Review of the owner of a Volkswagen Polo liftback 1.6 on the mechanics

We summarize the reviews of owners of Polo on the mechanics

Cars of the brand Volkswagen are traditionally associated with German quality. But not so long ago, the assembly of several models started in Russia, and among them VW Polo 1,6 with a manual transmission in the liftback body. What do the owners of such cars think? We have collected their reviews for you.

Alexander, Krasnoyarsk, 1 month experience.

Having rolled on the new car 3 000 km already can sum up some results. First of all, the Germans are up to the mark in ergonomics, all the necessary things are always at hand, it is pleasant to drive. The seats are without adjustable lumbar support, but very comfortable, you do not get tired on long trips.

In practice, the liftback body turned out to be quite convenient in terms of access to the huge trunk. To fill it up to the top and something did not fit – until now, such a situation has not happened. The light is excellent, the eyes do not get tired at night. Oil level is kept at the same level.

With the audio system, it lives its life, periodically changing the volume of the sound on its own. I searched all the settings – to no avail. Specialists say you need to re-flash it when the update comes out.

Lacquered surfaces get dirty instantly, why such a mark in the interior?

Overall, the car is happy with the car, annoying little things annoying, but not really.

• spacious interior;
• huge trunk with easy access;
• comfortable seats;
• excellent headlight.

• lacquered surfaces in the cabin;
• multimedia glitches;
• inconvenient switching on and lack of automatic shutoff of heated mirrors.

Dmitry, Armavir, operating experience of 3 months.

Before that I drove the same Volkswagen Polo, but sedan. Therefore, the first comparison is with it. The suspension is a little bit stiffer and heavier, from here there is less swaying and the road bumps are smoother.

The influence of asrodynamic stream from oncoming cars became notably less, it does not throw to the roadside so much. Though the engine is the same, 1,6L and 110PS, it seemed sharper by sensation. Whether the settings are different or just new.

The noise and vibration isolation has become a little bit better, but the most of all I was pleased with the head light on diodes. It is a delight after halogens! True, it is not clear where they have put the fog lights (according to the manual – integrated into the headlight).

On the highway, the car is quite economical, about 6 liters/100 km, at a speed of 110-115 km / h.

On the mileage of 1,000 km the need for modifications became apparent. Because of the large pattern of the grille I decided to put a grid to protect the radiator and put the wind deflectors on the front doors, because they are heavily splashed with mud in the rain.

Another improvement – sagging handbrake cables, a sore of all Polos. Replaced one spring with a clamp and moved the other.

With the onset of cold weather I had to change the wipers, they did not clean properly in cold weather. Solved the problem by installing non-original winter ones.

• economy;
• LED lighting;
• drivability;
• noise isolation.

• Sagging handbrake cables;
• inappropriate for winter wipers;
• Underdeveloped aerodynamics in the mirrors.

Denis, Moscow, use experience of 2 weeks.

I chose the car by the criteria of price, convenience and practicality. For a number of reasons, my competitors gradually fell away and Polo was left.

I liked the car on the move, the suspension is resilient, but too noticeably works out all sorts of little things. Turns well, reliably. Gears 1 and 2 of the mechanics are a little short, after them 3 seems a little sluggish. But it is on the running-in period yet.

For its price segment the car is quite comfortable, after a long way you don’t feel tired. Fuel consumption is good: 5,5-6,5 on the highway, 7,5-8,5 in the city. Very good.

• Ergonomics; everything is budget, but right;
• good handling;
• good noise isolation;
• Decent sound of the audio system, at the same time and the speakerphone works well;
• good headlights;
• intermittent mode wipers;
• The information display on the screen on-board computer, simple and understandable;
• good organization of the lighting in the cabin;
• really big trunk;
• pockets in the doors;
• factory tinting with a green tint;
• roomy glove compartment with illumination.

