VW Polo I.

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Volkswagen
VW Polo (1975-1979)
VW Polo (1975-1979)
Polo I (type 86)
Production period: 1975-1981
Class : Small car
Body versions : Station wagon
Engines: Petrol engines :
0.8-1.3 liters
(29-44 kW)
Length: 3512 mm
Width: 1560 mm
Height: 1344 mm
Wheelbase : 2335 mm
Empty weight : 685-700 kg
successor VW Polo II

The VW Polo I was from the spring of 1975 produced until mid-1981 three-door compact car with hatchback from Volkswagen and originally the savings version of the better-equipped Audi 50. . This came on the market in autumn 1974, but was discontinued in mid-1978.

Model history

General

Rear view

The name Polo was borrowed from the sport of the same name and was intended to create a reference to the VW Golf . On September 10, 1974, the name Polo was decided for the new model in a board meeting . Other suggested names at the time were Bonito , Euros , Mini-Golf and Pony . Under the name Bonito , the Fiberfab FT Bonito had been around since 1969 , and in 1975 the Hyundai Motor Company launched the Hyundai Pony .

Series production at the Wolfsburg plant began on March 3 or 5, 1975 , and the Polo was shown to the public for the first time on March 13, 1975 at the Geneva Motor Show . From March 17, 1975, Volkswagen presented the new Polo to the press for a week in the Lindbergh Salon of the Holiday Inn Hotel in Hanover . The market launch took place in the same month. The first vehicles were delivered to customers in May 1975.

The technical differences to the Audi 50, which appeared in 1974, included the lower displacement of the entry-level version by reducing the stroke (from 72 mm to 59 mm), the omission of an automatic starter on the carburetor and replacement with a simple choke cable, the equipment with drum brakes also on the front axle and with diagonal tires.

The first model bears the in-house designation Type 86. The Polo was only available as a three-door hatchback in the Basic, L, S, LS, LX (only for export), CLS, GLS, GT and Formula E equipment. In addition, a notchback version was offered from February 1977 under the name VW Derby .

The basic version was initially extremely sparsely equipped. The door panels were made of cardboard, on the passenger side the lock cylinder of the door lock, the door contact of the interior lighting, the sun visor and the upper handle were missing. Right from the start there was a Polo L equipment variant, which was almost identical in appearance to the Audi 50 . When it became clear that Audi should no longer serve the small car segment, the Polo was gradually upgraded. The better equipped Polo GLS appeared in August 1978.

Facelift

In February 1979 (at AutoRAI, Amsterdam) there was a facelift that included the radiator grille and the bumpers (now made of plastic). The dashboard was also redesigned, provided with a strip made of imitation wood and received a storage box. In addition, the 60 hp Polo GT was brought onto the market.

In January 1981, the fuel-saving Formula E version with 3 + E gearbox came onto the market, but the Polo I was discontinued in June 1981.

literature

  • Frank Sprengler (employee of historical communication at Volkswagen AG): The economical VW should initially be called “Pony” or “Bonito”. In: Wolfsburger Nachrichten. Friday Packet for June 16, 2017.

Web links

Commons : Volkswagen Polo I  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. a b Frank Sprengler: The economical VW should initially be called “Pony” or “Bonito”. In: Wolfsburger Nachrichten. Friday Packet for June 16, 2017.
  2. Wolfsburger Nachrichten No. 49/2016 of February 27, 2016, p. 21
  3. Wolfsburger Nachrichten No. 61/2015 of March 13, 2015, p. 21
  4. 40 years of Audi 50: A mini makes fashion
  5. Wolfsburger Nachrichten No. 74/2015 of March 28, 2015, p. 19
  6. Polo - a new Volkswagen . In: ATZ Automobiltechnische Zeitschrift . 1975th edition. No. 6 . Franckh'sche Verlagshandlung, Stuttgart, p. 193 .