polos faults?!?

chubbster · Post by **chubbster** » Thu Aug 21, 2003 12:19 pm

as u may know im lookin to by a 16v, the plan was to get 1 today if any in the trader but unfortuently there was only 1 and it had 60k on it. im after a 30k for about 4000 (i know its askin alot).

anyway ive been lookin into all things polo related, this lead me onto a site (www.peachorlemon.co.uk) which does customer reviews on all the brands of cars.
it seems from their comments that there are many faults with the 94-99 model
the ones that turned up the most are;
1. paintwork is bad and chips easily
2. ignition switch (or leads) failure
3. water leaking in from door or boot seals
4. and a problem with cutting out or unstable idle when the engines hot

i know sites with these comments on are generally used for people to vent there rage at dealers or manufacturers. so i checked other makes of cars too and there mostly bad comments also, but should i be worried with anything of the above list? have any of u had these problems?

thanx again for your time answering all my annoying posts!

Chief Mangosuthu Buthelez · Thu Aug 21, 2003 6:00 pm

alright mate, good to see a scouser on here (if your'e not, i apologise!)

the chips on my polo are pretty nasty. you can only see them when you really look hard at the car and see past the shine.

its like seeing a star at night, as soon as you see one, thousands appear

Speedlaw · Post by **Speedlaw** » Thu Aug 21, 2003 7:27 pm

I don't think my paint chips more easily than any other paint, but I have heard of leaking door and boot seals. No major problem IMO, just replace the rubber and it's fine again.

The rest are all a first for me.

KarlM · Post by **KarlM** » Thu Aug 21, 2003 9:09 pm

1. paintwork is bad and chips easily
2. ignition switch (or leads) failure

1 - Yep, car is covered in stone chips and is quite easy to chip the laquer off

2 - Yep, the ignition barrel went after 60k (only cost Â£20 for a new one though)

Also CV joints are a weak spot, but this may be due to the fact i'm running on 17/18s

hope that helps

Karl

chubbster · Post by **chubbster** » Fri Aug 22, 2003 12:32 am

im not too scouse cheif but i am wirral born and bred, the accent is there!

im glad none of u have put stuff on here to put me off, ive found my baby! shes a metallic blue 16v and guess wot its Â£4000 with 29k on the clock. just wot i asked santa 4!
goin to blackpool 2 see her and maybe arrange some hot nights of action with the little spearmint!

i'll let u all know

on the matter of stonechips has anyone considered using that protective film?

polo2k · Post by **polo2k** » Fri Aug 22, 2003 12:36 am

martyn from vag parts uses it so you may want to cantact him and ask his opinion

chubbster · Post by **chubbster** » Fri Aug 22, 2003 12:47 am

thank u, i'll do that
it seems to be a worthwhile plan. i guess it'd save money in the long run, as long as it doesnt look pants

B REAL · Post by **B REAL** » Sun Aug 24, 2003 2:24 am

4. and a problem with cutting out or unstable idle when the engines hot ,ignition switch (or leads) failure

yip, mines cuts out all the time when dipping the clutch either hot or cold! But seen as i'm the only one to say it then maybe its just mine

As for the ingnition leads? Well its not acctually the leads but when i purchased the car the starter motor had to be replaced as it made a horrible grinding noise on start up, well not even a year later and its making the noise again

But apart from that the car is very sound and sturdy, best car i've ever purchased!

chubbster · Post by **chubbster** » Sun Aug 24, 2003 10:54 am

ah interesting!
im sorry i did check the posts but i must of missed that 1.
was that ur car? is all good and well now?

hayesey · Post by **hayesey** » Mon Aug 25, 2003 8:02 pm

I'd agree with all those comments.

LOTS of ppl with mk4's have the cutting out & idling problem. especially on 16valvers.

paintwork does seem to chip easily but then again doesnt any car???

the leads will be OK as long as u always use proper VAG ones.

apart from those problems they quality cars. i would imagine most other cars in the same group as mk4 polos have more problems though!

still, theyre not as well built as earlier polos. especially mk2's which are built like tanks!

chubbster · Post by **chubbster** » Tue Aug 26, 2003 1:17 am

cheers hayesey, mine feels real quality.
there are a few things though;

this may seem soft but im so not used to the power of engines being up beyond 6000 rpm (thanks to whoever told me that on a post, sorry i cant remember, because i dont half use it!) but will i mess my engine up using the high end of the revometer? im not used to 16v engines.

i feel abit concerned because on "private roads"

at 80mph the engines doing 4000rpm or more in 5th. or when your changing cogs to get the best sprint times does it matter your swopping gears at almost the rev limiter?

i dont want to break my engine, and im not a good DIY enthusiast to be able to repair minor faults.

basically am i alright to push the car to 6500 rpm every so often (well often or maybe more than often) or will i damage it?

ive always had 8v dubs and theres not much point beyond 5800rpm so i feel im straining this car in the first week.

please tell me im ok!

chubbster · Post by **chubbster** » Fri Aug 29, 2003 11:18 pm

just thought id answer my own question! it may help someone else.

my mum has had 2 mk 4 polo's and she's always had a problem with stone chips. the most recent paint scar being when she swung a bag of frozen fish against the inside of the cars door! i know VW probably dont do extensive tests on this but stronger paint would be a bonus. it rusted within a week as well. guess whos got to fix it?

and on the ignition thing....
my folks went out tonight to a wedding reception in her 99' 1.4 8v (18,000miles), when she got there she turned off the car forgetting to put the window up. after realising this she turned on the ignition and guess what.... no start!
the headlights worked but no ignition or dash lights. she calls the RAC and the bloke does a quick fix by "unhooking the dash so you lift the wires to start" or thats what my mum said. so ignition failure again, i'll let u know exactly what it is when she takes it to Danes (VW) and the price of the fix.

with the ignition on mine i experience a very slight tremble on idle, i hope its not the start of problems!

and with the last problem the leaky seals, it hasnt rained proper yet so im saying my prayers!!!

ahhh! all these little quirks make me love this car more!
money well spent in my books!
(this isnt sarcastic!)