I’m no longer a VW owner! 😮

Chat about your 2018+ AW/BZ/AE model Polos here!
SRGTD
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Re: I’m no longer a VW owner! 😮

Post by SRGTD »

@lancslad1985; seems to have been a pretty non-eventful and trouble free year’s ownership, which IMHO is really good and how it should be with a new car. While I was doing my research for my Clio, I was quite tempted by Mazda, but the soft paintwork and how susceptible it seems to be to stone chips was a concern for me - I don’t think my OCD could’ve handled it!

I think the dealership experience is really important when considering the overall car ownership experience, and it can be a significant factor when deciding whether or not to stay with the brand for future car purchases. With the VW dealership I used, I’d seen a noticeable drop in service standards over the last few years. I’d experienced being overcharged (to be fair, I was reimbursed, but it shouldn’t have happened in the first place), things being missed during a service and low engine oil level after the oil was changed, and when I mentioned the oil change issue, I was just greeted with an air of ‘couldn’t care less’ indifference by the service advisor. I’ve experienced shoddy PDI work too on 4 of the 5 new VW’s I’ve bought.

I also don’t like the ‘everything being done on an iPad’ approach used by that VW dealership (probably an overall VW thing rather than just that specific dealership?). The dealership I used had also stopped issuing paper invoices for work done on the car - if they hadn’t, I’d have spotted the overcharging issue mentioned above before leaving the dealership 😠.

Contrast the above with the Renault dealership I bought my Clio from; very attentive staff - both sales and after sales - low staff turnover (the salesman I dealt with had been with the dealership 15 years so really knew his stuff), and based on my experience, the staff go the extra mile to ensure total customer satisfaction. Probably explains why they’ve won Renault dealership of the year on multiple occasions. Oh, and I have a proper service book for my car’s service history and customers get paper invoices 🙂.

Based on my experiences past and present, I’m not tempted to go back to VW.
lancslad1985
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Re: I’m no longer a VW owner! 😮

Post by lancslad1985 »

@SRGTD that’s the one big thing that may put me off having another, the soft paint. It marks and chips so so easily. We will see come next year as there’s talk of a company car for me, so then the Mazda would be off anyway.
SRGTD
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Re: I’m no longer a VW owner! 😮

Post by SRGTD »

Update after 86 days of Clio hybrid ownership.
  • Mileage; 1,150
  • Fuel consumption; consistently 60 mpg +/- 1 mpg. The best I’ve seen on a journey is 68.8 mpg which is better than the official WLTP figure! 😏
  • Problems; none 👍 🙂.
Points of note;
  • Seat comfort; very important to me as I’m a sciatica sufferer. I was able to find a comfortable driving position on day-one of ownership and I’ve not suffered any discomfort while driving. Sadly, I was never able to find that ‘sweet spot’ in terms of seat comfort in the Polo GTI+ in 4 years of ownership.
  • Creature comforts; the heated seats and heated steering wheel are brilliant at this time of year - I use them frequently. I don’t think I’d want a car without them now.
  • Winter window condensation; not usually an issue as I garage my car. However, when I’ve been visiting friends and family in the evenings at this time of year, the windows do get covered in the inevitable condensation while the car’s parked outside. Unlike many forum members who experience a long, slow window demisting period with the Polo, the windows on the Clio seem to demist really quickly.
  • Unwanted interior creaks and rattles; there haven’t been any 🙂. The interior trim continues to be blissfully silent, even now the weather’s colder and car interior trim in general becomes less flexible and more prone to unwanted noises. Long may the silence continue 🤞.
  • Audio system sound quality; I’m no audiophile, but IMHO it seems better than that of the Polo’s standard system. There’s no option to upgrade the audio system on UK spec Clios - a Bose system is offered as an extra cost option in some overseas markets.
  • Wheels; not the easiest to clean. I always wash the barrels and the reverse side of the spokes of the wheels when I clean my car, and access to those parts isn’t easy, even when using a set of Wheel Woolies, including one with an angled head specifically for cleaning those difficult to reach areas 😖.
  • The Clio takes longer than the Polo GTI to change up to the next gear when accelerating reasonably hard, and the Clio doesn’t have steering wheel paddles to allow manual interventions. Not a big issue for me as I’m not a particularly enthusiastic driver these days and the Clio seems to ‘encourage’ a more relaxed driving style. It might not suit some drivers though.
  • I continue to find it a little strange to hear the engine revving unexpectedly to assist with recharging the traction battery while driving.
All in all, continuing to be a very happy, contented Clio owner 🙂.
lancslad1985
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Re: I’m no longer a VW owner! 😮

