Volkswagen brand sees sales grow to 6.23 million units a 4.2% growth on the previous year.

• 6.23 million vehicles handed over to customers worldwide
• Deliveries up 4.2 percent on previous year
• Most successful December in history of Volkswagen brand
• Tiguan family with record deliveries

The Volkswagen brand handed over a total of 6.23 million vehicles to customers worldwide in 2017, making last year the most successful yet in the history of the brand. China, the largest single market, is the main driver of this positive development. More than 3 million vehicles were delivered there for the first time last year, an increase of 5.9 percent compared with 2016.

Volkswagen launched the biggest model offensive in the brand’s history in 2017 under its “TRANSFORM 2025+” strategy. Vehicle deliveries already made significant gains during the course of the year. Volkswagen also set a new delivery record for December, handing over 594,100 vehicles (+5.6 percent) to customers worldwide. Delivery figures for the Tiguan family were 38 percent up on the previous year, and at over 720,000 units worldwide this family is more successful than ever before. 

Jürgen Stackmann, Volkswagen Brand Board Member for Sales, said: “We are delighted with the strong demand for our vehicles and with the brand’s positive momentum in recent months. I would like to thank our customers for placing their trust in us, and our retail partners for doing an excellent job. I am particularly pleased to see that incoming orders for electric vehicles in Germany and Europe have tripled compared with 2016. We will be stepping up the pace of our model offensive even further in 2018, with momentum coming from important new models such as the Polo, T-Roc and Touareg.” 

Deliveries in the regions and markets in December developed as follows: 

• At 136,400 new vehicles, deliveries in Europe were 6 percent higher than the previous year. The Volkswagen brand reported strong growth in Belgium (+17.8 percent) and Denmark (+10.4 percent). The positive trend was primarily driven by high demand for the Golf and Tiguan as well as the successful market launch of the new Polo. 

• At 42,000 units, deliveries in Germany in December rose by 8.4 percent. Orders in Germany continue to show a noticeable upward trend, in part attributable to positive momentum from the environmental incentive. 

• Volkswagen recorded strong growth of 8 percent in Central and Eastern Europe in December. Compared with December 2016, this trend was particularly pronounced in Poland (+27.9 percent) and Russia (+35.2 percent). 

• At 51,600 vehicles, deliveries in North America were 3 percent lower than the same month last year. While the number of vehicles handed over to customers in the USA in December declined by 18.7 percent, deliveries for the full year 2017 rose by a pleasing 5.2 percent. This is the first increase in deliveries since 2013. Canada reported an impressive 53.7 percent increase for the last month of the year, delivering 4,200 vehicles. This trend was again driven by the Golf Alltrack and the Atlas as well as the Tiguan launched in August. 

• 30,200 vehicles were handed over to customers in South America, representing an increase of 4 percent compared with the previous year. 

• In China, the Volkswagen brand posted new records both for December and for the full Deliveries to customers there increased by 12.9 percent, or approx. 39,000 vehicles, in December compared with the same month last year. As a result, the figures for December were the best-ever monthly figures for China. At 3.18 million, deliveries in China for the full year topped the 3 million mark for the first time. 

Overview of deliveries by the Volkswagen brand in 2017:

Deliveries to customers bymarkets	December 2016	December 2017	Change (%)	Jan.-Dec. 2016	Jan.-Dec. 2017	Change (%)
Europe	134,300	136,400	+1.6	1,690,300	1,688,100	-0.1
Western Europe	114,100	111,400	-2.4	1,466,100	1,429,200	-2.5
Germany	38,800	42,000	+8.4	557,800	531,600	-4.7
Centraland Eastern Europe	20,200	25,000	+23.8	224,200	259,000	+15.5
Russia	7,600	10,300	+35.2	74,200	89,400	+20.4
North America	58,800	51,600	-12.3	580,600	591,600	+1.9
USA	37,200	30,300	-18.7	322,900	339,700	+5.2
South America	30,100	30,200	+0.4	335,400	419,200	+25.0

Brazil	21,400	21,000	-2.3	218,200	261,100	+19.7
Asia-Pacific	317,300	356,300	+12.3	3,171,700	3,342,800	+5.4
China	303,100	342,100	+12.9	2,999,300	3,177,300	+5.9
Worldwide	562,400	594,100	+5.6	5,980,300	6,230,200	+4.2

Volkswagen to launch a new Polo GTi R5 rally car to take on the WRC in 2018.

• Super sporty variant of the new Polo GTI¹ for global rallying
• 200 kW/272 hp turbo engine, four-wheel drive and safety package
• FIA homologation in late summer, race debut planned for autumn 2018

The stage is set for the rally GTI: The Volkswagen Polo GTI R5 enjoyed a successful world premiere. The four-wheel drive rally car for customer sports, which is based on the sixth and latest generation of the new Polo, was introduced to the public for the first time at the official driving presentation of the Polo GTI² in Mallorca on Monday evening. 