Seven years and 350 rubles a month. A Minsk man bought a VW Polo Sedan on credit and has no regrets

VW Polo Sedan is a classic of the budget segment: the model was kept in assembly line for over 10 years, almost unchanged externally and underwent little metamorphosis internally. Therefore the market launch of the new car, belonging to a mass segment, is a big event. Moreover, the question is not only about restyling, which has affected optics, plastic dodger and some elements of an interior.

The most important – from a sedan Volkswagen bestseller became a liftback, having kept the former “bogie” PQ25. Today’s hero Dmitriy was one of the first who has purchased the novelty from the dealer and is ready to share his personal impressions (considering that he also drove the previous generation Polikas and he has something to compare with).

The third time behind the wheel of “Polo”.

Recall the official presentation of the new Volkswagen Polo took place in Minsk on July 14. The new car is built on the same A05 platform (aka PQ25) as all previous versions produced since 2009. In fact, the Polo turned out to be a modified Skoda Rapid, which had been updated a little earlier. Like the pre-reform models, the current Polo and Rapid are produced at the plant in Kaluga.

– Before that I drove two Volkswagen Polo, which were bought new in the showroom, – says the man. – The first was equipped with a 1.6-liter MPI atmospheric engine paired with a manual transmission. When the mileage was approaching 120,000 kilometers, I gave up the two-year-old sedan in the trade-in and moved to another Polo, but with a 1.4 TSI and a manual. I also exchanged it for a new one in the same credit scheme at 115,000 km. In both cases I did not want to get out of warranty (3 years or 100 000 km), especially after it the car began to lose significantly in price.

It so happened that the current liftback is the third Polo in Dmitry’s hands. Where did such affection come from?

– The turning point happened in 2016. I had a 1996 all-wheel-drive Audi A4, but it started to fall apart – it cost $250-300 a month to repair! Then I made the decision to buy a new car on credit, albeit a budget class one. At that time I considered the Kia Rio, Hyundai Solaris, Skoda Rapid and Volkswagen Polo. We stopped at the last option. Why? It just appealed to us more than others. And in the spring of 2020, I was already choosing between the updated Rapid and the Polo, which was shown in July.

The thing is, I was planning to trade-in my 2018 sedan, and the Volkswagen dealer priced it more expensive than the guys at Skoda by $650 ($8,450). Plus they gave me a 500-ruble discount for being the third time I bought a car from them. So we waited for the official sales in July and bought a liftback, which arrived in Belarus on the first car carrier. We arranged a credit on loyal conditions: for 7 years at 13.5% per annum, with monthly installments of 350 rubles.

Engines and transmissions are the same, optional equipment also with minimal differences. In Belarus the liftback is offered in four configurations: Origin, Respect, Status and Exclusive. Our interlocutor has given preference to a sample in predmaximal version, which boasts a 1.4-liter TSI in combination with a 7-speed DSG.

In the “base” includes leather multirule with heating, climate control, cruise control, a media system with a 6.5-inch display, 15-inch alloy wheels, cabin mirrors with auto-dimming, central armrest on the back, plus cars with a turbo motor have rear disc brakes.

First impressions: pros and cons

For slightly more than a month Dmitry has driven 6 600 km and managed to make his own opinion about the novelty.

– First of all, a fresh liftback with a massive chrome grille looks more aggressive, especially like the rear view (due to shifted down the license plate and the rear lights with LEDs). Very cool that in the headlights Volkswagen (depending on the configuration) now use either LEDs with reflectors, or IQ-Light with lenses.

We are pleased with the luggage compartment: in the sedan its volume was 460 liters, the liftback it grew to 550 liters, so put the suitcases, bags and boxes here is not an example more convenient. By the way, in 2016 I wanted to take Skoda Rapid just because of the size of the trunk. And in the sedan, the button that opens the trunk lock was traditionally located (in the recess above the license plate).

To open the trunk in the liftback, you need to press the top edge of the round logo emblem. In addition, in a more expensive version, a rearview camera is installed behind it.

The man uses the Rollo not only as a family car, but also as a “workhorse”. The owner of a new liftback regularly goes on business trips, so he covers 200-400 km a day. And it means, that the questions of ergonomics and comfort play not the last role.

