Vw polo - Small, quiet car

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Sat 24 Sep 2016 13:54
Vw polo - Small, quiet car - Miranda Mawer

Hi. This is a rerun of a 10 year old question. Please don't refer me back to that because there may be new options :)

I have to drive 3 or 4 hours on motorways twice a week. My i10 is pretty much what I need: small, comfy and responsive. But it is quite noisy at 70-ish.

I want something sensibly priced, with adequate safety to cope with road risks, enough power to overtake when I need to, and moderate fuel consumption. And quiet!

Ideas?

Thanks

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Sat 24 Sep 2016 14:24
Vw polo - Small, quiet car - Metropolis.

What model year is your i-10? If its an older model then try test driving a new model, the difference in refinement carmakers are achieving now is phenomenal.

See review of the 2014+ I-10 below:

www.honestjohn.co.uk/road-tests/hyundai/hyundai-i1.../

HJ review of Hyundai i10: "No other car this size is as quiet at motorway speeds – there's no wind noise and barely any road noise either, thanks to details like reshaped door mirror mounts and dual door sealing strips. Sound insulation from the engine is equally as impressive and again unmatched in this class, even by Volkswagen."

If you already have a 2014 onwards model, then try adding your own soundproofing to floorpan, roof and doors. Special stuff available for the firewall too. Dynamat seems the most popular.

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Sat 24 Sep 2016 15:49
Vw polo - Small, quiet car - brum

How about some ear plugs as a cheap alternative?

Edited by brum on 24/09/2016 at 15:49

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Tue 27 Sep 2016 18:37
Vw polo - Small, quiet car - chewer1

I agree -I changed from a new shape 1.4 polo to a new i10 1.2 and I am really pleased with the quiet smooth ride at urban and motorway speeds.

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Sat 24 Sep 2016 17:38
Vw polo - Small, quiet car - SLO76
No idea what your budget is however we had very similar requirements when searching for a second car last year with a budget of up to £9,000.

It was to be used by my better half to commute to work and to Uni, covering a lot of motorway mileage but also had to be spacious enough to serve as backup to our main family car and was bought with longterm ownership in mind.

In the end we shortlisted the Fiesta 1.4 TDCi Zetec, Peugeot 208 1.4 HDI and VW Polo 1.2 TDI. All had just enough space, excellent economy and a good track record regarding reliability. The old 1.4 HDI unit in the 208 and Fiesta is a vastly better engine than the later troublesome 1.6 and has just enough torque to keep up with most motorway traffic. The Honda Jazz was ruled out despite it being reliable and practical because it is plain awful to drive and we wanted diesel for the added overtaking power and taller gearing for motorway driving.

The Fiesta was the most fun to drive by far, an excellent little car, the 208 we found unrefined, sluggish and dull to drive with a long travel ponderous gear change. Finally we settled on a nice Polo 1.2 TDi Match which costs peanuts to run, has an excellent balance of ride quality and decent nimble handling (though not as much fun as the Fiesta) and a characterful 3cyl thrum from the small well tried and tested turbo Diesel engine and much stronger performance than the 3cyl 1.2 petrol.

It all depends on your budget and space requirements though. There are loads of excellent small petrol engined cars such as the 1.0 Fiesta, VW UP, Polo, Skoda Fabia and Toyota Yaris which would all do fine on the motorway but the Polo is easier to sell on with above average mileage than any of the others particularly in diesel form and we find it comfortable and pleasant all round.

Edited by SLO76 on 24/09/2016 at 17:41

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Sat 24 Sep 2016 17:59
Vw polo - Small, quiet car - Big John

The higher power version of the 1.2tsi (108 ) VW Polo is fitted with a six speed box and is very responsive, economical and very quiet be-it around town or at motorway speeds

Edited by Big John on 24/09/2016 at 18:03

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