SEL 1.0 TSI 95PS or 110PS?

[ledwardz]

Hello,

let me start by saying I know nothing about cars....

Looking to purchase a new polo SEL trim but cant decide between the 95bhp or the 110 bhp.

I have been quoted £16,600 for the SEL 1.0 TSI 95PS 7-speed DSG 5 Door AND £17,300 for the SEL 1.0 TSI 110PS 7-speed DSG 5 Door. Based on second hand prices I don't think these are too bad (but feel free to tell me if I am being ripped off)

has anybody test driven both? is the extra 15bhp and 25Nm of torque worth £700?

I will occasionally need to pull a trailer with a motorbike on and may be required to do some motorway miles for work (not really to sure yet).

As my partner is only able to drive an automatic it will also unfortunately need to be the DSG which i am not keen on. Not only because of the extra cost but also because of some of the comments on here and youtube reviews. Has anyone had any issues, is it smooth? am I needlessly concerned?

I would like to have test driven one but i'm stuck in tier 4 and need something before mid February when I start a new job so was looking for some advice from people that actually own a polo.

Thanks in advance for any insights/ help.

Lee.

[Stuart_Rendall]

Have you used sites such as Carwow to get a discount on the car, sometimes it can work out much cheaper with up to around 18% discount on the list price via the finance option and if you wish to buy the car outright you can do so within 14 days of collection. I believe there is a thread on here somewhere which details this.

In regard to the engine options i'm not too sure myself as I have the GTI model but I have seen a few people get the lower power models and have them ECU tuned to give out much better performance, if this is something you don't have a problem doing then the lower power option might be better.

[monkeyhanger]

Don't pay RRP. - look on Drivetgedeal for the best prices and use them as a yardstick as to how much you should be getting your dealership down to. Given you want this car next month, you'll be looking at a car that's already been built and is in the UK as unregistered stock or is about to arrive in the UK.

When you're at the dealership, don't get bamboozled by the salesperson if you're not financially astute. They ask you how much you can afford a month rather than talking purchase price. If the purchase price is right, the monthlies will be reasonable.

You'll want the 110/115ps variant of the SEL, the 95ps is very lethargic. Best spend an extra £700 now than pay £500 for a remap later and get clobbered by insurance for the remap and risk voiding your warranty.

If you were considering options, are you sure you can't stretch to a GTI+ which has got pretty much everything you could reasonably want as standard and will handle motorway driving with ease? Residuals (as a % of RRP) are better than the rest of the range too, so although it has a higher price, it probably won't lose much more than the SEL will over 3 years.

Decline the GAP insurance and Lifeshine - they're hideously overpriced at the dealership.

With the deposit contributions, if you need PCP funding you'll get those. If you are buying outright, PCP anyway to get the deposit contributions and withdraw from the finance within the 14 day coming off period after collection.

[Noonoo632]

Hello,

let me start by saying I know nothing about cars....

Looking to purchase a new polo SEL trim but cant decide between the 95bhp or the 110 bhp.

I have been quoted £16,600 for the SEL 1.0 TSI 95PS 7-speed DSG 5 Door AND £17,300 for the SEL 1.0 TSI 110PS 7-speed DSG 5 Door. Based on second hand prices I don't think these are too bad (but feel free to tell me if I am being ripped off)

has anybody test driven both? is the extra 15bhp and 25Nm of torque worth £700?

I will occasionally need to pull a trailer with a motorbike on and may be required to do some motorway miles for work (not really to sure yet).

As my partner is only able to drive an automatic it will also unfortunately need to be the DSG which i am not keen on. Not only because of the extra cost but also because of some of the comments on here and youtube reviews. Has anyone had any issues, is it smooth? am I needlessly concerned?

I would like to have test driven one but i'm stuck in tier 4 and need something before mid February when I start a new job so was looking for some advice from people that actually own a polo.

Thanks in advance for any insights/ help.

Lee.

Hi and welcome to the the forum.
I have the Polo sel in 115 ps as that was the powertrain when I bought the car in March last year. This was the car I was looking for at the time because I was coming from a 140 ps Seat Leon to the Polo and did not want the GTI. but still wanted a fair bit of power which this car gives me.
My advice is go via Carwow and get an idea of new and used prices and use this as a bargaining tool with the dealer. You will find that pcp deals are cheaper and as others will tell you can cancel and pay off the balance of the car and save even more.
If you go for a new car and it is not in stock there is a fairly considerable wait.
I think you will find the DSG gearbox very good as I have driven one on a non GTi and it was up to my expectations I paid cash for mine and saved £2200 from a new price of £20200 so 10% ( The car, a stock one, came with metallic paint winter pack and style pack and I got a few other things thrown in like the service pack and mudflaps)

[monkeyhanger]

Drivethedeal is cheaper than Carwow and you don't have to faff about waiting for offers to roll in - their price is there for all to see.

