Had a great time learning the track in this car last year. Such a great month. Have to agree about the collision assist though, twice it caused a sketchy situation for me.
Thanks for this round up of the Polo. Really enjoyed all the post on this car. I've owned mine for 2 years now and it's a terrific daily driver and yet can be so fun when the moments right.
Hi Misha, just few things that are not correct in your video. First Polo GTI is not running GOLF platform. It is MQB A0 platform which is different from regular MQB platform Golf has. Then you spoke about similar engines, but the 2.0 in the Polo is totally diferent engine from the 2.0 in the Golf. In the Polo there is 2.0TSI running in B-cycle where the golf hase regular EA888 2.0TSI engine. Thanks for your awesome work!!!
Hence the word "similar" being used they are definitely not the same and yes the this EA888 is the gen 3b while the Golf has the 3a. Though I believe from the 7.5 the Golf is also running the Budack cycle.
I had my (modest) Eureka moment in this Polo, when driving the Nordschleife went from a scary oh shit-brake-steer-steer some more-throttle sequence to a genuine flow. All of a sudden, I could go a lot faster while feeling more confident at the same time, which had me laughing out loud the wheel. Great memories, great little car!
My first car was a 60hp polo 6N, so many good memories with that car… and next year we are considering giving up the clio 5s for taking up Polos at tge driving school.
60 it's the 1.4 right? I had a a 45 1.0. Made me feel like a racing driver even when driving to college since I had to give it all if I wanted to keep up with the traffic.
I had 75HP 6N2 2001 model for 3 years, with the 1.4 16V engine, and the car had been so great! Such a small city rat, could go anywhere, could park anywhere with no doubt. And it used to sound so badass because of the malfunctioning exhaust system 😂 even pops and bangs I used to have! still miss that little buddy.
We have just bought a Polo GTI for my wife. The base Mark 8 Golf GTI is $20000 more expensive than her Polo with optional 18" wheels and 5 years servicing. Fun car with enough squirt and quick kickdowns on the DSG for safe overtaking manoeuvres on our roads. Most highways and motorways in NZ are 100kmh with the exception of 2 expressways that are 110kmh and so called high crash rate areas that are 80kmh. Anthony
Stage 1 software brings it to life. 260ps/480Nm possible just software. You can really feel the massive torque increase. Shaves about 6 sec off 100-200 time.
My first car was a 2014 VW Polo, manual with the 1.2 tsi, mind you I was still in high school and that thing was an absolute rocket. I miss that little thing very day, it took me to many corners of my country, it just needed oil and regular maintenance to keep going.
Your polo has the 6speed wet clutch DQ250 gearbox and its soo much stronger from the old DQ200 7 speed dry clutch. The golfs 5/6/7 gti/R used the DQ250 for years, The FL golfs have the 7 speed wet clutch DQ381 that is more stronger then the 6speed but other stuff You said are correct. it is a GTI but it cant handle the abuse like the Golf GTI
The braking issue at the top of the video is an issue on most of the ,Odell’s since 2012. Initial braking bite is so severe that it’s impossible to feather the brake. The good side I have 153,000 miles on original brakes. Merry Christmas to you Misha and the team at Apex!
owning one for 2 years was amazing kept fully stock and gave GTIs to the Rs a run for their money on twisty roads just lacked in the straights. very well balanced.
@@SpookyShaw94 haha yeah I know I had a 18 s3 at the same time and the corner speeds of the polo were much greater, it was a lease so it's gone now unfortunately have a 240i cab now summer ready lol.
@@freesyria7863 I’ve got a 6C and it honestly shocks me how quick it’ll go round corners and still feel planted. Lots of other cars feel like they’re gonna fly off the road when you push it.
Amazing how fast it is on track. The Apex polo overtook me once Had to try hard to keep up when I had this encounter with Robert who was sending it . I believe I kept the onboard of that one 😂
Your Polo has I believe 70 000km's on the clock and because it is driven with purpose all day every day on a track it is probably the same as 150 000km's - 200 000km's for us regualr owners. Going to miss the Polo episodes.
2016 Ibiza Cupra owner here. (i know i know it's not a polo) but it's pretty much the same car in a different look. have it for 3 years already and absolutely loving every minute of driving it. multiple track days a year, drive it to work everyday and overall doing about 25K km/year. 0 issues. every time someone is being skeptical about these platforms, turns out being super impressed by how much you can enjoy a "cheap to live with" car and give far more expensive cars a good fight. as always great video misha! the polo will be missed for sure
the issues with these are the thermostat housing coolant leaks and the shite wishbone bushes that disintegrate, its made worse if you lower the car. Ive upgraded both and its been sweet ever since.
This video makes me soooooo sad and so happy at the same time.. i was supposed to have 6 laps with you the day after the the 718 crash in this car. While it was still amazing, the gearbox was a little laggy feeling.
The Fiesta ST would be a better choice to begin with. Much more playful chassis with more grip and a more characterful engine. That or the i20N would be a great addition.
The 218 motor has proven his strength... Why not take a mini Cooper with auto trans for those who likes small cars (or Cooper s, 4 cylinder of course) ?
