Unlike the Lupo 3L, which featured a primitive version of VW's fancy
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| The BlueMotion has no fancy aluminum body panels, trick gearbox, or low-fat, no-carb engine, which is unlike this VW Lupo 3L. (Photo: Volkswagen Canada) |
DSG sequential-manual gearbox, the Polo has a DIY five-speed manual transmission, which plays an important part in the Polo's reduced thirst for diesel. Though there's nothing special about the shift mechanism or the clutch, the gearbox has a new set of ratios. The first two gear ratios are identical to the standard Polo, enabling it to be as quick as the standard car in in-town situations, while gears three to five are 12 to 24 percent longer, enabling the engine to rotate at lower revs when the car is running at higher speeds, saving fuel when cruising on the highway.
The other part of the equation is made up by simple changes to the car's exterior. The Polo features a special aerodynamically-optimized bodykit, a rear spoiler that wraps around the roof's ledge and the sides of the rear tailgate, and a grille insert that has a narrower opening. From a scientific standpoint, the Polo isn't exactly the most aerodynamic shape for a vehicle, but these changes manage to drop its coefficient of drag rating down to a measly 0.30 Cd from 0.32. The final touches to the Polo are a set of lightweight 14-inch alloy wheels that are wrapped in 165/70 series low rolling resistance tires.
Thanks
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| 1,145 km per tank. And with diesel prices hovering around the $0.90 mark, that's mega mileage for little money. (Photo: Volkswagen Canada) |
to the combined efforts of drivetrain and aerodynamics, the Polo BlueMotion is able to return an average of 3.9 L/100 km of fuel in an even mix between city and highway driving. Put it on a highway and its thirst becomes even smaller, consuming just 3.2 litres per 100 km! Broken down into simple terms, on a single 45-litre (11.9-gal) tank of diesel fuel, the car can travel an astonishing 1,145 km (711 miles). These results are amazing given the few changes that were made, and make the likes of the Toyota Yaris and Honda Fit seem wasteful in comparison. The Polo BlueMotion also boasts an extremely low CO
2 rating of just 103 g/km, some 16 grams less than the regular equivalent Polo, and one gram less than the Toyota's full-hybrid Prius.
While consuming as little fuel as possible is a nice gesture to
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| Aside from the 'Popcorn' seats, the interior is the same as a regular Polo. (Photo: Volkswagen Canada) |
the environment, let's face it -- few of us are content without our toys. The Polo BlueMotion comes with a pretty extensive list of standard equipment that includes power windows and mirrors, an AM/FM/CD stereo, front and side airbags, ABS brakes, three-point seatbelts for all occupants and a trip computer to keep track of your fuel consumption. The interior also features special 'Popcorn' cloth trim, colour-keyed to match the exterior. Unfortunately, like many cool things, the Polo BlueMotion will not be sold in North America; although Volkswagen might bring over the next generation Polo to compete against the growing B-Segment subcompact crowd.