Don't forget to buy the service pack, it will save a fair bit of money vs standard service prices at your dealership.

[vc-10]

TBH with Carwow or DriveTheDeal, both are just a couple of clicks, so it's worth checking both. It's also worth taking the best offer you get from them and seeing if your local dealer can match it, rather than have to go and pick a car up from the other end of the country.

Regarding the 110 vs 95- I paid the extra, although with the manual cars, you get the advantage of a 6-speed in the 110. My commute is on the motorway, so I wanted a 6-speed and the extra power. I think with DSGs it's less of an issue, as they both have a 7-speed gearbox.

[SRGTD]

Current list price of the two models (with no options and the free colour) the OP is considering is;

95ps 1.0 litre SEL DSG; £20,050
110ps 1.0 litre SEL DSG; £21,150

Drive the Deal prices are;
95ps model; £16,458 (represents 17.9% discount off list price)
110ps model; £17,412 (represents 17.7% discount off list price)

Above assumes a PCP purchase, so includes VW’s current £1,500 finance deposit contribution.

The prices the OP has been quoted represent a discount of 17.2% (95ps model) and 18.2% (110ps model) which are pretty close to the DtD prices which are usually the best - or very close to the best broker prices (Carwow can sometimes be cheaper). I’d therefore say that they are pretty good prices - especially if they’re for cars that are available for mid Feb delivery. Those discount prices the OP has got may be for cars with a higher list price if they include certain factory options, which would mean the discount % is even higher than 17.2% or 18.2%.

A consideration if buying through Drive the Deal would presumably mean a car would be a new factory order, so there could be a fairly lengthy lead time and the OP needs the car by mid-February. The issue around lead times would probably mean buying through Drive the Deal wouldn’t be viable given the OP’s requirement of having the car within the next five weeks or so.

@ledwardz; in your position, of the two models you’re considering I’d definitely choose the 110ps over the 95ps model, especially if you’re going to be towing occasionally. Additionally, it’s the car you’ve been offered the largest discount on. If the 110ps SEL DSG is an in-stock car from the dealers stock, then taking delivery by mid Feb shouldn’t be a problem (subject to lockdown restrictions).

As has been said earlier in this discussion thread, don’t be hooked into buying the expensive add-ons from the dealer, such as GAP insurance, paintwork protection, alloy wheel and tyre insurance etc. GAP insurance may be worth buying it not the VW branded product via the dealer as it’s vastly overpriced - there are considerably cheaper GAP products available if you buy direct from the provider (e.g. ALA, Direct GAP, GAP Insurance 123 etc.). Also, as @monkeyhanger has said, buying the service pack at point of sale (gives you the first two services) works out much cheaper than paying for the services at the time they become due, so it’s worth buying the service pack.

[monkeyhanger]

As SRGTD's done the homework on actual prices, I wouldn't mess about looking elsewhere when your dealer is beating the DTD price for the 110ps variant. Is it an in stock car? If it is and hasn't yet been registered, get them to add the service pack. Its cheaper at point of registration than afterwards (used to be £199 for 2 services, is it £269 now?).

There's only 15ps in it, but on a car with low output anyway, it'll make a big difference - 16% more powerful than the 95ps variant.

[SRGTD]

The list prices in my earlier post were from the Drive the Deal website. They’re actually £40 higher in VW’s latest price list and spec brochure (effective 01/01/2021).

[monkeyhanger]

The list prices in my earlier post were from the Drive the Deal website. They’re actually £40 higher in VW’s latest price list and spec brochure (effective 01/01/2021).

Only £40 increase? You're spoiling us VW!

[ledwardz]

Hi all, many thanks for the replies above.

The prices I got were from carwow and right car then talking to the cheapest dealer before Christmas (I rounded to nearest 100). I think its stock because I just picked what was available but I told him I was in no rush for the car because I didn't want him to screw me.

I'll go for the 110 then based on above.

I had wanted to add the active info display, folding mirrors and I read somewhere that you can put the dsg in manual mode and shift gears via the paddle so depending on price might add that in. Judging by your responses I may have missed the boat for this lol. Will see if he can give me a lead time.

Can the active info display mirror your mobile like the 8 inch display? I sure hope so.

I'll get him to add the service pack as suggested too. Any other equipment add ons that are worth it?

