2002 Volkswagen Polo 1.4 from Germany - Comments

Can anyone tell me why my vw polo 1.6 1998 cuts out and when starting from cold if you put yourfoot on the acelerator it dies down and I have to let it tick over first before driving.

I have a 2002/3 VW Polo, 55,000 miles on the clock. I bought it from a dealer in Feb, had to have the head gasket changed in September and my Exhaust Emissions Light has been on ever since.

I have had new Lambda sensors fitted but the problem still exists. Every time I take it to a garage, they re-set the codes and the light comes back on after a few days or week.

Does anyone know why? And what could be the problem?

Thanks.

I have a 1390cc Polo Twist, and it recently started miss-firing and the orange 'engine' light on the dash started flashing for a few seconds, before staying on continuously.

This apparently is a very common problem, and while surfing the net, I couldn't find the remedy,... hence why I'm posting it here;

One of the four coil packs had failed... £24 and the fault was rectified :)

I bought a 57 plate Polo 1.2 in September 2007. I have had to return to the garage with faults to the front passenger door. I had problems with the drivers door also which after two visits to the garage were fixed. The passenger door has been packed and seemed to be okay but now the window rattles. I have to drive with the window slightly down to elevate the problem and will have to take the car back to the garage again. Has anyone had any similar problems?

To the comment a couple above, was the coil pack the answer? I have an 01 Y reg Polo mk5 and have had this engine check or engine electric check light coming on and off now and then. When it's off it's fine, and when it's on it's fine, but when it flashes I lose power. Been to VW, and guess what, it didn't happen when they had it, so they said it was fine, but it's not.

Now I'm having even more problems with the electrics playing up, and the battery going flat. Not sure if these are separate or connected?

I have a 01 1.4 VW Polo and I so wish I had found this site before I bought it!

We first started having problems with loss of power 18 months ago when I was heavily pregnant!! The car would judder, the EPC light would come on and then lose power, even with my foot flat on the accelerator.

Took it to the garage; they have tried numerous things, unable to get to the bottom of it, just keep resetting the electrics, the incidents are now becoming more and more frequent, the last one being on the motorway and not being able to go any faster than 30mph.

Please, I urge any one thinking of buying a VW to really think long and hard about it first; we have a young family and cannot afford a new car, but have had to take out a loan to buy a Toyota, as we can't run the risk of breaking down with the children.

Hi, so wish I had saw these comments before I bought my 2000 1.4S Polo three weeks ago. Seemed OK when I bought it, but have since had problems with it just losing power at traffic lights. Seems to start again OK, but worried that it might not. Sometimes it seems to judder and the engine seems like it is struggling to stay alive.

Also when driving, the temperature gauge seems to fall back down to below 70 (having previously been up to the middle of the gauge). Had anyone else had these problems, and do they know what they are/how to fix them?

Thanks.

I can really emphasize with all the comments made above, as I immediately identified with what people were saying about the juddering and loss of power when sitting in traffic or at traffic lights.

I have a 1.2 Polo, which is four years old and with 65000 on the clock, and it too is juddering and losing power when it is motionless, but the engine is running.

I took it to a mechanic at first, who replaced one of the coils (I have a three cylinder Polo), but when that did not do the trick, he told me that I would have to take it to a dealership to be diagnosed on one of their machines. I took it to a dealership and paid £85 to be told that the car was losing compression in one of the cylinder heads, and that as they didn't take the cylinder head apart to see if it could be caused by a valve or the piston, I could pay up to £1500 to replace the entire head. I refused and have since taken it back to my mechanic now that the problem has been resolved. I wasn't told my the dealership just how common this problem seems to be.

I purchased a VW 1.4 Polo in February last year that came with a 3 month warranty. I had had the car for 15 weeks when I was doing 70mph on the motorway when the EPC lights came on and the power died. I had to call breakdown recovery and took it to the garage the following day. The repair work ended up costing me £1585.

Apparently the secondary belt had jumped a tooth causing several valves in the engine to become bent. The car had only done around 35,000 miles :(

I have since had various problems with the car, none too major, but since buying the car I have spent well over £2000 on repairs. Now, the ABS light has come on twice in the past week and I can forsee more expense coming on :(

Hi all,

I have a 2000 VW Polo and it does not work anymore... EPC light on, just brought it back from the garage, paid £240 to have it fixed (the car lost power and couldn't change gear... it stalls in 1st gear... horrible noise coming from engine...)

As soon as I left the garage, the car won't go again, they looked at it again, they said it needs a new piece that cost £316... I am in tears.

Hi All.

I have a 57 1.2 L Polo that I bought from a VW dealer less than 3 months ago.

Recently, the power steering light starting coming on and then I lose the power steering, the ABS light flashes and the handbrake light comes on. Sometimes the fuel low beep starts when there is plenty of petrol. It was happening once a week, and could be reset by turning the engine off and back on again. Then it started happening more frequently.

I called the roadside assistance, someone came out and surprise surprise they could not find the fault (and of course, the problem wasn't happening with him there). He tightened everything and left, and the car was OK for a few weeks.

I lost the power steering again on Saturday and the clock reset itself. I turned the engine off and on again, and took it straight to a VW garage... they have had it for 4 days and are about to return it as they cannot find a fault. Anyone else with the same problem?

I am looking to buy a first car, and I thought VW's were supposed to be reliable... I was wondering if these problems are dependent the different models? and if so, what would be the most reliable model to buy?

Many thanks.

Re; which models are most reliable... it's quite easy really, BUY A TOYOTA YARIS.

Looking at the comments for the Polo, it seems the quality is not as it used to be - I had an 85 Polo which was very well built, but my 96 model rusted and fell to bits, my friend's 03 model is the worst car he ever bought as it is so unreliable.

He has removed the L from the badge so it now reads PO O...!!

The Yaris is good, but well recognised so pricey secondhand - look at Daihatsu YRV or Sirion for a 100% reliable alternative to the Polo. Not as premium inside, but better engineered and lasts very well.

Hi all.

I wish I had found this website before purchasing my VW Polo 2002 auto. This site makes me very depressed.

I am also experiencing the same issue's, i.e dash lights flashing, losing acceleration when going over a certain speed or up hills, shuddering etc.

My car has just done over 100,000km since the problem occurred. My friend is having a look at the car for me now, but by the looks of all your comments, I may be in for a long, painful and expensive wait.

Can anyone tell me if they have managed to get something repaired in the car which has solved the problem or made the problem go away for at least a couple of months??

I am desperate. I have no money to pay for on-going repairs right now, and am at the point of just wanting to sell it for well below what it's worth just to get it off my hands.

Please let me know your suggestions pr3tty_in_per0xide@hotmail.com

Thanks.