Volkswagen Reveals Polo R WRC Racer with 300HP [Video]

After months of rumors and whispers, Volkswagen officially announced that it will enter a factory team to the World Rally Championship starting with the 2013 season. The announcement was made in Italy, where journalists had the chance to take a first look at the car VW will throw in the competition, the 300HP Polo R WRC, shown here as a prototype. Still under development, the rally-prepped supermini will be powered by a turbocharged, direct injection 1.6-liter TSI turbo engine and will use a four-wheel drive system. The four cylinder engine will develop around 300 horsepower and 350 Nm of torque (258 lb-ft) and will be fitted with a 33-millimeter air restrictor at high engine speeds, according to regulations. It will be paired to a sequential gearbox. The minimum dry weight of the car will be 1,200 kilograms (2,645 lbs).
As the pictures show, the Polo R WRC will have an aerodynamically-optimised body, with a massive wing at the back and extra-wide wheel-arches. Hopefully, we’ll see the “R” badge ending up on a road going version of the Polo as well.
The factory team will be run by Volkswagen Motorsport, the racing division that has won the past three Dakar rallies. Work on the vehicle concept design for the Polo R WRC started in February, while preparation of the first chassis is planned for later this year. The team will start an extensive testing program in 2012 and will familiarize with the WRC starting this year, as the VW group will enter Skoda cars at selected rally events at the end of the season.
Scroll down to watch the launch video of the Polo R WRC.

By Dan Mihalascu

PHOTO GALLERY

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VIDEO

VW Reportedly Readying Polo R Model following WRC Announcement

Reports of a future production version of the Volkswagen Polo R WRC car have started to emerge after the carmaker announced it would enter the World Rally Championship in 2013. According to a VW board member quoted by Autocar, the company is working on a hardcore performance version of the Polo to back up its WRC entry.

Before the WRC announcement, Volkswagen had denied rumors of developing a Polo R, explaining that a very expensive small hot-hatch wouldn't be profitable. However, the rally car revealed in the beginning of May featured the R nameplate and had lots of R branding on the bodywork.

VW board member Ulrich Hackenberg told Autocar that the WRC involvement would make a Polo GTI-topping model “more likely”. “You can see how the World Rally Championship program would increase the probability of an R version of the base model,” said Hackenberg, who added that the launch of the Polo R should coincide with the start rally program in 2013.

The car would probably use a more powerful version of the 1.4-liter turbocharged and supercharged engine used by the Polo GTI. Output will most likely be over 200 horsepower, as in the Polo GTI the four-cylinder unit delivers 180 horsepower. It is unclear, however, if the Polo R would adopt a four-wheel drive system as Audi's future S1 model, built on the same platform.

By Dan Mihalascu

PHOTO GALLERY