On 6 December 2022, the two-millionth VW vehicle with a Polo badge rolled off the production line at the company’s Kariega assembly plant in the Eastern Cape.
The location began producing the popular nameplate all the way back in 1996 and currently builds the model for all right-hand-drive markets while supplementing production for left-hand-drive regions.
It is also the sole manufacturer of the Polo GTI worldwide, as well as the producer of the South African-exclusive Polo Vivo.
Since opening its doors, Kariega has built four generations of the normal Polo and two of the Vivo variant.
The two-millionth example was a left-hand-drive, Ascot Grey Polo which is now on its way to board a boat and be delivered to its new owner in Germany.
26 years of Polo
VW’s South African factory has been churning out Polo-badged autos for the last 26 years, with 1,626,816 Polos and 373,184 Vivos being produced during this time.
Over the lengthy period, production numbers for the popular Polo were recorded as follows:
- Mk3 Polo (1996-2002) – 95,385 units built
- Mk4 Polo (2002-2009) – 282,005 units built
- Mk5 Polo (2009-2014) – 387,201 units built
- Mk5 Polo Facelift (2014-2017) – 305,268 units built
- Mk6 Polo (2017-2020) – 422,603 units built
- Mk6 Polo Facelift (2020-current) – 134,354 units built
Of these vehicles, 1,065,718 units were shipped to 38 overseas markets, whereas 561,098 were delivered to local customers.
These impressive figures served to make the hatchback a permanent fixture on the country’s sales charts since its debut, most recently still ranking as the seventh best-selling vehicle.
Regarding the Vivo, production figures for this model were slightly lower than its pricier sibling’s as this Polo derivative is exclusively sold within our borders.
According to VW, the almost-400,000 Vivos built on local soil were split across two generations, with the production statistics below:
- Mk1 Polo Vivo (2010-2014) – 149,745 units built
- Mk1 Polo Vivo Facelift (2014-2017) – 104,938 units built
- Mk2 Polo Vivo (2017-current) – 118,501 units built
The Vivo made its debut in 2010 when the standard Polo started climbing the price ranks and was no longer considered by all to be a budget hatch. However, similar to its brother, the Vivo has been a frequent choice for local car buyers as it offers an affordable, but still high-quality entry into the VW stable.
This past November, the hatch was crowned South Africa’s sixth best-selling vehicle.
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