[s4ch]

Originally Posted by fluidicjoy

I did upgrade to a better headunit, the Discover Media. Will share more information about it in my next thread.

Originally Posted by fluidicjoy

I’ll get to this light bulb, the Philips Ultinon Pro 9000 in good detail soon. Here's a quick teaser, before and after, Stock Halogen vs Ultinon Pro 9000's cutoff on our parking wall.

Excellent thread and very well documented.

Eager to know more about the new head unit - from the pictures it looks pretty similar to the standard one in the latest facelift? What are the differences?

Also the LED's, did you replace both H7's for the low and high beam, or just one? Did they fit ok? And how do they fare in the rains?

Thanks!

[jithin23]

Brillinat upgrade mods. Every mod is so functional that the cost feels justified for the utility it offers. Your thread is bookmarked already in my browser and if I happen to buy a VW, I'm going for all these mods straight away.

Congrats on getting the paddle shifters too. Those two buttons on the steering make a world of a difference while driving AT's enthusiastically. Enjoy your modded steed buddy

[Rajiv Krishnan]

Your mods are giving me so many ideas. I feel like I'm going to end up spending a lot of money because of you

The auto headlamp switch, stainless steel pedals and LED license plate lights are the ones that really caught my attention. They make the car look and feel much more premium at a relatively low price. However, since Aliexpress was banned, I don't know where to procure these items. I would appreciate it if you could tell me where you obtained these parts.

[TSI47]

Originally Posted by fluidicjoy

Pulling Issue
People often say numbers don’t lie, and I have to agree. I’ve driven quite a lot of 1.0 TSI Polos, both Manual and Automatic and me, and a few experts are convinced there’s a definite issue with the suspension on a few of these newer vehicles. There is something this vehicle which just makes it super road crown sensitive.

Hi fluidicjoy

Well I am also facing the same issue, have got the alignment done 3 times till now in last 8 months. Sometimes the steering feels alright and sometimes I cannot just understand the center. On some roads it goes left on some roads it goes right and alignment reports also don't show much deviation. I think this needs to be raised to VW.

[GautamJ]

Originally Posted by fluidicjoy

Thought I'd post a quick series of updates from my Polo since there’s been too many of them and I don’t want to lose track, so its best I start with something. I plan to write a few more detailed posts in rapid succession.

These are some crazy upgrades which I too wish to get done in my car someday.

P.S. Remember meeting you at The Mechanix Automotive, had come for RCD340 fitment in our Rapid.

[fluidicjoy]

Originally Posted by GautamJ

These are some crazy upgrades which I too wish to get done in my car someday.

P.S. Remember meeting you at The Mechanix Automotive, had come for RCD340 fitment in our Rapid.

Yes. It was a pleasure meeting you too. Most of these are nice, simple and functional upgrades, so do go ahead and get them.

Originally Posted by TSI47

Hi fluidicjoy

Well I am also facing the same issue, have got the alignment done 3 times till now in last 8 months. Sometimes the steering feels alright and sometimes I cannot just understand the center. On some roads it goes left on some roads it goes right and alignment reports also don't show much deviation. I think this needs to be raised to VW.

I've done quite some work trying to understand this issue. I have also been in touch with quite a few fellow owners to correlate this problem. Can you share a few of your wheel alignment reports? That is a good way to start. The issue we face is because of the camber and caster, which is non-adjustable for the most part, but can be mediated if there's absolute driving discomfort.

Originally Posted by Rajiv Krishnan

Your mods are giving me so many ideas. I feel like I'm going to end up spending a lot of money because of you

The auto headlamp switch, stainless steel pedals and LED license plate lights are the ones that really caught my attention. They make the car look and feel much more premium at a relatively low price. However, since Aliexpress was banned, I don't know where to procure these items. I would appreciate it if you could tell me where you obtained these parts.

I apologise in advance . I got the Auto Headlamp Switch and Stainless Steel pedals from China, while the LED License Plate lights were sourced from Ebay UK. I know a few folks here who continue to import these items. Do get in touch, I'll patch you with them.

Originally Posted by s4ch

Excellent thread and very well documented.

