77tsi thoughts

[JonP01]

Honestly, I have a feeling it will come down to the Ford or the Polo

I remember testing driving both of these cars on the same day. The Ford felt nice to drive but I did not like the dashboard layout (too "sci-fi" for my taste) and the seats were not as nice as those of the Polo. Although the performance of the Ford was very nice compared to my old Mazda 2, when I stepped into the Polo from the Ford, the Polo in performance terms was a step up yet again - it had an effortless "big car" feel about it that the Ford lacked. The Polo salesman was complaining that I was too light-footed during the test drive so directed me to turn into a side road with a very steep hill. After seeing how effortless it got up a hill compared to everything else I had test driven that week, it was the final thing to clinch the sale. I also did not agree with all the comments I had read about the Ford's steering being better - I thought the Polo steering was better.

But after driving the Yaris, Corolla, Fiesta, i30 Petrol, i30 Diesel, Accent Petrol and Polo TSI in the space of a week, I ranked the Polo at the top, followed by the Fiesta, Yaris, Accent, i30 Petrol, Corolla with i30 Diesel last (poor performance and as refined as a Government Bus). Had the petrol Hyundai Accent not suffered from a throttle stutter in first gear between the closed position and just-open position (making it very jerky at very slow speeds in traffic), I would have actually rated it between the Polo and Fiesta - it was surprisingly good and with the 14 inch wheels was very comfortable on our crappy roads).

Incidentally, I see you had the Mazda 2 on the list. After putting up with an incredibly noisy Mazda 2 for 6 years and reading that Mazda cars were still noisy even in 2012, I gave the brand a miss. Even the current Mazda 3 was measured as considerably noisier than competing cars in a recent tets and it is a class up in size and refinement from the Mazda 2. I only recommend Mazdas to people who are either deaf or are not offended by Heavy Metal music played at Heavy Metal volumes. Apart from that, I also wanted to get rid of my old Mazda because of the completely gutless performance - I had to wring the heck out of it to do anything at all. Given the new Mazda 2 has even less power and torque than my old one, I would be surprised if you could put up with a Mazda 2 after driving the Polo TSI.

[Diesel_vert]

Thanks for your input.

The fiat500 was considered but alas, the version that falls in her price range is (in my opinion) a tier down performance wise. And while performance isn't the main focus for her, 50 odd kw simply isn't enough for the motorway.

Honestly, I have a feeling it will come down to the Ford or the Polo, but she'll have a fun day testing them all anyway

Cheers guys, will let you know what she decides

The Fiat 500 1.2 is 130 kg lighter than the VW Polo 1.4 and nearly $3000 cheaper

(The Polo 1.4 and 500 1.4 costs $17k, with the Polo TSI and 500 TwinAir costing $19k).

I'd also say the 500 is a bit of an antidote for the Polo's looks!

I've also read that the 1.2 8v, although not fast, is a sweet engine and has feels more torquey down low compared to the 1.4 16v in everyday driving. Despite the paper figures, if it were me, I'd still go for a test drive.

[TSI_Dan]

Oh geez don't remind me about Mazda 2 comparisons, my mother has a 2006 one. Feels a massive step back and well, it is considering how cheap they are going these days! Fidgety ride, wobbely steering at highway speeds. But it certainly is more fun punting it around traffic sichanes than any Yaris. Plus the fuel economy isn't close at all to my 77TSI... and the dash creaks and bangs over bumps are horrid! However, 120k plus so far with the only issue being a snapped engine mount. Also, the piston slap and/or valve rattle when cold is hilarious!! Did yours have that Jon? I'm told that perhaps 1 in 10 get it and its "normal", sigh it is an old engine.

[Barracuda]

what do you think of the Powershift? worse or better than DSG in terms of drive and issues?

Drove one when I was in the UK and it was horrible! Not just saying that, it was honestly so rough in gear changes an very unrefined compared to the DSG.

[Hillbilly]

I went to take a Mazda 2 for a test drive and couldnt get the seat far enough back to be able to drive it so that ended that.

Also the door pillar was so far back my long legs needed folding up to get them in LOL

Whilst the Polo isnt huge it is easier to get into and has a lot more leg room than the Mazda 2.

[Rubbadub]

Drove one when I was in the UK and it was horrible! Not just saying that, it was honestly so rough in gear changes an very unrefined compared to the DSG.

Must have been a dud. My wife has a Powershift Fiesta, and it gets confused a lot less than the DSG. Not as clever, I grant you, but hardly "rough".

[Barracuda]

Must have been a dud. My wife has a Powershift Fiesta, and it gets confused a lot less than the DSG. Not as clever, I grant you, but hardly "rough".

It was a rental car in London so you may have a point

[JonP01]

Oh geez don't remind me about Mazda 2 comparisons, my mother has a 2006 one. Feels a massive step back and well, it is considering how cheap they are going these days! Fidgety ride, wobbely steering at highway speeds. But it certainly is more fun punting it around traffic sichanes than any Yaris. Plus the fuel economy isn't close at all to my 77TSI... and the dash creaks and bangs over bumps are horrid! However, 120k plus so far with the only issue being a snapped engine mount. Also, the piston slap and/or valve rattle when cold is hilarious!! Did yours have that Jon? I'm told that perhaps 1 in 10 get it and its "normal", sigh it is an old engine.

Well, to be honest I hated my Mazda 2. I did everything I could to avoid having to drive it - pretty much everything you mention was the case with mine too, especially the creaks, rattles, groans, horrible ride, etc, etc. The only thing that was different with mine was the steering - it was very good and precise all the time, however not up to Polo standards (but better than a 2006 Yaris whilst being as good as the 2012 Yaris which went electric assisted). But I also agree that the Mazda 2 did handle better than my mother's Yaris and was actually quite good only in the circumstance where you could find an ultra smooth, absolutely perfect condition, high speed road with lot's of twists and turns (I think I found such roads only a couple of times in the whole 6 years I owned it).

The engine in mine certainly was even more unpleasant when cold than warm and it did definitely did get worse over time - but then again the exact same thing happened with the engine in my previous 1996 Laser over time. Also, the clutch feel got worse over time in the Mazda - it got grabby, vibrated and was inconsistent, especially when cold.

It was such a world away in quality compared to the Polo that in hindsight I think I would have been better off keeping the Laser for 16 years and then going from it to the Polo. But back in 2006 there was nothing like the selection of decent light cars around that there are today. Of the ones truly worh considering, there wasn't a whole lot more than a Mazda 2 and Yaris. Most of the other ones did not have sufficient dealer / distributer / service support (i.e Fiat Punto - the dealer was out of business by 2007, Peugeot - no dealer anywhere remotely close to me, Renault Clio - same problem, dealer went out of business soon after, etc).

Anyway, knowing how both the 1996 Laser and 2006 Mazda 2 deteriorated over time, it will be interesting to see how the Polo feels after about 60,000 kms, which is when the Mazda in particular really did begin to feel truly second-hand in the worst sense.

[yokom46]

Well we spent Saturday looking around and have to say it came down to the ford and polo.
The rest were all buckets of ****.

She purchased her flash red 77tsi with a comfort pack and will be ready for pick up on Wednesday afternoon.
19.4k

Good price imo

[Hillbilly]

Well we spent Saturday looking around and have to say it came down to the ford and polo.
The rest were all buckets of ****.

She purchased her flash red 77tsi with a comfort pack and will be ready for pick up on Wednesday afternoon.
19.4k

Good price imo

Manual or DSG???