2001 Volkswagen Polo SE from UK and Ireland - Comments

I had owned the car for less than 2 weeks when the Engine warning and EPC lights came on resulting in a lost of power to the engine. A number of sensors were replaced which seemed to fix the issue.

Shortly after the ABS warning lights appeared and my ABS stopped functioning to fix this 2 sensors were replaced and this sorted the problem out for 1 or 2 weeks. The problem resurfaced and once again 2 more sensors were replaced.

Since I have owned the car I have had a leak in both left hand side doors and the carpet in the front and rear foot wells is soaked through. VW have been unable to fix this as of yet.

Whenever I put the car into reverse the gearbox makes a crunching sound - VW have tried to adjust the clutch to fix this, but have just told me to put the car into first gear before putting it into reverse.

The Clutch needed to be replaced at 55k miles - VW quoted £440 - independent garage replaced it for £220.

I had an electrical problem which meant the electric windows and central locking stopped functioning - and because the Petrol cap is controlled via Central locking I could not open the cap to fill up with fuel either.

The pedal box has broken 3 times which meant I was unable to use the clutch - apparently this is a "known" fault on Polo's - the GTIs were recalled for this - however the other Polo's were not. After having it welded up multiple times I eventually had to have the whole box replaced - this cost £400 (the pedal box itself was only £30). When VW returned the car to me the Brake lights were stuck on (because VW had failed to fit a clip properly) and ever since the engine has been randomly cutting out.

VW repaired the brake light problem free of charge although they have yet to fix the engine cutting out (seems to happen when at low revs mainly).

This week the Engine and EPC lights have once again started to appear. Will be going back to VW again with this soon.

When the car works - it works beautifully. It's extremely quick off the mark and corners well.

The SE model has a large amount of extras on board which make driving extremely comfortable and pleasurable.

However since ownership I have been plagued by a spate of unreliability which has resulted in a costly repair bill.

Servicing at 10,000 miles is short and also expensive.

I will not be buying another car from the VW Group again.

VW POLO 1.4 CL

I am also having the same problems as you. I have been advised to get a new pedal box as it is a major feat getting the car into gear. The epc light showed on my car and then the car cut out completely, I brought the car to the garage and they said they could not find a fault when evidently there was one, My car was apparently on a computer for two days with no power. Will a VW garage fix the problem with the pedal box? I ask because if they know about the problem with the pedal box surley they are liable to fix it?

I've tried arguing with VW over why they should be liable multiple times - but to no avail. In the end I just shelled out £300+ to get it fixed - although 6 weeks later my clutch pedal has started to creak again and its almost impossible to get it into 1st gear so I fear the pedal box has broke once again...

Car is currently at the garage with a blown head gasket :- (

I have just had my car back after a week at being in for repair, the cost was £360 and that was to replace the Thermostat, Radiator and Water Pump. Will definitely be getting rid of the car at the end of the month.

I bought my car brand new and I have had numerous problems with it. The car has only done 24,000 miles and is 5years old. It goes every year to the main dealership of VW for its annual service. The main problems have been that I couldn't put the car into gear especially reverse it would make a crutching noise and I would have to force it into gear. The pedal box then broke which VW did fix for free of charge as they said it’s a common fault. Now the Engine light is on and so far I have paid out approx £1000 to try and find out why the light is on. They said the problem is something to do with Cylinder 4 but they are not sure what exactly it is and so would like me to pay an extra £ 500 so they can open up the engine and have a look. I'll then have to pay to fix what ever is wrong with it which could range from £900-£2000. I would never ever buy a VW again.

Hello Everyone... I was looking to fix those unbelievably REOCCURRING problems with my POLO SE 1.4 class 2K.

I meant, reoccurring, because, THEY ARE REOCCURRING!!!. I will give you a brief history of the faults experienced by the car:

1) Clutch pedal replaced once.

2) Clutch cable replaced three times.

3) Gear box replaced once.

4) Temperature sensor replaced twice...

By now, you all can imagine how much money I've spent on it.

THE OLD ENGINE CUTTING OUT PROBLEM, IS STILL THERE... I am really getting tired and sick of going back to VW. It looks like they are NOT even using new parts, but just servicing the old ones, as almost every year the same story again... To tell the whole story, I agree with you: when the car goes, IT GOES REALLY WELL, that is the main reason why I decided to keep it for the past 5 years, after all...

Polo problems continued...

Dear all.

I've had similar problems with my wife's 2000 1.4S. Engine cutting out needed an engine speed sensor replacing - done under the warranty with the car (bought from an independent dealer) but it took several visits before it was completely sorted.

