Road TestCar reviews - Volkswagen - Polo - 77TSI Comfortline 5-dr hatchVolkswagen modelsOverviewVolkswagen applies the Golf blow-torch to its fifth-generation Polo2 Sep 2010 By LUC BRITTEN VOLKSWAGEN’S Polo has long played second fiddle to the Golf. And with good reason too, since previous versions of the German supermini have not come within a cooee of the class leaders, never mind its glamourous big brother. But now the carmaker from Wolfsburg is serious about ruling the automotive world, so the fifth-generation Polo has undergone a Golf-style design, engineering and quality makeover to woo buyers away from the excellent Ford Fiesta and Mazda2. Has Volkswagen succeeded? Mostly, as we found out after a week behind the wheel of the mid-range 77TSI Comfortline. Model release date: 1 May 2010 to 1 March 2013 All car reviewsAlfa Romeo Abarth Alpine Alpina Audi Aston Martin BMW Bentley Chevrolet Chery Citroen Chrysler Dodge Cupra Ferrari DS Ford Fiat FPV Foton GWM Great Wall Holden Haval HSV Honda Hyundai Hummer Isuzu Infiniti Jeep Jaguar Lamborghini Kia LDV Land Rover Lotus Lexus Maserati Mahindra McLaren Mazda Mercedes-Benz Mercedes-AMG Mini MG Nissan Mitsubishi Peugeot Opel Proton Porsche Renault Ram Rover Rolls-Royce Skoda Saab SsangYong Smart Suzuki Subaru Toyota Tesla Volvo Volkswagen Previous modelVOLKSWAGEN softened the stark four-eyed look of the fourth-generation Polo released in 2002 with a smoother and friendlier face, as well as a host of refinements and new models designed to build on the driveability advances made over previous editions. The staple 55kW/126Nm 1.4-litre single-cam 16-valve four-cylinder petrol engine lived on from before, mated to either a five-speed manual or four-speed automatic, in three and five-door body styles, variously under the Club or Match nomenclature. , , Mid-2006 saw a small boost in engine power and torque (59kW/130Nm) for manual models, with a six-speed auto replacing the four-speeder from August 2007. , , Meanwhile, VW released the 74kW/240Nm 1.9-litre Polo TDI in late 2005, in five-door/five-speed manual transmission only, as well as the 110kW/220Nm 1.8-litre turbo four-cylinder petrol GTI, which gained its own niche following. , , From July 2006 a 77kW/153Nm 1.6-litre four-pot petrol mid-range five-door Match was imported to further complicate the already extensive Polo portfolio. , , A minor upgrade from October 2008 saw the series simplified with the three-door Edition 1.4, five-door Pacific 1.6 petrol and Pacific TDI diesel, and GTI. All included a modest specification gain. |
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