OD Garage: 15,000km with the Polo GT TSI
It took some consideration but I finally decided to go with the Polo GT instead of the super efficient Grand i10 for my weekend getaway to Goa. Sheer driving ease and pleasure won over lower fuel costs. Vaishali who was driving the car before me was complaining about the brakes juddering so I had the car looked at by VW before I left. The Lower Parel service centre assured me that the brakes simply needed cleaning but I soon discovered the judder was back when braking at highway speeds. Nevertheless the car is now due for service so the issue should be taken care of.
On the highway the GT is an absolute pleasure. She can reach speeds of up to 150kmph with ease but I preferred staying in the lower three digits. Over the eleven hour drive I found the car very comfortable and we hit Goa feeling pleasantly fresh. My only issue was that the seats could provide better lumbar support. The 7 speed DSG is nothing short of brilliant and she automatically downshifts on downhills (even in Drive mode) to give you useful engine braking. Reversing up steep and narrow Goan roads was effortless thanks to the hill hold and I couldn't think of any small car that I'd have rather been in over the weekend.
I have recently discovered that modern turbo petrol engines have the scope to be quite efficient if driven with a restrained right foot. However fuel efficiency also drops alarmingly if you drive the car hard. It's something I discovered with our long term A-Class and also something my father is discovering with his new EcoBoost powered EcoSport. Case in point - Fast but smooth driving with about 25 per cent throttle and plenty of coasting on the highway gave me 13.9kmpl on our drive. However we have seen that figure drop below 8.5kmpl on the trip computer with aggressive and hard driving. Drive smoothly and the GT rewards but get heavy on the throttle you will be duly chastised.
The GT TSI is fast approaching the 15000km mark while the drivetrain runs sweet and there are a few rattles surfacing from the cabin. Hopefully that and the brakes should be sorted out at the next service