[ajmat]

Frankly, give it pep and a lower clutch and it will be a winner

Great report R&R!

[Vid6639]

GTO, Although you mentioned that the Polo 1.2L petrol is a good engine. You did not mention how good it is compared to the Figo's 1.2L. I went back and read the Figo review and noticed that you had the same feedback from Figo petrol as well. It's almost the same going by your Figo review.

PS: Excellent review. Great job to both of you.

[suman]

So the most eagerly awaited event (other than the Union Budget 2010) has taken place - the Polo TD!

Great review guys, thanks! Sounds like the Figo has won the war AFA the diesel segment is concerned.

[androdev]

i was hoping VW would offer something that will appeal to the jazz, fabia, i20 buyers. they did a "punto". take a fantastic looking car and stuff it with cheap plastics. i was really hoping to see a VW fabia with quality plastics, projector lamps, sun roof, etc. lot of people go to showroom, open the car door, and make up their mind. also i can never buy a car without a dead pedal next to the clutch.

[gomzi]

Originally Posted by GTO

Worthy point there, ITNerd. I see a lot of 1.6 Polos going for this swap

Maybe they should provide them stock on the 1.6. Afterall it will be a car for the enthusiasts.

Just as Ford did with the 28-dealers-in-24-hours perhaps? Me too. Ford played out a brilliant marketing move there, didn't they.

Yes, I did expect something like that, although not as spectacular as what Ford did. I feel VW missed a trick here by not getting this aspect in place before launch.

Big problem, where do people go even for TD's and a casual dekho at the car? Even in Mumbai, the closest dealer is quite far away from me.

[MuraliR]

High center tunnel, lack of space in the rear when compared to Figo or Vista.
Good ride quality yes, but does it really make a good family car? Doubtful.

[zaks]

Perhaps they are expecting their pricing to compensate for all these shortcomings.

[sidindica]

GTO and Rehaan, Balanced, avant garde review, as always.

I did not find any USP of this product, just maybe ride and handling and gearshift? But diesel is pretty overpriced and the punto now sounds even more VFM with its all round combination of price to features to engine specs ratio, the top end E-pack is even cheaper than the rental car equipped highline.

I had very high expectations from TDi because I regularly see old golfs of mid 80s still roaming around Delhi streets with their reliable robust diesel engines. But the review only describes the motor as just about average, and noisy despite being a modern CRDi unit.

I may be called an idiot to predict that punto sales may rise after this so called mediocre product from VW, but I hope this is true. Its engine is proven and reliable, while VW faces an uphill task.

Good Luck VW.

BTW, GTO what is your personal choice between the Punto MJD E-pack, I 20 CRDi and Polo highline?

[CliffHanger]

The 3pot engines are known to get very loud in the long run. So prospective buyers might have to wait to look at how the engine performs over a period. The interiors appear very bland and lacks a classy feel.

Only the VW badge might do the favor for this car for its sales in India,

[-NUT-case]

I wish VW would do a market study, take the feedback they get for the POLO, act on it to set right all the faults of the POLO and come up with a better POLO sedan.
Even if the sedan is priced at a slight premium but with better interiors and more powerful engine options i feel there is a market for it.
I dont see a lot of people buying the POLO just for its "European" quality body panles and good looks alone.

The diesel is out of the race before it has begun and in the case of the petrol, well the K-series from Maruti seems better. In case of ride quality and handling, the FIGO is a very good competitor to the POLO at a lesser price point.

[cyqed]

Do you think there is going to be a 1.6 Petrol Hatchback? I heard they would be substituting 1.6 Hatch with a Sedan? Will anyone be able to validate the same?

[rajivn]

POLO

Originally Posted by GTO

What you'll like:
• A well-built solid European hatchback
• Clean and contemporary styling. Absolutely no quirkiness
• "Big car like" ride quality. Suspension setup ideal for Indian roads
• Neutral handling & mature road behaviour
• Fuel efficient range of engines
• 280 liter boot. Figo-like & substantially larger than direct competition
• Short-throw slick gearshift (petrol especially). Amongst the best in India

FIGO

Originally Posted by GTO

What you'll like:

• Robust build and construction
• Interiors more comfortable than chief competitors i10 & Swift
• 1.4 Diesel's proven driveability and fuel efficiency. No turbolag
• Mature big-car-like ride quality
• Ford's DNA in the on-road behaviour and quick steering
• Class-topping 284 liter boot space

- More or less the same points and Figo is lot cheaper

PS: Kudos to you guys for the fantastic review as usual.
Hows the Audio System in Polo ? Got to play with it ?

[kiku007]

Excellent review there, GTO and Rehaan. I'm eagerly waiting for your reviews like a new film

Reading through the review I was felling like the stock market graph. One moment, it's WOW for the Build Quality, subtle design (I'm a fan), thoughtful features (Glove box design, bag hooks etc.) and at times a GRRR for the cost cutting (No Electric ORVMS, door locks).

Am I correct to say that for the common man (Read non-enthusiast) the 1.2 K Series engined Marutis offer 95% of what he wants in a small car? Primarily-Low cost of Ownership (Buying, Fuel expenses and maintenance-Regular and accident repairs).

[mkh]

Good reviews, very detailed. Nice to see that giving a TD car to TBHP has become a standard practice for all new launches.
A few common points emerged from all previous td reports- as i summarized in the other thread that carwale,overdrive all have mentioned that petrol is fun to drive and the highlights are build quality and drive. This means those who are looking to buy a solid hatch with high quality build will surely find reasons to stop at VW showrooms.
Someone even said that at 150KM/HR its as good as a merc! GTO- did you see any such thing to elicit such a high degree of praise on the ride quality? it would have been great if you could take pics with 2 people seated at the back, will give an idea on rear seat space.
GTO:Another suggestion on reviews
Can you have the summary of the points on which the car is evaluated, something like we see on all other reviews
EX: Interior Space: 4 on 5
Engine Performance : 4 on 5
Drive Quality : 5 on 5 etc so that one can compare your views on all cars better?
I feel that way it will help much more people to decide and get max value of the reviews as more and more cars are getting launched.

Overall its clearly the urban commuter in urban to metro locales that i see this succeeding for now, which anyways cant be fixed till dealer networks are enhanced.
IMO-Its a fight between Figo,Punto, Polo and i20 now. Jazz and Fabia maybe on the way out very soon.
Figo wins in diesel, Polo in Petrol amongst the new launches. Maybe if FIAT can spruce up the interiors they can compete much better, always the what IFs!
Any idea on whats the sales target the VW has set for Polo on a monthly basis. I guess and its a guess only that between 2000 to 2500 per month should be a decent sales figures to eventually settle for.(could be completely off the mark here)

[Ricky_63]

The 1.6L engine should take care of the enthusiasts among us. The only down side to the car (for me) is the sitting down in the car, rather than walking into it, people such as myself with slipped discs would be disappointed..



Cheers