@@lollypop9580 I have both Fiesta ST and MINI Cooper F56 with an 1.5 3 cylinder. The Fiesta unit is much more powerful all around the rev range, but the MINI would be a great car for beginners. Apex has the 218i BMW with the same engine.
Still such a good car for a beginner or even a pro like you guys have shown a number of times. There is a reason why it was so popular among the Apex crew. Golf must be a brilliant package too but I wonder how will it compare to the Polo in terms of an overall driving experience, not just on paper.
well there are basically 3 version of high performance cars from VW: Polo GTI, Golf GTI and Golf R now i've never driven a golf gti (in the past few years, but back in the days I had the 2003 model), but i've used a MK8 Golf R and a 2021 Polo GTI (the same in this video) so well, here's my experience the polo is probably the funniest to drive, quite small but big enough for a vacation and extremely good as a daily driver. it goes around curves and over bumps extremely easily (with the upgraded suspension in the sport package is even better), in acceleration is very fast (around 6.5 second from 0-100 kmh) and the breaking is also quite good the golf r is the elite version of those cars, 320hp and AWD makes it faster than all the others (like 4.3 seconds from 0-100 kmh), with sligthy higher top speed (i think it's 260/270 while the polo is "only" 240). it goes around corners and over bumps extremely well, but i found it a little harder to control since the increased power, you'll have to be extremely careful when accelerating because it's way faster, especially if on sport mode. but if you're a good drivere then it will be amazing to drive so, briefly, for normal driving the polo is the best (and for driving quite fast is also very good) for racing the gold r is of course the better for both the golf gti is quite good, but you won't really notice a big improvement from the polo since it only has like 40hp more, but it will be faster overall, the polo is the cheapest at around 34/35k euros for the full optional version with 18 inch wheel, but only 29k for the base version (but i strongly raccomand to buy the sport package or you won't have all the sportier feature) and by so the better option for everyone if you only care about speed and want only a VW car then buy the Golf R which, at around 65k for the full optional, is the most expensive of the three
Misha i have a heavily modified Polo AW GTI with 388Ps/568Nm Visited you twice with it for instruction 🥳👌 You can get aftermarket brake parts!! DBA (Disc Brakes Australia) T3 4000 series 312mm front. EBC Discs / EBC yellow or green stuff pads. Brake Pads Ferodo DSUno or DS2500 Hell Steel Brake lines. Currently running Motul RBF660 Brake fluid This improved a lot on stock no brakefade during my laps at the ring or other tracks.
Please check the plastic trim behind your rear view mirror. It will be slightly loose which is why you can hear a horrible vibrating noise at high rpms :)
One thing with the Mk5 Polo GTI with the 1.8 and DSG. They had to limit its torque to 250 nm because the DQ200 DSG could not handle more than 250 NM and even then, they were prone to failing with stock power output if they were run hard. The 7 speed DQ380 in the Golf GTI can handle 420 NM, but I imagine the well-established DQ250 was used in the Mk6 as it is cheaper, would handle the power better than the DQ200, and (probably most importantly) wouldn't create as much overlap and internal competition with the Golf.
Its a shame you have get an uprated clutch on these to get more power. But my god when you do it.. Mines 265bhp and around 400nm, its a pocket rocket. Just need an LSD next...
I really like the Polo but in the recent years it's started to look more like a Golf and I don't understand why is that? In the previous generations there is significant difference in the cars but nowadays is not like that. Thumbs UP for the video and explanation Misha :)👻
I get the feeling that it is all about the cost savings of using a similar platform, the Polo is really just a Golf in different clothes, too big too heavy and not at all good looking.
Thanks for the detailed insight. Just wanted you to know (as other commentators probably have already written) that the end card is obscuring what you wrote in the last few seconds of the video
Also the wheel bearings are a pain in the ass to replace in the Polo, because they´re pressed bearings. The Golf on the other hand has bolted wheel bearings, which can be changed fast and without effort.
Had the 115HP Polo AW with LED headlights, quite a beauty, but also very tight for the driver to sit in there, get in and get out....and the seats where non electric, i don't even know if such option exists. Not comfortable for long distances and the fuel consumption will be close to 6L/100. Sad but true. For ppl who are rather small, this car will be awesome, for the rest of us mortals it will be not good enough.
Just asking myself: If the chassis is good, wouldn't it be possible to upgrade the suspension? The brakes can be upgraded for sure, probably even to Golf GTI dimensions. I was interested in getting me a Polo GTI, but the conclusion here holds me back a bit. Of course the car wouldn't have a full track life with me, but stil......
I drive the 2019 edition 2hich is a massive upgrade to the previous version. Never had any if those issues and i kicked the cars butt for over 4 yrs now. When i say i kicked its butt.. i mean i kicked its butt. Only thing I can agree on is the dsg it does get sloppy and looser and a bit laggy after 100.000km of abuse
Front assist is dangerous fullstop tbh. If you're following someone on the motorway and they take an exit sometimes it'll pick up them slowing down and jam your brakes on & take you off cruise control
Yeah its definitely annoying sometimes the front assist just chooses the wrong situations to slam on the brake. It has saved me from crashing a few times though😅
You have a mistake Misha, quality at AW1 is obviously lower than 6R 6C, AW1 has lots of cheap plastic at doors and many places ,which lacks fabric as previous models and even doesn't have roof handles, refrigerated glovebox, drum brakes under 100hp models, it is pity that vw models facing many cost cutting measures today.
