[McLaren Rulez]

Truth be told, while I'll never own one, I do see the point.

This isn't about comparing specs or the brand alone. This car is for those who are fans of the GTI brand and want that experience. It is a very niche product - something with a real history, explosive performance and a touch of subtlety - and naturally, it doesn't make sense to the masses (obviously, I include myself in that group). Most of these premium hatchbacks like the Beetle, Mini Cooper, Fiat 500 etc. fall in this category. The only difference with the GTI is that there is a much cheaper version of the same car, but for some, this is actually a good thing.

I'm not saying it'll be a huge hit but VW will have no problem selling those 99 cars.

[SmartCat]

VW Polo GTI Review by Autocar India

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-WI...em-uploademail

[rageshgr]

Really excited about this launch. Finally the true GTI. There is no car that can match this performance ( I mean not only 0-100 but also handling, agility, fun etc) at this price bracket.

As an enthusiast, if I had 30-40 lacs to spare, I would pick this anyday compared to say the tiny engined Audi A4.

If only they did something like CKD, it would have made it more affordable. But with 99 Limited Editions, I guess VW wanted to make it a exclusive Halo product

[Vik0728]

VW Polo GTI Review by Autocar India

I saw this on TV over the weekend and the first scene where the GT is parked next to GTI gave me jitters !!

Just have a look at this screen grab:



I can bet that 99 (no Pun intended) of 100 people from the mass market may not appreciate the difference !!

Come on VW, you could have at least offered some Exclusive shades to REALLY differentiate it from GT, such as:

[hemanth.anand]

Originally Posted by Vik0728

I can bet that 99 (no Pun intended) of 100 people from the mass market may not appreciate the difference !!

I saw this suggested post on Facebook today.



Mods on a GT TSI similar to GTI. With this available too, many will flaunt a GTI. Trust me its a nice feeling with "just the looks", at less than half the cost of the real thing

Note to Mods: I'm in no way related to the advertiser but if it is still considered against the TBHP rules, please remove this post

[Rajeevraj]

Originally Posted by Vik0728

I saw this on TV over the weekend and the first scene where the GT is parked next to GTI gave me jitters !!

I can bet that 99 (no Pun intended) of 100 people from the mass market may not appreciate the difference !!

You do as below, then you can be sure than the remaining 1 person from the mass and even a good percent of 'more knowledgeable' folks will not notice.

Note: A modified GT TSI from my neighborhood.

[Santoshbhat]

Originally Posted by Vik0728

I can bet that 99 (no Pun intended) of 100 people from the mass market may not appreciate the difference !!

That's the whole point of cars like the GTI! Its a real wolf in sheep's clothing rather than the other way round that cars with stickers, spoilers and other after market add ons are.

Someone in a big car sees a simple Polo ambling along and honks and flashes at the car disrespectfully only to see it running away from him in a flash. I had great fun in my Laura TSI doing just that. The Polo GTI with the 1.8 TSI will be impossible to chase down on Indian roads. 192 PS on that tiny car is just a mad amount of power. And with that DSG box it won't be easy catching it on our roads even for big 3 Litre monsters.

[Vik0728]

Originally Posted by hemanth.anand

I saw this suggested post on Facebook today.

Originally Posted by Rajeevraj

You do as below, then you can be sure than the remaining 1 person from the mass and even a good percent of 'more knowledgeable' folks will not notice.

EXACTLY !!

So when I bought my GT, people could hardly comprehend what the fuss was all about until they sat in one. Visually, the 'Pre-Facelift' GT looked almost indistinguishable from a regular Polo.

From Front and Rear, a regular Polo can be made to look pretty much like a GTI, considering there are no exclusive/exquisite colours on the latter.

What is even more ironical is the fact that GTs (TSI & TDI) are so quick that just adding the GTI badging at the front & rear Can Convince many that this is the real deal !!

Originally Posted by Santoshbhat

Someone in a big car sees a simple Polo ambling along and honks and flashes at the car disrespectfully only to see it running away from him in a flash.

Originally Posted by Santoshbhat

Someone in a big car sees a simple Polo ambling along and honks and flashes at the car disrespectfully only to see it running away from him in a flash.

Couldn't agree more with you Santosh and all this is from a first hand experience that I can share here.

I was on a drive to Ananthpur few months back when an Innova (Taxi) came up behind me couple of times and would flash/honk, almost to a level of persuading me for a drag. Probably he was either too bored of driving alone or did not really know what the logos on the boot 'GT TDI' stood for.

When we both pulled up to a speed-breaker, I floored it and the look on his face was

I have driven the Laura TSI and know what you are talking about.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by rageshgr

But with 99 Limited Editions, I guess VW wanted to make it a exclusive Halo product

Halo nonsense. This is the most rubbish marketing idea I ever heard! 99 cars, in a country this size, is a non event. Don't worry about recognising a GTI: you'll never see one!

Originally Posted by Santoshbhat

That's the whole point of cars like the GTI! Its a real wolf in sheep's clothing rather than the other way round that cars with stickers, spoilers and other after market add ons are.

Hurray! Understanding of the GTI concept! Of course, it is possible that there are only 98 others here who share that understanding. And at least one of us will never be able to afford it

[asr245]

I think VW strategy is simple. Launch the Polo 1.8 GTI at 25+ lacs. Keep it limited as VW already knows that they will have a hard time getting those 99 ones off the shelf or maybe give the buyer a feeling of exclusiveness.