Eager to know more about the new head unit - from the pictures it looks pretty similar to the standard one in the latest facelift? What are the differences?

Also the LED's, did you replace both H7's for the low and high beam, or just one? Did they fit ok? And how do they fare in the rains?

Thanks!

Will post about the new Headunit in a day or two. I might not have updated the pictures to reflect the new Headunit just as yet. But yes, it feels quite similar to stock. No, I replaced only Low Beam H7 bulbs as a trial. I did not want to be stranded due to cool LEDs and so kept the High Beam stock as an emergency measure. Will share photos and videos about the Bulbs in the next update. However, I have another big lighting upgrade which needs a few fine tweaking before it is ready to be shared.

I switched to a Big Brake Kit and I've documented it here on a separate thread (Installing an OEM 288mm Big Brake Kit | VW Polo).

[johy]

Thank you for sharing your experience. Seems like a nice car to own.

I have been offered an older (2013) Polo TSI DSG with around 30K on the odo. Would you recommend going for it, considering that there have been issues with this gear box. How common are the issues (if you should know)?

[fluidicjoy]

The Genuine RCD340 Head-unit is a nice radio with native Android Auto and CarPlay support. The unit also supports Reverse Camera input and displays the OPS system. The touchscreen is responsive, and the UI is fairly simple to use. However this head-unit only relays Incoming Caller Info to the Maxidot Cluster, even when the Maxidot Cluster can do a lot more. BHPian Sarfraz and a few of my friends had already upgraded to better sounding head units like the Composition Media and most of them were really happy with the neater integration offered by these head-units and so I ended up selling my RCD340, and purchased a Discover Media MIB 2.



Key Features of Discover Media MIB 2 Head-Unit
Includes CD along with SD Card, USB and AUX Input

• External USB for Android Auto and CarPlay
• External Roof Mounted Microphone for Better Phone Calls
• Better integration with Maxidot Cluster - Navigation, Phone Log Book, Media Playback, Current Track etc.
• Support for Radio Station Logos
• Offline VW Navigation based on a Maps SD Card
• Support for OEM Amplifiers, Tweeters etc.
• Faster Processors
• Proximity Sensor based Menu Bars
• Off-Road Mode, Sports Lap Timer,
• Car Menu displaying Vehicle and Trip Info like MQB cars.
• Simultaneous display of OPS and Reverse Camera
• Support for Multiple Coloured and Themed Skins like VRS etc.

Radio Connector, Wiring
The connector on the RCD340 is a QUADLOCK Connector, but installing the MIB-2 requires a different quad lock. The USB and AUX port take a separate rectangle in the Quadlock. The microphone wire connects to the Blue Rectangle which has the Camera signal pins at 6 and 12.



If you plan on using a converter for the existing quad lock, there could be a space constraint behind the radio, but with a little adjustment, you can still manage to fit everything properly. The new microphone now sits in my Passat Style cabin light and is routed along the A-pillar, which is susceptible to breaking on removal.



On removing the A-pillars, I noticed how the A-pillars now had only two clips and plastic holders as opposed to three in the past.




Previous cars would also get an insulation inside these A-pillars and I managed to procure these two grey foam inserts for insulation from a scrap car. Volkswagen just doesn’t fail to amuse when it comes to its cost cutting skills.

I installed the USB port by enlarging the slot besides the indirect TPMS Set button (now defunct) and the wires were routed by removing the glovebox.




The USB and AUX port does the trick, but sadly, cannot be fitted as flush as the TPMS button. Now the Polo has a pseudo OEM Wireless CarPlay which my parents thoroughly love using. My dad jokingly said he wanted a wireless charger and a heating seat next.

OEM 6R Shark-fin Antenna
Next, I proceeded to install the OEM shark fin antenna with a provision for GPS. Frankly, this OEM shark fin antenna is not a perfect shark fin and combines the stock rod with a shark fin base.

However, the reception of this antenna is much stronger than before. It was picking up more GPS satellites as compared to a few other GPS antennas I tried with this head unit.

Removing the stock antenna requires removal of the rear-most headliner trim and the access could be slightly tight if you don't want to crease or wrinkle the headliner too much.



