Acid test for the new Polo R WRC: Volkswagen factory driver Sebastien Ogier and the former World Rally Champion Carlos Sainz put the Polo for the World Rally Championship (WRC) to a tough test in Spain.

The two rally aces – Ogier is seen by many experts as future world rally champion, Sainz, with two title wins and 26 rally victories is one of the most successful drivers in WRC history – covered around 700 kilometers, equating to about twice the distance of a WRC rally, without any problem in order to take new vehicle components to their stress and load limits and to thus gather important findings for the further development. Volkswagen will be making its debut in the World Rally Championship with the Polo R WRC in 2013 and is running an extensive testing and development program until then.

“Around 70 per cent of the WRC consists of gravel tracks, about 20 per cent of asphalt and roughly 10 per cent of ice and snow. The gravel test in Spain served to simulate the roughest WRC sections and to take the car to its load and stress limits. Particularly chassis components such as the hub carriers, dampers and suspension components were successfully tested in the limit range,” says Volkswagen Motorsport Director Kris Nissen. “Carlos Sainz and Sebastien Ogier are working together extremely well – the two are forming a very good combination. They respect each other without any rivalry and are purposefully driving the project forwards. Our next step will be to run further tests on tarmac in order to complete our specifications book and to then check off each item on the list.”

On narrow, winding gravel tracks near Almeria in the south of Spain Sebastien Ogier together with co-driver Julien Ingrassia (F) were initially in the cockpit of the near-300-HP Polo R WRC. “For us, it was mainly about driving this car on as many kilometers as possible on very hard ground. In parallel, we made a few minor changes to the setup in order to pick up speed step by step,” explained 28-year-old Ogier. On the third day, Carlos Sainz shortly sat in the co-driver’s seat. “Of course that was a surprise – ten years ago, I dreamt that it would be exactly the other way around,” said Ogier with a grin. “But seriously, his experience and his input are extremely valuable to us.” Sainz, who drove his last WRC rally in 2005, then switched to Volkswagen and won the 2010 Dakar Rally in the Race-Touareg, wanted to gain an impression of the handling characteristics of the newly developed all-wheel vehicle on gravel this way and to acquire the necessary driving style. “During my active days I drove thousands of test kilometers and hope to be able to support Volkswagen with my experience,” said the 49-year-old Spaniard who subsequently took the wheel himself and was navigated by Timo Gottschalk. “I have a lot of confidence in the squad and the Polo R WRC will no doubt be a big hit. But we mustn’t forget that 2013 will be the Polo’s first year in the WRC whereas the competition will have been active there for many years,” said Sainz.

- VW Motorsport

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Will the Formula One world champion strike back in the Scirocco R-Cup race car in 2011? After the premiere last year the bio natural gas coupe will again be fielded at the 2011 Race Of Champions: a good opportunity for Formula One world champion Sebastian Vettel to get revenge in the 275-HP Scirocco for last year’s defeat against U.S. motocross star Travis Pastrana.

Besides Vettel and Pastrana the list of the top drivers who will meet at the Dusseldorf Football Arena on 3 and 4 December reads like the international motorsport hall of fame. In addition to Vettel, the new Volkswagen rally factory driver Sebastien Ogier, the Formula One world champions Michael Schumacher and Jenson Button, the eight-time Le Mans winner Tom Kristensen and the DTM champions Timo Scheider, Martin Tomczyk and Mattias Ekstrom will be competing at the race, among others.

“We’re proud that the organizers of the Race Of Champions have again selected the Racing Scirocco as a car to be fielded at the event. This shows the prestige which the Scirocco R-Cup enjoys worldwide as a one-make cup,” says Volkswagen Motorsport Director Kris Nissen.

Duel in the Scirocco: Vettel vs. motocross super star Travis Pastrana

However, in 2010, it was a Scirocco of all cars in which Formula One world champion Vettel had to accept one of his few defeats. In a direct duel, motocross star Travis Pastrana, not least thanks to clever use of the push-to-pass button that allowed each driver to activate an additional 50 HP for four seconds four times during the race, had achieved a surprise victory against Vettel. “The push-to-pass button is a brilliant idea. By using it I was able to beat Sebastian as late as on the finish straight,” said Pastrana last year as he expressed his enthusiasm about the power boost at his fingertips.

