77tsi thoughts

[bizarre]

Does she want a manual??

[cappuccino]

Most of the issues in the news relate to the diesel models and DSG models pre 2012.

If you want to be safe get the petrol, I think petrol is better, better drive and fuel efficiency is still very good.

In terms of the DSG gearbox, they changed from the Q200 to Q250 model on 2012 builds onwards, this is why the recall is for up to 2011 builds. The latest builds are not being recalled. Id imagine they are actually replacing the Q200 gearboxs with Q250, at least the mechcanronics.

Now cant say the latest gearbox may not have issues given its only been in production for a year, but you can imagine they would have worked out most of the problems.

To be super safe, get a manual petrol.

I went for the comfortline 77TSI DSG petrol late 2012 build, did have a issue with limp mode kicking in when at the lights, but a software update has since fixed it. No problems since them.

I was prepared to take the risk of DSG since it was updated in 2012 model and there does not seem to be as many reports of issues with it like pre 2012 builds.

You do have 5 year warranty now on gearbox and engine, the whole drive train. just get from good dealer who will do warranty repairs without a fuss. Denlo Parramatta are pretty good, they replaced my friends gearbox once, and turbo three times under warranty no fuss no charge on his 2011 build. Some dealers may fob you off or try to charge. understandable if VW does not want to pay dealer to do repair. i think each dealer has different relation with VW depending how big they are / important to them.

BTW, dont get base model, get comfortline at the least, you want that turbo and things like steering controls.

[alexaescht]

In terms of the DSG gearbox, they changed from the Q200 to Q250 model on 2012 builds onwards, this is why the recall is for up to 2011 builds. The latest builds are not being recalled. Id imagine they are actually replacing the Q200 gearboxes with Q250, at least the mechatronics.

Now cant say the latest gearbox may not have issues given its only been in production for a year, but you can imagine they would have worked out most of the problems.

To be super safe, get a manual petrol.

They're actually using the same DQ200 as before, just with revised clutch plates, mechatronics and software. If they were using the DQ250 then yours would be a 6-speed and I can guarantee that yours isn't.

As for the rest of your post, I agree with the 77 TSI Manual combo – the DSG's are risky and the TDI's can be problematic (at least for us).
If we were ever to buy another Polo, we'd go for the 77 TSI manual for sure.

[Sword_Dude]

have had a 77TSI manual for 2 years, great car.

there are zero recall issues with petrol manual so go for it so don't be concerned with the latest hype.

[Barracuda]

TBH if I was looking for a runabout and not the performance of the GTI I'd be checking out the Yaris first. Toyota reliability and $130 capped price servicing. Although the Swift Sport is tempting for something Japanese, peppy and a fair bit cheaper than a GTI.

The Yaris may be reliable and cheap to maintain but life suddenly becomes so depressing when you step inside the interior of one. Hard Plastics... Hard Plastics Everywhere! They also have the same level of driving refinement as a tractor.

[JonP01]

TBH if I was looking for a runabout and not the performance of the GTI I'd be checking out the Yaris first. Toyota reliability and $130 capped price servicing. Although the Swift Sport is tempting for something Japanese, peppy and a fair bit cheaper than a GTI.

This advice is dubious in my opinion. I have test driven the current model Yaris and there is no comparison whatsoever between the Yaris and Polo. The Polo is significantly more refined and the performance is in a different class. The Yaris may go nicely at low to middle throttle openings but like so many small NA engine cars, when you need to floor it the throttle tends to act more like a volume control than anything else. This is completely in contrast to the 77TSI where when you floor it, the performance is actually there. My mother owns a Yaris and I drive it regularly. Once you get above 80 kmh, the performance difference between the Yaris and Polo becomes even more marked. As for the interior, the Yaris has a large quantity of plastics that have a cheap appearance, a hard feel and a particularly annoying reflective texture on the dashboard that makes driving distracting due to the reflections from the sun.

I don't think you can assert the capped price servicing argument either, since the Yaris still requires 2 services per year whilst the Polos currently for sale have capped price servicing and also only require a once-per-year service.

