Faults:

Wire from battery to starter solenoid rotted through where the terminal is crimped on at the solenoid. £5 repair by auto electrician still holding up.

General Comments:

Bought this car as it's got no extras except electric mirrors. So less to go wrong. 99.9% reliability over 4 years ownership - it has to be a good car!Only fault has been the wire to the solenoid which caused little inconvenience and certainly didn't let me down on the road. It's a lovely long legged cruiser- comfortable to a point -I wish the seats were a little plusher -I get lower back discomfort on a long drive, but it's OK for a 2-3 hour stint before a break becomes necessary. Has averaged 60mpg overall this drops 4-5 mpg in very cold weather and I've had a one off best of 73.03mpg. The engine appears bullet proof and uses no oil between services. I always fill the tank when low using the trip meter to measure mileage covered. It gets pretty hot in the summer (no A/C) but in winter has a powerful heater than distributes warmth without stuffiness.

Faults:

At around 10000 miles the E C U was causing some splutters running of the engine, took the car to VW and they replaced the e c u. A known fault with this model. Has run fine since.

General Comments:

As my second car. I found it to be an ideal students car. Average performance, not a hot hatch, but nippy enough to beat most modern warm hatches.

Handling is set more for comfort as with all Volkswagens, but the Michelin tyres supplied ensured you stayed on the road and went round the corners without effort.

Economical, manual suggests 270 miles per £30 tank of fuel I could get 340 from it. Doing long journeys.

Faults:

Nothing has gone wrong since I have owned the car, it passed it's MOT fine last month.

General Comments:

This build quality of this car is fantastic - it is solid as a rock, though you do tend to feel the bumps in the road!!

My Polo has driver and passenger air bags, first class safety features for a bottom of the range car of this age.

The only bad points I can think of is no central locking or alarm, they have fitted electric heated mirrors as standard - I would much rather have electric windows or central locking.

This is my first cat and I can't complain at all, 100% reliable, easy to drive with power steering, built to last.

Faults:

Heated rear window failed shortly after purchase. Replaced under warranty.

Front disc brakes replaced at 15,000 miles due to corrosion.

Car would not start at 26,500 miles due to failed ignition switch. Rescue service could not find fault so towed to dealer.

General Comments:

Comfortable ride and seats, but front seats need more side support, particularly as car rolls quite a lot when cornering.

Very economical - 40 plus mpg; main dealer servicing costs also reasonable (plus they offer a free yearly MOT test if you continue to have the car serviced with them). Also low insurance group ratings means it's (relatively) cheap to insure for young drivers).

Performance is good for engine size and it's an excellent motorway cruiser (it will do 100 mph all day where laws permit).

Overall it feels well put together. There are no squeaks or rattles, but I don't think the interior trim is as good quality as say a basic Golf. However it does appear to be holding up well against normal use and abuse.

The handling is very safe, but the steering is much too light except when maneuvering and the front end loses grip quite easily on wet roads. (The later revised models are better).