Post by lancslad1985 »

Glad to hear your experience has been a good one. Can’t say the same for the Mazda CX30. After 369 days of ownership I’m considering going back to VW or trying a different brand at some point next year. I’ve even joined the golf gti forum to pick brains. I like your format so will copy it 🤣.

• Mileage 13500 miles

• Fuel consumption +/- 40mpg. Considering the car claims 45mpg and most of my driving is motorway it’s rather poor. My wife’s new golf already beats my mpg comfortably as a 1.5tsi and isn’t really run in yet, whilst my non turbo 2.0L is worse than I got in my polo gti. The Mazda is meant to be mild hybrid too but that’s useless and I don’t drive with a heavy foot very often.

• Can be fun to drive for a small crossover as it isn’t too tall and it will shift at 0-62 being 8.6s if required, BUT this then means you lose some of the height of a crossover for seeing in traffic. No flappy paddles either if you want to drive fast but there is a sports mode that makes the throttle more responsive (that’s it though).

• Doesn’t have lumbar and even now I can’t get comfortable in the seat. Considering I occasionally have a sore back it isn’t a great car for that. Never had that issue in my VWs personally and my wife’s car is much more comfortable.

• The ride isn’t particularly quiet or comfortable. Yes it’s better than my old polo gti and my wife’s old polo, but compared to her new golf (which is same sized hatchback equivalent really) the golf is quieter and smoother.

• I do like the system has the wheel like a bmw for controlling it. Makes it easy to use on the move. Sadly the system regularly has little issues, particularly regarding where it thinks it should be playing audio from. It can’t make its mind up if it should play via car play or radio. It also thinks there is something in the drivers side blind spot continually if it’s raining.

• The wireless charger has no fan, unlike our golf, so the phone gets super hot when in use.

• The first service was £250 and the cars been back twice more for a recall on both the SOS system and the rear shocks. The latter is particularly annoying as that’s been a Mazda issue since 2018 on all Mazdas. Second service will be £350 and it’ll need new front tyres at £180 each…..

• Unlike the VWs you can’t turn off lane assist. You can turn off the speed limit warning easily but all other assist are combined under one button. So you can either have them all on or all off, then the car lights up like a Christmas tree telling you it’s not safe. Lane assist is also very forceful unlike our golf that’s just nudges us.

• I like to detail my cars as can be seen from my previous polos in the pictures thread. I’ve never seen paint as soft as this Mazda. Just looking at it causes marks.

• The jets for the windscreen are on the wipers. So you don’t get great coverage and it starts wiping immediately. Harder to clean the windscreen than a VW plus the VW fan sprays were great if a car was up your bumper at 40mph or more as it got them too. 🤣

Yes the Mazda gave me a break from VW, as I was sick of their interiors after 14 years of both my wife and I having them and we change halfway through each PCP because it makes sense to (no deposit required etc). However, comparing it to her new golf that’s quieter, nicer to sit in, nicer to drive, etc. along with the stupid service costs and the soft paint I wouldn’t have another. Mazda have also fallen down in terms of reliability and were only one place above VW in the latest reliability rankings on several sites. I know this isn’t just my experience as a work colleague has a Mazda three and that’s had issues as well from new that Mazda don’t do anything about.
SRGTD
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Re: I’m no longer a VW owner! 😮

Post by SRGTD »

@lancslad1985 - it’s good to read your experiences of Mazda ownership, even if it’s not all been positive. I think that when getting a different car - whether it’s one from a different brand or one of the brand you’re used to - there’ll always be compromises, but usually (hopefully) there will also be some extra features not previously had in a car that help offset any compromises or shortcomings.

