Volkswagen Polo 1.6 Highline Petrol - User Experience Review

Polo is the cheapest car in Volkswagen’s stable but delivers highly in terms of its fit and finish as well as build quality, both inside and outside. The interiors feel well appointed and solidly built. It immediately gives you the confidence that even the tiniest of stuff wouldn’t start falling apart and that it is built to last. The steering wheel is nice to hold, though I still fancy it to be wrapped nicely in leather. The clocks are backlit in red while the audio system screen is blue, making for a quite sophisticated feel in the cabin at night, in tune with the more expensive Volkswagens like the Passat and Jetta.

The Polo feels absolutely German on the inside. It is well built, we appointed and to the point. There is no designer flair, just solidity in its build and this is more than enough to keep you delighted. The layout of the dash is very simple but comes with a high quality feel. There are plenty of places to stow your things around the cabin. The cup holders in the front are nice and big enough to hold large cola servings while the bottle holders on the front door too can accommodate regular one-litre bottles. The Polo’s steering wheel is adjustable for both rake and reach, this feature being standard across all variants. The driver’s seat is adjustable for height and the Polo’s ergonomics can be fiddled with to suit most body frames.

The backseat isn’t exactly the place to be in the Polo.

Although there is decent space at the back for two individuals, the Polo can’t be termed as spacious exactly. Moreover, the transmission tunnel protrudes a bit too much in the cabin adding up to the woes of the third passenger squeezed in the middle. The Polo has been designed primarily for the European market where rearseat isn’t that important in a small car. People requiring space always have an option of buying a bigger station wagon unless restricted by a budget, and that’s a rarity. The Polo however is pretty practical courtesy its 60:40 split rear seat and decent boot space.

The standard car comes with beige fabric seats as opposed to our test car that has faux leather seat covers available as an optional extra. Although it seats two persons at the back in reasonable comfort, the transmission tunnel protrudes a bit too much in the centre making it really uncomfortable for the third person squeezed in the centre. Even the seat back angle feels a bit too upright for comfort. But this also accounts for useable space in the Polo’s boot. There is 294 litres of bootspace on offer and couple that to 60:40 split rear seat, the Polo can prove to be a practical choice for urban nuclear families and single, young drivers. On the safety front, there is ABS and two airbags on offer.

Although I’m quite satisfied with the features on offer in the highline variant, I’m still left with wanting few things that make life a bit easier behind the wheel. Talking of the steering wheel, it would’ve been nice if it had controls for the stereo. The rearview mirrors too could’ve done with electric adjustments. The audio system plays only MP3/CDs and although it sounds pretty decent, I strongly advocate at least an AUX port functionality, if not USB connectivity in this age of iPods and iPhones. 

Also check:

VW Polo 1.6 Design Review

VW Polo 1.6 Performance Review