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Volkswagen Polo

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Volkswagen Polo Review, For Sale, Colours, Interior, Specs & News

Volkswagen first introduced the Polo back in 1996 as a small, city-based hatch, meant to fill the hole left by the growing Golf.

Since then, it's gone through four generations, with more modern features and sharper pricing that starts off at $29,490 with the Polo Life, the city-friendly, five-door hatchback is able to keep up with its rivals. With a range of small, turbocharged engines, the Polo offers stronger performance than the city cars of old as well. 

Volkswagen's famed Polo GTI completes the line-up at $40,390.

Volkswagen Polo Q&As

Check out real-world situations relating to the Volkswagen Polo here, particularly what our experts have to say about them.

  • The gearbox on my 2016 Volkswagen Polo has failed

    The seven-speed DSG transmission in your car is a known trouble-spot and has caused lots of grief for owners over the years. Failures can occur in the clutch-packs, the electronic control units or the gearsets themselves and, once the failure has occurred, it's usually time for a whole new transmission.

    Mechanics can often become a bit jaded when they see multiple failures of the same component, but in this case, they're probably right. Your problem then becomes one of the cost of repairs being more than the repaired car is worth.

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  • Oil pressure issues in a Volkswagen Polo TSI

    You could well be on the right track here. Many cars with transmission coolers place them in the car's radiator so that the liquid that cools the engine, also cools the transmission. But if the transmission cooler fails, that can allow transmission fluid into the car's coolant system which might account for the oil you're seeing in your coolant bottle. Many mis-diagnose this as a blown head gasket because the outward symptoms are very similar.

    If this is the case, the bad news is that coolant has probably also entered the transmission potentially wrecking the mechanical parts and frying the electronic bits.

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  • My Volkswagen Polo TSi 1.4 is mixing water and oil which is then coming out through the exhaust

    None of these symptoms are what you want to find. Any car mixing its coolant with its engine oil has some kind of internal failure (often a head gasket failure) and a car that is consuming oil at a fast rate is also probably suffering some kind of internal damage or wear. Have a mechanic perform a few basic tests on the engine (compression, leak-down and head-gasket) and proceed from there. But if it's as bad as it sounds, you could be looking for a new engine (or a new car).

    These engines were known for being quite complex and perhaps not as durable as they should have been in some cases. They're also quite expensive to rebuild and may cost more to fix than the entire car is worth. At that point, you have some tough decisions to make.

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  • The oil level in my Volkswagen Polo Vivo drops slowly and there is oil in my water bottle

    Assuming you're looking at the coolant catch-bottle and not the windscreen-washer fluid bottle, this is probably a bad thing. Any time the car's engine coolant can mix with its oil or vice-versa, there's a chance that the cause is a failed head gasket or perhaps even something more serious like a split cylinder bore.

    But don't just assume that any contamination in the coolant is engine oil. It could be something else from another source. Does the engine oil look milky on the dipstick? If it does, then that's almost certainly due to coolant being mixed with it, and that backs up the failed head gasket theory. The other thing I'd like to know is how fast the engine oil level is dropping. Some oil use is normal for a car's engine, so simply watching that level fall over a few thousand kilometres and presuming it's going into the coolant is a long shot to say the least. It sounds like you need to have the car's cooling system pressure tested and the engine compression tested. That's the best way to put and end to the guessing game.

    By the way, is your car a South African-bult VW? From what I can gather only South Africa got a model called the Polo Vivo which featured a few country-specific features and details and was very well received by buyers in that part of the world.

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See All Volkswagen Polo Q&As
Disclaimer: You acknowledge and agree that all answers are provided as a general guide only and should not be relied upon as bespoke advice. Carsguide is not liable for the accuracy of any information provided in the answers.

Volkswagen Polo Models Price and Specs

The price range for the Volkswagen Polo varies based on the trim level you choose. Starting at $29,490 and going to $40,390 for the latest year the model was manufactured. The model range is available in the following body types starting from the engine/transmission specs shown below.

