A New Volkswagen Polo has just been launched on the Irish market and it will be a formidable player in the ever-competitive supermini segment, accounting for 30 per cent of all new Irish car sales. The new fourth generation car is, almost predictably, bigger than its predecessors: the distinctive twin circular lamps at the front make it look like a grown-up Lupo. Most important of all, there's no way of mistaking the new Polo for anything other than a VW.
That's the reassurance that a lot of existing Polo owners want. "We expect to sell 5,000 to 6,000 Polos this year, or around 3 per cent of the total new car market," says a confident Bob O'Callaghan,Volkswagen's managing director here. The car's broad appeal is strengthened by the choice of three and five-door hatchback versions with three petrol and two diesel engines.
Petrol models begin with a 1.2 litre three-cylinder 55 bhp three-door version at €14,120 ex-works. Other three-door petrol models have 1.2 litre three-cylinder 12-valve 65 bhp and 1.4 litre four-cylinder 16- valve 75 bhp engines at €14,525 and €15,625 ex-works respectively. Diesel models have 1.9 litre 64 bhp eight-valve SDI and 1.4 litre 75 bhp three-cylinder six-valve TDI PD engines with respective ex-works prices of €16,955 and €18,310.
The three and five-door cars look different. The three-door models come with a coupé-style rear window, while the five-door is the first Polo to have a third side window, a design feature which emphasises its extended dimensions.
Standard features include power steering, front and side airbags, electronic brake pressure distribution, rear headrests, storage drawers under the front seats, cup holders, electric mirrors, height adjustable front seats and split-folding rear seats - they expand load space from 270 to 1,030 litres.
ABS is an extra, almost €1,000. For those buyers seeking enhanced specification levels, then it's a matter of Trendline or Comfortline. The fully galvanised body comes with a 12-year warranty against rust perforation, while service intervals are now at 20,000 miles.
Tom O'Connor, Volkswagen's sales manager, sees the bulk of new Polo sales - 65 to 70 per cent - being taken up by the 1.2 litre three-cylinder petrol cars. The Polo has been a big volume seller with seven million produced, and around 45,000 still doing duty on Irish roads. Nevertheless it has had an on-off relationship with the Irish market in the past.
Tom O'Connor remembers that it wasn't marketed here between 1982 and 1987: then it was built in Germany, but today its manufacturing base is in Spain. Seven million cars on, it comes to us with the simplicity of euro pricing, which does remind us that we pay more for it here than in any other euro-zone country.