In my situation there are things the Clio doesn’t have that my Polo did have - e.g. lumbar support, dipping kerbside mirror, excellent HD reversing camera (Clio’s camera is low def, exposed to the elements so is poor by comparison), steering wheel gear change paddles, a 52 bhp power deficit and like your Mazda, no turbo. However, I’ve also gained features in the Clio that my Polo GTI+ didn’t have, and there are more gains than losses; e.g. I get heated seats, heated steering wheel, sat nav, more comfortable seats in spite of no lumbar adjustment, better headlamps with auto high beam, full climate control, blind spot warning, wireless charging (and the phone doesn’t get hot while charging), together with little touches that make the car feel a little more upmarket, even though Renault isn’t a premium brand (but then neither is VW, although some consider it to be) - e.g. fabric door card inserts in the front doors, illuminated glove box, a sliding cover over the centre console cup holders. Renault also fit a trim piece in the car’s interior in the lower trailing corner of the windows on the rear doors; in the Polo, VW left that part exposed as painted metal which IMHO makes it look unfinished. It’s also possible to switch off lane assist permanently (and very easily) in the Clio; the salesman switched it off on the day I collected the car and it stays off.

I’ve not really missed the extra power of the Polo GTI+ or not having a turbo - the Clio is just as fast as the Polo when you’re stuck travelling in a slow moving stream of traffic at 50mph or slower on single carriageway A or B roads, and that sums up most of my journeys. And 60mpg compared to 43mpg I used to get in the Polo is a plus.

As for servicing; I bought a service plan covering the first three services. Cost was £503.64 or £13.99 a month.

It’s still very early days for me and life with the Clio, and who knows if the first (nearly) three months will be representative of the longer term ownership experience; only time will tell, and it will be interesting to see if I feel the same way at 12, 24 and 36 months as I do now…….

In your position, I might also look at alternatives to your Mazda. However, I’d probably not go back to VW.
lancslad1985
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Re: I’m no longer a VW owner! 😮

Post by lancslad1985 »

Good to hear the Renault is going well. I definitely hoped to be in your position and when I left VW I had no plans to return, but the new golf is just nice from my own experience.

Fingers crossed the Renault continues to be a success. I’ll continue to evaluate if the Mazda is still a disappointment over the next few months.
grazuncle2
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Re: I’m no longer a VW owner! 😮

Post by grazuncle2 »

irony...

I came to VW Polos after grief with Renaults (I had 4 consecutive Clio's) after two years 'normal driving' they rattled like blazes and had suspension knocks. I have had 2 consecutives VW Polos since in a longer stretch (19years) than the 4 Clio's over 8years :roll: and no real problems with the VW that were not sorted properly by VW.

I accept as you say that their record has changed in that time.. I have no reason to disbelieve what you say. you did your research and it is the best route to less problems of I didn't know that!

Whilst we did have the Renaults we did like the ride and comfort.. (you don't have 4 consecutively for no reason..) it was just the swapping after 2 years that got us down along with the losses of course.

All the best with your choice 😊
SRGTD
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Re: I’m no longer a VW owner! 😮

Post by SRGTD »

grazuncle2 wrote: Wed Jan 01, 2025 1:37 pm irony...

I came to VW Polos after grief with Renaults (I had 4 consecutive Clio's) after two years 'normal driving' they rattled like blazes and had suspension knocks. I have had 2 consecutives VW Polos since in a longer stretch (19years) than the 4 Clio's over 8years :roll: and no real problems with the VW that were not sorted properly by VW.