I would also question Yaris versus manual 77TSI reliability - the 77TSI manual seems to be one of the better cars from the VW group from what I have seen. As a family that has both a Yaris and a Polo in the garages, I can say that both have been faultless, though the Yaris has been off the road for a few recalls and disappointingly needed an expensive brake service after just 30,000 kms (brakes had begun to "bite" and were not consistent in feel). The body of the Yaris also loosened up considerably over the first year whereas my Polo's body feels as tight and taught as the day I took delivery of it.

As for the Swift Sport, whilst you describe the performance as "peppy" (seemingly to imply the 77TSI isn't) - there is very little difference between the stock 77TSI and Swift Sport in performance. Wheels has them about 0.4 second apart and I don't consider this to be a huge difference. And of course if one is inclined towards aftermarket ECU tunes, then the 77TSI becomes superior to the Swift Sport since it is difficult to legally get the same power increases from the Swift engine as it would be the VW turbo engine especially at a comparable price. Also, the 77TSI Polo can be optioned with the Sports Pack, at which point Wheels magazine describes it as a sub-GTI. The Swift Sport has also been criticised for things such as the gear change action whereas that of the Polo is flawless and feels superb.

[yokom46]

This advice is dubious in my opinion. I have test driven the current model Yaris and there is no comparison whatsoever between the Yaris and Polo. The Polo is significantly more refined and the performance is in a different class. The Yaris may go nicely at low to middle throttle openings but like so many small NA engine cars, when you need to floor it the throttle tends to act more like a volume control than anything else. This is completely in contrast to the 77TSI where when you floor it, the performance is actually there. My mother owns a Yaris and I drive it regularly. Once you get above 80 kmh, the performance difference between the Yaris and Polo becomes even more marked. As for the interior, the Yaris has a large quantity of plastics that have a cheap appearance, a hard feel and a particularly annoying reflective texture on the dashboard that makes driving distracting due to the reflections from the sun.

I don't think you can assert the capped price servicing argument either, since the Yaris still requires 2 services per year whilst the Polos currently for sale have capped price servicing and also only require a once-per-year service.

I would also question Yaris versus manual 77TSI reliability - the 77TSI manual seems to be one of the better cars from the VW group from what I have seen. As a family that has both a Yaris and a Polo in the garages, I can say that both have been faultless, though the Yaris has been off the road for a few recalls and disappointingly needed an expensive brake service after just 30,000 kms (brakes had begun to "bite" and were not consistent in feel). The body of the Yaris also loosened up considerably over the first year whereas my Polo's body feels as tight and taught as the day I took delivery of it.

As for the Swift Sport, whilst you describe the performance as "peppy" (seemingly to imply the 77TSI isn't) - there is very little difference between the stock 77TSI and Swift Sport in performance. Wheels has them about 0.4 second apart and I don't consider this to be a huge difference. And of course if one is inclined towards aftermarket ECU tunes, then the 77TSI becomes superior to the Swift Sport since it is difficult to legally get the same power increases from the Swift engine as it would be the VW turbo engine especially at a comparable price. Also, the 77TSI Polo can be optioned with the Sports Pack, at which point Wheels magazine describes it as a sub-GTI. The Swift Sport has also been criticised for things such as the gear change action whereas that of the Polo is flawless and feels superb.

Awesome response, thanks for taking the time to do that.

Thanks to everyone else as well, the information is reassuring.

Yeah it will be a manual for those asking.

[Barracuda]

This advice is dubious in my opinion. I have test driven the current model Yaris and there is no comparison whatsoever between the Yaris and Polo. The Polo is significantly more refined and the performance is in a different class. The Yaris may go nicely at low to middle throttle openings but like so many small NA engine cars, when you need to floor it the throttle tends to act more like a volume control than anything else. This is completely in contrast to the 77TSI where when you floor it, the performance is actually there. My mother owns a Yaris and I drive it regularly. Once you get above 80 kmh, the performance difference between the Yaris and Polo becomes even more marked. As for the interior, the Yaris has a large quantity of plastics that have a cheap appearance, a hard feel and a particularly annoying reflective texture on the dashboard that makes driving distracting due to the reflections from the sun.