Using a 21mm wrench, I undid the bolt which holds the stock antenna base to the car’s roof and it’s a little tricky to undo without tugging and creasing the headliner too much.



Once this ring-bolt is loose, the antenna can easily be unscrewed and pulled out from the top. Don’t forget to disconnect the White Antenna connector before removing the old antenna out of the car.



This is what the stock base of the antenna looks like and this is where the rod screws in.



And here’s what the new one looks like and this is probably the only time it looks like a shark.



There are a few other VAG antennas which are smaller and don’t require using the old antenna rod but I thought I’d stick to OEM spec for now. This is a Genuine 6R platform Antenna and also has an aerial for what I believe is a phone aerial.

I cleaned the mating roof surface and dried it and then proceeded to connect all connectors before tightening the antenna back.



As usual, a water test was in order and the Antenna passed with flying colours.




Experience with the Discover Media
I’m not an audiophile but my first impression with the Head-unit was that the sound quality was about 20% better than RCD340, which frankly isn’t too great of an upgrade.



Probably better speakers is what this head-unit needs to feel right at home. I rarely listen to music at high volumes, but the stock speakers seem to cry beyond the 60% mark. This is not something which I had seen on the RCD340.

What really charmed me was how good this head-unit feels in this car. It has increased the functionality of the cluster by letting me make calls without taking my hands off the wheel, considering Google Assistant continues to have trouble with my friend’s names.



It really is nice to see how well the offline maps work with the cluster. The turn by turn GPS navigation is nice and seamless and this is something I wish VW had offered with our Diesel Tiguan as well.



The map data itself is obviously not as good as Google Maps, but it has been getting crazy good. The last time I used a VW map was two years ago but the one I downloaded a few weeks back from the Volkswagen site seemed to be fairly in tune to my city conditions for most major roads. So it seems like Volkswagen is trying to make their local maps data better. The maps can be downloaded from the Volkswagen Global website and need to simply be copied to an SD Card.

The navigation feature also brings in a nice compass on the cluster which indicates with a letter the direction I’m heading in. There also exists a dedicated page on the Cluster for this Compass.



There’s a funny story associated with this. I was driving around and found myself on a short signal and so kept my car in D. And I was shocked to see an N in the cluster. I panicked and thought my car had shifted to N while the selector was in D and I almost thought my Torque Converter had given up. It took me about a minute to realise I was staring at the Compass and not the gear selector.

It’s good to have some CD playback since my mother is still a fan of MP3s. For old time sake, I played a few of my older Kenny G CDs and they sound so good in an age of low-bit rate and buffering streaming services. Apple CarPlay access has been moved to the glovebox and now works wirelessly without any dangling wires over the gear-lever.



Another nice touch is the combined OPS and Reverse Camera view. When in reverse, I can see the entire camera screen and if there’s an object approaching, then the OPS unit overlays itself at the right time. This really is a boon and works like a charm.



The latest version of the Discover Media also has a few extra tricks like a Sports Lap Timer Mode, Car Menu which shows the Polo along with Trip Details, Distance to Empty, Fuel Efficiency etc. The image on display is actually a Polo with Bi-xenon headlights.



It also has a feature called Off-Road Mode which shows the Steering Angle Sensor value, compass and engine temperature in three distinct gauges. It’s nice to have the Steering Angle but for most experienced drivers, it’s not really too tough to tell when the wheel is straight, but this could be something useful if the Polo were to go off-road. So overall I'd say this is not so useful in the city. The Discover Media also comes with support for skins and the Red VRS skin looks amazing in the Polo, but I still prefer the old school sophistication of the stock skin.





Overall, I really like the Discover Media upgrade and it has added to the overall sophistication of my car. In fact, there's so many features and hidden features that every once in a while, I come to hear about something new to enable and try on this head-unit.

[fluidicjoy]

Even after installing OPS, the Automatic Polo TSI still has three blanks on the dashboard. Some of my enthusiastic friends have enough retrofits like Heated Seats, Automatic Gates that their dashboard is full and has no longer blank. In fact, they've gone a few steps ahead and switched to a 6C Dash Console button set.