I accept as you say that their record has changed in that time.. I have no reason to disbelieve what you say. you did your research and it is the best route to less problems of I didn't know that!

Whilst we did have the Renaults we did like the ride and comfort.. (you don't have 4 consecutively for no reason..) it was just the swapping after 2 years that got us down along with the losses of course.

All the best with your choice 😊
Agree on the Clio’s ride and comfort - it’s great and suits my ageing bones better than the sporting-biased Polo GTI. Impressions of the Clio after 3.5 months are very good; good build quality (better than my last Polo was), excellent fuel economy, no teething troubles, no ongoing software issues that seem to affect some current generation VW’s, no annoying creaks or rattles and the dealership experience puts VW dealerships I’ve dealt with in the past to shame.

The Clio as a long term ownership proposition is a bit of an unknown quantity to me though. At present, I'm undecided whether I’ll keep it beyond the three year warranty period, although if it continues to be trouble free then long(er) term ownership is a distinct possibility as I really like it. If I do keep it longer term, I can always buy an extended warranty for peace of mind.
grazuncle2
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Re: I’m no longer a VW owner! 😮

Post by grazuncle2 »

I think I'd do the same too..

I never had the mist problem i have with my current Polo with any of the Renaults..

It still bugs me.. as others have said. don't have water ingress... leave windows slightly ajar in the sun (when it does shine) just to keep aerated. i get misting as soon as the blower is activated to clear hat is already there! 🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️

All the best with your choice
SRGTD
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Re: I’m no longer a VW owner! 😮

Post by SRGTD »

A quick update 18 weeks into Clio ownership.
  • Mileage; 1,675
  • Fuel consumption; as expected MPG has dropped a little from the 60mpg i was getting - I’ve put it down to the colder weather when the traction battery will be less efficient. MPG is currently hovering around 56-57 which is a drop of roughly 5% on what it had been and I’m still more than happy with that. I had to take a detour into city rush hour traffic congestion last Thursday because of a multiple vehicle accident on my planned route. Pretty much all of the journey through the city was stop start and very slow moving but the bonus for me was it was driven pretty much all in EV mode which was really satisfying knowing I’d used virtually no petrol on that 5-6 mile unexpected detour 🙂.
  • Problems; I lost DAB radio reception on one journey 3-4 weeks ago, but It’s been fine since so I put it down to poor DAB signal on that particular day. Other than that, no problems and the Clio continues to perform as a new car should (i.e. without faults / issues).
Unusually for me, my car has been parked outside at home for the last week while my garage roof was being replaced. In spite of the winter weather, no problems with condensation build up on the inside surfaces of the windows. On the odd occasion the windscreen has misted up inside (only light misting), hitting the screen quick demist button soon clears it. Sadly, the door mirrors are slower to demist than the Polo’s door mirrors, but you can’t have everything 🙂.

I’m continuing to enjoy the luxury of heated seats and heated steering wheel. I always felt that heated seats with cloth upholstery were unnecessary; how wrong was I (I often am 🤣) and I’m happy to admit it. They’re brilliant during a cold snap like the one we had at the beginning of January and they’ve also been great at other times, especially for bad back sufferers like me. I don’t think I’d want a car without them now.

I got a set of genuine Renault rubber floor mats at Christmas; IMHO much more practical than carpet mats at this time of year,. Renault’s carpet mats do seem to be more durable and hard wearing than VW’s standard carpet mats though, although I tend to keep the rubber mats in the car all year round. I’ve also invested in a non-OEM boot liner; it’s an excellent fit and had quite a tall lip around the edges, so should contain any dirt and spillages - not that I carry much that’s dirty or likely to cause a mess in the boot space 🙂

That’s it for this update. I’ll probably not post another update until the six months ownership milestone.
SRGTD
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Re: I’m no longer a VW owner! 😮

Post by SRGTD »

As promised in my previous post, here’s the 6 month update of my ownership of a Renault Clio hybrid. 6 months has given me time to really get to know the car so this is quite a long update (apologies! 😳). I’ve therefore split it into five separate sections which hopefully makes it easier to read. Happy reading!