Is it better for residual values to pick one of the metallic colours or just rock with the standard grey for free (my preferred option)

Don't think you can add a towbar to the gti (do you mean r line?) and im not a big fan of the sporty styling (no offence intended), I'm simply far too boring for that.

Is it just accepted that you reject the dealers first offer too? Do I say no and walk away or are those prices genuinely the best I will get?

[vc-10]

If you're adding any thing then it'll take too long to build and get to the UK if you want the car in a month and a half.

Regarding the Active Info display- it can't display Android Auto/Apple CarPlay. TBH it's cool but you're not missing a huge amount not having it! The paddle shifts are definitely something I'd want on a DSG. Having said that you can shift manually using the actual shifter on the centre console.

[SRGTD]

It’s unlikely the dealer you’re talking to will have a Polo SEL in stock with DSG, Active Info Display, paddle shift and electric folding mirrors. To get those options will very likely be a new factory order, with the associated lead time. The lead time on my Polo GTI+ when I ordered it last February was pretty much 7 months; I don’t know if that’s typical of current lead times for a factory order now, but it was fairly typical last year, which would take you way beyond your mid Feb date for taking delivery.

Unfortunately, I don’t think it’s possible to mirror your phone screen on the Active Info Display. However, the SEL has sat nav as standard and I think you have the option of displaying the car’s sat nav display on the Active Info Display.

I’d recommend you see a Polo in the free Urano Grey paint colour if you haven’t already done so. I don’t think it’s that popular a colour, which could make it more difficult to sell when the time comes to part with the car in a few years time. It’s no doubt a deliberate ploy on VW’s part to make the free colour one of the less popular colours, so buyers spend extra and upgrade to a different colour.

As to which options are worth having - only you can really decide what might be of value to you. However, bear in mind that most of the value of extra cost options is ‘lost’ if you trade the car in against another car in a few years time. Traditionally, options that have added value to most VW’s are metallic paint and DSG transmission, and for some performance models, certain larger factory fit alloy wheels.

Not certain if it was possible to fit a tow bar to the GTI / GTI+. There were GTI/GTI+ models in the UK Polo model range but they’re currently not being built for the UK market - I think the reason is emissions related. A member on another VW forum - a sales manager who works for a large VW dealership - has said they should be reintroduced once they’re RDE2 emissions compliant. I can vaguely remember someone on the forum wanting to get a tow bar fitted on their R-Line, and it was going to involve making a cut out in the rear bumper diffuser. Might be worth asking your dealer whether or not this would be necessary on the SEL, or if it could be fitted without modifying the rear diffuser.

I would say that as the dealer you’re talking can better the Drive the Deal discounts, then IMO you’re being offered a good price. However, some dealers will try and claw back some of the discount they’ve offered by pushing overpriced add-ons, as there’s a large profit margin in these add-ons for the dealer. As mentioned in earlier posts, don’t fall for the sales patter on these add-ons as they’re overpriced, you can live without most if not all of them and if there are any specific add-ons that you want such as GAP insurance, you can get them cheaper elsewhere. The service pack is definitely worth getting though - bear in mind the price of the service pack is higher if you wait until after the car’s been registered though, so as @monkeyhanger has said, ensure you buy it a point of registration.

[ledwardz]

Thanks again.

So he has 2 x 95 SEL on site, one of them with the virtual cockpit. He says he will check what is in the pipeline for the 110 when he is in the office tomorrow.

A factory order is 22 weeks so I have well and truely messed that up.

You can configure the SEL with a detachable or permanent tow bar on VW website so think it is okay.

I'll make sure I get the service pack before its registered. As it has 0 miles I assume it won't have been registered.

Another perhaps stupid question. Will the car get a 2021 number plate? Would i be better off waiting for the 2021 model of the car to be released otherwise the car already looks a year old? Is there actually any difference between the 2017-2020 models (they all look the same).

Perhaps I just go second hand for the time being if I can't get the spec i want. No idea any more.

[ledwardz]

Thanks again.

So he has 2 x 95 SEL on site, one of them with the virtual cockpit. He says he will check what is in the pipeline for the 110 when he is in the office tomorrow.

A factory order is 22 weeks so I have well and truely messed that up.

You can configure the SEL with a detachable or permanent tow bar on VW website so think it is okay.

I'll make sure I get the service pack before its registered. As it has 0 miles I assume it won't have been registered.

Another perhaps stupid question. Will the car get a 2021 number plate? Would i be better off waiting for the 2021 model of the car to be released otherwise the car already looks a year old? Is there actually any difference between the 2017-2020 models (they all look the same).

Perhaps I just go second hand for the time being if I can't get the spec i want. No idea any more.