– Initially I considered the richest options, but I did not want to overpay 6.5 thousand rubles for a digital dashboard (Active Info Display is available in maximum version), large screen multimedia, Start-Stop function, camera, and chrome moldings on the body. The only thing, I have ordered additional shock absorbers for a hood and heated steering wheel (Polo has finally got this useful and pleasant option in our conditions). The novelty pleases first of all in details. It is very cool that there is a light in back of the cabin, and also there is a pocket for glasses, large glove compartment, many cup holders and a socket in the luggage compartment.

The media display is moved up from the center console and is now in the form of a separate tablet, with touch buttons for main functions on the edges. Apparently, located vertically the screen will be less glare in the sun than the slanted forward display of the previous version of the car. The multimedia device is unified with the Rapid, supports Carplay and Android Auto. However, it does not have its own navigation system, but offers two Type-C format slots.

– They could have made at least one simple USB output. It has surprised, that there are no speakers even in lowsmaximum configuration (though there are electrics there). There is no button on a steering wheel to answer a call – it is also a minus. But in comparison with the last Polo the seats are very comfortable – probably, they have finished lateral support. One more pleasant detail – there is a mat on a tunnel behind between rear passengers. Plastic and quality of finishing materials remained the same, but in this respect I am satisfied.

The car drives fast, but DSG has a long “thinking” time.

The technical equipment of the car and its road behavior has not changed.

– The engine here is the same as in the previous VW Polo – turbo four 1,4 TSI with 125 hp. On the first sedan with 1.6 MPI highway overtaking was difficult, but here I just pressed the gas pedal and drove off. Prior to that all my cars had manual, but I got used to the “robot” in a few days. The only slight “thoughtfulness” of the gearbox is that when you fully press the gas to accelerate quickly, DSG “thinks” about 2-3 seconds and then shifts down. I would not say that it is a disadvantage. Probably, it is the specification of work of the robotized transmission. As for the rest, I don’t have any complaints to the dynamics of acceleration.

After the first drives I’ve noted for myself that the new Polo has improved noise isolation and reconfigured the suspension: if the previous generation cars worked rather hard on “speed bumps”, from now on the car easily swallows the bumps even at 60 km/h. The consumption is also pleasant: it comes out about 6 liters in the mixed mode. For comparison: the previous Polo with a similar motor consumed 5.5 liters, and the sedan with 1.6 MPI – 6.2. Now I fill up with AI-98, but I want to try the 95th gasoline as well.

Dmitry plans to have the car serviced by an authorized service in order to keep the warranty, as before.

– I am glad that I have never come to the dealer for warranty issues before the first service. Although on my previous cars some little things were already showing up at this mileage. For example, on the first “Polo” the steering lug was replaced, also because of the strong vibrations the oil cap broke, and the steering wheel was pulling to the side and it appeared “oily”. On the second, there were electrical issues. During the whole time of ownership the stabilizer struts, CIA dust cap and ball joints were changed. In general, VW motors and boxes have proved to be reliable, therefore I have no fears that something will happen to a new liftback. In total its service at “official dealers” will be cheaper, than constant repairs of my Audi. The only thing, they say, that a life of a turbine is 150k km, so the service together with its repair will cost about $1,000.

– I didn’t want to mess with a “used” one as a matter of principle. A variant with trade-in and purchase of a new car justified itself. The liquidity in the market of the given model is not bad. And the worst thing is not so much the age as the mileage: I had driven 120 000 km on previous Polo for two years. If run had not exceeded 60k km, the car would be taken for 15% cheaper from the price of a new one, and so the loss has made 30-40%.

I would also note that the price tag for a Russian “budget car” is still quite high: I bought the car in this configuration for $16,500 (at the rate of NBRB). If the car were sold at least for $14-14,500, that would be another matter. But I have not found any candid weaknesses in this model, so I plan to drive it off warranty period and see what will be offered in the market. It is possible that VW Polo will be next: today this car satisfies me 100%.