Part 1 of 5
Last Sunday - the 16th March - marked the 6 month milestone of my Renault Clio hybrid ownership. Mileage is currently 2,289 and as expected, the long term mpg (now 56.3 mpg) has started creeping up again from a winter low of 55.1 mpg as the weather warms up; the traction battery is more efficient in the warmer weather, so the car runs in EV mode more of the time. Apart from my car needing a software update early on in it’s life to sort out a problem with erratic indicators (reported in an earlier post in this discussion topic), it’s been been faultless; everything has worked as it should and without drama.

There’s been a couple of things recently that I thought were potentially issues at the time but it turned out they weren’t;
- An annoying interior rattling noise a few weeks ago. Turned out the front passenger seatbelt had twisted when a passenger had taken the belt off and the buckle was hitting against the B pillar trim. It took literally two seconds to twist the seatbelt back the correct way round so the buckle no longer made contact with the B pillar and silence was restored.
- An incidence of multiple warning lights illuminating on instrument panel when reversing out of my garage. The cause? - driver incompetence! 🤦‍♂️😳. I hadn’t shut the drivers door fully before reversing. Shutting the door and ensuring it was actually shut resolved the issue.
SRGTD
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Re: I’m no longer a VW owner! 😮

Post by SRGTD »

Part 2 of 5; Dislikes and disappointments

First the dislikes - not too many;
  • The low resolution rear view camera - image from the standard spec camera is quite poor for night time reversing and is nowhere near as good as the extra cost optional camera I had on my Polo GTI+. The Clio’s camera is also exposed to the elements, so the lens gets dirty when driving on wet roads.
  • the gloss black sections on the alloys seem to be very prone to scratches and swirls, even with using a safe, careful wash technique as I always do. I’ve therefore spent quite a bit of time recently polishing out the scratches and although they’re not perfect (yet), they’re much improved now. Another polishing session should have them pretty much sorted.
  • The diamond cut alloys; I’m just not a fan of blingy diamond cut alloys of any sort because of the generally poor durability associated with them. Having said that, I do quite like the design of the alloys on my car, although they’re not the easiest to clean. I’ve invested in a new very soft microfibre wheel woolie type brush with a bendable head so I can bend the head to the perfect angle for cleaning the wheel barrels and the backs of the spokes. I hate seeing the wheel barrels dirty through the gaps between the spokes when the faces of the wheels are clean.
  • Auto locking / unlocking when leaving / approaching the car. I permanently disabled this in the vehicle settings on day one of ownership. I also used to used to disable the keyless function on my GTI+ each time I locked it.
Disappointments
  • Renault don’t fit USB ports in the rear of the Clio. It’s not really that much of an issue for me though as I rarely carry rear seat passengers, but it could be an issue for some owners.
  • The front door cards get a nice cloth upholstered insert panel to match the seat upholstery, but disappointingly the rear doors don’t. VW did something similar on the mk7 Golf; they used soft touch plastics along the top section of the front door cards, but hard scratchy plastic on the tops of the rear doors don’t cards.
  • Floor mats aren’t part of the car’s standard spec, even in the top (Esprit Alpine) trim level; they’re an extra cost option, although I did get mine included as part of the deal when I bought the car.
  • Not a disappointment with the car, but a disappointment with the Gtechniq C5 Wheel Armour ceramic coating I applied to the wheels just after getting the car last September. I used it on the basis that it would make wheel cleaning easier as a ceramic coating should help stop dirt sticking, so supposedly very little effort is needed to clean the ceramic coated surfaces. In spite of following the prep, application and curing instructions to the letter, I’ve not found it any better than some of the much lower cost wheel protection products I’ve used in the past. Much of the ceramic coating has now been removed from my wheels with my scratch removal polishing efforts and I won’t be renewing the coating; I’m back to using an old-school wheel sealant (Chemical Guys Wheel Guard), which will need to be topped up periodically but it’s very easy to apply and buff off and also smells really nice.
SRGTD
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Re: I’m no longer a VW owner! 😮

