Just looking for a little advice as I convinced my flatmate to pit a new VW Polo ($21k) against an '08 Toyota Corolla ($15k) or a '08 Golf ($21k).

Money is tight enough, so she's only really looking at the entry level 3 door auto. It's the 1.4 so she's concerned over power, only having 3 doors and of course the depreciation. What do you guys reckon?