80 per cent less CO2: bio natural gas drive at Race Of Champions

Thanks to the use of bio natural gas the two-litre engine of the Volkswagen Scirocco R-Cup reduces the overall carbon footprint, consisting of the fielding at the race and logistics, by 80 per cent – compared with conventional petrol fuels. At the Race Of Champions the Cup Scirocco is the only vehicle featuring an alternative drive concept. The Scirocco R-Cup (www.volkswagen-motorsport.com) is entering its third season in 2012, being held as part of the DTM programme. Spectacular races are guaranteed by the Pro, Junior and Legends Cup, and the innovative push-to-pass system.

- Volkswagen Motorsport

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Dr Ulrich Hackenberg, Member of the Volkswagen Board of Management for Technology, and the two-time World Rally Champion and “Dakar” winner Carlos Sainz (Spain) completed the first test kilometers in the vineyards of Veldenz near Trier, the location that normally plays host to the ADAC Rallye Deutschland, without any problems today. Prior to competing in the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) from 2013 onward, Volkswagen will intensively test and continue to develop the four-wheel drive vehicle that delivers an output of about 300 HP.

“The first test with the new Polo R WRC is a special moment and marks an important milestone in the preparations for our entry in the WRC,” comments Dr Ulrich Hackenberg, Member of the Volkswagen Brand Board of Management for the Development Division. “We’re well on schedule and are now able to start testing our concepts and developments in reality. The WRC is the top category in rally sport and a great challenge for the team, the drivers and the technology. We’re taking on this challenge and will be making efficient use of the time before we start into our first competition.”

“The first Polo represents a preliminary stage of the subsequent rally car and during the upcoming months will serve as a test vehicle for various components such as engines, gearboxes or suspension parts. The findings obtained in these tests will be directly fed into the first thorough-bred Polo R WRC,” explains Volkswagen Motorsport Director Kris Nissen. “Next year we’ll be running an extensive testing program on tarmac, gravel, mud and snow in order to prepare ourselves for the 2013 season as best we can.”

On the first test day Dr Ulrich Hackenberg and Carlos Sainz, both with co-driver Timo Gottschalk (Rheinsberg, Germany) at their side, drove about 100 kilometers on the 2.8- kilometer tarmac circuit. An initial functional test was followed by tuning and set-up work on the engine and the suspension, all of which was performed without any problems. “I immensely enjoy being involved in the development and testing of the new Polo R WRC – and having the privilege of driving the first kilometers is naturally a great honor,” says Carlos Sainz. “The car is still in an early stage but already feels very good. For the whole team, whether engineers, mechanics or drivers, it’s very important to get to know the first real car as early as possible and to test and continue to develop it.”

In parallel to the tests with the Polo R WRC Volkswagen is continuing its trial runs in the World Rally Championship. Next week the German Sepp Wiegand with Dakar winner Timo Gottschalk as co-driver and the Dutchman Kevin Abbring with co-driver Lara Vanneste will be competing in the Great Britain Rally in Wales (10–13 November). At the fourth WRC test run this year the Volkswagen factory team is again fielding two Fabia cars of the Group’s Skoda brand in order to evaluate talents and gather valuable experiences with the team at this famous gravel rally.

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41 victories in a total of 75 races – this is Volkswagen’s successful tally in the three Formula 3 racing series, the ATS Formula 3 Cup, the British Formula 3 Championship and the Formula 3 Euro Series, in the 2011 season. In total, Volkswagen has achieved seven championship wins, 124 race victories and 344 podium finishes since 2008.

At the last race weekend at Hockenheim that featured a total of three rounds Volkswagen driver Marco Wittmann from the Signature team secured the position of the runner-up in the Formula 3 Euro Series. At the first race Volkswagen driver Laurens Vanthoor took third place, which put him on the podium for the fifth time this season. At the second round the German Daniel Abt managed the same result, thus taking his third podium in 2011. At the subsequent third round on Sunday Volkswagen driver Marco Wittmann only needed to finish in fourth place to secure the “runner-up’s title” with a score of 285 points behind champion Roberto Merhi.

Rookie Carlos Sainz jr. was struck by misfortune: The son of World Rally Champion and “Dakar” winner Carlos Sainz had caused a sensation by clinching third place in the first qualifying session but was forced to retire in the first race due to a defect on the right rear suspension. Things went better for the 17-year-old Spaniard in the race on Sunday when he finished in fifth place.