Post by SRGTD »

Part 3 of 5; Likes - in no particular order;
  • The car’s styling; I prefer the way the Clio looks compared to the rather conservatively styled Polo. I like the way the ‘hidden’, rear door handles give the car a pseudo three door appearance while retaining the practicality of a five door.
  • Build quality and panel fit; better than that of my Polo GTI+. One particularly poor aspect of my Polo’s build quality was the flimsy petrol filler flap - very poor fitting with uneven panel gaps around its edges. The Clio’s filler flap feels much more robust and has a tight, uniform panel gap between its edges and the rear quarter panel it’s fitted in. The one (minor) build quality shortcoming is sound of the Clio’s tailgate closing; it doesn’t sound quite as solid sounding as the Polo’s when it’s being closed but from memory, it’s pretty much equal to that of the facelift (mk8.5) Golf I had as a courtesy car last year from the VW dealership when my GTI+ was serviced.
  • Acceleration from rest in EV mode is fun; I’ve taken some other drivers of more powerful cars by surprise when I’ve pulled away at traffic lights 😈.
  • The way auto hold and the electric parking brake work seamlessly together. There is a risk though when driving a different car with a manual handbrake that I might forget to apply the handbrake when it’s needed! 🤣😮.
  • The Clio has a good balance of handling and ride comfort. It’s been referred to as the successor of the Ford Fiesta in that respect in some motoring reports, and the Fiesta was considered to be the B segment class leader for handling.
  • Headlamp performance; IMHO better than the LED headlamps on my GTI+, although I dare say not as good as the IQ LED matrix headlamps fitted to the current facelift Polo GTI. The Clio also has a ‘headlamps on’ warning symbol on the instrument panel (the Polo with digital dash doesn’t), so there’s no second guessing whether the headlamps have come on when they’re in the ‘auto’ setting.
  • Heated seats and steering wheel - I’ve been spoiled now by having these, and I think they’ll be ‘must have’s’ on any future car I buy.
  • Seats; really comfortable and supportive - IMHO much more so than the seats in my Polo GTI+. Visually, I also like the fluted stitching on the seat bolsters (see picture in part 5 below).
  • Renault has retained physical controls for heating, ventilation and air con and other regularly used functions in their cars. It is also very simple to permanently switch off the lane assist function in my car (and I have) so there’s no need to disable it at the start of each journey.
  • The easy to use door mirror heating function, which is activated when the rear screen de-mister is switched on. IMHO, an easier system to use than the rotary door mounted mirror adjustment control used by VW.
  • The option to customise the content of the infotainment screen display by selecting your personal preferences of what’s displayed from a set of widgets.
  • I like the little interior design touches like blue stitching on the seats, the blue edging on the seat belts (blue is the signature colour of Renault’s Alpine sporting brand), the sliding cover over the cup holders in the centre console (the mk5, 6 and 7 Golf had one of these), the frameless rear view mirror and the cloth insert panels in the front door cards. IMHO those little touches give the interior a bit more of an upmarket feel for a B segment car. There’s also a light in the glovebox (the Polo doesn’t have one).
SRGTD
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Re: I’m no longer a VW owner! 😮

Post by SRGTD »

