Volkswagen ‘flesh out’ their rally plans
Volkswagen Motorsport have today elaborated on their plans to develop a new Polo R5 rally car in addition to supplying 2016 Polo R WRC cars for potential customer teams.
On their R5 project, Volkswagen said in a statement:
“Development work is underway on a new rally car in the R5 category for customer racing teams. The development of this four-wheel drive car will incorporate all the experience of twelve titles in the World Rally Championship. The car, which is based on the next generation of the Polo, will undergo its first tests over the course of the year. The development sees Volkswagen Motorsport continue its cooperation with group brand Škoda: the compact 1.6-litre turbo engine, which generates about 280 hp and is already used in the Škoda Fabia R5, was developed together and is now being optimised. Furthermore, plans are afoot for the 2016 Polo R WRC to be run by customer teams.”
Commenting, Volkswagen Motorsport Director Sven Smeets said:
“I can sense that the employees are extremely committed and motivated as they tackle the new challenges. We are concentrating on new projects, such as the development of the Polo R5 and the cooperation with Volkswagen Sweden and Petter Solberg in the World Rallycross Championship. Furthermore, there is customer interest in running the tried-and-tested Polo R WRC at various rallies. Our to-do list is very full.”
