[aneezan]

The 5 year itch began sometime in April this year, well before the 5 years were done. And mind you, the itch was strong. Several times (read -millions of times), over the past few years, we’ve had arguments, discussions, fights, analysis on why we had bought an Alto. And all the mazes led to only one answer – money. The decision on the Alto was more of a need than a want. So that was it.

But what joy it brought us. It has been with us through the initial part our married life and parenthood. It has seen my boy grow up to be 4. It has stood by us through an accident which we felt had almost brought our lives to an end. And yet, without any qualms, it goes on.



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Priorities:-
This year, we decided to put an end to the arguments. We needed a slightly bigger and more comfortable car. So, after having some further rounds of arguments and fights, we listed our priorities:-

Hatchback – We were not going to tow a lot of things, but yes a slightly bigger boot would be welcome.
Diesel – We will be hogging the highways more frequently.
Build/Safety – With our share of accidents, we didn’t compromise on this.
ABS+Airbags(2) – Mandatory
Comfort – Yes, at-least for front seats, which would be the ones occupied 90% of the time.
Suspension: Not too soft. Could wait for the test-drive
Money: Not above 8.5 Lakhs
Looks: Though not high on priority, also added up on marks

Options:-
With the above in mind and on paper, we started our test-drive spree.

Swift: The car looked stunning and the all black interiors made the car very inviting. The test-drive turned my verdict upside down. The suspension was crashing all-over the place. Loud clangs every time the car passes over a split on the fly-overs. I was simply waiting for it to end. We walked out disappointed.

Ritz: Though I personally liked it, my wife didn’t want to go anywhere near it(the looks?)

i20: The seats were low, just like the Alto, and had good support. The arm-rest on the Asta version was also adding up the points. The test-drive feedback was good. My wife also drove and liked the features that came with it. But the Asta model was no longer available – because of the newer model coming up?

Xcent: We also checked out the xcent, and drove it, but we were not looking for a sedan. And it had a 2 month waiting period.

Sail: Was interested primarily because of its big size and the space it offered. But open the doors and the all you see is monotony. There wasn't anything likeable about the interiors.

Ertiga: We also test-drove the Ertiga, just for the heck of it. I didn't like the fact that I was given a petrol to drive, when I requested a diesel. I liked the high seating and the space.

Polo: Sat and got comfortable in the car almost immediately.. It checked all the boxes that were needed for us. The test-drive was familiar to me since I had a person in the family who owns the same car. The lag in the 2nd gear is terrible. I have to work the gears and I always felt the car is more suited to the highways than the city. However, overall, we were happy with this car. We worked out the feature set between Comfortline and Highline and decided on the former.

So Polo it was. A candy white Polo TDi comfortline. The car already comes with ABS, 2 Airbags and other safety features.
Last month(June), they had a "freebie preferred package" for Comfortline which comes with the following features:-
- 15" alloy wheels
- Seat Covers
- Bluetooth
- Side door protectors
- Rubber Mats
We booked it immediately. Since it was through a company lease, would take a minimum of 10 days for the processing.

The cost split-up is as follows:-
Ex-showroom: 695,956 /-
RTO & Regn: 108,152 /-
Other Charges: 6,900 /-
Insurance(taken separately): 9,221 /-
Discount: -55,000 /-
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Total: 765,229 /-
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Delivery:-
I had fixed the date for Friday, 4th July 2014, 4:00 pm. I picked up my son and wife and we took an auto to the showroom. The car was already outside and the final touches being given. The ODO was at 34KM. The regular formalities were done and I was actually surprised by the over-courteousness of the staff. We were introduced to the Service In-Charge as well. I would rate the overall showroom experience at about 7 or 8 on a scale of 1-10.



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Initial overview:-
I have had the car for about 2 weeks now, over which, due to work and a sudden emergency at home, we’ve had to take it to Chennai and Nagercoil and back to Bangalore.
My feedback on the car and its various departments:-
Please remember that I am coming from an Alto, hence my comparison with that is inevitable.

Looks: I fell in love with the Polo ever since it was introduced. The clean lines and under-stated looks have always got second looks from me. The i20 seemed a little over worked on while The Swift: somewhere in the middle.

