VW Polo 2021: 6 reasons to avoid it :(

Today we will talk about the VW Polo 2021-22. Should you consider this or no?? I will share 5 reasons on WHY YOU SHOULDN’T CONSIDER this car. 

I have always loved the Volkswagen Polo it’s one of the most loved hatchback even right now. Lets understand about the Volkswagen as a brand first. Volkswagen - is a German car brand that is known for its quality, engineering and fun-to-drive DNA. These cars were launched in India in 2010 with the Polo, before that they also had the Passat, Jetta etc, but let’s not get there. Business for VW kickstarted in India in real terms in 2010 with the Polo the same model is selling today as well. Not that the car has been changed majorly, its still the same with minor tweaks feature updates over the years. No change in the shape of the car, that doesn’t concern me much, I like the way it looks but there are some points I will definitely like to highlight. Before we get into details, lets consider something similar. Apple is a brand known for it’s technology that's the reason you buy that phone. Lets assume that the iPhone that was launched in about 2007-2008, a product that revolutionized the mobile phone market by giving features like the touchscreen & more. If asked would you buy that same model in 2020 with minor tweaks like an additional camera or so at the same price would you buy it?? The answer will be NO, because everyone has to upgrade with time! Now for the same phone, lets add some more features, add a new camera lens, bigger battery and offer you? Same is the story with VW Polo! 

1. OLD MODEL: Polo was launched in 2010 in India and today is 2021. 11th year in the running with just changes in the engine. The Polo when it was launched in India, the segment was called Premium Hatchback. The competition to this was the Fiat Punto (launched in India in 2009), Nissan Micra (launched in 2010), Skoda Fabia, Hyundai i20 and the Honda Jazz. i20. Jazz got major updates between 2014-2016. Even the Maruti Baleno came in around the same time. Whereas the Fabia & the Punto were discontinued,  the Micra was shifted to the mid-level segment as it’s cabin space was more appropriate for that segment. a new segment created in 2013 known as the affordable / mid-size hatch segment which perfectly fitted the gap between the premium & the entry level hatch backs. Grand i10, Ford Figo, Maruti Swift &the Nissan Micra were the mid-size hatchbacks. Polo is still being claimed as the premium hatchback, given it’s cabin space, it technically falls puts it in the mid-level hatch. Its basically like selling the first breed of iPhone at the price of the latest high end iPhone launched in 2020. Technology of VW is remarkable. They have globally launched the new-gen Polo way back in June 2017. This sums up point 1 - its an old model (that’s sold in India). 

2nd Point: Space: The definition of premium hatchbacks has changed in India. It isn’t just about the features but even space for the rear passengers as well. A six-foot person can’t sit for too long in the VW Polo. So, Polo isn’t at par with the rear seat space when compared to others in the same price. 

3rd point : The engine (non turbo): At the moment there is 1.0L engine, one is Naturally Aspirated petrol and other is the turbo. Lets skip the turbo and speak of Naturally Aspirated engine. So, if you look at the base 2 models on the Polo, see the value - its NOT THERE. VW has been known for engine performance, that's why the 1.2L diesel got replaced by 1.5L diesel. Now the 1.2L petrol is replaced by 1.0L petrol. This produces a mere 95Nm Torque, which is almost similar to an Alto at 90-95Nm. This car weighs more than 1 ton and just 95Nm?  Polo 1.0 is good but not for too long. The price at which Polo Comfortline+ comes, Figo top end is available at the same price, even Nios top end comes at a little extra. Of course, ride and handling can’t be compared to Nios. But its at par with Altroz and Figo.   The lower variants doesn't fulfill the performance, no features, no rear space.

COMPARISON BETWEEN PREMIUM HATCHBACKS: https://msjtalks.blogspot.com/2021/02/comparison-between-premium-hatchback.html

4th point: Less features: Reverse camera seen on smaller cars also goes missing and even no engine start-stop button as well. If we consider build quality and premiumness there are much better products today. Even if we look at the Altroz/i20 or even lower segment products like the Grand i10 NIOS has the best-in-class features and even Figo for the matter of fact has best-in almost everything. So, VW Polo doesn’t have anything major to offer anything that others aren’t already offering. Others are giving more: like Altroz for safety, NIOS or safety, Figo for performance. 

5th point : NO DIESEL NO DSG: Those who love performance by the diesel. Customers aren’t too interested in the dieselgate as the enthusiasts will be disappointed. The DSG is also gone from Polo. One reason to get the DSG is the performance. This isn’t made available on the Polo anymore. I’m not even talking of the reliability of the Polo, but now the Polo does lack one of its major selling points. 

6th point: SERVICE: Now even if you buy this car, one more concern area is SERVICE. Resale isn’t the best in class, and that’s an accepted fact. When we talk of service, I have opened their official website - it gets Hi5 Package. Lets talk of it in very short. 1st year offers 1 free pick-up and drop, 50% discount on wheel alignment and balancing labour. Don’t want to nitpick here, however there was one case that how VW charged a customer for front and rear alignment separately. You get front and rear alignment separately?  It was his first service, manual petrol top-end variant. Person in that video shows labour cost is higher than spares - that too for India? Moving on, 15% discount on 3M interior enrichment, 20% discount on minor bodywork jobs - this looking more like pushing dealer sales than for customer. 1 free service inspection. Year 2: Rs 1000 off on purchase of 4 tyres? Seriously?  Online stores sell it at a much higher discount. This is a very interesting point - 100% discount on wheel alignment & balancing labour. So, why can’t it be called complimentary? There seems to be a catch here. 15% discount on accessories. Again pushing dealer sales. 20% discount on minor bodywork jobs. Complimentary car wash & complimentary AC disinfection service - AGREED that is a good option. These points don’t talk of real customer benefits - like engine oil, spare parts cost or reduction in service cost anytime. As a customer, I will want to keep my service cost low and affordable. And also what will be the cost to service for an engine oil change, filters etc. What will be the benefit if we take an AMC package? Lets take a simple example - Ford, Skoda and VW have been known to be expensive brands in service in India. So, Ford and Skoda have turned transparent. They are offering - online service calculator. There is also the Skoda Shield Plus for 6 years, which is a solid option. VW and Skoda are sister concerns but Skoda is offering a lot more than VW. Skoda even gives service calculator. Hyundai is also offering something like that. This is missing from VW. One more interesting point: VW is offering 3 free services in the 1st year. So, VW services the car once a year at 15,000kms. This is an excellent point like Tata, Skoda and Jeep too. So now instead of 1 there are 3 services in the first year - it offers 1st at 1000km/1 month - free check-up, second is 7500kms/6 months 40 point check-up and 15,000kms/1 year FREE LABOUR. That's’ technically 3 free services. When you read it, it does look exciting. When you dig deep you realize the catch. So, when I speak about Polo, it isn’t the best Value for money, best in features. There are no useful features like reverse camera and even engine push stop button. Already cars in India in lower segment have features like wireless charging and connected cars etc. The Polo doesn’t have too many features, less rear space, engine is below average    (non turbo)in performance, service could have been better and even the model has aged. In a nutshell, there are much options than Polo today in the Indian car market. 

Hope so, you will not hate me after this. Do share your thoughts!!