@@agnttgr Dear friend there are many cost cutting measures on new vw models as new polo and golf 8 too, maybe they add some equipment but quality wise they are lower than previous models, even i dont see the golf4 or passat5 quality at any vw models now.
I’ve technically got a polo. It just likes to present itself as a Skoda fabia vrs. Great little car. 45mpg, 7 speed dsg, 180bhp stock and cheap tax because it has the tiny 1.4 tsi engine. The twincharged setup is amazing to feel. You get no turbo lag and have torque early in low revs
I had a MK7 GTI and I loved the car. My biggest regret was getting one with the open differential but the price on it was hard to beat. With a tune from APR that thing was a little rocket. I managed to get a 13.7 @ 105 in the 1/4 mile spinning hard on the launch. I still miss the car a bit but now I have a 17 Cadillac CTS 2.0 awd which is much better suited for long highway cruising and it'll dance if you ask it to. Glad to learn about the polo cause I always thought it to be a good alternative. Now I see it's just not quite the same sadly.
You can get brake discs from Tarox. I have them with Ferodo Unos on NS-2Rs also on an otherwise stock Polo…no fading and great braking power. Going for mid 8s BTG I recommend some extra cooling as they will be eaten up pretty fast.
I'm running DBA Discs Front and EBC discs back. Also Ferodo DSUno/DS2500, Hell Brakelines, Motul RBF 660 Fluid on 388/568 power. Held full track day with no fade or long pedal.👌
I had a stage 2 chipped 9n3 with coilovers..... God it was fun blowing off the V8 crew... I HATE how cars get fat and bloated. 1150kgs is my limit. Hence, the 9N3... BIG shout to Ralliart Clot Turbo and XR4....you guys NEARLY won....2007 was a nice year for hot hatches
I'm considering buying a Polo GTI. Is it possible to upgrade the whole brake system with, say, the Golf GTI brakes? Same goes for other components prone to wear.
Some tune at the engine and the gearbox + suspension will make this cars better. Like a stage 2+, would make a big difference between stock car and modified.
Learned a lot here Misha so thank you for the video! I am a big fan of these cars and that EA888 engine. I get how the polo can actually be heavier than a Golf due the components used and also for your track usage the parts are just not up for the job as you would find in the Golf. I get the impression you will still stick with a German VW car as your replacement for this (Golf GTI Clubsport?) but it would be cool for you to run the MK8 Fiesta ST to see how you find it. However, I understand you may just run into the same issue with too many parts not being up for the job. Interested to know your thoughts and great video as always! 👍
They are really nice cars, much nicer to drive daily than the Golf due to the size IMO. Though they always seem to have reliability issues, i almost bought one but my neighbour owned the Gen 1 1.8t and then later the 1.4TSI and he just had endless issues with both (his 1.4T was replaced TWICE). Later he got the new 1.8T and then the 2.0T and those were better but they still have issues every now and then. Good cars but maybe a bit too high strung for hard driving or long term ownership.
Hi there, polo gti owner here. I was wondering, appart from the H&R SPRINGS (if i remember right) what other mods did u put on it and which ones do u guys recommend?
It is incredible how slow that steering rack is. VW is so stubborn at making their "sports" cars as idiot friendly as possible, and that makes them boring to drive, although technically very capable. But what surprises me the most is all the failures you mentioned, as people often take German cars build quality religiously, me as well being guilty of that, this is very difficult to comprehend as you can hear everywhere people bragging about VW build quality.
Yeah, read my comment above. It was never QUITE what I hoped for.... I had a TON more fun in my Series 1 Suzuki Swift GTI...... Minimal grunt, but like a roller skate.....and REV I missed most how the Polo always felt, sluggish.....until it was chipped. To take it where it was MEANT to be. But VW didn't want it upstaging Big Bro Golf...
Yeah I find that unlikely unless you are on the highway 99% of the time. I drive mine in a residential area mostly and I average 13l/100km. Then again I drive like a maniac😅
@@tb.mk4349 6,5L means absolutely no fun and being a little slower than the overall traffic. But wow, did not know the Polo drinks so much gasoline. Guess this "rightsizing" is not the right thing as it seems. That is not much less than a BMW 3L i6. My Fiesta uses 8,2L in daily driving with fun and pedal to the floor accelerations here and there. For 10L consumption i would need to floor it on the autobahn at 200 Kmph consistently
I just don't like the feel of driving front wheel drive cars. Only one I owned was an Acura TLX Type S. Great car for highway but too much understeer and torque steer. I'll stick with my BMWs for now for everyday and 911 for nice days.
Yeah, you can feel that pretty strong while driving. Because it´s the tuned down version of the 2.0 TSI. It has the Miller Cycle (made for efficiency and not top end power), different cam profiles and a couple of other restrictions, which make it hard for the engine to rev past 5k.
