Volkswagen Polo Marks 50 Years,Successful Worldwide
“Small on the outside. Big on the inside.” This was the slogan used by Volkswagen 50 years ago to advertise its latest product at the time, the Polo. When the small car came on the market in early May 1975, nobody expected that the extremely compact two-door vehicle would become a bestseller – nationally and internationally, over five decades, in six generations, with several prestigious awards, with more than 20 million units sold and as a pioneer in the compact car segment.Polo stands for affordable entry-level mobility. When the first new Polos were on sale at dealerships, they were part of a new Volkswagen model family that took over the streets in the early 1970s, the automaker said in a statement. In the spring of 1975, the angular small car followed the Passat (1973) and Golf (1974) of the then still young water-cooled model generation, which succeeded the legendary VW Beetle. Throughout six model generations, it is clear that the overall concept – consisting of a fair price-performance ratio, high utility value, pioneering technology for the small car class and, of course, its attractive design – is still popular today and has made the model a bestseller. In addition, the Polo has succeeded in shaping the compact car segment for decades. Recognition from national and international trade media includes awards such as Car of the Year 2010, World Car of the Year 2010 and World Urban Car 2018.
Trendsetter and serial winner. What began as a simple two-door vehicle in 1975 has been perfected and expanded in many facets over five decades: in a total of six generations, as a hatchback Polo, as a coupé, as a sporty G40 or GTI01, as a colourful Harlequin, as an estate, as a notchback with the name Derby, as a CrossPolo with a striking off-road look, as an efficient Polo BlueMotion and, of course, as an extremely dynamic Polo R WRC, which was crowned with four World Championship titles in the World Rally Championship from 2013 to 2016.
Democratising innovation. Each generation of the Polo has offered more space and comfort, more efficient engines and innovative safety features. New features such as front and side airbags, power steering, belt tensioners and ABS were introduced and made sure the Polo remained successful. The next major step followed with the modular transverse matrix (MQB) platform, which set new standards in terms of connectivity, safety and driving dynamics and made the model even more digital and innovative. Today also, the small car boasts assist and convenience systems that are otherwise available only in higher vehicle classes. The model continues to be very popular worldwide and will be kept up to date in 2025. A perfect example of this is the Polo GTI, which can now be driven even more dynamically – thanks to Electronic Stability Control (ESC) that can be be deactivated, performance tyres and a new suspension and steering set-up.
Global production and worldwide success. Series production of the Polo I began in March 1975 at Volkswagen’s headquarters in Wolfsburg, with 1.1 million units being produced there by 1981. As the model increased in importance, production was spread to other locations around the world, including Spain, Argentina, South Africa, Slovenia, China, Brazil and India. With more than 20 million units built, the Polo is one of the world’s most successful small compact vehicles.
