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Old 25th April 2013, 22:32   #46
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Re: Volkswagen Polo 1.2L GT TSI : Official Review

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Originally Posted by mobike008 View Post
Iam not sure why everyone is rueing over the non-availbility instead of getting excited about the DSG box which is a surprise offering in this segment
Firstly, a manual would be 1L+ lower. (Laura petrol AT is 1L more expensive than the 6speed MT.)

Then the 7 speed DSG has reliability issues which costs a bomb to replace. Now though this gear box will operate on milder conditions.

It is a DSG all right but where are the flappy paddles.


The polo highline costs approximately 6L. Add 50K for the engine. 1L for the tarnsmission, the price will be 7.5L which is realistic. But would you not be more interested in a Polo with manual transmission at 6.5L.

I would have also liked to see a trendline variant of the TSI. Just with ABS & Airbags at 5.5L. That would be a pocket rocket.
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Old 25th April 2013, 22:34   #47
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Re: Volkswagen Polo 1.2L GT TSI : Official Review

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Originally Posted by akshay1234 View Post
This is perfect for someone who needs a quick automatic hatch as a daily driver. It is powerful enough, can be remapped to 140bhp and it has the brilliant DSG. Sure some extra care needs to be taken with the DSG (like putting it into N at even short stops) to stop it from getting hot and possibly leading to failure. But on the whole for someone who doesn't need a boot this is a great car. Also brilliant to see ESP offered in this segment.

People are comparing this to cars like the T-Jet and the Fiesta, but this car is in a niche of its own. For example me, I've got 3 sedans and a mini suv at home. I use the Accord as a daily drive, besides being heavy on fuel it is also pretty big. Something like this would be perfect for me (after a few mods of course). What worries me more than the DSG is VWs after sales service, in fact it worries me a lot more than the DSG.

Now this car with a remap, intake and exhaust, upsized rims and tyres, a nice set of coilovers and of course paddle shifts will be perfect.
Dude! exactly my feeling as well. Its a very nice car for daily city use. A very conservative remap (130HP/200Nm) with 205/50 R16 tyres (set of OZ Ultraleggeras) and coilovers (Bilstein B14) will make it a really hot hatch indeed. They should have provided the front bumper spoiler and side skirts from the Polo SR on this one though.
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Old 26th April 2013, 00:01   #48
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Re: Volkswagen Polo 1.2L GT TSI : Official Review

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Originally Posted by 1100D View Post
Somehow was expecting a 200+ kmph top speed from this. Am curious as to whether it will actually manage to duck below the 10sec mark for the 0-100 times. The inability of the DSG to hold revs in a corner is a definite turn-off for a performance variant. Lets also see what the pricing comes up as.
ACI reports 11.34sec for the 0-100 kmph. If you use the manual mode, it can hold to the revs.
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Old 26th April 2013, 00:28   #49
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Re: Volkswagen Polo 1.2L GT TSI : Official Review

Post deleted by the Team-BHP Support : Please do NOT post messages that add little or no informational value to the thread. We need your co-operation to maintain the quality of this forum.

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Old 26th April 2013, 01:06   #50
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Re: Volkswagen Polo 1.2L GT TSI : Official Review

Quote:
Originally Posted by 1100D View Post
Am curious as to whether it will actually manage to duck below the 10sec mark for the 0-100 times. The inability of the DSG to hold revs in a corner is a definite turn-off for a performance variant.
VW Polo 1.2 TSi does 0-100 in 9.7 sec in S Mode. Zero to ton timing seems more than adequate and given the traffic conditions, hardly one can do such sprint in Mumbai at least.

Source:

Quote:
Originally Posted by 1100D View Post
Somehow was expecting a 200+ kmph top speed from this.
Expecting 200+ Kmph, where do you intend to drive with such speed? Drive safe!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Guna View Post
ACI reports 11.34sec for the 0-100 kmph. If you use the manual mode, it can hold to the revs.
ACI should have let DSG do the shift since in manual mode there are chances that human would be late to react to change gears. DSG in S Mode could easily achieve 9.7 sec to ton figure which is the official figure.

In turbo charged engines holding revs is not important but rather being in the torque range which is 1500-4100 rpm in 1.2 TSi. NA engines required to keep them boiling at highest rev, but turbo-charged engines are all together different.

Drive a VW 1.6 TDi and you would get my point.
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Old 26th April 2013, 01:24   #51
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Re: Volkswagen Polo 1.2L GT TSI : Official Review

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Originally Posted by el lobo 6061 View Post
VW Polo 1.2 TSi does 0-100 in 9.7 sec in S Mode. Zero to ton timing seems more than adequate and given the traffic conditions, hardly one can do such sprint in Mumbai at least.
If its 9.7 then its fine.