The development of the new rally sports car incorporated the experience and know-how acquired whilst winning four world titles in the pinnacle of rallying, the WRC, from 2013 to 2016.

“Presenting the new Polo GTI R5 to the public was a magnificent moment,” said Volkswagen Motorsport Director Sven Smeets. “The close relationship to the road-going Polo GTI is unmistakable. 

In the rally Polo, the GTI family has another spectacular ambassador. Our team and the colleagues at Volkswagen Design in Wolfsburg deserve great credit for this. Over the coming months, the Polo GTI R5 must prove itself in a series of tough scenarios, in order to ensure that it can build on the success of its predecessor in the customers’ hands.”

Initial tests successful, homologation planned for late summer 2018

Development of the Polo GTI R5 has been in full swing since the start of the year. Initial tests on asphalt and gravel took place in mid-November in Fontjoncouse, France, and will continue in Great Britain in December. Responsibility for the entire project lies with Technical Director François-Xavier “FX” Demaison, as well as Project Manager Jan de Jongh, who, as race engineer, looked after world champion Sébastien Ogier’s Polo R WRC from 2013 to 2016.

“The Polo GTI R5 came through the initial tests without any problems. The feedback from the test drivers was very positive,” says Demaison. “It is obviously beneficial to be able to call upon an experienced team of engineers and mechanics, who helped to develop the Polo that won the world championship. And it goes without saying that, as we have in the past, we are also taking advantage of the close and excellent cooperation with the colleagues in the technical development department in Wolfsburg, as well as our Škoda colleagues, who have been offering their customers an R5 car since 2015.”

As in the GTI for the streets: four-cylinder turbo engine with direct fuel injection

Like the production model – the new Polo GTI – the Polo GTI R5 has a powerful straight four-cylinder turbo engine with direct fuel injection, which is mounted transversely in front of the front axle. 

The capacity of the rally car is limited to 1.6 litres, in accordance with regulations. This is sufficient to generate an impressive 200 kW (272 hp) and maximum torque of 400 Newton metres. A close-stepped, sequential, five-speed racing gearbox and permanent four-wheel drive achieve outstanding acceleration on any surface – whether asphalt, gravel or snow. Weighing just 1,320 kilograms, the rally GTI accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in just 4.1 seconds.

The four-door, steel chassis, which serves as the basis for the assembly, is manufactured at the production plant in Pamplona, Spain. In accordance with FIA regulations, it is strengthened with a role cage and other safety components. The Polo GTI R5 will be homologated in the summer of 2018. The first deliveries to customer sports teams, and the first competitive outings, are planned for the second half of the year.

In 2012, the International Automobile Federation FIA passed the R5 regulations for a new generation of rally cars, aimed primarily at customer teams, talented youngsters and privateers. Since then, more than 400 cars have been produced by five different manufacturers and have been in action in national and international championships all over the world.

¹) Polo GTI R5: The concept vehicle has not gone on sale, and therefore Directive 1999/94 EC does not apply.

²) Polo GTI (147 kW/200 PS) fuel consumption in l/100 km: urban 7,7 / extra-urban 4,9 / combined 5,9; CO2-emissions (combined) in g/km: 134; efficiency class: C.

The All-New Sixth Generation Polo, bigger, better and more tech and kit, but looks the same.

Key facts: overview of the new Polo 

• The sixth generation Polo to continue the model's success story: with more than 14 million cars sold to date, the Polo is one of the most successful vehicles in its class.
• Largest Polo ever: new Polo is 4,053 mm long; 94 mm longer wheelbase perfects the car’s excellent ride comfort.
• New Polo is a space wonder: more room for everyone on board.
  Boot volume grew 25 per cent to 351 litres.
• This Polo plays in a higher league technologically: Front Assist, Blind Spot Detection, ACC and LED headlights like in the Golf class.
• First Polo with digital instruments: second generation of the Active Info Display celebrates its world premiere in the new Polo.
• Polo attracts with charismatic design: the new exterior is marked by expressive dynamism and a masculine front end.
• As you like it: Trendline, Comfortline, Highline, GTI, Beats and lifestyle packages create a broad selection of versions.
• Polo sets standards in personalisation: 14 body colours and 13 dashpad colours lead to almost limitless possibilities.
• Natural gas for the first time: engines have outputs from 48 kW / 65 PS to 147 kW / 200 PS.
  New Polo engine: TGI (natural gas) with 66 kW / 90 PS.
• Extremely attractive pricing: new Polo launches with four doors and Front Assist as standard at a price of 12,975 euros (Germany).

