TEN cars in Volkswagen's model line-up are more expensive to operate than equivalent Ford and Vauxhall models and are therefore eligible for support from the manufacturer under its wholelife cost guarantee scheme. The latest set of quarterly figures from TopCalc show that five Polo models, the 1.8 CL Golf Estate and four Sharan models are eligible for support, ranging from £12 on the Polo 1.0 L five-door hatchback and Sharan 1.9 Carat TDi to £846 on the Polo 1.9 CL Diesel five-door hatchback.

Under the scheme, fleets which run the models calculated to be more expensive to operate over three years/60,000 miles than rivals from the 'big two' fleet manufacturers will receive the cash support from the manufacturer.

TopCalc claims the Polo 1.4 L three-door hatchback could save fleets £1,008 compared with equivalent Fiesta and Corsa models; £1,974 by operating the Golf 1.9 GL TDi five-door hatchback rather than equivalent Escort and Astra; £1,368 by operating the Golf Estate 2.0 GL rather than estate version of the Escort and Astra; £1,272 by operating the Passat 1.6 SE rather than equivalent Mondeo and Vectra, and £2,922 by operating the Sharan 1.9 CL TDi five-seat rather than equivalent Galaxy and Sintra models.