Quote:
Originally Posted by el lobo 6061 View Post
Expecting 200+ Kmph, where do you intend to drive with such speed? Drive safe!
Couldn't It be on a track day? Or an open expressway early in the morning. Anyway the 200+ kmph expectation was based on certain parameters. One of which is that since the 1.0 Ecoboost was to be compared against a NA 1.6, was expecting this to be compared with a NA 1.9/2.0.

Quote:
Originally Posted by el lobo 6061 View Post
In turbo charged engines holding revs is not important but rather being in the torque range which is 1500-4100 rpm in 1.2 TSi. NA engines required to keep them boiling at highest rev, but turbo-charged engines are all together different.

Drive a VW 1.6 TDi and you would get my point.
The point that he made regarding holding onto revs in a corner was based on the lift-off (either total or partial) upshift in the middle of a corner. This is a bane of driving conventional AT cars in a track, that the moment you lift off a bit in the middle of a corner, the cogs shift to the next ratio. Quite a few years back, cars have been made to learn to hold onto revs while driven aggresively (in sport mode) in the middle of a corner even if the accelerator is withdrawn a bit (or even substantially, but not total liftoff)
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Old 26th April 2013, 02:05   #52
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Re: Volkswagen Polo 1.2L GT TSI : Official Review

About staying in the rev range during corners, may be we should practice left foot braking?!

Jokes apart, I guess this is one car I'd be keenly reviewing as it has everything that I've been looking for in my dream car (except for the AT, of course). By the time I'd clocked enough kms in my present car, the reliability of the DSG will also be proved.

Thanks Mobike for the crisp review.
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Old 26th April 2013, 02:22   #53
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Re: Volkswagen Polo 1.2L GT TSI : Official Review

Quote:
Originally Posted by mobike008 View Post
Iam not sure why everyone is rueing over the non-availbility instead of getting excited about the DSG box which is a surprise offering in this segment
I think the heartburn is over the expected high price & shaky history. Right now its a good second car for a E-class owner who is used to Petrol A/T only!

How hard is it to offer M/T and optional A/T ? Give power to the people (of choice)
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Old 26th April 2013, 02:30   #54
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Re: Volkswagen Polo 1.2L GT TSI : Official Review

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Originally Posted by tbppjpr View Post
I don't know which steering this TSI version has but other versions of the Polo have electric power steering but VW calls it speed sensitive steering. Steering remains light at parking but t weighs up very nicely. It stays connected and provides decent feedback considering its EPS, though it will feel lighter compared to HPS units. Most important part I love about Polo's steering is I found it one of the most accurate steering amongst all the cars I have driven so far in different segments. It doesn't feel scary at any speed.
Sorry, but have to disagree, big time. Polo's steering is decent, but nowhere close to being described as the 'most accurate in different segments'.

Begs the question - which all cars are you comparing here?

For cars coming in the same segment as Polo/Vento platform - please drive a Punto/ Linea to understand what steering feel and feedback is all about. If you only want to consider EPS units - you can also head to the Ford showroom to drive the new Fiesta, to see whats possible with EPS units.

From this review -
Quote:
Originally Posted by mobike008 View Post
The steering is a zero effort unit really. Problem is, when cruising at a 100 kph, I found the steering lighter than I’d have liked. The PS is fairly accurate, but don't expect any feedback. You’ll never know what the front tyres are up to.
From Polo review -
Quote:
On the other hand, the electric power steering spoils the enthusiast' recipe. It’s super light at 0 kph parking speeds, and stays light all through city speeds. The steering is a zero effort unit really. Problem is, when cruising at a 100 kph, I found the steering lighter than I’d have wished for. The PS is fairly accurate, but don't expect any feedback. You’ll never know what the front tyres are up to. The Punto’s pure-hydraulic “nirvana” steering remains the benchmark amongst hatchbacks. The mass market, however, disagrees with me. They prefer these super-light EPS units. Doubts? Just ask Maruti!
From Rapid review -
Quote:
The steering is an electric unit, so is devoid of feedback, yet it weighs up well on the diesel. The steering does not feel overly light at highway speeds. That said, it doesn’t match a pure hydraulic steering for feedback and weight.
From Vento review -
Quote:
The PS is fairly accurate, but don't expect any feedback. You’ll never know what the front tyres are up to. Also, one can feel some artificial centering action. If only the Vento was equipped with a proper hydraulic steering unit.
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Old 26th April 2013, 02:31   #55
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Re: Volkswagen Polo 1.2L GT TSI : Official Review

Crisp review Avi!

The Polo GT TSI is one of those cars I'd gladly plonk my money on. It's just right for someone like me. Although I would have preferred a proper manual transmission, the DSG 'box should do just fine.