Part 4 of 5; Quirks - not many - just three I can think of;
  • Renault’s long standing tradition of fitting an extra stalk on the steering column to adjust audio volume and change radio stations rather than use steering wheel mounted buttons (the extra stalk can be seen below the wiper stalk in the picture in part 5 of this update). Seemed really strange at first but it’s actually quite intuitive to use and works very well. With Renault also now using a column mounted gear selector in their EV range of vehicles, the steering column in their EV’s is a bit stalk overload IMHO 🤣.
  • The tailgate release handle; it’s hidden just above the rear number plate in the rear bumper. Weird!
  • Being a full (self charging) hybrid, the way the combustion engine seems to randomly start up to recharge the traction battery. It’s not really random, it just feels that way. There’ll be a clever battery management system monitoring the traction battery’s state of charge, and when braking and deceleration don’t recuperate sufficient energy to recharge the battery sufficiently, the combustion engine provides the extra necessary charging assistance.
Things I preferred or have missed from the Polo GTI+
  • DSG behaviour and steering wheel paddles. IMHO the Polo GTI’s set up is better than the Clio’s, and Clio hybrid makes do without steering wheel paddles. I used to use the paddles in my GTI+ regularly so I did miss them initially, although I’ve got used to not having them now. Additionally, the Clio’s auto box is less refined than the Polo GTI’s DSG transmission and under moderate to fast acceleration it holds on to the gears longer than the Polo does - similar to the way the Polo GTI does when the DSG is in Sport mode.
  • Rear view camera. As mentioned earlier the Polo’s optional rear view camera is much better than the one on the Clio. Having said that, it is part of the standard spec on my Clio, so I didn’t have to pay extra for it.
  • Unlike the Polo GTI+, the Clio doesn’t have an auto dipping kerbside mirror while reversing, so care is needed when parallel parking to avoid scuffing the alloys.
  • The position of the Polo’s front radar sensor; very discreetly hidden behind the VW grille badge. The one on the Clio is less well integrated IMHO, behind a flat rectangular black plastic section in the lower front grille.
  • Something some owners might miss (I don’t); the sun visor mounted vanity mirrors aren’t illuminated like they are in the GTI.
What haven’t I missed from the Polo GTI+?
I’ve not really missed it’s performance, although as I’ve said before elsewhere on the forum, with the type of motoring I normally do - mainly driving on congested A and B roads at 50mph or less much of the time - there was very little opportunity to drive a GTI as it should be driven.
SRGTD
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Re: I’m no longer a VW owner! 😮

Post by SRGTD »

Part 5 of 5; Conclusion (if you’ve opened this discussion topic at this post and not read parts 1-4 of this update, please scroll up and read parts 1-4 first 🙂).

When switching car brands, IMHO there will always be pluses and minuses in terms of equipment levels, ride and handling and performance differences. On balance I would say the Clio hybrid suits my needs better than a Polo GTI, and any performance deficit is more than offset by the very generous equipment levels and a better balance of ride and comfort for my ageing bones! A Clio hybrid won’t be a suitable replacement for a Polo GTI for everyone, but it works for me and I have no regrets buying it.

Would I buy another Clio hybrid?
Based on my ownership experience to date, yes I would, although my car usage these days is actually very well suited to having an electric car. I’m also fortunate to have a garage and driveway so I’d be able to charge at home and take advantage of cheap rate off-peak electricity for charging. If I do go electric, what would that electric car be? If I was buying an EV now, the Renault R5 would be a front runner for sure; it’s good value, well equipped, has received very good reviews in the motoring press and, for what it’s worth, it won the European car of the year award 2025. The R5 also gets independent rear suspension which is quite unusual to find in B segment cars (the latest Mini EV gets it too). Renault isn’t afraid to be bold with paint colours either - the R5 is available in Pop Yellow and Pop Green. I like both of those colours and owning either a bright yellow or vibrant green car would make it easy to spot in large, busy car park!

Here’s a picture that shows the quirky audio control stalk - below the wiper stalk - that I’ve referred to in part 4 of this update.

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The blue stitching on the seats doesn’t really show up too well in either of these pictures but you can see the blue edged seat belts and fluted design on the seat bolsters and the upholstered door cards in the picture below (referred to earlier in part 3)

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Next update; at the 12 month ownership milestone, unless there’s anything significant to report before then. I’ll try and make sure the next update isn’t as long as this one!
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