Overview of the Volkswagen Polo
Just a year after Volkswagen launched its famous Volkswagen Golf hatchback, it released a smaller sibling called the Polo in 1975. The Polo, however, didn't reach Australia until 1996, by which time it was in its third generation. The German city car has often been one of the more expensive city car options, though it has typically compensated with benchmark interior quality, refinement and features. There have also been hot-hatch versions badged GTI.
VOLKSWAGEN POLO GENERATIONS
1996-2002
2002-2010
2010-2017
2018 onwards
RUNNING COSTS
Fuel Consumption
1.2L 4-cylinder turbo: 4.8 to 4.9 litres per 100km
1.8L 4-cylinder turbo (GTI): 5.7 to 6.1 litres per 100km
= Highly economical.
= Good economy.
= Average fuel use.
= Heavy consumption.
Servicing
Every 15,000km or 12months, whichever is sooner. Each service currently costs from about $425. Volkswagen Polo parts and accessoriescan be found on Gumtree.
SIMILAR MODELS TO VOLKSWAGEN POLO
Ford Fiesta
Honda Jazz
Mazda 2
Toyota Yaris
WHAT TO LOOK OUT FOR: VOLKSWAGEN POLO (2010 TO 2017)
Polos with the seven-speed DSG transmission have proven to be potentially problematic as a relatively high number of transmission faults and failures have shown up in-service.
Make sure any DSG Polo shifts smoothly and cleanly, doesn't show a strange shift pattern and doesn't shudder on take off. If it does, the gearbox could be showing signs of wear.
Both the 1.2- and 1.4-litre petrol engines can suffer stretched timing chains and these need to be replaced. The 1.4 was also fitted with a suspect batch of pistons so a compression test is a good pre-purchase idea.
The Polo with the diesel engine was also caught up in VW's Dieselgate scandal and VW dealers are still recalling these to be fitted with new software.
Check with a dealer to discover if a particular car has been fixed yet or not.