The new Polo – summary

This Polo makes the future real

Sixth generation. With more than 14 million units sold, it is one of the world's most successful compact cars: the Polo. 

Now a completely new generation of the best-seller is launching. With an entirely new exterior design, noticeably more spacious interior that has also been redesigned down to the last detail, new cockpit layout structured for the digital world, efficient TSI (petrol), TGI (natural gas) and TDI (diesel) engines1/2 as well as an array of assistance systems which previously was only familiar in larger Volkswagen cars. 

Dr Herbert Diess, Chairman of the Board of Management for the Volkswagen brand: "The Polo is a young, fresh car. It combines charisma with strong technology. No other car offers so much space for its size. This makes our Polo the number one compact, and it will remain number one."

New Polo overcomes class boundaries

Digital instruments, new information and assistance systems. Dr Frank Welsch, Board Member for Development of the Volkswagen Brand: "The new Polo brings the future to the compact class. 

A whole lot of space – based on the modular transverse matrix – sustainable engines like a new natural gas TGI, the world premiere of a new generation of the Active Info Display, the latest infotainment systems and forward-thinking assistance systems – these qualities enable this Volkswagen to overcome traditional class boundaries."

Much more interior space, yet still compact outside

Polo has made continual gains in comfort. The sixth generation Polo has grown, making it larger than its predecessor in all of its dimensions. This has resulted in much more interior space and a significantly increased boot volume, which has grown from 280 to 351 litres. Nonetheless, it is still a snappy compact car on the outside. 

It is enlightening to compare this car to the fourth generation Golf (built until 2003) which has sold in the millions. It shows that the Polo has adapted to people who have grown, but also that it utilises its enclosed space even more effectively. 

The new Polo, with its length of 4,053 mm, is slightly shorter than the fourth generation Golf, but it surpasses that Golf when it comes to its wheelbase (53 mm longer) and space for the driver, passengers and luggage (21 litres more). Key dimensions in comparison:

All data in mm	Polo Mk. 6 (2017)	Polo Mk. 5 (2009)	Golf Mk. 4 (1997)
Length	4,053	3,972	4,149
Width (w/o mirrors)	1,751	1,682	1,735
Height	1,446	1,453	1,439
Wheelbase	2,564	2,470	2,511
Track, front	1,525	1,463	1,513
Track, rear	1,505	1,456	1,494
Head room, front	1,019	1,004	1,014
Head room, rear	964	943	955
Boot volume	351	280	330

Design follows the credo of our times

Crystal-clear charisma. The positive effects of the modular transverse matrix (MQB) on the car's proportions, and thereby on its design, are very significant. Klaus Bischoff, Head of Design for the Volkswagen Brand, explains: "The much better proportions create the framework for a grown-up, confident appearance of the sixth generation Polo – charismatic, progressive, contemporary and friendly. We have systematically capitalised on this realignment of dimensions to build a compelling compact car." 

The project targets, as defined by Bischoff: All Polo models should be made more sporty, more powerful, fresher, more masculine and more charismatic. Looking at the new Polo, the Head of Design sums it up: "This Volkswagen can immediately be made out as the original of its class, but also as a completely new generation. 

A Polo with an expressive design which makes the compact – now as a four-door only – sportier, cleaner and unique within the brand range. This is a car that fits in perfectly with our times – both visually and technologically."

Almost limitless personalisation

Five equipment versions and three packages. The Polo is launching in three familiar trim lines Trendline, Comfortline and Highline, and in the 'Beats' special edition with a sound system configured for contemporary sound. Another version that appears from the start on the new car's life: the Polo GTI. Several packages are also being offered in the form of R-Line, Black and Style. 

All three have a lot to offer. Consider the R-Line: it makes the Polo even more dynamic with such features as 16-inch alloy wheels ('Sebring'), a big, sporty front bumper and at the rear a diffuser with chrome trim and a roof spoiler. 

The Polo with an R-Line package also has wrap-around black sill trim strips which visually press the car down to the road. The R-Line package also upgrades the interior completely – adding dynamism at a low additional price.

Trendline. Even the base version of the new Polo, the Trendline, is well equipped and has standard features such as LED daytime running lights with coming-home and leaving-home functionality, a speed limiter and the Front Assist area monitoring system with City Emergency Braking and Pedestrian Monitoring. 

These are all features that confirm safety does not allow for any compromises. On the Polo Trendline, power is transferred to the road via 14-inch wheels. 

The base price of the Polo Trendline is 12,975 euros in Germany – this represents a significant price advantage compared to the previous model when the price is adjusted for now standard options such as the rear doors and the area monitoring system that is included free-of-charge.

Comfortline. At the Comfortline trim level, additional details are added such as the Composition Colour infotainment system, air conditioning (Climatic), Driver Alert system, centre armrest, seat covers in knitted velvet, front and rear electric windows with one-touch control, and a multi-function steering wheel. Also standard: 15-inch wheels.