Nothing shameless about making the algorithm God's happy and collecting that sweet RUclips money. Can't wait for next seasons, and if all goes according to plan I'll get to see first hand what the Ring is all about with a certain Euro delivery of a certain RS
I will miss this polo. Misha is has to be apexes most popular rental or car the has done the most mileage in laps on the ring in the fleet? Will it be replaced by something similar
Every one buying this polo gti or 99'9 pc are not raceing car drivers and will not be raceing the car on the track so the brakes will be more than what you need and where are you going to drive over 140 ks an hour we all don,t live in germany.
Does anybody who owns polo gti 2.0 know how much weight polo gti is (1280kg or 1355kg)? I have the ibiza cupra 1.4 and im curious how much heavier is it. Every website claim different weight.
@@carcrazyguysa4059 ye I have the CAVE engine which is apparently not that reliable, but if you use it careful and do maintenance every 20k kilometers to check everything then it's safe to use or I hope so haha. Just bought mine on good conditions hope it stays like that. Edit: spelling
I have a 2021 Polo GTI mine has the adaptive dampers. I want to install lowering springs. Does anyone have experience with a GTI with adaptive dampers will I encounter issues if I install lowering springs with adaptive dampers? Is there a max drop when it comes to adaptive dampers?
@@carcrazyguysa4059 About 2,5 cm, not too much but enough to change the visual appearance of the car. If you want more drop eibah has the sportline series but not recommended for stock shock absorbers
H&R also make lowering springs. I'm running 35/35 mm The instructor from Apex said I greatly reduced body roll compared to theirs and gave more confidence. It can also make some power currently running 388ps/568Nm 😎
@@thomasgammelby9309 Wow that much power from a Polo GTI!!?😨 Stage 3? What mods? What did it cost you? 😄 I wanna know more! I heard the H&R's sit very low plus it would interfere with my adaptive dampers and adaptive cruise control. Hows the ride with the H&R's?
Had a great time learning the track in this car last year. Such a great month. Have to agree about the collision assist though, twice it caused a sketchy situation for me.
I'm convinced that collision assist causes more accidents than it prevents. Maybe that's why it's called "collision assist"
@@happybeerlove you're onto something
Thanks for this round up of the Polo. Really enjoyed all the post on this car. I've owned mine for 2 years now and it's a terrific daily driver and yet can be so fun when the moments right.
Hi Misha,
just few things that are not correct in your video. First Polo GTI is not running GOLF platform. It is MQB A0 platform which is different from regular MQB platform Golf has. Then you spoke about similar engines, but the 2.0 in the Polo is totally diferent engine from the 2.0 in the Golf. In the Polo there is 2.0TSI running in B-cycle where the golf hase regular EA888 2.0TSI engine.
Thanks for your awesome work!!!
Hence the word "similar" being used they are definitely not the same and yes the this EA888 is the gen 3b while the Golf has the 3a. Though I believe from the 7.5 the Golf is also running the Budack cycle.
I had my (modest) Eureka moment in this Polo, when driving the Nordschleife went from a scary oh shit-brake-steer-steer some more-throttle sequence to a genuine flow. All of a sudden, I could go a lot faster while feeling more confident at the same time, which had me laughing out loud the wheel. Great memories, great little car!
Polo GTI is my Daily! Open the Garage, Sit in, Start in Sportsmode, ESC Sport, Front Assist off, flying to work! …OPF free as well
What's your fuel consumption? I'm thinking to buy one
@@nessoincompleto57871L/10km average while pushing it often but not all the time
My first car was a 60hp polo 6N, so many good memories with that car… and next year we are considering giving up the clio 5s for taking up Polos at tge driving school.
60 it's the 1.4 right? I had a a 45 1.0. Made me feel like a racing driver even when driving to college since I had to give it all if I wanted to keep up with the traffic.
@@MrPlayboy28 yes it was the 1.4L 4 cylinders, they made a 3 cylinders afterwards.
@@MrTchou i also have this car and i love it the engine also makes a lot of fun
I had 75HP 6N2 2001 model for 3 years, with the 1.4 16V engine, and the car had been so great! Such a small city rat, could go anywhere, could park anywhere with no doubt. And it used to sound so badass because of the malfunctioning exhaust system 😂 even pops and bangs I used to have! still miss that little buddy.
We have just bought a Polo GTI for my wife. The base Mark 8 Golf GTI is $20000 more expensive than her Polo with optional 18" wheels and 5 years servicing.
Fun car with enough squirt and quick kickdowns on the DSG for safe overtaking manoeuvres on our roads. Most highways and motorways in NZ are 100kmh with the exception of 2 expressways that are 110kmh and so called high crash rate areas that are 80kmh.
Anthony
Stage 1 software brings it to life. 260ps/480Nm possible just software. You can really feel the massive torque increase. Shaves about 6 sec off 100-200 time.
My first car was a 2014 VW Polo, manual with the 1.2 tsi, mind you I was still in high school and that thing was an absolute rocket. I miss that little thing very day, it took me to many corners of my country, it just needed oil and regular maintenance to keep going.
