Volkswagen is targeting downsizers and public sector workers as the new Polo hits the UK.
The new model now comes with ESP anti-skid control as standard across the range, a feature not yet universal in cars from the class above, while VW‘s DSG automatic gearbox is available for the first time in the Polo range, as is touch-screen satellite navigation. “Anecdotally, we’re getting a lot of orders for higher-spec cars,” a VW spokesman told BusinessCar.
“People are definitely downsizing, we’ve seen the shift already with the supermini segment doing from 29% share to around 32% of the market,” said Polo product manager Sally-Anne Norris. She said the new car should appeal to downsizers because it’s had “such a step-change in quality, you don’t have to sacrifice anything you’d get in a larger car”.
The new Polo has also been priced more aggressively than previous versions of VW’s supermini, as VW fleet boss Vince Kinner told BusinessCar earlier this year. “The way we’ve planned the pricing is outstanding value for money and that’s not always been the case when we’ve launched a new Polo,” he said.
Including daily rental and courtesy car business, fleet registrations of the new Polo are expected to account for around 45% of the car’s volume.
The Polo range will be extended in 2010 with the arrival of the three-door version, along with a new 1.2-litre 105PS engine. Set to become the UK’s most efficient passenger car, the new Polo Bluemotion is due next spring with emissions of 87g/km and an average 85mpg for fuel economy, while the range-topping Polo GTI should come next summer.
