VW unveils 375bhp Polo R WRC concept

Volkswagen have won the first three rounds of the World Rally Championship this year, but that hasn’t distracted them from plotting continued domination in 2017.

This is a concept design for next year’s Polo R WRC, the car that VW say will be bigger, faster and lighter than the vehicle that has ruled the roost in Monte Carlo, Sweden and Mexico so far this season.

How much bigger, faster and lighter will it be, exactly? Well according to VW, the car itself will be 50mm wider with larger front and rear wings to match, but will still weigh in at 25kg less than the current model.

Then there’s the power department. At the moment the Polo is capable of laying down 314bhp; by next year, that figure is expected climb to a monstrous 375bhp.

That’s a lot of power to handle when you’re clinging onto a road made of dirt...

Volkswagen Motorsport Director Jost Capito says that changes in the regulations will allow them to make significant improvements next year.

Speaking about the cars, Capito explained: “They will be considerably more dynamic, whilst at the same time being safer. As usual, we are working painstakingly on the development of the next generation of the Polo R WRC.

“The key between now and the start of next season is to achieve the best possible prerequisites to allow the 2017 Polo R WRC to be as successful as its two predecessors.”

The predecessors in question, as we know, helped Sébastien Ogier to overall titles in 2013, 2014 and 2015, with another looking a real possibility this season.

No pressure, then.