Volkswagen Polo

The Volkswagen Polo has for some time now held a special place in FHM's heart. Three of us currently own a Mark IV facelift model, and this has become the benchmark according to which we compare other cheap-ish cars. Our Polo is well-constructed, easy to drive, has decent fuel efficiency and a fair bit of space for passengers and luggage. We feel that if they can produce a quality car that doesn’t cost the Earth, other manufacturers should too. So it was with much anticipation that FHM attended the launch of the brand-new VW Polo in Cape Town last week.

The Volkswagen Polo was launched back in 1974, and was essentially a rebadged Audi 50 hatchback. Since then, the iconic range has sold around 11 million units worldwide. The 2010 model has already won several accolades and awards, such as European Car Of The Year and the Golden Steering Wheel. At first glance, the Polo is reminiscent of the Golf VI and Scirocco in terms of it’s styling, with only the back-end appearing substantially different. Audi influences are visible in the shoulder line – that the previous incarnation didn’t have – and design team guru Walter de’Silva’s touch is clearly apparent. The new Polo is also wider and lower than it’s predecessor, and 7,5 per cent lighter.

Build quality is superb, and the 2010 Polo comes across as mature and sophisticated, and no longer just a relatively-inexpensive means of transport. Oona Scheepers, a South African who has made it all the way to the design team for Polo in Germany, told tales of the unrelenting demands of Teutonic overlord Prof Dr Winterkorn who would take a magnifying glass to the dashboard to see if the pattern was symmetrical, and blow a gasket if the stitching on the seats weren’t perfectly aligned. His pedantic ways have translated into a much better product. As we slid behind the Golf VI-esque dashboard and steering wheel, the whole tactile experience came through beautifully. The gearbox feels somewhat tighter than the Facelift model, which is a good thing as, while the latter was easy to shift, it did feel a bit loose. It again adds to the quality, grown-up feel of the 2010 version. Driving the new Volkswagen Polo was a joy. Steering was direct and accurate, the brakes were top-notch and the seats comfortable. We did feel that the wing mirrors were still a bit smaller than we would have preferred for the sake of safety.

Three engine variants are currently available, namely the 1,4-litre petrol, 1,6-litre petrol and 1,6-litre turbodiesel. The former has adequate power and did alright – even with the aircon on and two people in the car going uphill. Not going to break any speed records, though. It was however, quite twitchy in corners which we can ascribe to the car being fairly light. The 1,6-litre variants fared much better and we managed to nudge the Polo to a respectable 200km/h. We would be hard pressed to decide between the petrol and the diesel options, as both were equally good. Our TDi had cruise control, information displays in the instrument cluster, electrically-adjustable mirrors, lots of airbags and a telescopic steering wheel. Strangely enough, none of the cars had a temperature gauge. Now while the car might warn you when it gets too hot, it would be good to be able to see if your temperature is rising so you could take pre-emptive measures. Also, the satellite controls on the steering wheel were on the left-hand side – not ideal, as one’s left hand is usually preoccupied with changing gears. Legroom for the rear passengers also could have been better. But that’s it in terms of criticism. Oh ja, except for the hectic prices. Polo’s direct competition take the form of the Ford Fiesta, Opel Corsa, Toyota Yaris T3, Mazda 2, Honda Jazz and Hyundai i20. It is noteworthy to mention that the 2010 Polo does come standard with a three-year/120 000km warranty, the service plan and maintenance plans respectively, are optional.

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Words: Peter Piegl

Photographs: www.quickpic.co.za