PoloDriver

Last month, Rich Gooding’s Polo GT Coupé passed its MoT, but only just. This month, there’s been more tinkering and a much-needed part-service

I hadn’t realised I’d neglected the car for so long. It was only when I thought about things and asked myself when the last service was, that it dawned on me that 2006 was probably the last time when a basic tinkering took place. And although only 13,000 miles ago, that’s far too long, especially for a 16 year-old car. It might have been later than that of course, but I neither had anywhere to work on it or have kept the service book up to date since then.

So last weekend, I set about rectifying the neglect. A basic part-service with easily-changeable items was the order of the day and a quick trip to our local branch of German Swedish and French yielded a set of new spark plugs, a new set of ignition leads and a new air filter. The journey was an insight in itself; the car was spluttering all over the place and almost stalled at two junctions. It felt more like a carburettor-engined car than a fuel-injected one, and brought back memories of driving my earlier Series 2 Polos.

The feeling was almost that of a misfire, something which I’ve experienced a lot this last winter. Damp conditions don’t make for smooth running at the moment, and even the inside of the car complains with iced-up windows, no doubt due to perishing seals. Opening the bonnet and taking the old ignition leads off diagnosed the problem. Some of the tips were oxidised and although not too bad a degree, the cloudy green ends that were once copper were no doubt the cause.

The plugs were much healthier and – according to the Haynes manual – signified that the 160,000-mile engine was in good order, the ends covered with a slight brown tint. The air filter wasn’t bad either; so much so I’ve kept it for now. All in all though, it’s amazing what results refreshing the most basic items can make. The car now feels transformed and is much, much smoother and no longer complains about the damp mornings or evenings. Only the heated rear window connector, front foglight bracket and passenger footwell leak to sort out before the summer…

Watch out for a basic service workshop feature coming soon.

Costs this month: £41.15 (ignition lead set £24.50; set of Bosch WR6DC+ sparkplugs £10.40; air filter £6.25)

(All parts prices are subject to VAT.)

Respected motoring weekly Autocar has posted an online first drive of the new Polo 1.6 SEL TDI today. The five-door model with costs £15,775 and mates the the range-topping engine to the top-of-the-tree trim level. The sportier three door is £600 less. The 89bhp model is both the most powerful oil-burning Polo in the UK and the most expensive model in the current range. Summing up, Autocar states, ‘Diesel gruffness aside, this is an economical and refined supermini with the legs to cover distances in downsized comfort.’

Continental buyers can also choose a 104bhp TDI version of the same engine in Comfortline and Highline specifications. Volkswagen currently has no plans to bring this engine to the UK.

Yes, we know it was announced at the end of November last year, but the new Polo is now officially European Car of the Year 2010 after an awards presentation on Monday evening at Volkswagen’s spiritual home, Wolfsburg. Chosen by a jury consisting of 59 motoring journalists from 23 countries, the prestigious award was handed to Martin Winterkorn (above left), Chairman of the Board of Management of Volkswagen AG by Håkan Matson, Chairman of the Jury Committee for Car of the Year.

Winterkorn paid tribute to Volkswagen employees in his acceptance speech: ‘It takes a great team to build winners like the Polo. I am proud the Volkswagen Group has such a strong and motivated team that has made the Polo with its cutting-edge technology, quality and safety affordable for everyone.’

The Car of the Year 2010 gong is just one of many titles – both in the Europe and the UK – that the new Polo has collected since its market launch last summer. Also awarded five stars in the latest round of Euro NCAP crash tests, the fifth-generation Polo is available with a choice of four petrol and three diesel engines. The new Polo BlueMotion 1.2 TDI is also currently the world’s most economical five-seater, and with 87g/km of C02 (left-hand drive models only), the one with the lowest emissions, too.

Simon Kimber’s last update on his 1991 Polo GT Coupé concerned suspension surgery, where the car’s tired old Weitec dampers finally gave up like the proverbial ghost and had to be replaced. How have the new replacements been?

A few thousand miles have now passed under the wheels and I think it’s safe to say that the Konis which now occupy the Weitec’s previous homes in the wheel arches are pretty good considering they were the only option available. The performance is progressive and neither overdamped or too soft.

This set-up actually suits what is being asked of the car day to day, whether it be speed humps (of which I encounter many during a week’s driving) or having to deal with the snow and ice we all experienced a few weeks ago. That’s the GT, there, on the right nearest the camera in the picture above.

I don’t know about you, but I find that I treat the snow and ice as my own personal playground and there are certainly benefits to having an nineteen year-old Polo. One of those is that there is no room for airbags or ABS/traction control electrickery and the car will actually pull away in third gear without any complaint.

Not having all this modern-day wizardry is actually more of an incentive to stay on the slippery stuff, as even ABS can be made to look a bit of a fool sometimes and not even ESP is completely immune from the odd Bambi moment! Long may the bodywork of your Polo be undamaged in this weather and may the traffic always be behind you and not in front…

Costs this month: £0

VW’s newest one-make series is still in its new-born stage, but the publicity campaign for the Volkswagen Polo Cup India 2010 is hotting up with the release of two new shots showing the profile and rear view of the race car. Along with the first publicity photo (above), the full extent of the Volkswagen Design-penned aerodynamic modifications can now be seen. The ground-hugging body kit, lowered ride height and wider tracks make the car appear tougher and ready for India’s motorsport circuits. The Volkswagen Polo Cup India 2010 will be run by Volkswagen India Motorsport in conjunction with JK Tyres and the 129bhp 1.6-litre TDI racers take to the track for the first race on 30 May.