World Rally Blog]
It would seem we’re going to see a facelifted Scirocco before we get an all-new Mk4 model, if this spy shot is anything to go by. Interestingly, the Scirocco prototype was seen in the US, where the car isn’t currently sold.
The rear of the car is basically untouched, while only the headlights and lower grille are disguised. This tends to indicate any changes to the current Mk3 Scirocco are likely to minor cosmetic enhancements.
The fourth-gen Scirocco is not expected before 2015. It’s not clear why VW would test the facelifted car in the States where they say it “was not engineered for this market; it never was.” Although, they say will consider the model after it has been launched.
[Source: World Car Fans | Pic: Automedia]
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“Shit happens!”
This weekend’s Rally Germany was supposed to be Sebastien Ogier’s crowning glory. If things went his way he could have secured the 2013 World Rally Championship. At its home event, it would have been a perfect way for Volkswagen to announce its arrival on the world rally stage. Alas, as Ogier himself said, “Shit happens.”
Ogier crashed out on Day 1 with damaged suspension. He’ll now have to wait to secure his maiden world title. Teammate Jari-Matti Latvala now leads the charge in Germany, with Ford driver Thierry Neuville close behind.
Being a tarmac event, Rally Germany is one of our favourites. On asphalt the WRC cars look their best, with bigger wheels and lowered suspension.
For hot hatch fans it doesn’t get much better. That’s why we’ve included a couple of videos from Volkswagen and Citroën for you after the break.
Volkswagen has come good with official info for its new Mk7 Golf R hero model. As expected the headline stats from the EA888 2.0 litre turbo engine are 221kW/380Nm. And you can read more after the break. We’ve also got a 15 page press release for you which goes into further detail. For example, it says this about the new Haldex V all-wheel drive system:
The 4MOTION all-wheel drive system of the Golf R, further perfected by enhancements such as the Haldex 5 coupling, is activated even before any wheel starts to slip. This eliminates nearly all traction losses. The system achieves this by using an advanced control function based on specific driving conditions. When operating under a relatively low load or when coasting, forward propulsion comes primarily from the front axle, and the rear axle is decoupled. This basic drive layout saves fuel. However, the rear axle of the Golf R can be variably engaged in fractions of a second whenever necessary. This is done via a Haldex coupling, which is activated by an electro-hydraulic oil pump.
If you’re into this car we certainly recommend downloading the PDF to read at your leisure. We’ll bring you more as Volkswagen releases new information.
UPDATE: Volkswagen Australia says it expects to have the Golf R on sale locally in the first half of next year. Our question enquiring about the availability of a three door version was ignored.
UPDATE #2: We thank Volkswagen Australia for this answer, even if we don’t like it: “We are not planning on offering a 3 door.”
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Volkswagen Golf VII R leaked
It looks almost certain that we’ll see the all-new Volkswagen Golf R revealed at the Frankfurt Motor Show after new details have been leaked.
Firstly, the two images show what you’d expect from R GmbH when finishing off the hottest Golf on the Mk7 platform. Like the car itself the bodywork is an evolution of what we saw in the Mk6 Golf R. Notable changes are to the alloys which look to be at least 19″ in diameter. The wing mirrors have gone from gloss black to a satin chrome finish. And at the back of the car centrally mounted twin exhaust tips have been replaced by a more conventional quad set up.
Power comes straight from the 8V Audi S3, so we’re talking 221kW/380Nm. Coupled with a 4motion all-wheel drive system and DSG transmission Volkswagen claims the R can sprint to 100km/h in 4.9 seconds, while manual drivers will need an extra 0.4 seconds to complete the same task. Top speed has been restricted to 250km/h.
Fuel consumption can be quite frugal if you desire, with the Euro combined cycle yielding results of 6.9l/100km.
The new R rides on suspension that’s 5mm lower than the Mk7 GTI and it appears as though Adaptive Chassis Control will remain an option. Although it is expected to have a Race setting added to its bag of tricks.
Officially, all we can find from Volkswagen is that the new R will have its market launch in the fourth quarter of this year, which is why we expect to see a full reveal from Volkswagen very soon.
[Source: Auto Wereld | Thanks to Stu for the tip]
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Mk7 Golf GTI lands in Australia
Volkswagen Australia has just shared this image of a Mk7 Golf GTI to its Facebook page with the words, “Look at what’s just arrived!”
So we assume you’ll be able to set your eyes on the all-new GTI yourself in the next few weeks. We’re expecting pricing to be around the $40K mark and very much hope we see the “Performance” version offered for sale in Australia.
UPDATE: Thanks to Jim for sending in the pic below, showing a Mk7 Golf GTI on Sydney’s roads.
The Volkswagen Kombi has been rolling off production lines in Brazil since September 1957. That’s 56 years. That stat makes the Kombi is the most everlasting production model the world has known. And now, due to safety regulations, it’s all about to come to an end.
In honour of the Kombi, or T2 as it is known in various markets, Volkswagen Brazil has created the Kombi Last Edition. Only 600 will be made. All will come with a certificate of authenticity and all will be finished in the two-tone paint scheme you see here.
The Kombi LE is powered by a stonking EA111 1.4-litre engine, which delivers 78PS. That can be boosted to a staggering 80PS if petrol is replaced by ethanol. Power is sent to the driven wheels through a four-speed manual. Remember them!
Like the Beetle, many of us will have a Kombi memory of some sort. Personally, I’m lucky to be here after mum’s Kombi Campervan went up in flames thanks to a faulty gas bottle. We were holidaying and parked in a friends backyard. I was asleep in the Kombi and just five years of age. Apparently they got quite a shock while doing the dishes that night and saw our van on fire!
Riding in the Kombi is one of my earliest automotive memories, along with mum’s Alfa Romeo Spider, and whenever I see a VW bus I can’t help but smile.