Your polo has the 6speed wet clutch DQ250 gearbox and its soo much stronger from the old DQ200 7 speed dry clutch. The golfs 5/6/7 gti/R used the DQ250 for years, The FL golfs have the 7 speed wet clutch DQ381 that is more stronger then the 6speed
but other stuff You said are correct. it is a GTI but it cant handle the abuse like the Golf GTI
New FL Polo GTI has DQ 381
The braking issue at the top of the video is an issue on most of the ,Odell’s since 2012. Initial braking bite is so severe that it’s impossible to feather the brake. The good side I have 153,000 miles on original brakes. Merry Christmas to you Misha and the team at Apex!
I'm so amazed by this guy's talent of driving....His focus is crazy he can talk and drive at such high speeds.👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾
owning one for 2 years was amazing kept fully stock and gave GTIs to the Rs a run for their money on twisty roads just lacked in the straights. very well balanced.
ive got a stage 2 polo at 265bhp, it will run rings round an R, except from a stop light, i love it.
@@SpookyShaw94 haha yeah I know I had a 18 s3 at the same time and the corner speeds of the polo were much greater, it was a lease so it's gone now unfortunately have a 240i cab now summer ready lol.
@@SpookyShaw94 modified vs stock. Still prefer the r as a platform though.
@@freesyria7863 I’ve got a 6C and it honestly shocks me how quick it’ll go round corners and still feel planted. Lots of other cars feel like they’re gonna fly off the road when you push it.
having personally driven this car I can attest to its high levels of fun. sad to hear its leaving but excited for what is next!
The polo is probably the best overall car for the ring, safe, compliant but deceptively very quick!
Going to miss it very much.
Amazing how fast it is on track. The Apex polo overtook me once
Had to try hard to keep up when I had this encounter with Robert who was sending it .
I believe I kept the onboard of that one 😂
Your Polo has I believe 70 000km's on the clock and because it is driven with purpose all day every day on a track it is probably the same as 150 000km's - 200 000km's for us regualr owners. Going to miss the Polo episodes.
more like 300.000km's!
2016 Ibiza Cupra owner here. (i know i know it's not a polo) but it's pretty much the same car in a different look. have it for 3 years already and absolutely loving every minute of driving it. multiple track days a year, drive it to work everyday and overall doing about 25K km/year. 0 issues. every time someone is being skeptical about these platforms, turns out being super impressed by how much you can enjoy a "cheap to live with" car and give far more expensive cars a good fight.
as always great video misha! the polo will be missed for sure
the issues with these are the thermostat housing coolant leaks and the shite wishbone bushes that disintegrate, its made worse if you lower the car. Ive upgraded both and its been sweet ever since.
This video makes me soooooo sad and so happy at the same time.. i was supposed to have 6 laps with you the day after the the 718 crash in this car. While it was still amazing, the gearbox was a little laggy feeling.
The Fiesta ST would be a better choice to begin with. Much more playful chassis with more grip and a more characterful engine. That or the i20N would be a great addition.
Manual transmissions... For renting not idéal.
The 218 motor has proven his strength... Why not take a mini Cooper with auto trans for those who likes small cars (or Cooper s, 4 cylinder of course) ?
@@lollypop9580 I have both Fiesta ST and MINI Cooper F56 with an 1.5 3 cylinder. The Fiesta unit is much more powerful all around the rev range, but the MINI would be a great car for beginners. Apex has the 218i BMW with the same engine.
@@castroalves8843 cooper s with 2.0 not 1.5 rubbish
More characterful but slower! common knowledge now that manuals are just slower than autos… might be more fun but your gonna be in the way 😂👍🏼
Never personally owned one, but have spent quite a bit of time behind the wheel of one and they are a ton of fun. Also, that R is pretty sick.
Still such a good car for a beginner or even a pro like you guys have shown a number of times. There is a reason why it was so popular among the Apex crew. Golf must be a brilliant package too but I wonder how will it compare to the Polo in terms of an overall driving experience, not just on paper.
Hello Hamza 😉
One of the other good reason is the polo's lap Price...
@@lollypop9580 I also chose the Polo because it was the cheapest lol
well there are basically 3 version of high performance cars from VW: Polo GTI, Golf GTI and Golf R
now i've never driven a golf gti (in the past few years, but back in the days I had the 2003 model), but i've used a MK8 Golf R and a 2021 Polo GTI (the same in this video)
so well, here's my experience
the polo is probably the funniest to drive, quite small but big enough for a vacation and extremely good as a daily driver. it goes around curves and over bumps extremely easily (with the upgraded suspension in the sport package is even better), in acceleration is very fast (around 6.5 second from 0-100 kmh) and the breaking is also quite good
the golf r is the elite version of those cars, 320hp and AWD makes it faster than all the others (like 4.3 seconds from 0-100 kmh), with sligthy higher top speed (i think it's 260/270 while the polo is "only" 240). it goes around corners and over bumps extremely well, but i found it a little harder to control since the increased power, you'll have to be extremely careful when accelerating because it's way faster, especially if on sport mode. but if you're a good drivere then it will be amazing to drive
so, briefly, for normal driving the polo is the best (and for driving quite fast is also very good)
for racing the gold r is of course the better
for both the golf gti is quite good, but you won't really notice a big improvement from the polo since it only has like 40hp more, but it will be faster
overall, the polo is the cheapest at around 34/35k euros for the full optional version with 18 inch wheel, but only 29k for the base version (but i strongly raccomand to buy the sport package or you won't have all the sportier feature) and by so the better option for everyone
if you only care about speed and want only a VW car then buy the Golf R which, at around 65k for the full optional, is the most expensive of the three
Misha i have a heavily modified Polo AW GTI with 388Ps/568Nm Visited you twice with it for instruction 🥳👌
You can get aftermarket brake parts!!
