SA Road Tests

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This is the home of automobile road tests in South Africa. I drive South African cars, SUVs and LCVs under real-world South African conditions. Many of the vehicles driven are world cars as well, so what you read here possibly applies to the models you get where you live.

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Life’s comforts: 2022 Volkswagen Polo 1.0 TSI Life m/t

Undercover hooligan

Exterior pics by author
Interior pic supplied
Posted: May 10, 2022

The numbers
Base price: R353 600
Engine: 999 cc, DOHC, 12-valve, inline three-cylinder with turbocharger
Power: 70 kW between 5000 and 5500 rpm
Torque: 175 Nm between 2000 and 3500 rpm
0-100 km/h: 10.8 seconds
Top speed: 187 km/h
Real life fuel consumption: About 6.3 l/100 km
Tank: 40 litres
Luggage: 351 – 1125 litres
Turning circle: 10.6 metres
Ground clearance: 148 mm
Standard tyre size: 185/65R15
Spare: Full size
Warranty: Three years, 120 000 km
Service plan: Three years, 45 000 km at 15 000 km intervals

Life brings surprises too; this is one of those instances in which the lower powered option with manual transmission turns out to be as much fun as its more powerful DSG sisters. Of such stuff are undercover hooligan cars made so hide this page from your sponsor. Let him or her continue believing that they are buying you something tame.

But let’s not get too carried away; this little fellow’s zero to 100 km/h time, at 10.8 seconds, is no match for the original Golf 1600 GTI’s 9.2. On the other hand that car produced more power, weighed less and wouldn’t have had an ice-cream’s hope in Hades of scoring five Euro-NCAP stars in 2022.

The background:  A 2021 facelift changed front and rear lights, grille, foglamp housings, back panel, dash, interior equipment and trim names. Trendline is now plain Polo, Comfortline became Life and R-Line ceased being just an option pack – it’s now a standalone model. Then there’s Polo GTI. Each level has its own equipment and option choices.

Our test unit was a 70-kW Life with five-speed manual box so we’ll concentrate on that. Suspension is by means of McPherson-type struts and wishbones up front with torsion beam and trailing arms in the back. Brakes are disc and drum with multi-collision braking system, ESP, ABS with EBA, ASR, EDL, EDTC and hill hold. Wheels are 15” alloy. Air conditioning is single-channel with manual controls. Wipers are rain-sensing. Entertainment comes via a Composition Colour, Gen-3 MIB (Modulares Infotainment Baukasten) radio with 6.5” display, AM/FM reception, Type C USB, app connect, we connect go, mobile phone interface and four speakers.  

Safety kit includes six airbags, ISOFix with tethers, childproof locks, driver alert, front and rear pdc and cruise control with limiter. Lights are LED front and rear with cornering function for the front foglamps. Seats are covered in fabric and all windows and mirrors are electric, while those outside fold.

Options at Life level include upgraded media systems, navigation, phone charging, wireless connection, voice control, sunroof, LED matrix headlamps, rearview camera, assisted parking and additional safety aids.

Getting practical, it performs very nicely but, like any little motor, it needs to be wound up if you want to gratify your inner teenager. It steers and parks easily and can even be asked to do so automatically if you purchase the relevant options pack. The outward view is uncluttered, the car’s small enough to find the lines between parking bays and the standard seats are well bolstered to support nicely. Those of advanced years might find them awkward to get back out of, however.

Cargo loads at 67 cm into a space with a light and four lashing rings. The 40:60-split seatback sections fold almost flat to extend volume. A fully sized spare, on a steel rim, is in the usual place under the baseboard.

All but the tallest back seat passengers will find adequate head-, knee- and foot space. There are three head restraints and full belts but the central tunnel is rather high so Malcolm in the middle might sit awkwardly. There’s no rear armrest but there are map pockets and reasonable door bins.

Pilot and co-pilot enjoy plenty of head- and elbow room, both seats offer manually adjustable height and lumbar support while each has a cup holder and a lit visor mirror. HVAC controls are easy to use and foot pedals are well spaced with plenty of room for the clutch foot to find the resting pad.

Briefly then, Polo 1.0 TSI Life is an excellent choice for responsible family folk who need reasonable people- and luggage space. But should they ever choose to let their inner teenagers howl, that can be arranged too.

Test unit from VWSA press fleet

We drove a 2022 Polo GTI  and a 1.0 TSI R-Line as well



NB: The wheels on our test car were optional 16-inch Torsby units

NB: The Discover Media infotainment system and Digital Cockpit Pro instruments were optional extras too

What We Do

This is a one-man show, which means that every car reviewed is given my personal evaluation and receives my own seat of the pants judgement - no second hand input here.

Every test car goes through real world driving; on city streets littered with potholes, speed bumps and rumble strips, on freeways and if its profile demands, dirt roads or goat tracks as well. As a result, my test cars do occasionally get dirty. It's all part of the reviewing process.

I do my best to include relevant information like real life fuel economy or a close mathematical calculation, boot size or luggage space, whether the space is both usable and accessible, whether life-sized people can use the back seat (where that applies), basic specs of the vehicle and performance figures if they are published. In the case of clearly identified launch reports, fuel figures are of necessity the laboratory numbers provided with the release material.

If ever I place an article that doesn't cover most things, it's probably because I have dealt with a very similar vehicle already, so you will be able to find what you want in another report under the same manufacturer's heading in the menu on the left.

Hope you like what you see, because there are no commercial interests at work here. There are no advertisers and no “editorial policy” rules. I add bylines to acknowledge sponsored launch functions and the manufacturers or dealerships that provide the test vehicles.  And, as quite a few readers have found, I answer every serious enquiry from my home email address, with my phone numbers attached, so you can see I do actually exist.

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