It has been decided. Volkswagen confirmed its exit from the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) yesterday following a board meeting where the issue was discussed.
This follows sister brand Audi’s pull out from the FIA World Endurance Championship and Le Mans racing last month, but unlike Audi, VW will be leaving on a high – the team has just clinched its fourth consecutive manufacturers’ title at Rally GB, and star driver Seb Ogier wrapped up his fourth straight drivers’ championship in Spain. Four in four since 2013 for both man and team, with 42 wins from 51 rallies – total domination. Motorsports fans can blame Dieselgate for the high-profile exits.
“With the upcoming expansion in electrification of our vehicle range we must focus all our efforts on important future technologies. We far exceeded our sporting goals in the WRC, now we are realigning Volkswagen Motorsport and moving the vehicle technology of the future more starkly into focus,” said Frank Welsch, Volkswagen’s board member responsible for technical development.
“I want to give our heartfelt thanks to our drivers and co-drivers for their outstanding achievements,” said Welsch, who added there was a guarantee of employment for the 200 Volkswagen Motorsport staff.
While the factory WRC team and already-developed 2017 Polo R WRC will be no more, Wolfsburg will start development of a new race car based on the next-gen Polo. It will be eligible for the WRC 2 category and will be available for customers to buy from 2018, it was revealed.
“Volkswagen is going to focus more on customer racing. As well as the Golf GTI TCR on the circuit track and the Beetle GRC in rallycross, we also want to offer customers top products and will develop a new Polo according to R5 regulations,” Welsch said.
“Of course, we regret the departure from the WRC very much as this was the most successful chapter in the Volkswagen brand’s motorsport history. The team has done great things. At the same time, our vision is firmly ahead, because we are aware of the great challenges facing the entire company. We want our realignment to contribute to the success of the Volkswagen brand,” said team director Sven Smeets, who will oversee the team’s final appearance at Rally Australia this month.
“From now on, the focus is on upcoming technologies in motorsport and on our customer sports range, where we will position ourselves more broadly and attractively,” he added.
With VW’s departure, next year will see the 2017 Hyundai i20 WRC, Ford Fiesta WRC, Citroen C3 WRC and the returning Toyota with its Yaris WRC battle for honours without the target they set out to dethrone.
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VW Very Wasted.
VW already very well-known as DISCOUNT BRAND in Malaysia even before dieselgate. With DSG fiasco and all the bad repos, 2014/2015 old stocks with BIG-BIG DISCOUNT also no people dare to buy now. VGM should shut production and import base on order la. And VPCM gotta choose seriously: “NO DISCOUNT” or “NO SALES”
VW Owners dumped their cars and flooded the used car dealers. These cars are set to sleep, if is not years, at the stockyard for months. No 2nd hand demand also.
Have to lah, halfway rally the DSG kaput. They got to have standby so many DSG boxes as sparepart.
All my colleagues comment are correct as above. By the way, we are so free, showroom empty.
Buyback my VW with 30% above market value la. I straightaway pay u booking for Passat(B8)
you are nuts!
Hor Lan, who said VW no resale value. I am an owner and have sold my Mark 6 for Mark 7, value still very high. Even the Polo value still high, as my wife has one.
Where is your dealer? I bought new B7 160K in 2013, now used-car give 50K only… worth less than your wife’s brand new Polo
Basher X logic. Out of topik…again
Its not wasted if you win every year and leave while you are at the top in the world. Its wasted if you spend money on rallying and not win anything.
damn shame, they are world champions and now gone, just like that.
Really sad.. WRC is becoming more exciting with the return of Toyota next year, but suddenly VW couldn’t join alongside. And what would happen to Ogier, Latvala and Andreas Mikkelsen?
All good things must come to an end. Same with VW WRC team.
Perfect winning record – 4/4. But the reality is, it is the business bottom line that counts.
VW is reeling from Dieselgate and is also looking at future technologies. So the axe has got to come down to something – in this case the WRC.
But everything is not lost. VW is making customer WRC2 rally cars. So it is still keeping the VW brand alive, though not officially.
Auf Wiedersehen to the VW WRC team!
whether they leave on the high onot… the Dieselgate is large enough to shadow their success in WRC… this is only syok sendiri for VW..
(arowana) Your comments dont make sense. They just overtook Toyota as the best selling car make in the world, with dieselgate still in the limelight. Looks like their cars are still selling well. Sales rose in all SEA markets, Chine and Europe. In the US, they were never ever strong to begin with. Imagine if they get stronger there?
They are finally following Ford’s step… Focus on GRC babeh!!
Tiring of being champion.
Subaru would kick all their arses
poor seb ogier not gona beat seb loeb record next year onwards…poor guy
U are right jc, maybe Ogier can now joint other WRC team & continue to win more WRC title. That way, he will be a Champion for not just 1 team but for multiple team. With his resume, talents & current forms he will be welcome by any team.
Remember Valentino Rossi(VR46), he was 9 time world champion for teams like Aprilia/Honda/Yamaha.
S
and still no people realize VW is just german version of Proton