The Kariega plant of Volkswagen Group South Africa (VWSA) kicked off March by reaching yet another milestone: the 100 000th unit of the current Polo for the local market.
This special milestone vehicle rolled off the production line on 1 March during the night shift.
The Kariega plant has been building the current Polo since January 2018 and began production of the facelifted Polo in August 2021. Of the 100 000 vehicles, 80 644 were pre-facelift Polos and the remaining 19 356 were facelift Polo models.
VWSA celebrated several Polo milestones in 2022, reaching its one-millionth Polo built for export in May 2022, the 500 000th Polo (including the facelift and the model launched in 2018) in July 2022, and the 100 000th facelift Polo produced in August 2022. More recently, the company celebrated two million units of its popular Polos and Polo Vivos in November 2022.
VWSA currently builds the Polo Vivo for the local market, and the Polo for all right-hand-drive markets and certain left-hand-drive markets. The Kariega plant is also the sole manufacturer worldwide of the Polo GTI.
“Though the majority of our Polos are built for export markets, we are incredibly proud of how popular this vehicle is among South African customers,” said Ulrich Schwabe, Production Director at VWSA. “This includes our employees, who build these high-quality vehicles with pride and whose dedication and love for our vehicles have made this milestone possible.”
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Affordability is driving a structural shift in South Africa’s vehicle market, with SUVs gaining significant ground as consumers increasingly seek competitively priced, well-equipped vehicles.
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Have you ever noticed that anybody driving slower than you is an idiot, and anyone going faster than you is a maniac?
George Carlin
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