When did you get your car and why did you pick it?
I bought my Volkswagen Polo BlueGT in September 2021, to replace my almost 20-year-old Polo GTI after it got written off – going to a car enthusiast event, ironically – in June of that year after 10 years of careful, almost fanatical ownership. PO10 RPG is my sixth Polo in 32 years, and follows three ‘sporty’ models, the most distinctive of which was a Zender body-kitted Polo Coupé S, which was rare in the UK.
I was initially thinking about another Polo GTI – with the occasional wayward consideration of a Smart Roadster, however, I also needed a car that would be reliable for ferrying me to new car launches – and although the budget dictated a fifth-generation Polo ‘6R’ from 2009 onwards, the BlueGT chose itself. Engine issues with the early supercharged and turbocharged 6R GTIs steered me towards the BlueGT, which, while down in power by 40bhp compared to the 178bhp GTI, shares a similar specification.
Southern Group happenings: October 2024
Produced from 2012-2017, the BlueGT also has cylinder deactivation technology which shuts down two cylinders under light engine loads, meaning it can return high-50s mpg. The tech also reduces emissions to an official 107g/km which currently qualifies it for £20 a year road tax at the time of writing, compared to over £200 for the GTI. The near-perfect balance of power, economy and potentially lower running costs handed the BlueGT an easy victory. I’d also road tested one for a week when it was new, so knew a little about what it offered.
However, as it’s a rare-ish car, there are only around 80 cars on nationwide sale to pick from on the used market at any one time. My car was first registered in March 2014. Candy White wouldn’t have been my first choice of colour but as the car had the optional multifunction steering wheel, rare factory sat-nav, and anthracite alloy wheels, it was more appealing than a ‘standard’ model.
And the registration plate? That was a purchase inspired by fellow Southern Group member Stuart Bird, who questioned why the car hadn’t been fitted with a ‘PO10…’ number plate, as I now owned a car new enough to have one, and I am known for having a longstanding – and unexplainable – Polo fetish. Well, now it has!
Happiest memory of driving your car, and where?
I still need to do a ‘proper’ road trip in the Polo, but to be honest, I love driving it anywhere, whether it’s trips around town, longer distance trips, or to the local Takona Coffees & Cars meet.
One memorable trip was a fuel economy run around the roads of Essex in summer 2023. The Layer Marney Cup attracts all sorts of old and new four-wheeled machines, and is an annual distance fuel economy trial which uses a tulip symbol navigation book with checkpoints along the way. My partner Nik and I had entered before, in his 1974 Volkswagen T2 camper van, and a long-term Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV and Suzuki Swift Hybrid that I had been custodian of, but this year, purely out of curiosity, I wanted to see what the Polo would do.
A careful right foot coupled with the cylinder deactivation tech brought results, and to my utter surprise, we came first! Recording 84.4 tonne miles per gallon (the car’s weight is taken into account, along with the economy), the Polo finished ahead of a 1995 Honda Prelude VTEC and a 2020 Ford Focus. To say I was chuffed is an understatement and it goes to show how good the cylinder deactivation technology is, marrying 7.8-second 0-62 performance with economy when you need it.
What are the best and worst things about owning your car?
One aspect I’ve always enjoyed about owning a Volkswagen is the level of build quality. My BlueGT is no different. It’s now almost 10 years old, but still feels so solid, with interior quality and finishes that would shame many newer cars. And as I’ve already mentioned, it’s performance/economy dual-character also never fails to impress.
As for the worst thing, from an individual car quirk, my car’s optional sat-nav unit installation messes with the official ‘aftermarket’ Bluetooth set-up Volkswagen chose to equip the cars with. The dash-top unit is the default, meaning the phone function on the bigger infotainment screen of the head unit can’t be used. Annoying. The fact that it looks fairly similar to a ‘normal’ Polo is either a good or bad thing depending on your viewpoint, while the Polo’s reputation as being a bit ‘boring’ also irks me sometimes. But then again, it kind of reflects the person I am – I like to think I’m really sporty, but in reality, I’m probably not as sporty as I think…
If you had to give your car a review rating, how many stars (from five) would you give it?
Honestly, if you hadn’t already guessed, I think highly of the BlueGT, and would probably give it a 4.5 out of 5 star rating.
In 2015, in Autocar’s review of the Polo BlueGT, it said “visually it doesn’t shout ‘look at me’ like some small hot hatches do, but, depending on your perspective, that’s no bad thing.”
I do agree, despite also saying before it blends in with other Polos a little too easily. It’s a handsome car, though, with slightly enlarged front wheel arches to cover the Golf R32-like 17-inch wheels, a rear spoiler (with BlueGT-specific rear window aero blades, always a tell-tale) and front bumper shared with the Polo GTI. The side skirts are borrowed from the Polo BlueMotion eco special, the other car along with the GTI that the BlueGT is supposed to take attributes from. You have to be a bit of a geek to spot a BlueGT, but once you’ve seen the vibrant blue alcantara and grey ‘leather’ interior, you’ll be in no doubt as to what it is!
What’s the best or worst thing someone has said about your car?
The day I collected the car, I posted images of it on X, formerly Twitter, and the general response was very favourable. Most people recalled their previous ownership, with comments stating what a lot of fun it is, and how they loved theirs – ‘A brilliant daily’, ‘Awesome’, ‘A cracker’. Before I’d even collected it, a colleague replied to an image I’d posted saying it would look great after a proper detail, and he was right!
