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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Revenge of the Sixth: 2022 Volkswagen Polo GTI

Never look back

Exterior pics by Motorpress
Interior by author
Posted: May 15, 2022

The numbers
Base price: R494 600
Engine: 1984 cc, DOHC, 16-valve inline four-cylinder, turbocharged
Power: 147 kW between 4400 and 6000 rpm
Torque: 320 Nm between 1500 and 4350 rpm
0-100 km/h: 6.7 seconds
Top speed: 238 km/h
Real life fuel consumption: About 7.6 l/100 km
Tank: 40 litres
Luggage: 305 – 1079 litres
Ground clearance: 133 mm
Turning circle: 10.6 metres
Standard tyre: 215/45 R17
Spare: Spacesaver
Warranty: Three years, 120 000 km
Service plan: Three years, 45 000 km at 15 000 km intervals

How about this – an only slightly detuned version of Golf GTI’s opposition-shaming motor, almost the same performance, fewer gadgets and a saving of almost R200 000?

The sixth-generation Polo was launched late in 2017 on a new platform; noticeably bigger than its predecessor, with a longer wheelbase for more interior space and a bigger boot. Hatchback models, the only way to get GTIs, were initially fitted only with a 1.0-litre turbo-petrol motor in two states of tune – 70 kW and 85 kW. Although latter Gen-5 GTIs had been equipped with a potent 1.8-litre engine, this 2.0 GTI only reached us around August 2018.

It rips out 147 kilowatts and 320 Nm; shy of the Golf’s 180 kW and 370 Newton-metres but it weighs 216 kg less, so it does the 0-100 km/h sprint just three-tenths of a second slower while topping out at 238 km/h versus the golf’s 250. What a hardship, hey? But the Polo uses noticeably less fuel in the process.

A 2021 facelift entailed a redesigned front end featuring reshaped headlights and an LED light bar on the grille while the rear end adopted wider LED taillights extending into the tailgate. The interior comes standard with a digital instrument cluster and a touch-control climate pad. 

 
Major differences between GTI and standard Polos include lowered, sport suspension with firmer springs and reactive dampers; six-speed DSG; Climatronic dual-zone air conditioning; drive mode selection; adaptive chassis control; XDS difflock; a bigger, 8-inch, infotainment display; autonomous emergency braking; Art Velour leather sport comfort seats in front; sports-style bumpers; LED tail lights and ‘IQ light’ LED matrix headlamps. That means they consist of lots of little LEDs that switch off automatically and individually as necessary when approaching another vehicle from ahead or behind, and dynamic cornering front fog lights. Please don’t forget the “regulation” red disc calipers.

The boot lost 46 litres of capacity when the battery and accompanying hardware were moved into the under-baseboard storage box, because there isn’t enough space in the engine room. It also contributes toward evening out weight distribution. Feel better now?

And feeling better is what this car’s about. The instant you grab the thicker than standard-Polo’s leather-trimmed steering wheel you just know this beast was made for driving. It fits comfortably, like a favourite jacket, it steers and handles brilliantly and it overtakes at (almost) the speed of thought. There’s a Sport mode in there somewhere but you scarcely need it.

VW has been making DSG ‘boxes for a while now and this one works just as its designers intended. There’s also no reason to feel short-changed with “only” six gears. Any more would be overkill. And when you feel the need to play manually there’s a choice of paddles or stick shift. Further, in case you didn’t think of it, holding an intermediate gear while running against compression downhill helps to reduce brake pad- and disc wear.

I could bore you with details of cabin- and luggage space but there’s a review on a standard Polo here so feel free to browse through that. Let’s just say that this car has all that a young family, or inter-provincial traveller, really needs. Just be aware that it’s potentially addictive and you might never look back.

Test unit from VWSA press fleet

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

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.

Comments or questions?
Want to ask a question, comment or just tell me you completely disagree with what I say? If you want advice or have a genuine concern, I will be happy to hear from you. All I ask is that you write something in the subject line so I know which vehicle you're talking about.