Volkswagen Polo GT TSI long term review first report

A high-tech new TSI engine and seven-speed automatic make the Polo GT both practical and loads of fun.

Published on Aug 29, 2013 05:34:00 PM

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Volkswagen Polo GT TSI long term review first report

Make : Volkswagen

Model : Polo

This isn’t our first Polo long-termer; that was the three-cylinder diesel back in 2010. And while that car was very fuel efficient and beautifully built, the motor wasn’t exactly a joy to use. VW’s three-cylinder 74bhp petrol, also currently in the range, isn’t a bundle of laughs either. VW did have a larger, more ‘fun’ 1.6-litre, 105bhp petrol as well, and it got the job done, but that old-school motor was still pretty pedestrian. In fact, weak engines have been a common strain on all Polos sold in India. The new Polo GT, however, changes all that.

Better technology; that in a nutshell is what this new car is all about. And to be honest, there’s a considerable amount here, most of it lodged under the sharply cut bonnet of the car. The new direct-injection, turbocharged petrol engine is quite obviously the largest bit. One of VW’s famed TSI engines, this 1.2-litre unit uses its turbocharger and the extra torque gained from direct-injection to pack quite a punch. It’s the first motor of this spec in this class. The 103bhp isn’t too impressive, certainly not impressive enough to call it a hot hatch, but ladle on 17.8kgm of torque that peaks as early as 1500rpm and it’s another matter entirely. To put things in perspective, that’s about the same amount of torque made by a Toyota Corolla Altis’s 1.8-litre petrol engine. The twin-clutch, seven-speed automatic gearbox, again a first for this segment, delivers even more German technology, and so does electronic stability control (ESP), another segment first.