My friend Nikhil gifted me a Skoda Rapid Card Holder for eliminating a blank on the Polo dashboard.



This card holder replaces one of the blanks and will only fit the left-most blank.



Replacing the blank with a card holder is ridiculously easy. Just use a plastic trim tool and create some leverage and the blank will make way for itself.

The new card holder just needs to be pushed in place.



This is how it holds a card or a parking ticket now.



The part number is 5J5 880 767 and is very reasonably priced.

[fluidicjoy]

When we just got the car, I had procured a cheap pair of aluminium pedal caps from Aliexpress for about Rs. 500. The rubber quality on both of those felt average but there was no trouble on that front at all. Meanwhile, I had found OEM Aluminium pedal caps in China, which were of a much better quality (priced 5x more) than the cheap ones I bought before, but the accelerator pedal was still seeming like a weak link.

During a heavy downpour a few weeks back, when my boots were fairly muddy and wet, I managed to yank the accelerator pedal cap off. That was when I realised that the accelerator pedal cap needed to be replaced.

I contacted the dealer and found out that the aluminium pedal cap on the GT TSI had a part number 6Y2-721-647 9B9 and placed an order for the same.



It took about 4 weeks but the part finally came in and its a perfect fit. The price is steep at about Rs. 1850 The rear rubber inserts also match the ones on the Automatic Pedal and lock much better than before.



The new pedal cap is Made in Spain and this is what the pedal set looks like now. Shame on Volkswagen for omitting this on possibly their last lot of GT TSI's in India.

[fluidicjoy]

The Highline variant of the PQ25 Polo and Polo Sedan were fortunate to come with an Auto-Dimming IRVM and this has been one of my favourite features in this car. It's sleek and works like a charm. No hassles of flipping the Day-Night IRVM toggle like I have to on our Grand i10.



However, I was fascinated by the frameless IRVM from the Passat and Tiguan which is even more sleeker and so I found a used one in excellent condition on Ebay UK for 40 GBP and ordered it. Taking out the old mirror is fairly simple and needed just a trim removal tool. It also helps to have some micro-fibre cloths ready since I ended up greasing the windshield with my oily fingers.



The plastic shroud on the windshield is neat and houses the mount for the Rain and Light Sensor. The upper neck like trim houses the wiring for the same. The bottom fat trim needs to be slightly pried and then it frees downwards along the windshield. Here's a look at the two plastic locks it has on each side.



After the bottom-most bulkiest trim is out, we can take the upper longer tube out.

Now, there's a metallic clamp, which turns and clasps onto the Rain and Light Sensor fitted to the windshield. Hold the aluminium part of the Stock Auto-Dimming IRVM firmly and rotate it to free the claws from the Rain and Light Sensor.



With respect to the picture, turning left helped me unscrew the mirror claws from the notches and get it out of the way. Take the connector out and install the new mirror in reverse order. Upon fitment, the mirror should be nice and tight and vibration free, just like it was before.





The new mirror is a lot sleeker than the stock mirror and definitely looks way premium. Here's a side view comparison of the two to see the difference in the mirror outline.





Here's a closeup comparison shot of the bezel.





It's actually a very subtle upgrade with the part number 3G0 857 511. There are actually a few more Auto-Dimming IRVM part numbers with support for Auto-Dimming of the ORVMs (Outside Mirrors) as well but I couldn't find a Polo spec, OEM ORVM to explore this option.

[shancz]

Brilliantly done and detailed
That nav screen looks fabulous.

VW should take a leaf and do the same, or launch the new Polo.

[debashishsen26]

Congratulations on executing the upgrades beautifully. I’ve been trying to find a proper write-up on the MIB2 HU for a while now. Also do the newer models come factory fitted with RLS or did you upgrade do those as well?

[shashank.nk]

Wonderful set of upgrades! I wonder if the frameless mirror is also used in more expensive cars like the Audis.

I'm looking to upgrade to a MIB2 unit and a OEM flip camera with dynamic guidelines and have read that the Composition Media/Discover Media is much better than the Technisat units that came OE fitted on the Jetta.

Can you please mention the source and price for the Discover media unit ?