DBA (Disc Brakes Australia) T3 4000 series 312mm front.
EBC Discs / EBC yellow or green stuff pads.
Brake Pads Ferodo DSUno or DS2500
Hell Steel Brake lines.
Currently running Motul RBF660 Brake fluid
This improved a lot on stock no brakefade during my laps at the ring or other tracks.
Any reliability problems with all those horses?
@@legrangedylandlg None Yet. But service the car every 10K
Please check the plastic trim behind your rear view mirror. It will be slightly loose which is why you can hear a horrible vibrating noise at high rpms :)
One thing with the Mk5 Polo GTI with the 1.8 and DSG. They had to limit its torque to 250 nm because the DQ200 DSG could not handle more than 250 NM and even then, they were prone to failing with stock power output if they were run hard. The 7 speed DQ380 in the Golf GTI can handle 420 NM, but I imagine the well-established DQ250 was used in the Mk6 as it is cheaper, would handle the power better than the DQ200, and (probably most importantly) wouldn't create as much overlap and internal competition with the Golf.
It is absolutely absurd that my 1.2 polo has the same dq200 gearbox as the 1.8 gti
The DQ200 is also a dry clutch slick as hell when it came to shifts but there is a limit on power you can get out of it. Plus its so prone to issues.
Its a shame you have get an uprated clutch on these to get more power. But my god when you do it.. Mines 265bhp and around 400nm, its a pocket rocket. Just need an LSD next...
I really like the Polo but in the recent years it's started to look more like a Golf and I don't understand why is that? In the previous generations there is significant difference in the cars but nowadays is not like that. Thumbs UP for the video and explanation Misha :)👻
I get the feeling that it is all about the cost savings of using a similar platform, the Polo is really just a Golf in different clothes, too big too heavy and not at all good looking.
@@Peakwanderer cost saving but the cars always cost more to us!! how about that
@@Peakwanderer polo looks better than the golf tbh. But still. Wish it had a distinctive look.
Thanks for the detailed insight. Just wanted you to know (as other commentators probably have already written) that the end card is obscuring what you wrote in the last few seconds of the video
you mentioned the reason I took a clio RS trophy over this :) so glad I did. Did laps and laps with zero fade and issues
I love that thing. Did forget about the front assist once which was interesting… Balance between rental price and performance was on point
Thanks for the info, very helpful to anyone interested in buying or tracking their Polo.
Great vid as always Misha.
Thanks for this summary and conclusion 👌.
The 2020 taxi lap was awesome! Thank you, almighty Polo!
Also the wheel bearings are a pain in the ass to replace in the Polo, because they´re pressed bearings. The Golf on the other hand has bolted wheel bearings, which can be changed fast and without effort.
Exactly. Showed it yesterday
Had the 115HP Polo AW with LED headlights, quite a beauty, but also very tight for the driver to sit in there, get in and get out....and the seats where non electric, i don't even know if such option exists. Not comfortable for long distances and the fuel consumption will be close to 6L/100. Sad but true. For ppl who are rather small, this car will be awesome, for the rest of us mortals it will be not good enough.
We love vw polo. Too bad they do not release three-door versions.
Just asking myself: If the chassis is good, wouldn't it be possible to upgrade the suspension? The brakes can be upgraded for sure, probably even to Golf GTI dimensions. I was interested in getting me a Polo GTI, but the conclusion here holds me back a bit. Of course the car wouldn't have a full track life with me, but stil......
I drive the 2019 edition 2hich is a massive upgrade to the previous version. Never had any if those issues and i kicked the cars butt for over 4 yrs now. When i say i kicked its butt.. i mean i kicked its butt.
Only thing I can agree on is the dsg it does get sloppy and looser and a bit laggy after 100.000km of abuse
Front assist is dangerous fullstop tbh. If you're following someone on the motorway and they take an exit sometimes it'll pick up them slowing down and jam your brakes on & take you off cruise control
Yeah its definitely annoying sometimes the front assist just chooses the wrong situations to slam on the brake. It has saved me from crashing a few times though😅
Oh No!!!
I was really planing to rent this Polo when I can visit Germany....
Sad to hear.. :(
But I can understand...
Goodbye Polo ~
I’m so mad that we don’t get the Polo in Canada :(
If the US & Canada got this car there would be so much more content, support and parts for this car! Its probably because the US is crazy about SUV's😑
You have a mistake Misha, quality at AW1 is obviously lower than 6R 6C, AW1 has lots of cheap plastic at doors and many places ,which lacks fabric as previous models and even doesn't have roof handles, refrigerated glovebox, drum brakes under 100hp models, it is pity that vw models facing many cost cutting measures today.
