Capitalizing on Fuel-Saving TechnologyDespite the recent shift to hybrid powertrains, there are a
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| Volkswagen chose diesel as its long-term "alternative" powertrain of choice. (Photo: Volkswagen Canada) |
few manufacturers who have a one-track mind on diesel; one of those is Volkswagen. Sure, they've tinkered with the idea of hybrids and hydrogen in a couple of concept cars, but like many other German automakers, Volkswagen continues to believe that oil-burning technology is the best long-term solution to the world's fuel problems. By volume, it only makes sense that they support diesel technology, after all, they are the leading seller of diesel-passenger powered cars in North America, with the Jetta, Golf and New Beetle TDI, and are considered one of the diesel masters across the globe.
The
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| The very famous, very expensive, and unfortunately very impractical VW '1L' car. (Photo: Volkswagen Canada) |
brand also made it into the history books on several occasions with the help of diesel. In 1999, VW launched the Lupo 3L (not named after a 3.0-litre displacement engine), a super-economy version of their now defunct city car that was capable of returning 3L/100 km. Audi also produced a 3L version of the ASF aluminum-bodied A2. Perhaps an even more famous diesel-powered Volkswagen was the 1L, an ultra-skinny tandem-seater 8.5-horsepower car capable of achieving 1L/100 km.
For this year's Geneva Motorshow, Volkswagen brought out a special version of its subcompact Polo hatchback fitted with all sorts of economy-improving additions. It must be said that the Polo BlueMotion isn't as efficient or as advanced as the A2 or Lupo 3L, however, this isn't the purpose of this new model. Having already proven its abilities to reach the 3L/100 km goal in a four-seater passenger car, VW shifted its resources towards providing the masses with a slightly larger car that cost less to buy, requires fewer compromises on the part of the owner, and is still fun to drive.
Generally speaking, hybrids and ultra-diesels like the 3L vehicles
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| For a car called the BlueMotion, it sure is green! (pun intended) (Photo: Volkswagen Canada) |
aren't exactly fun to drive. With the exception of high-end HEVs like the Honda Accord Hybrid and Lexus RX 400h, they are mind-numbingly slow, and have poor cornering capabilities as they're equipped with low-rolling resistance tires. Will the
Polo BlueMotion escape this blanket statement? Not exactly. It is powered by a 1.4-litre three-cylinder common-rail turbodiesel motor, which is also available in the regular Polo. On the contrary, this particular engine makes 80-horsepower and generates 145 lb-ft of torque, all of which is accessible as low as 1,800 rpm, which is a surprising amount for a car billed to be the leanest and greenest Polo.
The
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| This is a regular Polo. Chances are, it's slower to 100 km/h and less efficient than the BlueMotion. (Photo: Volkswagen Canada) |
Polo BlueMotion is a relatively quick vehicle; it takes 12.8 seconds to reach 100 km/h, but it has a top speed of 167 km/h (104 mph). Slow by most standards, but it's a fair bit quicker than most in the Polo range, including models powered by the 55- and 64-horsepower 1.2-litre gasoline engine (0-100 km/h: 17.5 and 14.9 s), the 1.4-litre gasoline engine (12.9 s), not to mention the 70 and 80-horsepower 1.4-litre TDI models (14.6 and 12.8 s). As if not to make the rest of the range seem pointless, the BlueMotion is also more fuel efficient than each of the listed models, and an impressive 0.5 L/100 km more efficient than the equivalent non-BlueMotion Polo 80-hp 1.4 TDI.
