VW Polo GTI
Many would say that size doesn’t really matter when in fact it does. Driving around in a VW Polo the past few days proved me right once again. Small cars are just better than big cars for one simple reason. Weight. Everyone saying otherwise doesn’t know shit about good cars or doesn’t understand basic physics. No matter how incredibly well-engineered a big car is, it will always be superior to a good small car when driven properly. The new Polo GTI proves this point as it currently is VW’s hottest hatchback available.
Starting off, I’d love to go into the size aspect of the car, as it currently is the “smallest” hot VW available. Significantly smaller than the current Golf but still significantly larger than some of the first Golfs. I’d still consider it a small car by today’s standards.
The GTI is for those who need a car to get from A to B comfortably, not having to bother about carrying around people or bigger things and love to enjoy some goofing around bendy roads on a weekend. Basically one of the best all-rounders you can get in that size. According to my “list-of-things-that-make-a-great-hot-hatch” it almost is a perfect hot hatchback. Is it small? Yes. Is it front-wheel drive? Yes. Does it come as a manual? Well, no. But is the engine big? Yes. Surprisingly. I thought that they’d use the same 1.8l from the previous generation, but I was quite surprised to find out that it comes with a bigger 2.0l engine. And it’s a good one too. 220HP and 350NM of torque give you plenty of oomph. Plus it’s quite economical for that amount of power.
On the outside, there’s not much that tells you that it’s the sportiest variant of the car except for some lovely wheels and the red stripe going along the front. Apart from that, there are plenty of GTI badges telling you what the car is supposed to be. The design is inconspicuous. No one will bat an eye or turn its head because it looks like any other car on the street. Whether that’s a good or a bad thing is up to you. On the interior, it’s a similar story. You get the mandatory GTI pattern on the seats, which I personally love and again some GTI badges here and there. Other than that it’s a regular VW on the inside. A nicely working screen, virtual cockpit and all other gizmos that make life a little easier when driving around.
First of all let’s get onto the not-so-good. With the new engine and probably stricter rules, the manual gets ditched for a DSG only variant. And you know what I think about that. Even though the DSG is pretty good 99% of times, it’s pretty boring on the upshifts. Too smooth most of the time and not even that quick some of the time. The engine is very torquey but the car loses some of its power when revved high, plus the gear ratio in 4th is slightly too high as it feels like you lose all power when shifting up too early from third. Lastly, the car I tested came on winter tires whilst there were 30 degrees Celsius outside, so experiencing the car’s real handling was impossible.
Overall I drove it a lot in and around town, as well as on some faster bendy roads. It’s incredibly capable and so predictable that it’s easy to drive fast even when on winter tires. Bends can be taken with precision and the engine provides you with enough torque and power through every bend. Breaks are great and the car feels as nimble as you’d expect a small car to feel. I can imagine that it would be quite fun sending it around the Nurburgring on some proper tires. What it lacks though is a sense of speciality. Everything is sort of … too easy.
What’s quite exciting though is the engine noise. Pushing the car around 3000rpm will give you some lovely raspy sounds. Just like the Golf GTI, I drove last year, the engine has that sweet spot which always puts a grin on my face. Hitting 3000rpm either through a downshift or by planting your foot to the pedal, is joyous and in the end the thing I liked most about the car.
It’s probably not enough to make me consider it as a viable option if I’d actually had some money to spend. But then It got me thinking what I’d get if I had to get a brand-new hot hatchback? It seems that the competition has either given up or been defeated by lower emission goals. In that regard, it’s admirable that VW still put out a GTI, even though it lacks a bit of emotion. Because I’d rather have a GTI where the engineered tried their best instead of no GTI at all.