6R/6C and AW is day and night difference. Unfortunately 6R/6C is a box of shit compared to AW
@@agnttgr That is why 6R/6C was many times wrc champion but aw is only daily driver.
@@m.keremdal569 you have nothing in common between race version of 6R and road car, don't kid yourself
@@agnttgr Dear friend there are many cost cutting measures on new vw models as new polo and golf 8 too, maybe they add some equipment but quality wise they are lower than previous models, even i dont see the golf4 or passat5 quality at any vw models now.
I’ve technically got a polo. It just likes to present itself as a Skoda fabia vrs. Great little car. 45mpg, 7 speed dsg, 180bhp stock and cheap tax because it has the tiny 1.4 tsi engine. The twincharged setup is amazing to feel. You get no turbo lag and have torque early in low revs
Oil consumption ok ?
@@lollypop9580 no worse than any tsi / tfsi
Nice video. You can disable front assist without turning traction control off as well
True. But for that you need to go in the menu. That takes way too long. TC is not that important on this car, except for wet conditions maybe.
Next time let that Clio pass almost at the end of the lap Misha…
megane
I had a MK7 GTI and I loved the car. My biggest regret was getting one with the open differential but the price on it was hard to beat. With a tune from APR that thing was a little rocket. I managed to get a 13.7 @ 105 in the 1/4 mile spinning hard on the launch. I still miss the car a bit but now I have a 17 Cadillac CTS 2.0 awd which is much better suited for long highway cruising and it'll dance if you ask it to. Glad to learn about the polo cause I always thought it to be a good alternative. Now I see it's just not quite the same sadly.
Yep the lack of LSD on the front really holds these back
You can get brake discs from Tarox. I have them with Ferodo Unos on NS-2Rs also on an otherwise stock Polo…no fading and great braking power. Going for mid 8s BTG I recommend some extra cooling as they will be eaten up pretty fast.
I'm running DBA Discs Front and EBC discs back. Also Ferodo DSUno/DS2500, Hell Brakelines, Motul RBF 660 Fluid on 388/568 power. Held full track day with no fade or long pedal.👌
I had a stage 2 chipped 9n3 with coilovers.....
God it was fun blowing off the V8 crew...
I HATE how cars get fat and bloated.
1150kgs is my limit. Hence, the 9N3...
BIG shout to Ralliart Clot Turbo and XR4....you guys NEARLY won....2007 was a nice year for hot hatches
I'm considering buying a Polo GTI. Is it possible to upgrade the whole brake system with, say, the Golf GTI brakes? Same goes for other components prone to wear.
Loved your insight
Some tune at the engine and the gearbox + suspension will make this cars better. Like a stage 2+, would make a big difference between stock car and modified.
Learned a lot here Misha so thank you for the video! I am a big fan of these cars and that EA888 engine. I get how the polo can actually be heavier than a Golf due the components used and also for your track usage the parts are just not up for the job as you would find in the Golf. I get the impression you will still stick with a German VW car as your replacement for this (Golf GTI Clubsport?) but it would be cool for you to run the MK8 Fiesta ST to see how you find it. However, I understand you may just run into the same issue with too many parts not being up for the job. Interested to know your thoughts and great video as always! 👍
We're getting two Golfs! :)
🤩
@@mgcharoudin Do you concider the Fiesta though? its hot hatch pur sang..
@@none-id3lj I Never understood why they not have one in the fleet. 😭
They are really nice cars, much nicer to drive daily than the Golf due to the size IMO. Though they always seem to have reliability issues, i almost bought one but my neighbour owned the Gen 1 1.8t and then later the 1.4TSI and he just had endless issues with both (his 1.4T was replaced TWICE). Later he got the new 1.8T and then the 2.0T and those were better but they still have issues every now and then. Good cars but maybe a bit too high strung for hard driving or long term ownership.
I absolutely hate the ps4 in the dry. The sidewall is way to soft. Love them in the rain.
Hi there, polo gti owner here. I was wondering, appart from the H&R SPRINGS (if i remember right) what other mods did u put on it and which ones do u guys recommend?
Excellent video! Just found it.
It is incredible how slow that steering rack is. VW is so stubborn at making their "sports" cars as idiot friendly as possible, and that makes them boring to drive, although technically very capable.
But what surprises me the most is all the failures you mentioned, as people often take German cars build quality religiously, me as well being guilty of that, this is very difficult to comprehend as you can hear everywhere people bragging about VW build quality.
Yeah, read my comment above. It was never QUITE what I hoped for....
I had a TON more fun in my Series 1 Suzuki Swift GTI......
Minimal grunt, but like a roller skate.....and REV
I missed most how the Polo always felt, sluggish.....until it was chipped. To take it where it was MEANT to be.
But VW didn't want it upstaging Big Bro Golf...
