UK-POLOS.NET - THE VW Polo Forum

I made this up for a mate when he went to look at a mk4 polo, thought i'd share it on here

Feel free to make it a sticky etc

MK4 POLO - BUYING GUIDE



AREAS OF RUST

- Under the rubbers that cover the holes in the doors, where the hinge goes in
- At the very end of the rubber strips on the roof, where the roof meets the boot lid
- Behind the plastic mirror bases (normally invisible)
- rust in wheel arch-can catch behind rear wheel

THINGS TO CHECK

- electric windows always play up
- always look for records of regular oil changes on these-they need it
- Pedal Box! Same fault as Caddy's etc. Clutch goes stiff, doesn't get changed in time, puts strain on Cable and twists/breaks/cracks pedal box mounting bracket that's bolted to the bulkhead.
- Cambelt changed between 40-60K
- Electric mirror heaters pack up: £36 for the glass!
- Check inside the boot under the carpet for a factory sticker with option codes and engne code. If this is missing, car has been rear-ended
- leaky heater matrix
- iratic speedo
- Power steering pump
- Faulty temperature sensor
- Wiring loom into front doors breaks (bare wires touching each other )
- Cracking paint in join under rear lights
- Rear Bulbs blowing regularly
- Gearbox bearing
- Brake Discs Warping
- Squeeky Rear Drums
- They Go through Wheel Bearings like they're going out of fashion (with Larger Alloys on)
- Swolen Crank Breather Pipe

thats a cool guide u got there.
i had throttle body problems for over a year. apart from that it was pretty flawless.

holy moly, im scared now! havent seen any of that yet!

can someone make this a sticky?

Hello? Any Mods?

Apologies Petts, have been on a large one all weekend in Sheff - not been on net since Friday morning.

All sorted now and cheers for the write up

Good Guide... i've had the gearbox bearing go which lead to a rebuilt for the box, noisy back drums- yep, back bulbs go a lot, but (touch wood) never a wheel bearing n im carryin 15's

Hey,
anyone know What are the symptoms of the gearbox bearing going?

cheers

i think the gearbox will be commonly noisy with the clutch pedal up, but when down the noise goes - this is the front bearing

clutch release bearing is wearing if it's noisy when the pedal begins to be pressed, and another bearing is at fault if it's noisy when it begins to bite (can't remember the name).

my old car was noisy when cold and pedal fully up. checking the levels might be a good idea.

may be looking at a 1.4 (16v?) 5 door tomorrow, will be printing that list to take with me!
any tips perculiar to the valvers?

and what might cause a 1.6 to cut, heading towards junctions? (granted, it was cold, but not something you expect too much even on a knackered mk3)

Hey, just want to say thanks for the guide! Just recently bought a Polo and took the guide with me

You're welcome. If anyone has any additions to the list, feel free to add them.

Good luck with your new car!

Check inside the boot under the carpet for a factory sticker with option codes and engne code. If this is missing, car has been rear-ended

Mines missing, what are other symptoms of a rear-ender? Im positive it's not been rear-ended but now im in doubt.

Mint wrote:

Check inside the boot under the carpet for a factory sticker with option codes and engne code. If this is missing, car has been rear-ended

Mines missing, what are other symptoms of a rear-ender? Im positive it's not been rear-ended but now im in doubt.

Sometimes they are just missing for no apparent reason,so don't worry yourself too much (i have bought mint cars with no stickers there)

Obvious signs of rear ender would be noticeable underneath the car, no,or different looking underseal, paint overspray on the inside of the panels etc

Hope that helps,Pettsy

Cheers for this list
I actually just found this forum and am coincidentally going to pickup a mk4 on saturday so i will definately print this and take it with me