The 3-potters simply didn't do the chassis any justice. And now with the more powerful and torquey TSI lump, one can explore the prospects of unlocking and exploiting the tuning potential that the engine has to offer.

Now that VW has taken it up a notch, we can expect the Vento and Rapid twins to be powered by the 1.4 TSI mill. Doing this may push the price up even further, but it will also give VW the chance to explore the possibility of introducing an entry level hatch below the Polo, perhaps sometime in the future. It's a segment that a car manufacturer cannot afford to overlook in a booming market like ours.
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Old 26th April 2013, 06:25   #56
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Re: Volkswagen Polo 1.2L GT TSI : Official Review

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Originally Posted by mobike008 View Post
The VW Polo GT TSI will be launched in India on 29th April, 2013.
Nice review there! Did you get any info on what color options will be available? As per some sources, it is going to be limited to Red, White and Black.

Shadow Blue
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Old 26th April 2013, 07:44   #57
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Re: Volkswagen Polo 1.2L GT TSI : Official Review

Good Review Avi!

Lovely shots of the car and it looks beautiful in Black. Keeping the looks of the car simple and having a ferocious engine underneath will do the trick

Alloys do look good on the car. Is there a need to up-size the tyres or the stock 185 sections are ok to handle?

Hope VW gets a 1.6 TDI in the polo then it will be a car to drive with a little peace to the pocket.

VW now has to concentrate more on adding its dealers and service centres with good quality workmen to gain more of market share so that we can see more performance oriented cars.

Rated 5-stars for the review.

Cheers,
Anurag.
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Old 26th April 2013, 08:09   #58
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Re: Volkswagen Polo 1.2L GT TSI : Official Review

Thanks for sharing a very good review mobike008.

Nice move VW! Looks like Polo finally got an engine it deserves.

I am very happy that finally we got a turbocharged petrol hatchback. May the tribe increase! A MT mated to this wonderful engine would have been a great option to have. Love the new fabric upholstery seats. Do you have any pictures showing the leatherette back and the rear seats? Only if VW could exchange those beige bits on the door pad with that lovely grey shade on the seat. All black interiors would have been lovely! I like the minimalistic exterior. Just need a DIY debadging all around.

Also, very eager to find out how the 1.2TSI sounds during idle and while revving/ accelerating. A video will be mighty helpful.

Any idea on the warranty available on this baby TSI DSG, standard and extended?
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Old 26th April 2013, 08:19   #59
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Re: Volkswagen Polo 1.2L GT TSI : Official Review

Quote:
Originally Posted by Guna View Post
ACI reports 11.34sec for the 0-100 kmph. If you use the manual mode, it can hold to the revs.
Seems to contradict what has been posted in the review.

Manual mode can't hold on to the revs, but it will upshift closer to the redlines, and downshift when it detects knocking - even if user has chosen the manual shifts.
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Old 26th April 2013, 08:29   #60
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Re: Volkswagen Polo 1.2L GT TSI : Official Review

Superb review mobike.. choosing the Black colour for a test was quite sensible for a TSI

The specs table if have also included the regular Polo variant info, just to make difference what TSI is offering, would have been a quick reference

I liked the fact that VW introduced the ESC alongwith the engine elevate', for where there comes Power control should be taken care of.
To understand what safety means by adding a ESC, here's some details:
-Steering wheel angle sensor: determines the driver's intended rotation; i.e. where the driver wants to steer. This kind of sensor is often based on AMR-elements.
-Yaw rate sensor : measures the rotation rate of the car; i.e. how much the car is actually turning. The data from the yaw sensor is compared with the data from the steering wheel angle sensor to determine regulating action.
-Lateral acceleration sensor: often an accelerometer
-Wheel speed sensor : measures the wheel speed.
-Longitudinal acceleration sensor: similar to the lateral acceleration sensor in design but can offer additional information about road pitch and also provide another source of vehicle acceleration and speed.
-Roll rate sensor: similar to the yaw rate sensor in design but improves the fidelity of the controller's vehicle model and correct for errors when estimating vehicle behavior from the other sensors alone

I would have loved to see something distinct on this variant that would have set apart a TSI from at least from some ten yards; I suggest different rear lighting like on the Jetta would have been a good choice (excluding its effect on pricing)

Did you feel any lurch when accelarating calmly from rest ? It has been noticed in the former DQ200, apart from other issues (considering this DQ200 with some upgrades, atleast in the program :-)

Also, DSG needs more frequent lubrication, with additives. This can be a possible reason to expect some quicker oil changes, maintenance wise - a guess though !!

Keep Rocking TeamBHP !!!
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