VW also hopes to transfer some of the knowledge gained from competing in the Dakar Rally, which it has won the past three years. We'll have to wait and see if the Polo R WRC finds similar success ...

Volkswagen has unveiled the 217bhp Polo R-WRC at the Worthersee tuning show, confirming that the prototype will go into production next year under the Polo R nametag, in limited numbers.

This also marked the second year in a row that Ogier and VW have won the Monte, after narrowly losing out to Loeb in '03. The victory secures the Polo R WRC's place as the most dominant car in the ...

None of this means that VW won’t continue to be involved in the dirtier side of motorsport, though. It will stay in rallying and will develop a new Polo to comply with the R5 regulations.

Volkswagen R started in 2002 with the Golf R32. Then the Passat R sedan/wagon came along in 2008, followed a year later by ...