With more than 14 million units sold, it is one of the world’s most successful compact cars:, we are talking about the Volkswagen Polo. Now a completely new generation of the best-seller is launching. With an entirely new exterior design, noticeably more spacious interior that has also been redesigned down to the last detail, new cockpit layout structured for the digital world, efficient TSI (petrol), TGI (natural gas) and TDI (diesel) engines1/2 as well as an array of assistance systems which previously was only familiar in larger Volkswagen cars. Dr Herbert Diess, Chairman of the Board of Management for the Volkswagen brand: “The Polo is a young, fresh car. It combines charisma with strong technology. No other car offers so much space for its size. This makes our Polo the number one compact, and it will remain number one.”
Digital instruments, new information and assistance systems
Dr Frank Welsch, Board Member for Development of the Volkswagen Brand: “The new Polo brings the future to the compact class. A whole lot of space – based on the modular transverse matrix – sustainable engines like a new natural gas TGI, the world premiere of a new generation of the Active Info Display, the latest infotainment systems and forward-thinking assistance systems – these qualities enable this Volkswagen to overcome traditional class boundaries.”
Much more interior space, yet still compact outside
The sixth generation Volkswagen Polo has grown, making it larger than its predecessor in all of its dimensions. This has resulted in much more interior space and a significantly increased boot volume, which has grown from 280 to 351 litres. Nonetheless, it is still a snappy compact car on the outside. It is enlightening to compare this car to the fourth generation Golf (built until 2003) which has sold in the millions. It shows that the Polo has adapted to people who have grown, but also that it utilises its enclosed space even more effectively. The new Polo, with its length of 4,053 mm, is slightly shorter than the fourth generation Golf, but it surpasses that Golf when it comes to its wheelbase (53 mm longer) and space for the driver, passengers and luggage (21 litres more).
The positive effects of the modular transverse matrix (MQB) on the car’s proportions, and thereby on its design, are very significant. Klaus Bischoff, Head of Design for the Volkswagen Brand, explains: “The much better proportions create the framework for a grown-up, confident appearance of the sixth generation Volkswagen Polo – charismatic, progressive, contemporary and friendly. We have systematically capitalised on this realignment of dimensions to build a compelling compact car.” The project targets, as defined by Bischoff: All Polo models should be made more sporty, more powerful, fresher, more masculine and more charismatic. Looking at the new Polo, the Head of Design sums it up: “This Volkswagen can immediately be made out as the original of its class, but also as a completely new generation. A Volkswagen Polo with an expressive design which makes the compact – now as a four-door only – sportier, cleaner and unique within the brand range. This is a car that fits in perfectly with our times – both visually and technologically.”
Five equipment versions and three packages
The Polo is launching in three familiar trim lines Trendline, Comfortline and Highline, and in the ‘Beats’ special edition with a sound system configured for contemporary sound. Another version that appears from the start on the new car’s life: the Polo GTI. Several packages are also being offered in the form of R-Line, Black and Style. All three have a lot to offer. Consider the R-Line: it makes the VW Polo even more dynamic with such features as 16-inch alloy wheels (‘Sebring’), a big, sporty front bumper and at the rear a diffuser with chrome trim and a roof spoiler. The Polo with an R-Line package also has wrap-around black sill trim strips which visually press the car down to the road. The R-Line package also upgrades the interior completely – adding dynamism at a low additional price.
NEW Polo GTI
Rounding out the model range at the top, as already noted, is the new Volkswagen Polo GTI. This sporty top model will now be powered by a 2.0-litre TSI with an output of 147 kW / 200 PS (previous model: 1.8 TSI with 141 kW / 192 PS). Matching the engine’s high output are the standard sport chassis and the optional Sport Select chassis. At the front, this most powerful Polo stands out by virtue of such features as a specially designed bumper with integrated spoiler lip and fog lights as standard. Typical GTI insignia at the front include the red stripe on the radiator grille, honeycomb air vent screens and, of course, the GTI badge. An exclusive feature offered in the GTI: optional LED headlights with a red winglet; stylistically they are extensions of the red stripe of the radiator grille.
At the rear, the Volkswagen Polo GTI sports a large roof spoiler in high-gloss black (underside: black matt), a diffuser in the bumper, GTI-specific dual tailpipes (left side), LED tail lights and, again, the GTI badge. On the sides, GTI characteristics include standard 17-inch alloy wheels (18-inch optional), side sill extensions and brake calipers that are painted red. In the interior, the 200-PS Polo also offers unique characteristics that are typical of a GTI. They include top sport seats with the legendary ‘Clark’ tartan pattern, a multifunction leather-trimmed sport steering wheel with red stitching, rooflining and roof pillars in black and a GTI gear shift grip. Also included as standard: ambient lighting.
14 exterior colours
Everything becomes more colourful and personalised in new VW Polo with a large range of fresh new colours (a total of 14 exterior colours are available) and twelve wheels (14- to 18-inch, some painted in contrasting colour), dashpads in 13 different decors, two interior trim versions and eleven different seat covers.
Comfort & convenience features from the Golf class
The Polo can be further personalised and upgraded to satisfy individual budgets and tastes. New in the options programme are features such as light-intense full-LED headlights, LED daytime running lights, LED tail lights, ‘Air Care Climatronic’ system with air quality sensor and allergen filter, wireless charging for smartphones (optional inductive aerial connection) and one of the largest panoramic roofs in its class (opening is 10 mm wider and 20 mm longer than before). Another available option: the Sport Select running gear with active dampers. The new Polo can be personalised to create an almost unique car by choosing from different trim lines, colours, interiors, wheels and optional features. These options may also be combined with a broad range of highly efficient engines.
Assistance systems from the Golf and Passat in the Polo
In producing the new Polo, Volkswagen has put one of the world’s most advanced compact cars on wheels. This is reflected in such advanced features as the array of new assistance and convenience systems – systems that were previously reserved for the Golf, or even the Passat, class. As already noted, even the base version of the new Polo is launching with the Front Assist area monitoring system including City Emergency Braking and Pedestrian Monitoring as standard. One option that is being offered again in the Volkswagen Polo is Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC; can now be activated up to a speed of 210 km/h). In conjunction with a dual clutch gearbox (DSG), ACC also offers a Stop & Go function (for first time with a manual parking brake). New options in the Polo are the Blind Spot Detection lane change system with Rear Traffic Alert, the semi-automated Park Assist system for exiting parking spaces and a ‘manoeuvring function’. The latter automatically protects against minor but often expensive parking dents. The optional Keyless Access locking and engine starting system, which is also new, can be used to unlock and start the Polo.
New interior in harmony with the digital world
Interior and HMI (human-machine interface) designers created a new, clean interior layout in order to locate the digital and connected displays and controls on a continuous visual axis that is as high as possible and thereby optimally visible to the driver. Background: The VW Polo will launch as the first Volkswagen and the first Volkswagen Group model ever to offer this new generation of the Active Info Display. The functionality of the digital instruments reaches a new peak; just like the graphics, everything is clearer and easier to use. For the first time, just one button on the multifunction steering wheel is used to switch between the basic Views menus, for instance. At the same time, the Volkswagen Polo is getting the latest generation of infotainment systems with display diagonals ranging from 6.5 to 8.0 inches – glass-encased devices that are as sophisticated as high-end smartphones. The clean, high-tech image of the interior is reinforced by background lighting (standard equipment in Polo Highline and GTI) as well as by dashpads and decorative trim strips in a wide variety of colours.