I don't think you can assert the capped price servicing argument either, since the Yaris still requires 2 services per year whilst the Polos currently for sale have capped price servicing and also only require a once-per-year service.

I would also question Yaris versus manual 77TSI reliability - the 77TSI manual seems to be one of the better cars from the VW group from what I have seen. As a family that has both a Yaris and a Polo in the garages, I can say that both have been faultless, though the Yaris has been off the road for a few recalls and disappointingly needed an expensive brake service after just 30,000 kms (brakes had begun to "bite" and were not consistent in feel). The body of the Yaris also loosened up considerably over the first year whereas my Polo's body feels as tight and taught as the day I took delivery of it.

As for the Swift Sport, whilst you describe the performance as "peppy" (seemingly to imply the 77TSI isn't) - there is very little difference between the stock 77TSI and Swift Sport in performance. Wheels has them about 0.4 second apart and I don't consider this to be a huge difference. And of course if one is inclined towards aftermarket ECU tunes, then the 77TSI becomes superior to the Swift Sport since it is difficult to legally get the same power increases from the Swift engine as it would be the VW turbo engine especially at a comparable price. Also, the 77TSI Polo can be optioned with the Sports Pack, at which point Wheels magazine describes it as a sub-GTI. The Swift Sport has also been criticised for things such as the gear change action whereas that of the Polo is flawless and feels superb.

Couldn't have put it better myself. Spot-on description!

[brad]

The "Polo is better than the Yaris" is an expected response from a VW forum but it's a fair comment.

One of my work colleagues has a Yaris that he bought at the same time I bought my Octavia. (Bare with me, I realise an Octy isn't a Polo - More like a Golf Highline). He's a parsimonious type & took great delight in telling me about his capped price servicing for the first 3 yrs. Then we worked out what difference that would make for me doing my 25,000km/pa. For the Yaris - 7.5 services in 3 years. For the Octy 5 services. So it was like ~$975 & me was like ~$1750. He does 15,000km/pa so it was 6 yaris to 3 Octy = $780:$1050. So, if you do lots of km the cost difference can be significant.

Offsetting this, I average 6.7L/100km out of a remapped engine that has ~135kw/315nm compared to his 7.5L/100km with much lower power/torque.

The Octavia also has a lot more features (a few missing as well).

And yes, my Octavia is a much nicer place to do the mileage in.

PS: The dampers in the Polo are shockers. The spring control is negligable. This is easily fixed for about $1000 in parts & ~3 hrs labour.

[cappuccino]

They're actually using the same DQ200 as before, just with revised clutch plates, mechatronics and software. If they were using the DQ250 then yours would be a 6-speed and I can guarantee that yours isn't.

As for the rest of your post, I agree with the 77 TSI Manual combo – the DSG's are risky and the TDI's can be problematic (at least for us).
If we were ever to buy another Polo, we'd go for the 77 TSI manual for sure.

yeah i knew the gearbox was the same, they just updated the clutch plates, mechatronics and software. do they still call the updated version 200? out of interest, is there a different model between the previous and revised version?

definitely, 77TSI manual is the safest option, but you know, if you can't drive manual or your partner is no good with manual, might not have an option but get the DSG. Manual in the hands of a terrible manual driver is probably worse than a DSG. At least a DSG will be covered under warranty.

remember, when dealing with warranty / dealers, if they can blame it on you, they will. If you drive a DSG, its a bit hard to say 'you broke it because you don't know how to drive', can't exactly get putting the car into Drive wrong?

But being a manual, they will say something like, you don't know how to use the clutch and charge you for repairs if things go wrong.

So i think with manuals, VW or other, you do have to be a good manual driver hahaha... otherwise get a DSG or car with normal automatic transmission.

correct me if i'm wrong, but fewer and fewer cars will have a automatic box, most are moving to a dual clutch of some form. The japanese cars are probably the few left with automatic box. fords are dual clutch i think now.