Team-BHP - Volkswagen Polo : Test Drive & Review

Quote:

Originally Posted by blr (Post 3513026)

Hi Rana,

Any luck with your search? I am also looking to do the same, but I will get hold of my ride (TSi) only later this year. So, eagerly waiting to see the new exterior/interior colour choices for the TSi. My original booking was for the black exterior colour, but it appears it may be replaced by the new "Carbon Steel". Not sure what the interior combination would be for this. Most likely it is going to be the same black/beige combination even for the TSi. Having a beige interior on the so called "Carbon Steel" probably wouldn't make any sense, unless the exterior color is closer to black than to grey. I would prefer a black/grey interior colour scheme for this.

I am looking at the option of replacing at least the console/dash and the pillar trim beige pieces with the black ones from the non-TSi Polos. Hoping to source them through the local dealer. Would like to change the seats to leather; so, probably would clad the door trims in leather too. Not sure about the headliner though.

Please let me know if we can share our thoughts on this.

BTW, have to seen the new "Carbon Steel" on the Polo? How is it? trying to get hold of a high resolution pic without any external reflections, but no luck yet (I am not in India now).

Thanks!

pal,

sorry for the late reply. i guess you are in luck as the new gt tsi is reported by members to have an black grey interior. i'm trying to hunt around for places in delhi which can give me a quality paint job on the door panels and under dash.

cheers.

Test drove the new 90 BHP Polo with t-bhp members @nkrishnap and @crazy_driver.

Positives :-

Looks smashing from outside, the best looking hatch out there.
Nice understated interiors, nothing flashy.
Excellent ride quality.
We were four heavy people in the car, even with the AC on, the car pulled cleanly. The best part was, when I tried to see if it would pull from a standstill in second and it did, being an i20 diesel owner, I know how good that is.
The engine is refined and revvs cleanly. No diesel clatter.:thumbs up

Negatives :-

I found the dashboard a little too high to my liking.
The doors do not have the same heavy feeling as the old polo, the thud sound of the old polo is missing. We did a direct comparison with the old and new polo side by side, that was disappointing.
90BHP, 23kgm torque all fine, but where is the engine punch:Frustrati. , the engine is flat all through out, there is no punch at all. I revved it beyond 4k, there is no push in your seats feeling at all. The drive was very boring, I guess I will have to wait for the GT TDI to experience that.

Quote:

Originally Posted by rbp (Post 3526156)

Test drove the new 90 BHP Polo with t-bhp members @nkrishnap and @crazy_driver.

Positives :-

We were four heavy people in the car, even with the AC on, the car pulled cleanly. The best part was, when I tried to see if it would pull from a standstill in second and it did, being an i20 diesel owner, I know how good that is.

Negatives :

The doors do not have the same heavy feeling as the old polo, the thud sound of the old polo is missing. We did a direct comparison with the old and new polo side by side, that was disappointing.

90BHP, 23kgm torque all fine, but where is the engine punch:Frustrati. , the engine is flat all through out, there is no punch at all. I revved it beyond 4k, there is no push in your seats feeling at all. The drive was very boring, I guess I will have to wait for the GT TDI to experience that.

Yes rbp I agree with you on these Positives & Negatives that you have listed.

To be honest, I actually realized that the doors felt flimsy after reading your post!! :eek: During the TD of the new 1.5 TDi, I felt something did not add up and this was it.

The 'Urgency' of the GT TDI is completely absent on the 1.5 TDi. It feels almost as good when you start off from a standstill.

But at a RPM where the new 1.5 TDi is building speed slowly & steadily, GT TDI is pushing you to the seat and is flying towards the horizon !! clap:

I only hope VW do not dissapoint the folks waiting for the F/L GT TDI.

Question to the Gurus:

Q. We all know that New 2014 GT TDI will only have the 1.5 TDI engine tuned for 105 bhp. Can this alone produce the 'Rush Inducing' pull that the older 1.6 TDI engine gives ? Or will this be a more contained/civilized torque delivered ?

Quote:

Originally Posted by rana_kirti (Post 3526127)

Yea, you are right! And sorry to hear that you have to get it painted on your car. Would it be an option to exchange the panels with someone owning the lower end models (guess they also are all black) and wanting to 'upgrade' to beige? Also, have you thought of trying to get new panels from dealer and then selling off the existing ones?