Highline. Customers who choose the Highline also get Park Distance Control (PDC), white LED background lighting (front doors and instrument panel), multifunction steering wheel in combination with leather-trimmed gear shift lever and brake lever ('small leather package') and 15-inch alloy wheels ('Salou').

Beats. A new edition of the successful Polo Beats has been designed, which targets younger customer groups. It has a 300-watt sound system by legendary US headphone producer Beats (Dr. Dre) as well as a host of other features. Exterior features include 16-inch alloy wheels, black painted exterior mirror housings, decorative decals on the bonnet and roof and 'Beats' badging on the B-pillars.

Inside, the 'Beats' model is customised with such features as a dashpad painted in 'Velvet Red', sport seats with specially designed covers and 'Beats' logo, the 'small leather package' and special sill panel trims. The sound system can be ordered as an option in other models.

GTI. Rounding out the model range at the top, as already noted, is the new Polo GTI. This sporty top model will now be powered by a 2.0-litre TSI with an output of 147 kW / 200 PS (previous model: 1.8 TSI with 141 kW / 192 PS). 

Matching the engine’s high output are the standard sport chassis and the optional Sport Select chassis. At the front, this most powerful Polo stands out by virtue of such features as a specially designed bumper with integrated spoiler lip and fog lights as standard. 

Typical GTI insignia at the front include the red stripe on the radiator grille, honeycomb air vent screens and, of course, the GTI badge. An exclusive feature offered in the GTI: optional LED headlights with a red winglet; stylistically they are extensions of the red stripe of the radiator grille. At the rear, the Polo GTI sports a large roof spoiler in high-gloss black (underside: black matt), a diffuser in the bumper, GTI-specific dual tailpipes (left side), LED tail lights and, again, the GTI badge. 

On the sides, GTI characteristics include standard 17-inch alloy wheels (18-inch optional), side sill extensions and brake calipers that are painted red. In the interior, the 200-PS Polo also offers unique characteristics that are typical of a GTI. 

They include top sport seats with the legendary 'Clark' tartan pattern, a multifunction leather-trimmed sport steering wheel with red stitching, rooflining and roof pillars in black and a GTI gear shift grip. Also included as standard: ambient lighting.

14 exterior colours. Everything becomes more colourful and personalised in new Polo with a large range of fresh new colours (a total of 14 exterior colours are available) and twelve wheels (14- to 18-inch, some painted in contrasting colour), dashpads in 13 different decors, two interior trim versions and eleven different seat covers.

Comfort & convenience features from the Golf class. The Polo can be further personalised and upgraded to satisfy individual budgets and tastes. 

New in the options programme are features such as light-intense full-LED headlights, LED daytime running lights, LED tail lights, 'Air Care Climatronic' system with air quality sensor and allergen filter, wireless charging for smartphones (optional inductive aerial connection) and one of the largest panoramic roofs in its class (opening is 10 mm wider and 20 mm longer than before). 

Another available option: the Sport Select running gear with active dampers. The new Polo can be personalised to create an almost unique car by choosing from different trim lines, colours, interiors, wheels and optional features. These options may also be combined with a broad range of highly efficient engines.

Polo makes its debut with new turbo natural gas engine

Market launch in 2017. The new Polo will arrive on the markets of most European countries in 2017, and it will launch successively with nine Euro-6 engines. The power range at market launch: 48 kW / 65 PS1/2 to 110 kW / 150 PS1/2. For the first time, the Polo is available with a natural gas engine: the newly developed 1.0 TGI with an output of 66 kW / 90 PS1/2. 

Four petrol and two diesel engines are also available. The petrol engines range from the 1.0 MPI with 65 PS1/2 to the brand new 1.5 TSI EVO with cylinder deactivation (ACT) and 150 PS1/2. The Polo is launching with diesel versions (TDI) with outputs of 59 KW / 80 PS1/2 and 70 kW / 95 PS1/2. All of these models are equipped with a stop-start system and a regenerative braking mode. 

Starting from an output of 70 kW, all engines may be combined with a dual clutch gearbox (DSG). The GTI rounds out the range of the Polo family as a highlight. As previously noted, the TSI in the Polo GTI develops an output of 147 kW / 200 PS1/2.

Assistance systems from the Golf and Passat in the Polo

High-tech finally democratised. In producing the new Polo, Volkswagen has put one of the world's most advanced compact cars on wheels. This is reflected in such advanced features as the array of new assistance and convenience systems – systems that were previously reserved for the Golf, or even the Passat, class. 

As already noted, even the base version of the new Polo is launching with the Front Assist area monitoring system including City Emergency Braking and Pedestrian Monitoring as standard. One option that is being offered again in the Polo is Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC; can now be activated up to a speed of 210 km/h).