Kris Nissen, Volkswagen Motorsport Director

“On the whole, Volkswagen’s overall tally as an engine manufacturer in Formula 3 is again outstanding. The result in the British Formula 3 Championship where we won the title for the third consecutive time is fantastic. We dominated the season in the German Cup as well and successfully defended the title. And in the Formula 3 Euro Series a ‘runner-up’s title’ is a good result, although we were not represented on the podium there often enough. Considering that we won almost everything there last year, this is disappointing. But we’ve got a strong rival in Mercedes-Benz and as a manufacturer in factory-supported customer sport we obviously can’t control all the parameters. On the whole, we consider the entire Formula 3 an outstanding junior series and talent incubator.”

Carlos Sainz jr.
Race 1: retirement – race 2: retirement – race 3: 5th place

“I was super happy with third place in qualifying. Unfortunately, I had a mechanical problem on the car in the first race. That’s too bad but these things can happen. In the second race I wanted to attack but then, after touching a rival, I unfortunately had to retire. By finishing the third round on Sunday in fifth place I managed a pretty good result in the end. Although I had some minor problems at the start I was pleased with my race pace. I’d like to thank Volkswagen for making it possible for me to run as a guest entrant.”

- Volkswagen Motorsport

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Volkswagen continued the preparation for its entry in the World Rally Championship in 2013 with the Polo R WRC: At the Spain Rally, the twelfth and penultimate round of the World Rally Championship (WRC), the factory team again fielded two Fabia S2000 cars of the Group’s Skoda brand in order to gather valuable experience in the top category of rally racing.

We quickly got used to the car on gravel and were able to seriously attack on tarmac.

With Christian Riedemann/Michael Wenzel (both from Germany) and Yeray Lemes/Rogelio Penate (both from Spain) in the cockpits, two young driver pairings again had the chance to prove their skills in a professional environment on an international stage. And they successfully did so: Lemes/Penate took fourth place in their class and 14th overall while Riedemann/Wenzel crossed the finish ramp in Salou on position eight in class and 20 in the overall classification.

“We’ve got more than twelve months to go before our entry into the World Rally Championship. We’re using this time efficiently by participating in WRC rounds with vehicles of the Volkswagen Group’s Skoda brand and familiarizing ourselves with the WRC in competitive conditions in parallel to the development of the Polo R WRC,” says Volkswagen Motorsport Director Kris Nissen. “Every rally has its own character. The special aspect of the Spanish rally is that the vehicles first run on gravel and then on tarmac, plus it has incredibly enthusiastic fans. Our two young pairings did well in the competition. Yeray Lemes in particular showed that he can keep the pace of the quickest cars in different terrain whereas Christian Riedemann was running well especially on tarmac. For the whole Volkswagen team the participation in the rally has been a valuable experience and now we’re preparing for our next run in Wales.”

The 47th Spain Rally featured a varied profile over a 406.52 kilometer distance of special stages. On Friday the gravel sections were on the agenda. They culminated in a spectacular leg in the dark of the night. On Saturday and Sunday the terrain changed to quick, winding tarmac roads. Yeray Lemes and his co-driver Rogelio Penate marked three fastest stage times at their home round but due to a puncture lost the chances of clinching an even better result. “We’re more than pleased. We quickly got used to the car on gravel and were able to seriously attack on tarmac. The result makes us very happy, particularly in front of so many fans from my home region, the Canary Islands. I want to thank Volkswagen, we’d like to repeat this at another venue,” said the 24-year-old Lemes. After competing in the ADAC Rallye Deutschland this was Riedemann and Wenzel’s second run for Volkswagen. “In the beginning we didn’t do the best job of handling the gravel, but we learned from this. On tarmac we clearly managed to improve and were even able to keep the pace of the more experienced drivers some of the time,” says the 24-year-old as he summed up the event. From 10 – 13 November, Volkswagen will continue the preparation of the team: Sepp Wiegand with “Dakar” winner Timo Gottschalk as his co-driver and the Dutchman Kevin Abbring with co-driver Lara Vanneste will compete at the Rally Great Britain.

- Volkswagen Motorsport

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