Engine: I accepted this before I had made up my mind. This is not the strongest point of the car. The car feels lethargic before the turbo is up. Moving about in dense traffic is tedious and the lag is annoying. Earlier on, where I could easily get the Alto over a speed-breaker in 2nd gear, the Polo struggles. My wife and I have stalled the car multiple times because of this.
Another issue I have to live with is the noise at lower gears. Its as-if I am sitting in a pick-up truck.
As the turbo spools up, things get better. I have driven 75% of the 2000 KM on the highway, and I am truly satisfied. When in the turbo zone, I usually don’t need to lower the gear to overtake. Highway cruising is very relaxed and it doesn’t feel that I am doing 100 KMPH or thereabout.

Quality: This definitely is one of the biggest pluses of the car. Everything inside and out seems perfectly made to fit. The black dash looks and feels great. The switches feel very sturdy and though not hard feel good to hold and use. The doors are very heavy, and close with a thud, which I like. One of my relatives(who owns a Scala) said his car’s doors felt very tinny when compared with this.

Steering: The steering seems a little smaller than the earlier Polo, but still feels and works perfect. I like that its not entirely round and has a flatter portion where the palms rest/hold(if you know what I mean). My wife gives the steering a big thumbs up. The Alto's steering starts vibrating once i cross 100km/hr. Nothing of that sort here.

Space and Comfort: I would like to divide this between the front and rear. The former is where I spend 90% of the time and the space/big car feel is comforting. In the Alto, I had to push the seat all the way to the back. I am happy that I don’t have to do the same here. The car is also wide with a feeling that my passengers are seated far away from me. No more shoulder nudges. The seats are also more comfortable, with a lot of under-thing support. There is extra support round the edges, so they feel snug.
Things shrink at the rear, but no one has really complained. I’ve had 3 people at the back, mostly in the height bracket of 5’2” to 5’7” and they were comfortable. I didn’t have to adjust the seat positions.

Air-conditioner: I’ve never needed to set the blower speed at 2 so far. Might be something to do with the weather, however, even during the highway runs, it’s always been at speed 1. The rear seat is also chilled within no time.

Gear Shift: As mentioned in all the reviews, this is very sweet. Every time I slot, it brings a feeling of contentment. The Alto’s shifts were very vague and long. The biggest flaw, however, in my opinion here is the clutch travel. In city conditions, it is a big pain. I have sometimes thought of keeping a small brick or piece of plastic to rest my foot on. Somehow, the initial sore feet have come to accept it.

Suspension, Ride quality, Handling: Not bumpy or bouncy as any of the Marutis and Hyundais which I compared with during the test drives. It is miles ahead of the Alto. My wife is frequently falling asleep on the rear seat now on the highways, something she never did on the Alto due to the harsh ride. I also felt more comfortable handling the corners at speed on the highway. The car felt much planted. The steering also adds to the fun. The car has been through very bad patches also at my native, and in my opinion, it feels better to run the car at a moderate speed than crawl through the craters.

And Lastly, Mileage: The first question everyone asks me, and one I always feel happy to answer. Within the city, the MID reading has ranged between 14 to 18 kilometers to the liter. This, is both in close bumper traffic and the smooth-flowing type.
On the highway, where I have spent maximum time, it has ranged from 20.5 to 24.8 kilometers to the liter. Driving sedately(not exceeding 90km/h) on the single carriageways between Bangalore to Chennai returned the highest value of 24.8. On the NH7, on a stretch of about 80km where I took things up a bit, it returned 19km to the liter. Please note that these are figures from the MID only.
Overall, I am very satisfied with the mileage. Not that I crave for over 20 figures on the MID, but still gives me a reassuring feeling that I didn’t buy a bank-breaker.


Things I like:-
- The quality, of-course
- That safe, reassuring feeling inside.
- The relaxed-cruising zone after the turbo is UP.
- A lot of cubby holes and storage. The additional cup-like-ashtray is very useful for storing notes and tickets.
- The very comfortable front seats, which hug around the edges. A variety of seating positions possible.
- Very powerful fogs(more than the headlights, I felt)
- All power windows with auto up and down feature. Excellent feature at tolls.
- Anti-pinch on all windows.
- That I can roll-up/down windows after I get out of the car
- The mileage
- Various MID details.

