Hoping to repeat the success of its Golf GTI series, Volkswagen applied the same spicy recipe to its smaller Polo hatchback with the launch of a GTI version that was unwrapped at last week's Geneva Motor Show. And this here is the first official video of VW's hot supermini on the move.

The second and smallest member of Volkswagen's GTI family gets a punchy 1.4-liter twin-charged petrol engine pumping out 180 horsepower and a 250Nm or 184 lb-ft of torque.

Power is sent to the front wheels through a seven-speed dual clutch transmission with the German firm announcing 0-100km/h (62mph) sprint time of 6.9 seconds and a top speed of 228 km/h (142 mph).

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Aside from VW's own test drivers, certain members of the media and maybe some carefree folks from the Middle East, we seriously doubt that anyone else would have the opportunity (and deep enough pockets) to enjoy the new 2011 Touareg SUV in the desert. Nevertheless, if you follow the jump, you can get an idea of what you're missing out on.

We remind you that the world premiere of the second generation Touareg will take place at the Geneva Motor Show on March 2 [...]

The R8 started an exciting journey for the Audi brand when it launched into a segment its maker had not competed in before. Soon after rumours of a smaller R8, thought to be called the R4, surfaced [...]

Here are three videos of the Volkswagen Scirocco R vs the Ford Focus RS. The first two come from the Germans at D-Motor and the second, after the jump, is Autocar’s verdict on how the Scirocco R compares to the Focus RS [...]

Volkswagen AG announced today that it has taken a 49.9 percent stake in Porsche AG.

“The next important step on the way towards the integrated automotive group with Porsche has therefore been completed, as announced, before the end of the year,” Volkswagen said in a statement. “The price for the stake is €3.9 billion ($5.8 billion USD) and is based on the enterprise value for Porsche AG calculated under a careful due diligence and valuation procedure.”

The acquisition of the trading business of Porsche Holding Salzburg is planned for 2011, said the German automaker.

“The creation of the integrated automotive group is then to conclude with the merger of Volkswagen AG and Porsche SE during the course of the same year,” V-Dub said.

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Volkswagen will produce more engines and transmissions in China as part of its global expansion strategy to meet rising demand for fuel efficient vehicles.

The company – China’s largest foreign car manufacturer – will manufacture its TSI engines and DSG gearboxes in an attempt to reduce the fuel consumption of its locally made cars by 20 per cent by 2010.

Volkswagen China President and CEO, Winfried Vahland, is confident that the combination of its turbocharged direct-injection petrol engines and double-clutch automatic gearboxes will deliver on those goals.

VW China will also build a $1 billion plant in Dalian in the country’s northeast to produce 300,000 DSG gearboxes in 2010.

It will be the sister factory to the engine plant already in Dalian, which will soon increase capacity to make 30,000 1.4, 1.6 and 2.0-litre engines.

The announcement comes less than two weeks after it was revealed that VW will build a plant in the south of China, in addition to current plans in Shanghai and in the northeastern city Changchun.

VW is not yet well established in South China, an area which accounts for 35 per cent of China’s new car sales, of which VW has just a 5 per cent share.

Throughout the rest of China however, VW is booming, with sales up 35 per cent through the first nine months of 2009, breaking the one million mark in September.

In February, VW announced its ambitions to sell two million vehicles in China by 2018 and the latest developments will go a long way to achieving that goal.

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Volkswagen will replace the PQ2 / PQ3 / PQ4 driving platform used with over 60 models including Audi, Seat and Skoda, with a new one named MQB (modularen querbaukasten or modular transverse engine mount architecture).
"The secret to the MQB is the way it provides for a common distance between the front axle and the pedals irrespective of the size of the car it is applied to. VW’s head of R&D, Ulrich Hackenberg, claims this will help reduce the number of front-wheel drive 'engine mounting architectures' used by Volkswagen from 18 today to just two." (autocar.co.uk)

The new platfrom will be available starting with the next Audi A3 in 2011. [...]

Admittedly this is not the best-quality video we've seen and it certainly does not raise the goose bumps. But it does go a long way towards showing what the new Volkswagen Scirocco R looks like outside of the glamourous lights and sharp race tracks [...]

The director of the video, in doing a “making of” video of the L1 Concept, seems to have also inadvertently filmed work on the next generation Golf.

Let’s say it isn’t a commercial ploy on the part of Volkswagen and take a look at the background on the right where a new car is being worked on. It is characterised by narrower headlights elongating the look of the bonnet [...]

The South American market is to receive a new version of the Volkswagen Saveiro. The Saveiro is a compact pickup designed and built in Brazil [...]

Jeremy Clarkson's humor tends to either amuse or horrify. Some contend the dead-pan Brit occasionally goes too far with his comedic stylings, but overall, we prefer Clarkson just the way he is and don't mind his occasional pot-shots [...]

Racing and tuning house Abt Sportline finally reveals expected upgrades to the Volkswagen Golf VI GTI. Previously Abt had released aero kit and modest performance upgrades for the Golf VI at Essen last year.

The standard GTI is known for producing 155kW (211hp) out of its 2.0-litre four-pot turbo engine [...]

I don’t recommend you watch this video if you get car sick, but otherwise, let the race begin! At the wheel of this Opel Astra is Fabrizio Giovanardi, Vauxhall driver in the BTCC championship. While he’s the only one likely to drive an Astra like this, he beats the Volkswagen Golf and the Ford Focus, saying “get a move on” as he overtakes one [...]

It was only about 12 months ago that Porsche was being praised for its brilliance in business tactics to take over Europe’s largest manufacturer, Volkswagen. Now it seems the tables have turned [...]

Volkswagen has officially unveiled the highly anticipated 2010 Scirocco R.

Under the hood, the new Scirocco uses a modified version of the previous Golf GTI's 2.0-liter engine which produces 265 hp and 350 Nm (258 lb-ft) of torque. Power flows to the front wheels through either the standard six-speed manual transmission or the optional dual-clutch DSG gearbox [...]