We drove the new Polo at its South African launch in January and were immediately impressed. Spending more time with the turbodiesel model has reaffirmed our first opinions and then some.

Interior
The new Polo has grown up in every respect and the interior in particular now feels more like a smaller Golf than a ‘lesser’ model. A very well screwed together cabin features a soft touch dashboard, leather covered steering wheel, a decent sound system, plenty of storage areas – including a tray beneath each front seat – and, for the small car segment it competes in, a definite premium feel about it. The seats are sportier than one may expect, which we prefer, but the backrest trim changes from cloth to leather a little too low down and subsequently creates the sensation of your shirt being bunched up – something we never really got used to. A comfortable driving position is easily achieved with a height and reach adjustable steering wheel, as well as a drivers seat that’s adjustable in a similar fashion. Being a compact car, there’s not much space to be found behind the front seats, but rear passengers didn’t complain and were comfortable during their journey. The 280-litre boot offers a useful amount of space, which can be expanded to 952-litres with the rear seats folded flat.

On the safety front, the Polo has been awarded a 5-Star EuroNCAP rating thanks to a comprehensive range of equipment, which includes driver and front passenger airbags; 3-point safety belts in rear as well as 3 head restraints; ABS with brake assist; ISOFIX-compatible child seat preparation in the rear; head airbags including side curtain airbags in front; as well as ESP as standard on the TDI model. The Polo’s interior has an excellent feel to it and the instruments, controls and storage areas are all easy to use and in the right place. We would have liked an armrest between the front seats but apart from this the Polo proved a comfortable car with all the equipment we’d expect. If we had to find fault, we’d say the interior design is conservative when you consider the younger target audience the Polo is aimed at.

Exterior
A similar argument could be said for the exterior design of the new Polo too. There is no doubt the latest Polo has taken on a more grown up and conservative look, but it still has its place in a world of more funky Fiestas and Corsas. The Polo began on the sketch pad of VW Head-Of-Design, Walter de Silva. With its distinctive new Volkswagen family face – inherited from Scirocco and Golf, the new Polo has been instilled with a purposeful new stance and appearance. The front of the new Polo is defined by body-coloured bumpers beneath the black grille underlined by a large air inlet that supplies the engine and brakes with ample air and includes daytime running lights and fog lights with integrated turn indicators. The Polo measures 3 970 mm in length (54 mm larger than the previous model) and is 1 682 mm wide (32 mm wider). Just as on the new Golf, the Polo’s tailgate is opened with the VW logo, which swivels up and functions as a handle.

The Drive
It’s a solidly built car. The doors close with a positive thunk and despite its small size compared to other cars on the road, the Polo feels reassuringly solid and more substantial than its size may suggest. The well balanced chassis follows steering inputs accurately, which means you can corner with enthusiasm if desired and the car feels planted on the road. The steering has a good feel about it – being well weighted and adjusting in a linear manner to the car’s speed. The 5-speed gearbox, yes 5- not 6-speed, is easy to get on with and is combined with a light clutch action. However, it could do with a 6th ratio for a better spread, as we found 1st a bit too tall in traffic.The new Polo offers a refined ride, with low interior wind and road noise disturbed only by the clatter of the diesel engine at low speeds.

Performance
The 77 kW 1,6-litre turbodiesel engine in the new Polo TDI is a real gem. It’s not blisteringly quick, powering the TDI Polo from rest to 100 km/h in an acceptable 10.4 seconds, but is supremely economical. We took the Polo away for a long weekend and battled rush-hour traffic both out of town and on the way home, travelled with a decent amount of luggage and had the aircon working full-time, only to discover the Polo had managed an average of just 5.7 l/100km on the 350 km round trip. We haven’t calculated how far you’d have to travel before being able to justify the price premium of the diesel over that of the petrol 1.6, but for a purely eco-friendly feel-good factor, the Polo states a strong case. The TDI engine produces peak torque of 250 N.m between 1 500 – 2 500 rpm, but requires a solid prod from the right foot to get going off the line. Once on the open road the TDI cruises well and maintained 5th gear for most of our journey. There’s a small amount of turbo lag when burying your foot to overtake, but it was never a problem and didn’t feature under any other circumstances.

What we like…

• Excellent fuel economy.
• Solid build quality throughout the car.

What we would like…

• Front centre-armrest.
• Anti-dazzle rearview mirror as standard.
• Better backrests in the front – leather meets cloth behind your shoulder-blades and feels uncomfortable.

A VW ‘AutoMotion Maintenance Plan’ and a 5 year/60 000 km ‘AutoMotion Service Plan’ are also available at R10 002 and R7 502 respectively.