Newbie with oldie Polo

[Scudetto]

Hi everyone, happy new year.

Newbie to this site, as I’ve recently acquired one of VW’s finest engineering achievements; no, not a Veyron, but its half-sister – a 1998 Polo 1.4. Ok, jesting aside, the car’s done – count them - 92,000miles, and it’s an auto. I won’t go through the long and boring story of how I ended up with the Polo, but before hand I had a RenaultSport Clio 172 from new for four years. Great car, but its brilliance was matched only by its atrocious driving position and abysmal seats.

Ok, so Polo questions – in a nutshell, is there anything specific I need to check/replace? I’m concerned about keeping the autobox in good fettle. I know that car’s been well looked after and regularly serviced, and the cambelt was change about 20k ago.

To drive, it’s fine, brakes, engine and steering-wise, and the box is even pretty smooth when cold, and very smooth when warm.

It has a demist problem which I have not yet traced the source of – the heater/vent struggles in very poor wet weather to keep the class clear (it has no A/C). There doesn’t seem to be any air coming out of the passenger side air vent at all. Could this somehow have become disconnected? For peace of mind, I’m going to run it over to a Veedub independent in the next few weeks for a health-check.

So there you go. Any top tips – esp about the gearbox - would be much appreciated.

Thanks very much,

g

[Scudetto]

over 20 views and, sob sob, not even one reply? Not even to say hi? Maybe you've all gone for Friday beers. In that case, I'll see you in the pub in a bit

g

[Matt B]

No I'm not having a beer yet (still working.....ish!!) another couple of hours and the beers will be flowing (I'm going to check with the wife first!!! )

I'm a new member too, and not had many replies to my 'threads', It might be because I have a Touran.....not too sexy a car! (To a non VW'er a touran is the mini 7 seater MPV not the Tourag 4 wheel SUV monster - The amount of people who used to get mixed up a couple of years ago when I first got it and I told them what I had!!) But the Polo Auto on the other hand!

Sorry I can't help with your Polo!

Matt B

[polo9n]

gotta say the polo 6n is a masterpiece...no electronic problem whatsoever.
sadly mine one(manual) ow Rest in peace as timing belt broke at 100k miles, got the head gasket fixed and valve replaced. after few months the car finally RIP after long journey some Valve gave in.

in my opinion, make sure the timing belt is replaced when needed,
spark plug, spark plug lead replaced when needed.
fuel filter changed. really good regular service should keep ur Polo running for a long long time.

[Scudetto]

whey hey, cheers chaps!

my feeling is that this site is quite newish? I say that as not many of the posts have that many responses/replies. Cheers for your Polo tips Polo9n. I've had the Polo for almost two months now, and aside from topping up the oil, I've not had a chance to give it much TLC. I will have more time in a few weeks, though, for a wash, clean, etc etc etc.

Gotta say...I'm getting the automatic gearbox bug. Such a doddle to live with and own. Although I love fast manual cars, and can do all the heel and toe tricks when changing down, it's such an effort compared to an auto. I keep wondering if I should replace the Polo (one day) with a performance auto of some sort? Ah well, that's some time off anyway - the Polo's fine for now.

Have a good weekend,

g

[Eshrules]

may i welcome you both to our forum, although the website is still in relative infancy, its beginning to grow and has become a lot more popular recently, you have the likes of Rickt/T sport & vw techniker who can offer both experience and expert advice.

i'd encourage you to stick with us i came over from fiat.

as far as the demist problem is concerned. dont be too worried if it seems to be a simple blockage. first thing id probably check is all fluid levels, check the radiator for leaks and see how that goes.

if you find a leak..... there lies potentially your problem. id advise against visiting a garage just yet, unless there appears to be a major problem, id personally stear clear, garages tend to take problems like this and run with them....

[Scudetto]

hi eshrules!

Yeah, i had a feeling this was a newish site, but that's fine. I hope it grows and finds many more happy members over time. I came here as one of my chums from an Alfa site recommended it.

My intention is to get the indi dealer to service the car and advise me of anything that I need to be aware of (brake status, status of CV boots etc etc - all the stuff that could be grief come MOT time).

The demisting problem in all fairness was mainly an issue during some appalling weather a month ago. In 'normal rain' - whatever that is these days - it's not a major issue. The non-functioning vent I'll fault trace myself; if I can't fix it, I'll live with it a bit longer. If it doesn't pose too much of an issue, I'll just turn a blind eye to it.

For the record, this is my third VW. First was a 1990 red Golf GTI 8v big bumper (without PAS!); the second was a white and utterly lovely last of the line MK2 GTi 8v in white, with the BBS wheels, PAS, and everything, including, Air con (I think it was a retro fit, but it made it just the perfect car for me). I clocked up 130,000 miles in that car and I still miss it today. But I'm in a VW again for the time being, so I'm back in the Golf in spirit. Well, sort of

g

[RandS]

I also have a de-misting problem with my P reg Polo Open Air 1.6 SE. I've had this car for about a year, and it's been great fun, especially when it comes to bombing down to the coast with the roof open. It's surprisingly quick too. It still drives like new, and has been 100% reliable, although it has only done 40,000 miles, so that shouldn't be too surprising. I have also just traded in my 5 Series BMW for a VW Bora Highline, which I think was a smart move (only £50 to fill it up from empty, as opposed to £100! Also, despite having all the toys (leather, heated seats, rain sensor, etc.) it's only group 6 insurance, as opposed to group 16 for the BMW. It's a 1.6 16V petrol, which means it's economical, surprisingly sprightly (110PS) and does 30 mpg around town, which is about 50% better than the 5 Series.