By Miles Downard
What is it?
Prior to the whole VW emissions scandal I would have said that this was VWâs attempt to keep all the greenies in Europe and the US happy. A small little city runabout, streamlined and efficient-ised by the very best of Germanyâs engineers â but if you ask US authorities they aren’t so good at being green, nor cheating. Nevertheless this Bluemotion Polo sets out to be the benchmark little petrol runabout when it comes to frugally sipping at the fuel tank while keeping all those nasty greenhouse gases at bay.
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On the outside
Well obviously it looks very much like your average Polo. Only that there are little hints here and there about the carâs green-credentials. The front bumper for example has been closed up to reduce unnecessary drag. Itâs been lowered for the same reason â and there are underbody panels to keep it slippery too. Then there are the all-important âBluemotionâ badges to let everyone around you know that you care.
On the inside
Since thereâs not much about the interior that can lead to you using more fuel, VW has stuck to the things youâll normally find inside the basic Polo. That means itâs all very well put together and feels like a quality product. Ergonomics are top class â which is just fancy-talk for the fact that everything is where youâd expect it and itâs all easy to use. My only gripe is that the seats are a bit bench-like, which may become tiresome on a long trip.
Behind the wheel
Thereâs a new three cylinder 1.0 litre petrol unit for the TSI Polo Bluemotion, with a five speed manual âbox. Itâs good for 70kW and 160 Newtons. Keeping things efficient this Polo gets low-rolling resistance tyres and longer gear ratios. A stop/start system, regenerative braking and a gear-change indicator for the driver are all there to help conserve fuel.
The combination is actually quite pleasant. Some of these overstretched 1.0 turbo motors are quite awful, but not this one. And it achieves the task of being frugal. The claimed figures of 4.2l/100km are perhaps a little out of reach but its not far off. It’ll also only emit 97g/km of CO2, well below the South African threshold for carbon tax of 120g/km. That means you aren’t funding Mr Zuma and his family friends by way of carbon tax and you’re paying less in fuel levies than you might otherwise.
On the road its comfortable enough and will do the job of getting you from A to B without incident. Those low resistance tyres means it doesnât stick to the road quite like your average Polo; but if youâre buying the Bluemotion itâs unlikely youâll be driving in such a manner anyway. Power delivery is smooth too, unlike a lot of small capacity turbo’d cars and there’s not much need to stir the gearbox to get a move on either.
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Pricing
The Bluemotion predictably comes at a premium to the equivalent Polo. Itâs R244,000 odd which might sound expensive but actually itâs there or thereabouts when you look at so-called competitors. Only that there arenât any direct competitors because no-one else does an âefficientâ model. Bear in mind VW will make you pay for extras that others wonât, though.
Verdict
Iâm not sure if us South Africanâs are quite in the same space as the Europeans and Americans when it comes to buying green cars. In those places thereâs huge focus on green everything; cars, lifestyles, power sources. Here weâre just happy to have power, even if it does come from coal guzzling stations. But if youâre that way inclined then this Polo Bluemotion is just about your only option â and fortunately itâs a perfectly acceptable one at that.
Price: R 243Â 800
Engine: 999cc 3 cylinder turbo petrol
Power (kW): 70
Torque (Nm): 160
Fuel Consumption (l/100km): 4.2
Service: 3yr/45,000km service plan
