Most people build project cars because standard offerings are too tame. But what if a manufacturer built a wild car in their factory? Introducing the VW Polo RX.

Click here to read about a motorsport-inspired VW Golf GTI.

A winter project 

Volkswagen Motorsport India took its recent winter break to build something truly special to celebrate its 10th year of existence. The team conceived, designed and built the VW Polo RX in its own facility in India.

The VW Polo RX is based on the Ameo, what we call a Polo Vivo here in SA. The unique car is equipped with Ameo Cup car’s 1,8-litre TSI engine and sequential gearbox with paddle shifters. The unique bit comes from the fact that the engine has been moved from in front of the cabin to behind the passenger seats.

Engineers started by building bespoke mounts for the engine, gearbox and suspension to be relocated to its new position. The turbocharged engine’s intercooler had to be placed underneath the rear seats. Air ducts were installed to maintain airflow to the engine. As the intercooler took the place of the fuel tank, the latter had to be moved to the front of the car and now lives under the bonnet.

Click here to read about an interesting Toyota Quantum with a V12 engine.

For sale

The VW Polo RX isn’t some flight of fancy that will be confined to a museum, customers can order their very own. As the car does not conform to any current series owners will have to terrorise supercar owners at their local track days. VW Motorsport India says that the car can be adapted to regulations to suit various forms of motorsports in the future such as autocross, circuit racing or rallying.

In his own words

Sirish Vissa, head of Volkswagen Motorsport India said, “I am extremely excited about our ‘Winter Project’ car! It is commendable how the team has managed to pull off this project with limited access to high-end software and technology. Young engineers and technicians in the team have shown real calibre by getting this masterpiece ready in less than three weeks!”

He added, “A rear engine, rear-wheel-drive car is tremendously different in terms of its performance as compared to our conventional front-engine, front-wheel-drive racecars. With the rear wheel managing the acceleration, the front wheels have more freedom to turn the car sharply and quickly, thereby enhancing its dynamic performance to a great extent.”