It will be an understatement of the new decade if one says that VW has done their homework for India. You don't even need to drive the car to understand that. A glance at the tech specs reveal it all - small capacity petrol and diesel engines that are tuned for economy, feature rich Trendline (basic) trim level, VFM Comfortline and adequate safety kit for the top-end comfort line. And then the prices - who would have thought you, could get a car wearing a VW badge for under Rs 5 lakh? The 1.2 L litre petrol starts at Rs 4.34 lakh while the diesel 1.2 L at Rs 5.32 lakh. To put it perspective, the entry level VW Polo is more affordable than the similar spec Hyundai i20 and is only marginally more expensive than the entry level Suzuki Swift. A mainstream car from Europe's largest car maker at an oriental price tag interests you, right? What is the catch, you ask? As they say driving is believing, so read on.
Design
The Polo is a quintessential European hatchback - one that follows the lead from its elder sister, the Golf. The difference though is the fact that the new Polo is newer and none other than Walter DeSilva had a hand in designing it. The result is a car with crisp lines, bold elements and sharp detailing. Oh yes, the stance of the car is just perfect too. It may not follow the tall-boy architecture of the Wagon R or for that matter may lack the funkiness of the new-boy Ritz - but it does look contemporary and even a mite sporty. The Highline model features wheel-arch filling 15 inch alloys wheels which emphasizes the youthful/sporty nature of the Polo.
Comfort
Get inside and a bit of reality hits you - the plastic quality, if not questionable is very bland despite two textures and colour coding. Instrumentation is comprehensive and the white in black dials are easy to read. Overall ergonomics is praiseworthy for the way it makes drivers of different height and weight comfortable. And mind you, all models get a steering wheel that is fully adjustable. The rear leg room is nothing to write Wolfsburg about but if the front seats are not occupied by the likes of Ishant Sharma then the rear leg room can be acceptable. In short, you do know that VW had to build this interior to a price - expect buyers to pump in money on faux-leather and an entertainment system in an effort to complete the package for the base models while the top-end model get decent upholstery and an audio package.
Performance
As of now the Polo will be available only with a 1.2 litre petrol engine but a diesel with similar capacity is set to following May 2010. I drove both the cars and was impressed by the driveability of the diesel engine despite the low displacement. The three-cylinder diesel develops 75 bhp at 4200 rpm and 18 kgm of torque at 2000 rpm. Even in bumper to bumper traffic, the car was tractable without the baulking associated with small diesel power plants. Given an open stretch of the road, the diesel managed a decent 140 kph with the engine spinning away lazily at about 3500 rpm. Most over taking requirements need a quick downshift and the slick, short-shift gear box help matters. If I have to crib it is about the engine noise that is too harsh at idle speeds and irritating at cruise speeds - something 18 kpl plus mileage (highways) force you to live with.
The 1.2 petrol on the other hand is way more refined and develops its 75 horses - like the diesel version. With peak torque of 11 Kgm coming in at 3750 rpm - it needs to be given the boot to get better reaction for your inputs - in other words keep the revs high and be on the boil for best results. Once you do that the Polo will sprint energetically ( you have to wait for a full road-test for acceleration figures). Expect the petrol variant to return 14 kpl in city/suburban driving conditions.
Safety
The VW Polo is a new car even for Europe and all the safety features that are built into the monocoque of the car are as contemporary as it gets. But if you want ABS and driver and passenger side airbags then be ready to shell out Rs 5.72 and Rs 6.70 for petrol and diesel models respectively - pricey indeed but still more affordable than the Hyundai i20 and the Honda Jazz.
Conclusion
The VW Polo marches into contention as a car that you cannot ignore if you are in the market for a premium hatchback. Apart from mouth-watering looks and exceptional build quality the way the car handles Indian terrain is also important - in this aspect the Polo is better than anything that Japan and Korea has to offer. The way it goes over undulating terrain and potholes is simply short of amazing. Add to that safe (read neutral) handling and decent ground clearance (168 mm) and you do have a tidy 'Indian' package indeed. How well the tiny three-cylinder engines will fare on varying Indian fuel quality is something one needs to wait to find out though. And now the million dollar question - will the VW Polo force the competition, especially Skoda, to reduce the price of their B-segment contenders? Let the games begin.
Source: India Syndicate
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