Volkswagen Polo

[aruljothi]

The Volkswagen Polo was always the car you wanted if you found all the other superminis a bit too interesting. It was about the most coldly rational product out there. The Germans loved it. But in Britain we like a bit more fizz to our small cars, so we've been buying Fiestas and Clios and 207s. But even though the Polo is a bit of a stiff here, the Golf flies off the shelves. VW people have an interesting analysis of this. The way they see it, in the mid-size hatch market, rationality plays a bigger part: Golf buyers have families and mortgages. Supermini buyers haven't got to that stage, or they've passed it and want to forget its privations. A supermini is all about me.

The success of the Golf in Britain shows that the comparative failure of the old Polo is nothing to do with the dealers or the brand. It's about the car. So the car needed to change. But the success of the old Polo in Germany means they didn't want to change it too much for fear of causing a fright.

So while the Polo has a new look, it's hardly turned itself into an Extreme Makeover freakshow. You won't find the crazy-busy face of a 207, the cod-supercar noodlings of a MiTo, the wedginess and surface entertainment of a Fiesta or the armadillo profile of a Corsa. It looks more grown-up, though whether you think that's a good thing in a small car is up to you. Certainly the new Polo is a beautifully proportioned and detailed piece of work. The horizontal grille and mild shoulders have a faint echo of the Scirocco. This has the effect, once you've seen a few Polos go by, of making you think the Scirocco is a fabulously exaggerated piece of shaping.

Inside, VW plays to its strengths. There's nothing too elaborate, but the whole fascia is executed with lush materials and watchmaker's tolerances. There's some scratchy plastic on the doors, mind, and some of the nice brushed-alloy trim comes only if you shell out for the top spec.

But it's not all about design. VW's powertrains have been steadily climbing to the top of the heap these past few years. To prove the point, two extreme Polos are launched next year: at one end of the scale the GTI with the 1.4 twincharger (turbo- and super-) and an optional seven-speed DSG, and at the other end a brand-new 1.2 diesel in a  Bluemotion. It'll have the eco-smarts to certify at just 87g/km. I drove a prototype and it's a surprisingly normal car, though as usual with these things I didn't get near the quoted economy number.