Hope you will find the right solution to this. Please post the experience whichever way it goes.

Quote:

Originally Posted by blr (Post 3526620)

rana - this is what I'd advise. There would be many willing to swap their trim for your's especially those who are buying the base model of the current Polos.

Quote:

Originally Posted by blr (Post 3526620)

Quote:

Originally Posted by shefiu (Post 3526625)

rana - this is what I'd advise. There would be many willing to swap their trim for your's especially those who are buying the base model of the current Polos.

that's quite creative thinking. never crossed my mind.

1. I'm sure the front under dash on both sides can be removed as it must be secured with screws but...

2 .are you sure the beige part of the door panel is independent of the door and can be removed ?

3. I think I'll have to swap the a b c pillars also to grey otherwise I'll have black red in bottom and beige on the top.

what say guys ?

Quote:

Originally Posted by steve82 (Post 3526659)

I have bought an arm rest for polo from eBay. Hope it fits fine. Can anyone share a feedback on the same?

Quote:

Originally Posted by rbp (Post 3526156)

Test drove the new 90 BHP Polo with t-bhp members @nkrishnap and @crazy_driver.

I am shocked that VW seems to be trying to cut cost by introducing cheaper materials on doors.
Where is German engineering heading to? I am contemplating an upgrade to polo 1.5 from my current 1.2 p. The GTs are way beyond my budget.
Any members who have upgraded or planning to? How's the resale value for the polo?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Detroit-Dude (Post 3526766)

I am shocked that VW seems to be trying to cut cost by introducing cheaper materials on doors.
Where is German engineering heading to?

I think we may be taking some observation by some members a bit too far. The kerb weight for the 1.6 GT TDI was 1156 kgs and the same for 1.5 TDI is 1158 kgs (Highline). The dimensions are also practically the same. Now if the doors were to become lighter then it should have materially shown in weight reduction, should it not? But it hasn't.

Thus "doors do not have the same heavy feeling as the old polo," is more likely a feeling than reality. The thud is a matter of aural perception and unfortunately cannot be objectively measured.

Cheers,

Quote:

Originally Posted by rana_kirti (Post 3526692)

that's quite creative thinking. never crossed my mind.

Well, this is what I was planning to do if the new TSI was to have the beige interior.

Quote:

Originally Posted by rana_kirti (Post 3526692)

1. I'm sure the front under dash on both sides can be removed as it must be secured with screws but...

2 .are you sure the beige part of the door panel is independent of the door and can be removed ?

3. I think I'll have to swap the a b c pillars also to grey otherwise I'll have black red in bottom and beige on the top.

what say guys ?

Being a details freak, I would go ahead and explore the possibility of a complete swap of all trims (pillar trims, headliner, etc) first and then scaling back based on feasibility, budget, time needed, the other person's willingness to swap everything, etc. If not a complete swap, then you may have to think what would look nice as a combo. For example, if it is possible to easily sap the pillar trims, but not the headliner, then you have to think which combo would look nicer; beige pillars/beige headliner or grey pillars/beige headliner, etc.

Let's see how this progresses.

I bought the same one from naaptol. It is actually a universal arm rest.
It fits fine. Take it to any garage and ask them to screw it up to the hand brake area.
Ensure that you position it right with the hand brake fully up.

Pros- Very comfortable on drives. Enjoy my drive even more than before
Cons- Not very sturdy plastic. Ok for the price. Handle with care

Enjoy your ride!

Thanks. The garage guys are asking for 800rs as fitting charge. They said both the seats have to be removed to screw the arm rest which will take 4 hrs. Also, is it stable or a bit shaky?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Detroit-Dude (Post 3526755)

I am shocked that VW seems to be trying to cut cost by introducing cheaper materials on doors.
Where is German engineering heading to?

I had recently checked a GT TSI, was blown away by it's sturdiness. The new polo definitely feel lighter. I hope this was done keeping performance in mind. Still sad to see the quality go down.I had recently read an article where VW is planning cost cutting among their entire range. May be this measure on the polo is for the same reason.