Category: Superminis 
Price Range: £12,460 to £12,960
2005 restyle has brought looks up to date, quality feel inside and out, space, safety equipment, ride and handling, interesting engines, aura of rational Volkswagen-ness.
Mediocre performance from some engines, expensive.
The Polo falls short on few measures, but some supermini rivals do the job better, and for less.
All Polos have anti-lock brakes with electronic brake-force distribution, plus two front and two side airbags. Curtain airbags are available as an option. Emergency brake assist and an electronic stability program are standard on cars with higher-powered engines, optional otherwise. Rear head restraints are standard, but you have to pay extra for a third one and its accompanying three-point belt. A neat built-in rear child seat is also on the options list.
There's an immobiliser, as in all new cars, and the doors have deadlocks.
Latest Readers' Drives About the Volkswagen Polo
wrote on 03 03 2008
wrote on 29 05 2006