Things I don’t like:-
- The lag!
- Long clutch travel
- Noise at lower gears
- The tire noise.


Wishlist:-
- Nothing other than an arm-rest. I really felt the need for this during the highway journeys. A short pillow can also do duty


Some pictures taken here and there during the first two weeks of its journey. Please excuse the quality. These were taken with either a tab or mobile phone.






As I mentioned above, I have completed 2000 KM in about 16 days of which 1600 was covered in the last 1 week. That is far more than anything I thought I would be doing with this car in the first month.

Some stats on the journey yesterday between Nagercoil & Bangalore:-

ODO reading and average speed


Average Mileage:-


I am yet to get the preferred package(mentioned above) that is part of the deal, but I've already got an appointment with the dealer to have this sorted out this week. Better pictures to be posted once the accessories are added, including the interior pics.

These are very early days. I will continue to provide the thread with regular updates.

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the Initial Ownership Section. Thanks for sharing!

[ghodlur]

Aneezan,

Heartiest congratulations.

Was the Alto traded as a downpayment for the Polo.

Happy mile crunching and drive safely.

[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by aneezan

So Polo it was. A candy white Polo TDi comfortline.

Congratulations Aneezan on getting the Polo TDi CL

Been through your Alto thread and the updates, now it is time to subscribe to this thread too!

All the best and have a great ownership with this car.

PS: Looks beautiful in white and I love the placement of the LTD Sticker.

Anurag.

[Leoshashi]

Congrats for the Polo
Great choice of color, and thanks to the clean German lines, it looks simply stunning.


Was the Alto sold off??

[rejoycjohn]

Originally Posted by aneezan

The 5 year itch began sometime in April this year, well before the 5 years were done.

These are very early days. I will continue to provide the thread with regular updates.

I can completely relate to the first line, even I had the itch since Polo's launch.

Congratulation on the new purchase , honestly I have found Polo comfortline as the most value for money car in its segment. MID is indeed one of the best in its segment. Initially one would think why we need so much information in the instrument cluster, but trust me it grows on you. You try to check the FE figures in a city ride and try to improve your average speed when you out on a highway.

The 1.2 Diesel engine is something that many have thrown stones at, even though I wont pour praises on it, the engine definitely deserves more than stones. Drove a Fabia from Bangalore to Goa and honestly there isnt that much to complain about.

I like the new rear badge, its more simple and elegant than the one they tried previously.

Check your engine oil once in a while, VW TDi engines are known for gulping oil in the initial days.

[aneezan]

Originally Posted by a4anurag

Congratulations Aneezan on getting the Polo TDi CL

Been through your Alto thread and the updates, now it is time to subscribe to this thread too!

All the best and have a great ownership with this car.

PS: Looks beautiful in white and I love the placement of the LTD Sticker.

Anurag.

Thanks a lot Anurag. Your comments, as always, have been valuable. Will look forward to them in this thread as well

Originally Posted by Leoshashi

Congrats for the Polo
Great choice of color, and thanks to the clean German lines, it looks simply stunning.


Was the Alto sold off??

Thanks Leoshashi. I have always liked the Polo's looks.

Originally Posted by rejoycjohn

I can completely relate to the first line, even I had the itch since Polo's launch.

Congratulation on the new purchase , honestly I have found Polo comfortline as the most value for money car in its segment. MID is indeed one of the best in its segment. Initially one would think why we need so much information in the instrument cluster, but trust me it grows on you. You try to check the FE figures in a city ride and try to improve your average speed when you out on a highway.

The 1.2 Diesel engine is something that many have thrown stones at, even though I wont pour praises on it, the engine definitely deserves more than stones. Drove a Fabia from Bangalore to Goa and honestly there isnt that much to complain about.

I like the new rear badge, its more simple and elegant than the one they tried previously.

Check your engine oil once in a while, VW TDi engines are known for gulping oil in the initial days.

Thanks rejoycjohn. As I mentioned too, the engine isn't the best for city pottering, but i loved the highway drives. Will keep a tab on the oil levels.