In conjunction with a dual clutch gearbox (DSG), ACC also offers a Stop & Go function (for first time with a manual parking brake). New options in the Polo are the Blind Spot Detection lane change system with Rear Traffic Alert, the semi-automated Park Assist system for exiting parking spaces and a ‘manoeuvring function’. 

The latter automatically protects against minor but often expensive parking dents. The optional Keyless Access locking and engine starting system, which is also new, can be used to unlock and start the Polo.

New interior in harmony with the digital world

World premiere of a new Active Info Display. Interior and HMI (human-machine interface) designers created a new, clean interior layout in order to locate the digital and connected displays and controls on a continuous visual axis that is as high as possible and thereby optimally visible to the driver. Background: The Polo will launch as the first Volkswagen and the first Volkswagen Group model ever to offer this new generation of the Active Info Display. 

The functionality of the digital instruments reaches a new peak; just like the graphics, everything is clearer and easier to use. For the first time, just one button on the multifunction steering wheel is used to switch between the basic Views menus, for instance. 

At the same time, the Polo is getting the latest generation of infotainment systems with display diagonals ranging from 6.5 to 8.0 inches – glass-encased devices that are as sophisticated as high-end smartphones. 

The clean, high-tech image of the interior is reinforced by background lighting (standard equipment in Polo Highline and GTI) as well as by dashpads and decorative trim strips in a wide variety of colours.

'We by Volkswagen' launches. Volkswagen is also forging new paths in the area of connectivity. Not only are the 'App Connect' Car-Net applications (with MirrorLinkÒ, Android Auto™ and Apple CarPlay™) and 'Guide & Inform' available in the Polo. Now there is also the new 'We by Volkswagen' – a digital user platform from Volkswagen for all drivers. 'We by Volkswagen' will open up another online level of mobility. 

One example is the app-based 'WePark', a cashless payment service for parking: in the German capital Berlin, this feature will already be a reality at the time of the Polo world premiere. Other large German cities such as Hamburg and Cologne will follow the example of Berlin and launch 'WePark'.

Key aspects

New brand strategy defines DNA of the sixth generation Polo

Polo embodies the brand's four fields of innovation

Strategic DNA. The new Polo was developed based on the latest Volkswagen brand strategy with its four fields of innovation. This strategy is known by the motto: "We make the future real." The Polo DNA develops its product characteristics via these fields of innovation.

• Automated Driving
  Volkswagen wants to make cars even safer, more convenient and more comfortable by means of automated driving or semi-automated systems.
• Intuitive Usability
  Volkswagen focuses on cars that are intuitive to operate and feature new display and control concepts.
• Connected Community
  Volkswagen will interconnect humans, cars and their surroundings more intensively than ever in the future.
• Smart Sustainability
  Volkswagen is advancing the development of innovative high-volume models with sustainable drives.

Progressive compact car. The new Polo is precisely following this roadmap, with Volkswagen Research & Development as its compass. It has led to one of the most progressive cars in its class based on the four fields of innovation: Automated Driving, Intuitive Usability, Connected Community and Smart Sustainability. An overview of the new and most important features of the Polo in relation to these fields of innovation:

Automated Driving

The assistance systems of the new Polo. Volkswagen has integrated a new generation of assistance systems into the Polo. These are systems which were adapted from larger car classes and are being further democratised by their use in the Polo.

Front Assist/ City Emergency Braking / Pedestrian Monitoring. They include the Front Assist area monitoring system with City Emergency Braking and Pedestrian Monitoring. In the new Polo, it comes as standard in even the Trendline base version. Its automatic warning and braking functions contribute towards avoiding frontal collisions on highways, secondary roads and in the city. Another system that is already included in the Polo Trendline as standard: a speed limiter, which can limit the car's driving speed to a desired figure, e.g. to avoid going too fast in the city. The Tyre Pressure Monitoring System is also always on board a new Polo.

ACC / Blind Spot Detection / Rear View. Volkswagen is offering the Polo with an optional Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC) system (up to 210 km/h; with DSG it includes the Stop & Go function as well). Another option new in the Polo: Blind Spot Detection including Rear Traffic Alert. ACC is a smart cruise control based on radar, which automatically brakes and accelerates according to the traffic situation. 

The Blind Spot Detection lane change system gives a warning in the exterior mirror if vehicles are located in what is known as the blind spot during overtaking. 

Meanwhile, Rear Traffic Alert assists in reversing out of parking places, because it can detect vehicles in cross traffic behind the car. If it detects a hazard, the system warns the driver here too, and it even brakes if necessary.

Park Assist with manoeuvring braking function. Another automated technology from a higher vehicle class is the Park Assist system; it automatically guides the car into nearly any conceivable parking space. 

