PoloDriver

The New Polo can now add Australia to its world-dominance plans as the model was launched in the southern hemisphere continent this week. Volkswagen Australia state that the refreshed model ‘has been advanced both visually and technically’.

The same car which hit streets in the UK, Europe, South Africa and India earlier in the year, the Australian New Polo features the same upgraded technology and appears as the versions in those markets. Only the petrol-engined TSI versions (66 and 81kW, 89 and 108bhp) are being imported.

As in the UK, all versions are fitted with BlueMotion Technology systems, including Stop/Start and brake energy recuperation. These make the 66kW Trendline version 21 per cent more fuel efficient than the model it replaces.

The New Polo for Oz also benefits from the upgraded safety tech. Included as standard is a Multi-Collision Braking System (automatically initiates braking of the vehicle that had an accident in order to prevent a subsequent collision).

A Driver Comfort Package is available as an option on higher-specification Comfortline models which includes Driver Fatigue Detection System, “Front Assist” ambient traffic monitoring system with City Emergency Braking and Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC).

The new electro-mechanical power steering system makes its way onto the Australian New Polo, too, enhancing the car’s road-to-wheel communication, while Volkswagen’s impressive second-generation infotainment system is also fitted.

As with the UK and Europe, a range of new colours is offered, with the subtly refreshed front and rear end design. The Australian New Polo is available in both Trendline and Comfortline trims and with five and six-speed manual geaboxes as well as a seven-speed DSG.

2014 NEW VOLKSWAGEN POLO (AUSTRALIA)
Prices
Polo 66TSI Trendline 5-speed manual: $16,290

Polo 66TSI Trendline 7-speed DSG: $18,790

Polo 81TSI Comfortline 6-speed manual: $18,290

Polo 81TSI Comfortline 7-speed DSG: $20,790

Options
Metallic / Pearl Effect paint: $500

Driver Comfort Package – Comfortline: $1,500

Sport Package – Comfortline: $1,500

Prices quoted are manufacturer list prices excluding dealer delivery charges, which may vary from dealer to dealer and statutory charges, which vary from state to state.

In a repeat of June, the Polo was the best-selling vehicle during July 2014 in South Africa, according to the most recent tally of sales figures announced by the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa (NAAMSA).

Beating the Toyota Hilux once again, 3330 South African Polo 6Rs were sold last month. And, once again, the Polo perched atop the best-selling passenger car tables, too, outselling its cheaper Polo Vivo sibling by 443 units.

The latter is still selling remarkably well considering it is based on the facelifted version of the Mk 4 Polo, first launched in 2002.

The Polo Vivo was launched in March 2010 as an entry-level model for the South African market, replacing the Series 1 Golf-based CitiGolf, and is available as a three or five-door hatchback and four-door booted saloon with 74bhp/84bhp 1.4-litre and 103bhp 1.6-litre petrol engines.

Costing from R138,200 for the base-model 1.4 hatchback to R178,800 for the top 1.6 Polo Maxx, the 2013 Polo Vivo is based on the revised version of the Series 4 Polo (9N3), built from 2005 to 2009.

A new version of the fifth-generation Polo (6R) is now available as a three and five-door hatch, in addition to the four-door Polo Sedan.

With criticism coming from the press for the New Polo being too ‘bland’, PoloDriver explores the reasons why the New Polo may look the way it does

Volkswagen is known to be conservative when it comes to model refreshes. Not one to be especially flamboyant with its bread and butter models, the German company lets its handsome style do the talking. 

While the Golf is sacrosanct when it comes to the look of subsequent generations, the Polo, and to a point, the Scirocco don’t share the same legendary (we refuse to use the word ‘iconic’) status, and so can be afforded a little more style direction now and then.

Both were refreshed (sounds so much better than ‘facelifted’) this year, but in recent road tests from the UK’s weekly motoring magazines, the Polo seems to have come under fire for being too ‘anonymous’ or ‘bland’ in the looks department.

While both it and Volkswagen’s sports coupé have been relaunched on the European (and in the case of the Polo certain global) markets, it seems to be the VW supermini which has come in for most criticism.

Criticism from the very quarters which called it ‘handsome’ back in 2009 when the fifth-generation Polo 6R first broke cover. The Ford Fiesta may be the darling of the small hatchback market due to the way it can be punted down a B-road (and rightly so, it’s great), but you couldn’t call it handsome. Striking perhaps, but never pretty.

Yes, the way a car looks matter. And small cars perhaps more than most. We’re all human and therefore a little shallow – we judge a car, people, and the things we surround ourselves with on their looks. We like nice, shiny things that work well and look good.

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The Polo R WRC Street is, for now, the ultimate performance Polo. With 217bhp from its 2.0-litre TSI engine, it can scamper to 62mph from rest in 6.4 seconds. Top speed is 151mph. Built in limited numbers, 2500 have been sold to promote Volkswagen’s high-profile World Rally Championship campaign.

But all that power is nothing without control. Eibach has announced a Pro-Kit Performance Springs kit to make the Polo R WRC Street handle with even more precision. The car’s ride height and centre of gravity is lowered and the kit gives ‘more agile handling’.

Eibach’s own Anti-Roll-Kit Performance Sway Bars decrease body roll and improve cornering stability still further and aluminium Pro-Spacer Wheel Spacers lend a wider-tracked WRC-like air to the Polo R WRC Street’s assertive appearance. All Eibach suspension components are provided with a high-quality corrosion protection and are TÜV-certified.

For further information and to find a stockist, visit Eibach’s website or call +49 2721 511 342.

Starting on 1 August, the New Polo will be driving through the streets of South Africa, and Volkswagen South Africa is giving drivers in the country the opportunity to win one for a year, by playing #PoloTag.

Playing #PoloTag is easy. Follow @VolkswagenSA on Twitter, spot the Cornflower Blue #PoloTag-emblazoned New Polo along the pre-determined specified routes, tweet #PoloTag to @VolkswagenSA and you become ‘IT’. (Tweeters need to add their location to the #PoloTag tweet, too, to be eligible to enter the competition.)

Then, @VolkswagenSA will respond to tweets with #AlmostIT, informing participants if they’ve been selected for the competition. If so, tweeters will need to make their way to the #PoloTag New Polo quickly.

When in the New Polo, the driver’s Twitter name will be placed on top of the New Polo, and timing will start. The longer that tweeter drives, the better their chances of winning the car will be.

If another tweet lands and the sender makes it to the #PoloTag Polo in time, the new tweeter tales over the drive. If not, the previous tweeter carries on the drive and has better chance of winning the car.

Each tweeter’s driving time is placed on a leaderboard and the winner is selected from a draw of longest tweeter drives in the #PoloTag New Polo. Simple?

If more than one tweet is selected at any one time, it’s a foot race to the car to take over driving. If a tweeter s beaten to the car, they have to wait until their tweet is tagged again before they have a chance to drive the car again.

The special #PoloTag New Polo is scheduled to visit Cape Town on 1-2 August, Duban on 8-9 August and finally Johannesburg on 15-16 August. Use the routes here to find the #PoloTag New Polo and search out the landmarks to stand a better chance of winning.

#PoloTag appears to be an innovative piece of social media marketing and a good way to engage with prospective New Polo customers, as well as promoting the car. We have visions of South Africans looking at their smartphones, meandering through the streets of the country’s cities, though…

Good luck!