The pedal box was replaced foc by the dealer as I managed to get it to them before the car was 6 years old. So if yours in less than 6 years old, take it back and insist on it being done without charge.

Today the ABS warning light has come on and I see you guys have had the same problem. The car is out of warranty - has anyone an idea of what the problem may be and what the cost is likely to be?

Many thanks.

Dear All.

I had a severe problem with the engine vibrating at idle speed due to what seems like a miss firing of one of the cylinders. I conducted a due full 80k service replacing the plugs; spark leads oil, oil filter and both filters. The problem was not fixed. I was told it could be a sticking valve and one of cylinder was under pressured compared to the rest. After then changing numerous pipes and a temperature sensor the problem had not gone away. I was told opening up the engine to have a look was the next point of call.

However after a couple of days I drove the vehicle to a local garage for a quote and found the severe engine vibration had stopped leaving me to assume the sticking valve had some how freed itself? Saving me a charge of £300 to look in the engine.

Then I found my gear change was very difficult and crunching in reverse was very common. I tried a few garages and was told its my clutch on its way out. However one garage adjusted my clutch cable sorting this problem for a short time. After approximately a month I lost all drive due to my pedal box failing costing me £240 to rectify.

Whats next? Its time to sell!

Oil blackens in less than 3k miles. Need regular oil and oil filter change.

Temperature sensor.

New pedal box.

Clutch cable adjustments.

Serviced regularly.

Regards.

Yes just 2001 (49mpg in book really means 40mpg).Just 41kmiles pedal box on my son's Polo breaks due to poor welding) not what I expected having grown up to, if everything was as reliable as a Volkswagen. Maybe I stick with Japanese cars in future. His 106 with 106kmiles half the problems and 42mpg

I have a 1 liter VW Polo 01 model.

The major fault of my car would be the gearbox!

I was told that the 01 model all had faulty gearbox problems.

The reverse gear was a bit fustrating, everytime I went for reverse I had to shove it twice before releasing the clutch just in case it was just half a centimetre out of place or a horrible grinding ensued, it wouldn't be so irritiating if it had a light on the gear knob to signal that it was actually in gear.

The car's sensors had wore out and kept displaying engine trouble. that had to be replaced several times.

The rear left taillight seemed to blow a lot and when I replaced it the right one just blew on the spot. It seemed my car has faulty wiring.

The positive comment is, its the strongest 1 litre car I have ever driven and has very wide steerage, perfect for roundabouts and tight narrow turns, its also very fast off the mark. I think its the perfect first car to learn to drive in.

I have had a polo match 1.4l 2001, which I bought second hand x2 years ago. I have encountered problems with the gear box, i. e getting into reverse etc. Now the pedal box has cracked, my local volkswagen dealership have agreed to investigate the problem with a view to repairing the pedal box under warranty on the condition that they do not discover any other pre existing problems with the car. Has any one else had the pedal box repaired under warranty?

I have a Y reg '01 1.4 SE polo, the guy at the dealer I bought it from was a wealth of VW knowledge having previously worked for them. The car had the same crunching prob going in to gear which was easily solved with some adjustment to the selector, however the pedal box is a known fault and should be replaced FOC by Volkswagen. He suggested to push the point or complain if the dealer refuses.

I now have a whirring/scrapping noise under load associated to clutch/gearbox and goes with engine speed. I'm hoping it's just a bearing at the clutch end somewhere, anyone else have the same??

To be continued...

Who would I complain to if the dealership refuses to replace my cracked pedal box f.o.c on my y registration polo match?

I took the advice of this forum and insisted that my 2001 polo match pedal box, was repaired f.o.c. at my local volkswagen dealership. The main stipulation being that I had under 60k miles on the clock. This is a major fault with this batch of polo's and I advise anyone who has this type of problem with the pedal box or gear box etc with this year and model to take a similar course of action.

Wish I had seen this site beforehand.

W Reg Polo, had clutch plate replaced at 63k miles. 2 weeks later broke down by roadside, pedal box seam /weld split.

Now noise in 5th gear and starting to make noise in other gears, probably bearings going, new gearbox maybe soon.

Each time gone back to same AA approved garage, roadside recovery by AA. They are aware of pedal box problem, but not that Polo's have clutch, pedal box and gearbox weaknesses.

Clutch has been replaced once, clutch/gears rattling or making a clicking noise now when in 3rd and 4th gear - just had it looked at and needs a new gearbox because the bearings are going. Sounds like a few other people are having similar problems... but like someone said earlier in this message board - when vw's go they go well, but when something goes wrong, it goes wrong in a big way. My mates have renault clio's/astras and they never encounted these problems, and they are better to drive!