2018 Volkswagen Polo 1.0 MPI Review
Car Tested: Volkswagen Polo 1.0 MPI; Road Test No. 989; Test Location: Mumbai
Price OTR Mumbai: Rs. 6.60 – 8.70 lakhs
The 1.0-litre MPI engine does little to up the performance of the petrol Polo
The Volkswagen Polo is one of the best hatchbacks in India, marred down by two glaring drawbacks, one is the lack of rear seat space and the other is the lacklustre petrol engine. That aside, there is nothing to fault with the Polo which also happens to be the cheapest German car you can buy in India. Volkswagen has now ditched the 1.2-litre petrol engine for a downsized unit that promises better performance but does it deliver?
This generation of the Polo has been on sale since almost a decade now
Exteriors – There is nothing to differentiate the Polo MPI from the regular Polo (other than the fact that the diesel gets TDI badging), it looks the same, the top-end Highline Plus variant gets 16-inch alloy wheels with a design that is far from exciting. Although the car has the classy lines of VW, some might call it timeless but it has started to show its age now and no amount of chrome can hide that. In fact, the lack of projector headlights at this price point is a glaring omission.
The cabin feels well-built with rich materials all around
Interiors – Step inside and everything seems familiar here too with some kit which will call for applause like cruise control and rear AC vents while the car continues to lack essentials like keyless entry, push button start and even a reverse parking camera, it does get a nice touchscreen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay, Android Auto and there are reverse parking sensors too. The car gets artificial leather seats and the piano black finishing in the centre console looks good too. However, space continues to be lacking at the rear (no legroom, big centre hump and no centre headrest) and although there are plenty of storage bins here (including one inside the front centre armrest), the cluster feels too dated now.
The engine takes its own sweet time to dish out power
Performance – Downsizing seems to be the norm everywhere, in the interest of fuel economy (up by 1.5 km/l in the real world to 13 km/l), emissions and weight (this one is 14 kgs lighter), so the petrol powered Polo and Ameo now employ a 999cc, 3-cylinder engine, instead of a 1.2-litre, 3-pot unit with power output being the same 76 BHP. Anyone who has driven the petrol Polo 1.2 MPI will tell you that the engine feels lacklustre and the new motor is no different as it lacks both low-end punch and mid-range grunt, there is some sort of a lag and that’s funny because this isn’t even a turbocharged powerplant. Making matters worse is the reduction of torque by 15 Nm!
The engine has been downsized in the interest of efficiency
The 1.0 MPI engine will only remind you of the 1.2 MPI unit as it too lacks performance
Power delivery is linear, it does redline cleanly, hitting the rev limiter at 6500 RPM but the Polo 1.0 MPI is slow, taking 16.5 seconds to do the 0-100 km/hr sprint (that’s even slower than segment down cars like the Alto, Kwid and Tiago). But what really impresses is the refinement at idle, it does feel sorted on NVH until you wing open the throttle where the 3-cylinder thrum becomes quite evident. The 5-speed gearbox offers smooth shifts with short throws but the light clutch is too springy in action once you have left 70% of it.
The Polo has always scored well in driving manners
Driving Dynamics – As always, the Volkswagen Polo is brilliant when it comes to ride and handling balance. The ride quality is good, the handling is excellent with great body control and the steering is light at low speeds but weighs up well at higher speeds, being a bit artificial though. The 195 mm tyres offer good grip but this car seems to be overtyred for the power it puts down. The Polo remains stable at speed and the brakes offer surefooted stopping power.
Competition is moving ahead but the new Polo is yet to arrive in India
Verdict – The Volkswagen Group is known to make the best engines in the world, right from that W16 in the Veyron and Chiron to the ones that power Bentleys, Audis and Lamborghinis. This makes me wonder why can’t VW make a decent small capacity NA engine to compete with Maruti Suzuki’s brilliant K12 unit. Not only does the new MPI engine lack excitement, it doesn’t have the performance to match any of its rivals and when the price actually turns out to be more (the Swift costs lesser), you realise if you want to buy a petrol Polo, you are better off spending Rs. 2 lakhs more for the GT TSI.
The design has started feeling old now
What’s Cool
* Interiors feel brilliant with excellent quality components
* Ride and handling balance is good
* Gearbox is slick
What’s Not So Cool
* 1.0 MPI engine lacks performance, feels very lazy
* Rear seat doesn’t have much space
Alternatives: Maruti Swift, Maruti Baleno, Hyundai i20, Honda Jazz
Buying the GT versions of the Polo makes more sense
Testers’ Note:
Further Reading –
Volkswagen Polo Pros & Cons
Volkswagen Polo GT TSI Long Term Review
Volkswagen Polo GT TSI vs Honda Jazz CVT vs Ford Figo DCT
Volkswagen Polo GT TDI Long Term Review
Volkswagen Polo Long Term Review – Initial Report
Volkswagen Polo Review
Volkswagen Polo vs Hyundai Elite i20 vs Maruti Swift vs Fiat Punto Evo
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