[fluidicjoy]

Originally Posted by johy

Thank you for sharing your experience. Seems like a nice car to own.

I have been offered an older (2013) Polo TSI DSG with around 30K on the odo. Would you recommend going for it, considering that there have been issues with this gear box. How common are the issues (if you should know)?

It's really hard to isolate the DSG issue, but they are fairly common on the 1.2 TSI DSG. However, I haven't heard of any recent DSG failures from newer vehicles while older vehicles seemed to more prone. This has probably got to do with changes Volkswagen has been making to the gearbox mechatronics with time, e.g switching the gear-oil.

That being said, there are quite a few happy owners who have had a fuss-free and enjoyable DSG ownership. Today, the DSG failures (Multi-clutch, flywheel, mechatronic) are also fixable at a fair price outside of the dealership, but Volkswagen have been helping most folks with a genuine service history with good-will warranty and other DSG based repairs.

So if you like the car, you can actually consider it since its one of the best gearboxes to drive. I personally, don't mind the Torque converter for cruising but I'm not in love with it, even 6000kms later. The DSG though is commendably quick and I wish the 1.0 TSI was offered with it.

Originally Posted by debashishsen26

Congratulations on executing the upgrades beautifully. I’ve been trying to find a proper write-up on the MIB2 HU for a while now. Also do the newer models come factory fitted with RLS or did you upgrade do those as well?

Yes, the newer models do come with a Factory fitted Rain and Light Sensor. Thankfully, I did not have to upgrade that. But it can very well be done on other Polos which don't have it.

Originally Posted by shashank.nk

Wonderful set of upgrades! I wonder if the frameless mirror is also used in more expensive cars like the Audis.

I'm looking to upgrade to a MIB2 unit and a OEM flip camera with dynamic guidelines and have read that the Composition Media/Discover Media is much better than the Technisat units that came OE fitted on the Jetta.

Can you please mention the source and price for the Discover media unit ?

Yes, similar derivatives of the Frameless Mirror also feature on more premium Audis. Some might even have a Compass display in the mirror glass, and some even have support for Homelink (some connected garage door interfaces etc.)

The Composition Media and Discover Media MIB-2 is a nice upgrade for audiophiles. It sounds a lot better on the Jetta compared to the speaker setup on a Polo. If I remember correctly, this one is also made by Technisat, but I can't find a picture to confirm it. It is You can enquire about Composition Media/Discover Media from retrofit folks like German DNA, N2Autotech etc. who can be contacted from their Instagram pages.

These are mostly imported from Europe and have their component protection removed, but these have become quite rare. You can also find a few on Ebay, but they're priced exorbitantly and the ones priced lower are Component Protected (locked to another VIN and cannot be unlocked). I bought a relatively unit from a friend, and paid about 55k for it. Quadlock Harness, External Microphone, USB-Aux Powered Ports and GPS Antennas would be additional and should be about 10-12k together.



A few things I forgot to add about the Discover Media Head-Unit experience. The purple light on the button black bar is the light from the proximity sensors. Some newer models and newer revisions of this unit also come with an App Button instead of the Traffic Key on my unit to directly jump into AppConnect and use Android Auto and CarPlay. I miss this functionality, since now Android Auto is about three steps away from me. However, for folks using Apple CarPlay, this has not really a deal breaker.



The Discover Media Unit needs the Phone, and Navigation to be ticked in the Gateway Installation list for the Navigation and Phone to show up in the Instrument cluster, so these probably connect to the car as phantom modules.




While I do appreciate having new features like Offline Maps (for WHAT if my phone is dead scenarios), new menus and some new features on this unit, I still feel the novelty doesn't last all that long. In fact, you'll forget you have so many features since it's a fancy bonus, not a necessity. So it's like they're good to have, but not a must have. It's good to see the radio recognise the Polo. It's reinstates the fact that the Polo is still a pretty good looking car in 2021.



The only things which made a real difference for me is the External USB port (and Wireless CarPlay using a dongle), Media and Phone functionality from the cluster, CD Drive and a noticeable improvement in Sound Quality. This radio tempts me to consider an audio upgrade sometime in the near future.