Match vs SEL, Facelift vs not... what to choose?!

[strategygoose]

Hi all,

This forum has been incredibly helpful in giving me a tonne of info about Polos. I'm stuck so thought I'd come here for some guidance. I'm especially lost as this would be my first car (ever) and while I know car stuff, the longer-term considerations, like resale value/depreciation, trim levels, etc I'm less clued up on.

I'm looking to get a 70, 21 or 71 plate Polo DSG, ideally from a dealership, but I'm lost on what spec/option etc I should be looking for! Budget max is £17,500.

Following questions I have in my head - would appreciate any guidance:

1) Is it worth getting a facelift Life over a pre-facelift Match? From what I can tell/been told by the dealership, the Match versions come with parking sensors, cruise control etc as standard. Life versions do not, as they are bottom of the trim matrix. Not sure if the dealer is telling porkies in order to shift the car!

2) Would it be better to go for an SEL version over the two above? The alloys look a bit... rubbish but is the equipment upgrade worth some not great looking alloys? I know the SEL is fairly high up the trim matrix compared to the Match, but interested compared to the Life, despite being two diff 'eras', they'd compare.

3) One of the things I like about the newer polos is the Polo branding in the middle of the tailgate. Say there were two identical cars - one older style (polo badging to the left) and a newer one (polo badging centered). Both 2021 plate, both with 25,000 miles. Would there be a significant resale value penalty for the older one? Do people even care that much? People at work are divided so here I am!

Hope that all makes sense - appreciate any advice. I am lost as anything!

[PoloGTInoob]

If you're looking for a Polo DSG, why not consider the GTI?

[SRGTD]

If you're looking for a Polo DSG, why not consider the GTI?

Depending on the OP’s age, cost of insurance might be a factor - and potentially a significant cost -with a GTI.

[SRGTD]

@strategygoose - welcome to the forum.

I’m pretty certain the very last of the pre-facelift Polos had the centrally positioned ‘Polo’ badge on the tailgate. I think those cars also had the same in car tech that the facelift cars got.

Edit; just had a look at used Polos on VW’s website and yes, late date pre-facelift Polos do have the centrally placed ‘Polo’ badge on the tailgate - see picture below;

IMG_1531.jpeg (919.18 KiB) Viewed 328 times

As for alloys on the pre-facelift SEL; I think the standard SEL’s alloys have a painted / powder coated finish which is much more durable than the diamond cut finish of the alloys on the current model Polo Match. Diamond cut alloys are susceptible to white worm corrosion - often at around 2years old; sometimes earlier (not an issue with painted / powder coated alloys). If you’re not aware of what unsightly white worm corrosion looks like, do a Google search. Given the choice between alloys with a painted / powder coated finish or diamond cut, I’d always go for the former.

As for potential resale penalty of a pre-facelift car - bear in mind the purchase price of a pre-facelift car should be lower than a facelift car (assuming like for like or similar spec, mileage and condition of a pre and post facelift car), so what you might loose out come resale time, you should gain at the initial purchase time by paying less.

If you’re into tech, then the facelift car will have more modern tech, although VW’s current generation tech has had quite a few ‘gremlins’ - especially in the Golf. Doesn’t seem to be such an issue in the current Polo, although there are owners here on the forum whose cars have had software issues.

I would recommend you look at a few examples of both pre and post facelift cars and take test drives in each as that might help you make your decision.

Good luck with your search.

[strategygoose]

@strategygoose - welcome to the forum.

I’m pretty certain the very last of the pre-facelift Polos had the centrally positioned ‘Polo’ badge on the tailgate. I think those cars also had the same in car tech that the facelift cars got.

As for alloys on the pre-facelift SEL; they have a painted / powder coated finish which is much more durable than the diamond cut finish of the alloys on the current model Polo Match. Diamond cut alloys are susceptible to white worm corrosion - often at around 2years old; sometimes earlier (not an issue with painted / powder coated alloys). If you’re not aware of what unsightly white worm corrosion looks like, do a Google search. Given the choice between alloys with a painted / powder coated finish or diamond cut, I’d always go for the former.

As for potential resale penalty of a pre-facelift car - bear in mind the purchase price of a pre-facelift car should be lower than a facelift car (assuming like for like or similar spec, mileage and condition of a pre and post facelift car), so what you might loose out come resale time, you should gain at the initial purchase time by paying less.

If you’re into tech, then the facelift car will have more modern tech, although VW’s current generation tech has had quite a few ‘gremlins’ - especially in the Golf (not so much in the Polo).

I would recommend you look at a few examples of both pre and post facelift cars and take test drives in each as that might help you make your decision.

Good luck with your search.

Cheers for that @SRGTD - great points - I heard about the alloy thing from a colleague at work so ended up steering clear of diamond cut wheels! Absolutely right on resale penalty - when I did the sums, it worked out to exactly the same, as well as the tech - the SEL I was looking at had the digital cockpit and basically everything the facelift had. SEL had the advantage of nicer aircon controls too.

Ended up buying the SEL, in reef blue metalic, after test-driving and hearing from others about the issues in the newer gen Golf and Polo. I used Zipcars which have a fleet of DSG AWs and they seem all to be in good working order after 60, 70k miles. Popping the bonnet reveals nearly all factory parts going off the mfg dates so thought its a safe bet!

The wheels are also growing on me - its sat outside and I do look and think "what a beauty". It's my first car, at the ripe old age of 27, so

[SRGTD]

Enjoy your new car. It’ll be good to hear how you’re getting on with it once you’ve had it a few weeks.