The Alto hasn't been sold. It still is with us, and will continue to be at-least till the end of the year.

[abhinav.s]

Congrats on the new acquisition Aneezan! Polo has been one of my favorite cars in terms of its clean, understated looks. Timeless design. Since you bought the car this month, maybe a short wait of few months & you could have got the 1.5L Tdi with 90ps which will be standard across the range. Would have addressed the lag issue in city drives to a small extent and been a hoot on the highways. Good FE from the 1.5L mill is an added bonus too.

[aneezan]

Originally Posted by abhinav.s

Congrats on the new acquisition Aneezan! Polo has been one of my favorite cars in terms of its clean, understated looks. Timeless design. Since you bought the car this month, maybe a short wait of few months & you could have got the 1.5L Tdi with 90ps which will be standard across the range. Would have addressed the lag issue in city drives to a small extent and been a hoot on the highways. Good FE from the 1.5L mill is an added bonus too.

Hi abhinav,
Thanks and Yes, I would have wanted to wait, but I needed to get the car urgently, since my other car was to be given to my dad. The Polo fit the bill almost on all aspects.

[meetbadri]

Congrats aneezan on your new car. I have always been a big fan of this car because of it looks. Yes the lag on diesel version is a point to be worried about while driving in city, that too in Bangalore. Overall you are getting an average of 20 to 24 in highways that is great for a 1.5 Ltr engine. I have a Tall boy Ritz which also has a bit of Turbo Lag in 2nd shift but manageable on highways, but not on cities.

[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by meetbadri

Overall you are getting an average of 20 to 24 in highways that is great for a 1.5 Ltr engine.

Isn't it a 1.2L TDi engine that is in Aneezan's Polo? The 1.5L engine is for the newer model.

Am I right?

Anurag.

[Mahesh Prasad]

Congrats aneezan on your latest acquisition of the German beauty or the German Tank . Loved the initial review and waiting for updates and more pictures.

Originally Posted by aneezan

The 5 year itch began sometime in April this year, well before the 5 years were done.

Well, my 5 year itch too has begun and it's from the Swift towards the Polo. Be it safety, quality, looks and VFM factor, the polo ticks all the boxes. In my opinion one of the best options available on the price bracket and add to that the new facelift pictures and details which have me drooling all over.

Congrats once again and wishing you many more happy & safe miles of blissful motoring. As in T-BHP terms - Keep Revvin' !!

[arun_josie]

Congrats on your new car, aneez. Enjoy the ride and drive safe.
And, the FE numbers look great. How does it feel to drive a Polo after driving an Alto?
Nice number as well. By any chance its your year of birth?

[aneezan]

Originally Posted by meetbadri

Congrats aneezan on your new car. I have always been a big fan of this car because of it looks. Yes the lag on diesel version is a point to be worried about while driving in city, that too in Bangalore. Overall you are getting an average of 20 to 24 in highways that is great for a 1.5 Ltr engine. I have a Tall boy Ritz which also has a bit of Turbo Lag in 2nd shift but manageable on highways, but not on cities.

Thanks meetbadri. This is the 1.2l Diesel.
And yes, it impresses with the mileage. I am sure it can go past 25 to the liter as well.

Originally Posted by arun_josie

Congrats on your new car, aneez. Enjoy the ride and drive safe.
And, the FE numbers look great. How does it feel to drive a Polo after driving an Alto?
Nice number as well. By any chance its your year of birth?

Hey Arun ,
Thanks. Mileage over 20 is always a big plus.
The number was a pleasant surprise. I didn't expect it. Yes, its my year of birth.
There is a wealth of difference from the Alto, right from the big-car-feeling, the ride, the safe feeling, power, features etc. Its mostly positives.
But I still feel though that Alto is far more nimble in the city.

[revintup]

Originally Posted by aneezan

Last month(June), they had a "freebie preferred package" for Comfortline which comes with the following features:-
- 15" alloy wheels
- Seat Covers
- Bluetooth
- Side door protectors
- Rubber Mats

Where are the alloys and the side protectors? Or did you not get the car under this particular offer?

Oh yes, and congrats