Year Body Type Specs Price from Price to
2024 Hatchback 1.0L, —, 7 SP AUTO $29,490 $40,390
2023 Hatchback 1.0L, —, 5 SP MAN $22,660 $43,010
2022 Hatchback 1.0L, PULP, 5 SP MAN $15,400 $42,130
2021 Hatchback 1.0L, PULP, 5 SP MAN $14,410 $34,650
2020 Hatchback 1.0L, PULP, 5 SP MAN $13,970 $34,100
See All Volkswagen Polo Pricing and Specs

Volkswagen Polo Colours

  • Pure White
  • Energetic Orange
  • Reef Blue
  • Reflex Silver
  • Deep Black Pearl
  • Limestone Grey
  • Flash Red
To confirm current colour availability, please check the manufacturer's website. Shown above are the colours for the Volkswagen Polo 2019.

Volkswagen Polo Dimensions

The dimensions of the Volkswagen Polo Hatchback vary according to year of manufacture and spec level.

Year Body Type Height x Width x Length Ground Clearance
2024 Hatchback 1450x1751x4080 mm 136 mm
2023 Hatchback 1450x1751x4080 mm 136 mm
2022 Hatchback 1446x1751x4053 mm 147 mm
2021 Hatchback 1446x1751x4053 mm 147 mm
2020 Hatchback 1446x1751x4053 mm 147 mm
The dimensions shown above are for the base model. See All Volkswagen Polo Dimensions

Volkswagen Polo Wheel Size

The Volkswagen Polo has a number of different wheel and tyre options. When it comes to tyres, these range from 185x65 R15 for Hatchback in 2024.

Year Body Type Front Tyre Size Front Rim Rear Tyre Size Rear Rim
2024 Hatchback 185x65 R15 185x65 R15
2023 Hatchback 185x65 R15 185x65 R15
2022 Hatchback 185x65 R15 185x65 R15
2021 Hatchback 185x65 R15 185x65 R15
2020 Hatchback 185x65 R15 15x5.5 inches 185x65 R15 15x5.5 inches
The dimensions shown above are for the base model. See All Volkswagen Polo Wheel Sizes

Volkswagen Polo Fuel Consumption

The Volkswagen Polo is available in a number of variants and body types that are powered by — and PULP fuel type(s). It has an estimated fuel consumption starting from 5.4L/100km for Hatchback /— for the latest year the model was manufactured.

Year Body Type Fuel Consumption* Engine Fuel Type Transmission
2024 Hatchback 5.4L/100km 1.0L 7 SP AUTO
2023 Hatchback 5.4L/100km 1.0L 5 SP MAN
2023 Hatchback 5.4L/100km 1.0L PULP 5 SP MAN
2022 Hatchback 5.4L/100km 1.0L 5 SP MAN
2022 Hatchback 5.6L/100km 1.0L PULP 5 SP MAN
2021 Hatchback 5.6L/100km 1.0L PULP 5 SP MAN
2020 Hatchback 4.8L/100km 1.0L PULP 5 SP MAN
* Combined fuel consumption See All Volkswagen Polo Pricing and Specs for 2024

Volkswagen Polo Interior

Shown above are interior details for the Volkswagen Polo 2020.

Volkswagen Polo Seats

The following Volkswagen Polo is available with five seats, including a 60:40 split folding rear seat configuration. The Trendline variant comes with Titanium Black cloth upholstery. The Comfortline variant is available with Titanium Black Comfort cloth upholstery. The Style variant is available with Titanium Black Comfort Sport cloth upholstery with Grey accents. The GTI variant comes with GTI ‘Clark’ tartan sport cloth as standard, with Art Velour Microfleece/leatherette seat upholstery available as an optional extra.

Volkswagen Polo Seats
Shown above are seat details for the Volkswagen Polo 2019.

Volkswagen Polo Towing Capacity

The Volkswagen Polo has maximum towing capacity of 1200kg for the latest model available.

Year Body Type Braked Capacity from Braked Capacity to
2024 Hatchback 1000kg 1200kg
2023 Hatchback 1000kg 1200kg
2022 Hatchback 1000kg 1200kg
2021 Hatchback 1000kg 1200kg
2020 Hatchback 1000kg 1200kg
See All Towing Capacity for Volkswagen Polo