This means that the Polo steers, and all the driver needs to do is brake and accelerate. The new 'manoeuvring braking function' assists in an extremely practical way, especially in the city. It is active during parking at speeds of up to 10 km/h, and it brakes automatically as soon as it detects obstacles such as the infamous bollard. This saves on repair costs, and aggravation.

Intuitive Usability

Digitalised cockpit of the new Polo. Volkswagen cars are cars that are intuitive in operation. However, the exponential growth of digital systems in the car and their continually increasing number of functions pose new challenges for preserving this intuitive operation in the future. This, though, has been assured in the new Polo. The interface engineers and interior designers have reassessed the interior, analysing and reorganising it from the perspective of tomorrow. This has led to an interior which will be considered a frontrunner for years to come.

One visual and control axis. Everything is located where it should be in a world with analogue and digital functional elements. The interior specialists have therefore created a new visual and control axis in the Polo.

Instruments and infotainment are increasingly merging onto one level. The designers and engineers accomplished this by positioning the infotainment system display high up and the air vents and air conditioning controls beneath them. As a result, the driver has a better view than ever of the cleanly designed displays and controls. 

The digital world is making its way into the Polo in the form of glass-encased infotainment systems, fully digital and newly designed instruments (Active Info Display), wireless interfaces for smartphones (including wireless charging) and the Keyless Access automatic locking and engine starting system.

Infotainment & Active Info Display. A whole new generation of infotainment systems is being used in the Polo. With glass-covered surfaces and digital operation that is more powerful than before. Even the Polo Comfortline has the Composition Colour infotainment system with a 6.5-inch display as standard. Also new, and a novelty in the segment: the optional new generation of the Active Info Display. 

The digital instruments offer more information, a more logical structure, even more graphic clarity and more joy in operating them. Now, one button on the steering wheel can be used to activate different graphic menus quickly, for example. 

A digitalised level is created, especially in combining infotainment and the Active Info Display. On this level, it is very easy to 'drag' functions such as the play list or phone contacts from the infotainment system display to the screen of the Active Info Display.

Wireless Charging & Keyless Access. Along with the classic way of supplying power to smartphones by cable, in the new Polo it is also possible to do this via an optional inductive interface (for compatible phones). The interface is located beneath the air conditioning controls. The smartphone can also be connected to an external aerial via the 'Deluxe' phone interface. Right in front of it is the 'Start engine / stop engine' button for starting or stopping the engine without a key. This is a function of Keyless Access, the first keyless locking and engine starting system to be offered in the Polo.

Connected Community

Online services in the new Polo. The new Polo interconnects the driver and other vehicle occupants more innovatively and more simply than ever before. Likewise, with the Volkswagen's outside world. In the Polo, they are 'always on', which is to say they are online whenever they wish. 

Not only can they access the 'App Connect' Car-Net applications familiar from the previous model (App Connect integrates Android and Apple smartphone apps via MirrorLinkÒ [Android] Android Auto™ [Google] or Apple CarPlay™) and 'Guide & Inform' (wide variety of online services). Another new feature is 'We by Volkswagen' – a digital user platform from Volkswagen for all car drivers. 'We by Volkswagen' opens up another online level for automobiles. 

Take cashless payment for parking, for instance. In Berlin, this is already a reality in the context of the Polo world premiere. Other German cities such as Hamburg and Cologne will follow. The project is known as 'We by Volkswagen Park' or simply 'WePark'.

We by Volkswagen Park. Just how much easier the new services of 'We by Volkswagen' make life for car drivers is illustrated by the 'WePark' project that is running in Berlin. All that users need to do is download the app of the same name from the Apple Store or Google Play. Then register via the app or at park.we-vw.com, and they can begin. The app recognises the parking site by GPS and automatically shows the price. 

Parking is billed based on the actual amount of time the car is parked. Simply drive to the parking zone, start the parking time by app and later end the parking time by app as well. Billing is cashless. A small sticker on the windscreen (download and print online, or have it mailed) shows that the car user is participating in 'WePark' cashless payment for parking. 

Searching for coins for parking is now passé, as are parking meters, payment machines and parking tickets. 'WePark' will officially kick off with the world premiere of the Polo. In the future, plans call for including parking structures and available parking places found online. For more information visit: park.we-vw.com.

Smart Sustainability

Engines of the new Polo. Sustainable drives are the core of the Smart Sustainability field of innovation. They might be battery-electric systems such as in the e-up!, plug-in hybrids like in the Golf GTE or innovative new engines with conventional or alternative fuels. That is true of the Polo, too. Volkswagen is equipping the compact car with a natural gas drive for the first time: the entirely new 1.0 TGI with 66 kW / 90 PS can actually be CO2-neutral, depending on the energy source. 

