Volkswagen Polo two thousand eighteen teaser photo leaked
A teaser picture has surfaced out of Wolfsburg demonstrating a silhouette of Volkswagen’s upcoming sixth-generation Polo light hatch, ahead of an official launch at the Frankfurt motor showcase in September.
Underpinned by the ‘MQB’ platform that is collective by many other Volkswagen Group models including the Golf, the fresh Polo is being described as a ‘junior Golf’ by company insiders.
While the teaser exposes little about the fresh hatch, the latest model is said to be the thickest generational switch in its 42-year lifespan.
Volkswagen Group Australia’s head of corporate communications, Paul Pottinger said an Australian arrival for the fresh Polo could be expected around the very first quarter of 2018, with the GTI spectacle model following in Q3.
“It is certainly the largest generational switch we have seen in the Polo class,” he said. “The extent of the switch has been likened to the switch in Golf from Mark VI to Mark VII.”
Being based on the MQB platform also means the fresh Polo will be larger than the current model.
“To me, it is very much a junior Golf. I would compare it with the Mark IV Golf,” Mr Pottinger said.
An undisguised version of the fresh Polo was spied on the road in South Africa earlier this year, displaying a subtly tweaked design that brings it more into line with its Golf big brother.
As for its size, overseas reports are claiming that the fresh model will be 4053mm long, 81mm longer than the current Polo but 286mm shorter than the Golf.
It is also expected the fresh Polo will sit broader and lower to the ground, with a longer wheelbase, but will still be lighter and more fuel efficient.
Due to the model’s relatively distant release date, powertrains have not yet been determined, but Mr Pottinger said he expected the decision makers at Volkswagen to opt for two petrol-powered options in the current range, along with the more potent GTI.
Presently the range is suggested with a 1.2-litre turbocharged four in two states of tune – 66kW/160Nm and 81kW/175Nm – with the choice of a manual gearbox or dual-clutch automatic transmission.
The GTI packs a 141kW 1.8-litre turbocharged four-cylinder that makes 320Nm paired to the six-speed manual, down to 250Nm in the seven-speed DSG.
Options for the fresh Polo include the 1.0-litre three-cylinder presently suggested in Europe, as well as the 1.5-litre four-cylinder in the fresh European Golf 7.Five.
British publication Autocar is speculating the GTI will eschew the 1.8-litre unit for a Two.0-litre unit, which would naturally come with a bump in power.
No diesels will be suggested in the fresh Polo range in Australia, as is the case presently.
The same will go for the five-door-only range, with no three-door variants being considered.
A limited-edition Hammers version, packed with a premium Strikes Electronics sound system, is expected to comeback for the fresh model.
Volkswagen has sold two thousand seven hundred four examples of the Polo in the very first five months of 2017, down Nineteen.Five per cent on the same time last year.
It presently ranks fifth in the light car segment, behind the Hyundai Accent (6349), Mazda2 (5080), Toyota Yaris (4815) and Honda Jazz (2895).