Volkswagen Polo Trophy tested

By RIZAL JOHAN | 19 November 2015


VW Polo Trophy (14)


The Volkswagen Polo Trophy takes its inspiration from the World Rally Championship (WRC).

So if the names Sebastien Ogier and Jari-Matti Latvala mean anything to you, well then the Polo Trophy should be an exciting proposition.

For those who don’t follow WRC, the Polo Trophy offers something the standard Polo does not and it may well pique your interest. After all, both Polos are similarly priced at RM89,888 (base price without insurance).

Ogier and Latvala by the way, are drivers for Volkswagen Motorsports in WRC. And so is Andreas Mikkelsen.

Volkswagen have been crushing the competition ever since taking part in WRC in 2013.

VW Polo Trophy (12)


In that year alone Volkswagen won both the driver’s and manufacturer’s championship.

And they are still clocking in some of the fastest times of late, which prompted Volkswagen to come out with the Polo Trophy, a nod to the dominating WRC team.

Of course, the rally drivers have been behind the wheel of the Polo R world rally car, now in its second generation.

The Polo Trophy, limited to 100 units and hatchback variant only, shares almost everything with the standard Polo hatch with the exception of a rear spoiler, gloss black wing mirror, window tint, WRC-inspired side and bonnet sticker and the Blaupunkt Philadelphia 835 seven-inch touchscreen head unit with navigation, Bluetooth, USB and AV connectivity.

VW Polo Trophy (6)


For a WRC-inspired car, Volkswagen played it real safe with the decals and the wing.

The former highlights the blue and gray Volkswagen colours and the latter is hard to notice it’s there at all.
If the decals and wing were aggressive, then it would turn a lot more heads.

It doesn’t have to be at the level of the Polo R rally car by any means but a little bit of aggression would have suited it better.

At the moment it’s just a blue stripped Polo.

I don’t have a wishlist like “Oh I wish they had tuned the engine or the exhaust or put in a bigger set of wheels and rims and bucket seats blah blah blah”.

What Volkswagen have done with the Polo Trophy is practical, I especially like the head unit, but aesthetically, it doesn’t scream WRC. Other than that, I enjoyed the car very much.

VW Polo Trophy (5)


It’s a fun car to drive and because its WRC-inspired I engage the gear shifter to manual while my imaginary co-driver recites the pacenotes, “4 left over crest, long; 5 right, slippy, don’t cut.”

Not that I was driving like a rally driver.

I’m no terror on the tarmac and most importantly, it’s very dangerous and against the law to be driving like that.
It’s just the feeling I get out of driving this car.

Under the hood, it features the 1.6=litre MPI four-cylinder engine mated to a six-speed automatic producing 105PS at 5,250rpm and 153Nm of torque at 3,800rpm.

VW Polo Trophy (16)


That’s enough grunt for a front-wheel drive hatch plus the steering is responsive and it has good brake bite.

The legroom is a little tight in the back but it’s spacious enough to carry your friends and family around.

The best thing about the Polo Trophy is the entertainment unit which has the navigation, Bluetooth (although the glaring microphone placed just in front of the instrument panel is clearly an afterthought) and USB, iPod connectivity adds convenience and value to the car.

Now, it’s time to watch more WRC.


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Overview

Styling
70%
Comfort
70%
Performance
70%
Safety
70%
Value
60%

CarSifu's Rating: 6.8