Then within a year or 2, launch the Polo 1.4 GT(I) at a price point of 15-16 lacs (ex-showroom). Suddenly, people will start finding it VFM as it's 90% of the car for 60% of the cost of a 1.8 GTI. BAM! you have a winner!

[prakash_ajp]

The only theory I can believe is what suhaas307 said few pages back: That VW is trying to get rid of their surplus at the same time trying to fool people by making them think they are doing their customers a favor. If that's the case, VW has nothing to lose. It's all CBU and probably imported only after someone books it. And who knows, they will even pay for shipping and customs with the customer's booking money!

[AbhisheKulkarni]

I'll add my perspective here, and it's going to be a bit different from the discussion here, which I've been following.

Without getting into the debate about whether this is worth it, or if it would sell, or if they should localize it and make it a mass market product - let me just provide a feeling that I had when I actually saw the car, up close. And, it's happened just today so that feeling is freshly etched into my memory, so far that is, and which is why I'm writing this without further delay.

I'd been to the B.U.Bhandari service center today for some work related to the car and guess who came in; the Godzilla of hatchbacks (in apna Bharat, at least):



Now, and here's the thing - it did not attract much attention that a 'halo' car should. Sure, some bystanders did gather around, but there wasn't much buzz at all.

The car then went in to the workshop and I followed it in. I have a good relationship with my SA and technicians there, and so could take a look at the car peacefully.

The awesomely rich and premium interiors, and IMHO does not hold a candle to the GT twins:



The BEAUTIFUL full-LED headlamps (both low and high beam is LED) with DRLs. I have a thing for lamps and lights, and for me this sight would be something which I'll have sweet dreams at night for atleast the next couple of weeks:



The incredible looking 16" wheels which seemingly are more practical for Indian road conditions than the 17" ones.



The awesome tight rear with the exhaust upping the ante, and the LED tail-lamps:



Now, here's the best part. I requested the driver to put the DSG into 'D/N' and went and stood near the exhaust, and asked him to revv it a bit, and the exhaust note seemed like a docile little Polo GT TSI. But then, I asked him to change to 'S/N' and the moment he moved the lever, the note changed to a deep throaty murmur which could be heard atleast 5-6 meters away from the car even in IDLE. I have never heard a Polo make this kind of sound from the exhaust in IDLE!
And then he stepped on it to drive the car away and the exhaust note was just music to my ears! And this is nothing - it's just a stock exhaust. Imagine what an after-market active exhaust would do to this car, it'll transform the exhaust to an angry roar which is what this car should sound like.

To hell with the price, and to hell with the fact that I would never ever be able to own one, this machine blew me away. It's a crazy concoction of an engine and a transmission (I mean the manual here, the DSG shouldn't have been bought to India if it's just 99 units) to provide power that can put-to-shame ze' mighty Germans on the expressway!

This is a thing to lust for, to have sweet dreams about and it deserves all the 'respect', which my GT TSI absolutely does not. This car puts the GT TSI in it's place, just a good petrol automatic and nothing else.

PS: I then proceeded to sit in my GT TSI and drove away thinking about what if, the idiots at Wolfsburg grow some brains and price this thing between 14-18 lakhs on-road. Now wouldn't that be something?

[anandpadhye]

Originally Posted by AbhisheKulkarni

The awesomely rich and premium interiors, and IMHO does not hold a candle to the GT twins:
...
The BEAUTIFUL full-LED headlamps (both low and high beam is LED) with DRLs.
...
The incredible looking 16" wheels which seemingly are more practical for Indian road conditions than the 17" ones.
...
The awesome tight rear with the exhaust upping the ante, and the LED tail-lamps:
...
And then he stepped on it to drive the car away and the exhaust note was just music to my ears! And this is nothing - it's just a stock exhaust. Imagine what an after-market active exhaust would do to this car, it'll transform the exhaust to an angry roar which is what this car should sound like.

What you missed out on checking is - high speed ride and dynamics without which a car is nothing. We aren't out here to buy a 2BHK with home theater...

[AYP]

Originally Posted by anandpadhye

What you missed out on checking is - high speed ride and dynamics without which a car is nothing. We aren't out here to buy a 2BHK with home theater...

As per the Autocar review, the handling and dynamics of the car is very good. It is quite different from the Polo and the Polo GT with different suspension setup, 16 inch tyres etc.

[AbhisheKulkarni]

Originally Posted by anandpadhye

What you missed out on checking is - high speed ride and dynamics without which a car is nothing. We aren't out here to buy a 2BHK with home theater...

I said this in my post, which should have made it quite clear that I did not drive the car, a fact which you seem to have overlooked:

Originally Posted by AbhisheKulkarni

..let me just provide a feeling that I had when I actually saw the car, up close.

Considering that I'm not a serious prospective customer for this product I don't see any reason for taking a TD.

A TeamBHP review should shed light on how the ride and handling is, but considering that the GTI is an established brand worldwide and the 99 units are a CBU, I wouldn't worry about it too much (whatever India-specific suspension tuning they may have done, they would've done it well). As someone else mentioned previously, it's also got positive feedback from ACI.

Prospective customers who are serious about purchasing the GTI should have already got to test-drive the car, of which I'm pretty positive as they have the cars out to dealers for TDs.

There is one available in Pune at B.U.Bhandari, so do let us know if you get to drive one and share how it fares in the ride and handling department.