PoloDriver

Five months in, how is Rich Gooding adjusting to life with his 10 year-old Polo GTI? The first mileage milestone has passed, and the car has recently been pressed into daily service…

In my last report, I hinted that there could be some seasonal goodies on the way for Y464 GHJ, and as I was clearly a good boy, the festive period heralded new front and rear badges (the old badges’ red ‘I’s had been painted with nail polish due to fading), new locking wheel bolts, new plastic wheel bolt covers, and a full complement of 1980s-tastic black, red-trimmed carpet mats. Very GTI. The locking wheel bolts have been fitted (annoyingly taking some paint off the wheels on the outside edge of the bolt holes due to the old ones being rung), as has the front badge and the carpet mats. I’ll very carefully apply the rear badge when it’s a little warmer. New numberplates in Volkswagen factory holders tidy up the outside, too.

First ten thousand-milestone passed, and I’m still enjoying spending time with Y464. Since the last report in December, I’ve taken a job at a local design agency, which means that the car now gets driven almost daily, covering just under 40 miles on a return trip. It’s the perfect commuting distance – just enough to make it manageable, and not take too much of a toll on the car. Along minor A-roads with some corners which could quite easily catch you unawares, Y464 is proving an able, comfortable, and relaxing travelling companion, and a 70,000-mile reading has just rolled over (or whatever the digital equivalent is) on the odometer.

Some would say that comfortable and relaxing is not what a hot hatch should be about. And they’d be right of course. But, the car can also do the sporting thing, too. It picks up pace quickly – the engine note growling as the revs are increased – and is a tidy handler through the tight corners which make up my cross-country route from Essex to the border of east Hertfordshire. Though not as engaging as modern machinery (or some old machinery for that matter), a 2001 Polo GTI is engaging enough. For this driver anyway. Saying that, I can see why contemporary reviews stated that the GTI was more of a faster Polo and not a GTI.

Daily use is also now revealing some impressions of what it’s like to live with, too. The recent cold spell of weather has seen the air-conditoning come into its own, and after years of living with a car with just a three-speed fan (I dug out my 1994 168,000-mile Polo GT coupé recently to take some potential sales photos, above), it’s a revelation. Shame that the usual faultless Volkswagen interior ergonomic spark failed to ignite when the designers came to lay out the air-conditioning controls in the cabin. Inherited from the Lupo, placed low on the centre console, drivers have to take their eyes off the road for a split second when adjusting the fan speed, temperature (the GTI has digital climate control) or windscreen air flow – far from ideal…

Another foible is that the gearbox can be a little notchy when cold, getting smoother and easy to slot into its five ratios once the oil’s warmed through. The heated windscreen washers have also failed to work recently, though with temperatures dipping well below zero most days, that’s not necessarily a fault of the car. Finally, the boot light is very laissez-faire about when it wants to come on, suggesting a faulty microswitch. But, it’s working at the moment, so, fingers crossed it stays illuminating. You don’t realise how much you miss it until you don’t have it. Overall, though, five months in, Y464 is proving to be a fuss-free ownership proposition.

Two race-quailty boost hose kits for the Polo GTI 6R have recently been added to Forge Motorsport’s tuning parts catalogue. Based on the original specification items, Forge’s silicone woven fabric reinforcement hoses are easy and direct replacements over Volkswagen’s official parts, and can tolerate higher boost pressures and temperatures, as well as a longer life. They can be ordered black, blue, or red, and will also fit the 1.4 TSI Audi A1 TFSI, SEAT Ibiza Cupra/Cupra Bocanegra and Skoda Fabia vRS (twin-charged models only). Prices start at £111.30 excluding VAT for the four-hose kit, while the complete kit retails at £160.97 excluding VAT. For more information, visit the Forge Motorsport website.

In the latest issue of Volkswagen’s digital magazine ‘Das.’ the Polo GTI is captured on camera by German photographer Uwe Breitkopf. The seven stunning images feature a Shadow Blue three-door out on the streets, and the dynamic angles really catch the spirit of the small tearaway Volkswagen. With CGI used to complement the car, Breitkopf sates that, ‘Instead of revealing every detail, high contrast and a reduced colour code gives the images a strong and powerful graphic composition, inspiring the imagination.’ See the set of fantastic images for yourself at www.volkswagen-das.co.uk/#/spectacularview where you can also subscribe for future issues of the interactive magazine.

Three months ago, Rich Gooding bought a 10 year-old Polo GTI, a (some would say much-needed) more modern foil to his 1994 Polo GT coupé. Is the new relationship in still in its first flush, or is the honeymoon period well and truly over?

I still can’t quite believe that I’m driving something so much newer than the small 18 year-old hatchback (despite what VW say, the Mk 2 Polo coupé is a decidely usual hatchback shape) that has been part of my life for the last 12 years. The first three months with Y464 GHJ have largely been spent getting to know the car, and, as a freelance graphic designer, have been spent on the UK’s A-road and motorway network. Buying the car must have been an omen; little did I know at the time of purchase that I’d be regularly spending time driving to jobs. Something which in the elderly coupé, while enjoyable, would have been much less relaxing.

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Performance braking systems manufacturer Tarox has released details of its ‘Motorsport’ kit for the 6R Polo GTI, which will also fit SEAT Ibiza Cupra and Skoda Fabia vRS models from 2010 onwards. The company states that each kit is manufactured in the company’s Italian factory, and is based around race-proven B30 six-piston billet calipers, and uses two 323mm heat-drilled discs which come in either ‘F2000’ (grooved) or ‘Sport Japan’ (drilled and grooved) options. The rotors are made from European high carbon casts, meaning the disc will withstand much greater heat without distortion.

All the Tarox kit’s components bolt onto Volkswagen’s OEM mounting points, and also integrate with the car’s original ABS system. The Tarox conversion also has a weight saving of over 1kg per corner, and ‘Strada’ street, or ‘Corsa’ circuit pads can be specified. Everything is included in the B30 6 550×366 kit, which comprises of all fittings, all-braided stainless steel race-quality lines and fluids. All are covered under a lifetime guarantee. For more information on the Tarox range, visit http://en.tarox.com/.