It is one of a total of nine Euro-6 engines available for the Polo, which always has front-wheel drive. The five petrol engines range from the 1.0 MPI with 48 kW / 65 PS to the new 1.5 TSI EVO with 110 kW / 150 PS and cylinder deactivation (ACT). The drive systems are rounded out by a sixth petrol engine, the GTI engine that is a 2.0 TSI with 147 kW / 200 PS. 

As a diesel, the Polo will launch with a choice of two 1.6 TDI engines whose outputs are 59 kW / 80 PS and 70 kW / 95 PS, respectively. Both TDI models have an SCR catalytic converter. All Polo engine variants come equipped with a stop-start system and a regenerative braking mode as standard. Overview of the entire line-up of drive versions:

Natural gas

• 1.0 TGI with 66 kW / 90 PS1/2, 5-speed gearbox

Petrol

• 1.0 MPI with 48 kW / 65 PS1/2, 5-speed gearbox
• 1.0 MPI with 55 kW / 75 PS1/2, 5-speed gearbox
• 1.0 TSI with 70 kW / 95 PS1/2, 5-speed gearbox / 7-speed DSG
• 1.0 TSI with 85 kW / 115 PS1/2, 6-speed gearbox / 7-speed DSG
• 1.5 TSI with 110 kW / 150 PS1/2, 6-speed gearbox / 7-speed DSG
• 2.0 TSI with 147 kW / 200 PS1/2, 6-speed gearbox / 7-speed DSG

Diesel

• 1.6 TDI with 59 kW / 80 PS1/2, 5-speed gearbox
• 1.6 TDI with 70 kW / 95 PS1/2, 5-speed gearbox / 7-speed DSG

Features

The exterior and interior design of the new Polo in detail

Expressive exterior – charismatic compact car

MQB A0 as a basis. The sixth generation Polo is the first to be based on the new Modular Transverse Matrix for compact models (MQB A0). The positive effects of the MQB on the car's proportions and, in turn, on its design, are huge. The car has much more dynamic proportions and a significantly longer silhouette, because the wheelbase, exterior length and width all grew while the car’s height remained nearly identical. 

The design team took advantage of these realigned dimensions to put a sporty, powerful, fresh, masculine and overall superior Polo onto wheels of up to 18 inches in size (GTI). This resulted in an expressively designed, charismatic compact car – which can immediately be made out as the original of its class and yet as an entirely new generation.

Simply impressive. The MQB's dynamic effects on the proportions are reflected in the Polo's new dimensions. The length of the compact Volkswagen has grown by 81 mm to 4,053 mm. A much larger wheelbase now spans the axles; it has grown by 94 mm to 2,564 mm. This shifts the wheels further towards the front and rear. 

It also shortens the overhangs, which gives the car a much more powerful and sportier visual image. At the same time, the new Polo gained a total of 69 mm in width and now measures 1,751 mm. As already mentioned, interior height decreased just slightly, by 7 mm, and remains nearly the same as the previous model at 1,446 mm.

Silhouette. The sixth generation Polo has become a masculine car, which generates charisma from all perspectives with its new expressive design. The following details – considered from top to bottom – define the Polo when it comes to its significantly stretched silhouette. The roof line was made longer and thereby more elegant; it transitions into a roof spoiler at the rear. 

A fine line on the side body runs parallel to the roof line; it visually lowers the Polo's centre of gravity. Key detailing of the Polo includes its long line of side windows – the Polo is the only Volkswagen to have a window line that terminates in a rise at both front and rear. This contour with the window integrated into the C-pillar was further developed and sharpened. 

The C-pillar in particular, which is now designed to reach forward more and is precisely sculpted, makes the car dynamic in this area and makes it appear to lunge forward, even when stationary.

Arrow-shaped 'tornado' double line defines the side body. Emerging from the straight line of the window shoulder is another line that runs towards the front and into the headlights, making the Polo appear very long. 

Other new and important design features follow beneath this window line. An arrow-shaped double line, which is known as the tornado line, is a new design feature defining the Polo. The surface of this three-dimensional tornado line is – in the style of a shoulder section – slightly flared, and it finishes with a sharp downward undercut. The upper of these two double lines starts in the C-pillar and visually shoots forward into the front wings. 

The second, lower line, on the other hand, forms the mentioned undercut. It develops from the 3D graphic of the tail lights and also extends forward into the front wings, where it rises slightly, meeting the upper line. This strong, arrow-shaped tornado line structures the car’s side profile, forming, as already mentioned, a strong shoulder section and giving the Polo a low and sporty stance on the street.

Front end. The front end of the Polo was made much more emotional, dominant and sportier than that of the previous model. Each detail was carefully re-designed. The headlights are now also available in an LED version. 