The fuel consumption is actually great with this Polo! I drive around 6,5L/100km with this car (normal usage)
Please tell me how mate. I'm getting 10l/100km
Yeah I find that unlikely unless you are on the highway 99% of the time. I drive mine in a residential area mostly and I average 13l/100km. Then again I drive like a maniac😅
@@carcrazyguysa4059 Don’t drive like maniac haha, if I drive sporty the consumption goes easily over 10L/100km
My all time record is 4.5l/100km on highway tempomat on 100km/h with my ‘20 OPF GTI Polo ;)
@@tb.mk4349 6,5L means absolutely no fun and being a little slower than the overall traffic.
But wow, did not know the Polo drinks so much gasoline. Guess this "rightsizing" is not the right thing as it seems. That is not much less than a BMW 3L i6.
My Fiesta uses 8,2L in daily driving with fun and pedal to the floor accelerations here and there.
For 10L consumption i would need to floor it on the autobahn at 200 Kmph consistently
I just don't like the feel of driving front wheel drive cars. Only one I owned was an Acura TLX Type S. Great car for highway but too much understeer and torque steer. I'll stick with my BMWs for now for everyday and 911 for nice days.
🤣😂🤣🤪
Did you see the Clio 3 RS in your mirrors?
A bit of resonance from the engine just above 5.000 rpm?
Yeah, you can feel that pretty strong while driving. Because it´s the tuned down version of the 2.0 TSI. It has the Miller Cycle (made for efficiency and not top end power), different cam profiles and a couple of other restrictions, which make it hard for the engine to rev past 5k.
Wat voor maten velgen en banden zitten er onder, een vriend is ook opzoek maar voor een polo is het een drama😅
It's a great fun daily driver but not a track day car unfortunately. A real shame as it's so capable.
Nothing shameless about making the algorithm God's happy and collecting that sweet RUclips money. Can't wait for next seasons, and if all goes according to plan I'll get to see first hand what the Ring is all about with a certain Euro delivery of a certain RS
I like the part when he said iii 8:35
I will miss this polo. Misha is has to be apexes most popular rental or car the has done the most mileage in laps on the ring in the fleet?
Will it be replaced by something similar
i watched this at 2x ... i felt like he was going to die in every corner
What's that noise, is the exhaust broken?
For brakes racingline just presented the front big brake kit
DBA (Disc brakes Australia) & EBC also make aftermarket parts.
Sad to see the Polo go, but I think I learned a thing or two before I (hopefully) bring my energetic orange 2018 Polo 1.0 95hp next year 😎👍
Every one buying this polo gti or 99'9 pc are not raceing car drivers and will not be raceing the car on the track so the brakes will be more than what you need and where are you going to drive over 140 ks an hour we all don,t live in germany.
Wasn't Robert looking to run a fleet of these at one point?
Does anybody who owns polo gti 2.0 know how much weight polo gti is (1280kg or 1355kg)? I have the ibiza cupra 1.4 and im curious how much heavier is it. Every website claim different weight.
ahh sad to see it go. but it couldn't hack it really.
Good video
Rimac ON NURBURGRINGGGGGG
What about the new Polo?
Wow, the polo got big!
get a ST180 hahaha Hugeeee amount of aftermarket parts available and dirt cheap
I30 Apex car ?
Great car for trackdays. Check my onboard with this car at local track in Poland.
More videos using this camera angle please.
Can you do same review on a 340i 2018 model
time for a Mini JCW added to the fleet
Would be a nice one, but too niche
Whats your opinion on the polo 1.4 twincharged gti ?
I had one before my current car, its an amazing first GTI but horrible reliability especially 2010 to 2012 models😑
@@carcrazyguysa4059 ye I have the CAVE engine which is apparently not that reliable, but if you use it careful and do maintenance every 20k kilometers to check everything then it's safe to use or I hope so haha. Just bought mine on good conditions hope it stays like that.
Edit: spelling
It looks like it's a fast car.
About the adrev mark: isn't it at 8 min now?
Yes, but 10 is still next level 🤣
would you recomend it as a daily driver tho ?
I have a 2021 Polo GTI mine has the adaptive dampers. I want to install lowering springs. Does anyone have experience with a GTI with adaptive dampers will I encounter issues if I install lowering springs with adaptive dampers? Is there a max drop when it comes to adaptive dampers?
No problems here with adaptive dampers and eibach pro kit springs
@@ltr87 Awesome! I hate the factory stance of the car😄 Whats your drop?
@@carcrazyguysa4059 About 2,5 cm, not too much but enough to change the visual appearance of the car. If you want more drop eibah has the sportline series but not recommended for stock shock absorbers
H&R also make lowering springs. I'm running 35/35 mm The instructor from Apex said I greatly reduced body roll compared to theirs and gave more confidence. It can also make some power currently running 388ps/568Nm 😎
@@thomasgammelby9309 Wow that much power from a Polo GTI!!?😨 Stage 3? What mods? What did it cost you? 😄 I wanna know more!
I heard the H&R's sit very low plus it would interfere with my adaptive dampers and adaptive cruise control.
Hows the ride with the H&R's?
Bye bye Polo!
Buy a alfa giulia qv
So , Golf 7 GTI is better at all))
Draaaaaaama!
Bubyee 👋🏽
So much false information..
This is built on the Golf platform?