Volkswagen Brings Back Polo Harlequin With One-off Concept

Tired of cars looking like fifty shades of grey? Here’s a new concept that will put a smile on your face and bring back good memories.

Volkswagen’s Dutch division has just resurrected the famed Polo Harlequin of the mid-1990s (and similarly the Golf Harlequin sold in North America) by applying the same multi-coloured treatment to the modern Polo available in Europe. Pretty cool, isn’t it?

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The four bright colours—Chagall Blue, Ginster Yellow, Pistachio Green and Tornado Red—are inspired from a 1964 Volkswagen Beetle ad that depicted a multi-colored Beetle, touting its easily interchangeable parts over many model years. 

The original Polo Harlequin was initially slated for a small production run, but it created enough demand on its own that around 3,100 units were ultimately built.

Due to the buzz in Europe, Volkswagen decided to manufacture a limited series of Harlequin-inspired Golf hatchbacks for the North American market in 1996. It’s believed that just over 110 of the 264 copies are still on the road.

This time, however, Volkswagen has no intention to sell the car as it’s merely a one-off replica paying tribute to the classic. Maybe some fans will be lucky enough to admire it up close while touring a museum in the Netherlands or elsewhere.  

Colour us jealous once again. In case you didn’t know already, the new eighth-gen Golf won’t be sold in Canada in base trim. We will only get the Golf GTI and Golf R.