Together with the new radiator grille, they form the new 'face' of the Polo that extends across the entire vehicle width. Self-confident: a bumper which also emphasises vehicle width in its design elements. More pronounced contours: the bonnet which now extends far downward into the 'face'.

Self-confident, masculine look. Two lines on the bonnet are influential; they develop from the A-pillars and run in a V-shape to the inner sides of the headlights and the radiator grille. Outside of these lines, which appear as though cut by a knife, the bonnet transitions into the powerful side flanks. Two straight lines that run along the middle of the bonnet also finish at the radiator grille. 

The uppermost grille cross-bar is now painted in body colour. 

The cross-bar joins with the lines of the headlights on the left and right. As noted, this gives the bonnet a lower visual appearance. At the same time, it emphasises the greater width of the Polo. The low-profile headlights give the car a more concentrated and dominant, forward-looking appearance. 

A slender, second radiator grille louvre (this one in chrome) begins at the sides of the Volkswagen badge, transitions over into the chrome lines of the headlights and thereby reinforces this concentrated, self-confident and masculine look. Also unmistakable is the new signature of the daytime running lights.

Strong bumper. The bumper was also completely redesigned. The large glass surfaces of the fog lights and turn signal lights are eye-catching from the side of the car. They terminate outwards in three-dimensionally contoured angles. Between them there are two air intakes: a V-shaped one in the middle, and a narrow second intake that extends across the entire width.

Rear bodywork. The Polo's rear bodywork design had been instantly recognisable even before the fifth generation made its debut. Now the clean, well balanced overall architecture has been significantly further developed and – like the sides and front end – made more precise and sharper. 

Powerful: the much fuller volume of the shoulder section. Concise: the new trapezoidal-shaped tail lights that are worked into the shoulder section and, now, inwards too. For the first time, they will also be available on the Polo as LED tail lights with a very distinctive light signature. 

Typical: a horizontal line beneath the tail lights on the rear hatch, which now transitions into the bumper and also underscores the Polo's width from this perspective. Distinctive: the new diffuser that is integrated into the bumper.

Revolutionary interior – welcome to the digital world

Cockpit is the centre of focus. A new dashboard and cockpit layout for Volkswagen compact models is making its way into the sixth generation Polo. Interior designers have made revolutionary changes. Their focus was on continued growth in the digitalisation of displays and controls as well as connectivity, and this called for clever new solutions. Another declared goal was to give the interior much more character than before and to thereby give the Polo an interior 'face' as well.

Starting with a blank slate. The interior team started with a blank slate, departed entirely from the vertically-oriented dashboard layout of the previous model and developed instead a bold horizontal architecture. 

As is always the case in interior design, this architecture is primarily defined by the modules that are used on the dashboard. In the case of the Polo, designers took the 'form follows function' motto very seriously, because a new digitalised world was being kicked off here in the A0 segment. 

The interaction between the new Active Info Display and the infotainment systems, in particular, made it necessary to take new approaches. The new dashboard architecture began with the objective of locating the infotainment system much higher than before so that it would be in the driver's direct line of sight. 

Because the display should visually merge with the instruments to create a high-gloss 'island', it was also clear that the middle air vents had to migrate downward. All of this was done, and it has now resulted in a dashboard architecture that is refreshingly contemporary and charismatic – introducing an exciting new epoch of digitalisation and connectivity.

One visual and control axis, up high. All key modules – except for the air conditioning unit – have been integrated on the upper cross-panel of the dashboard. This cross-panel is continued up to the front doors and is trimmed with various accents, depending on selected options. 

A highlight here is the trim strip of the Polo Beats which is painted in 'Velvet Red'. The outer air vents are integrated on the far left and right. Located in the middle of the high-gloss black 'island' is, as mentioned, the glass-encased screen of the infotainment system. 

The only additional button in this area is the button for the hazard warning lights. To the left, the high-gloss black user control island transitions into the level of the instruments. This creates a coherent digital cockpit landscape, especially in conjunction with the Active Info Display. Arranged on the next lower level are the air conditioning functions in the middle, and the lighting functions on the driver's side. 

The horizontal dashboard is slightly angled towards the driver in the middle. This is also true of the centre console with the gear shift grip and the buttons for the various car handling functions. A fin surrounds the outer right side of the centre console. The sum of these actions: a sporty cockpit feeling.

Jump in vehicle class. Contributing towards a perceptible jump in vehicle class are the new design, which is both clean and fresh, the horizontal structure, the high-gloss black surfaces and enormous visual impression of width. Or, to express it in the words of one of the main interior designers involved in the project: "The Polo is no longer just the small sibling of the Golf when it comes to its interior. It is no longer the car that people only buy when they cannot afford the Golf. Now it is exactly the car that people want!"