- VW Polo is ‘Best Car of the Half Century’
- Award courtesy of ‘Best Cars of the Year – The New Car World Championships’
- Polo is also celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2025
- 20 million sales to date
The humble Volkswagen Polo is the best car of the last 50 years, according to a major new industry award.
The accolade has been bestowed as part of the ‘Best Cars of the Year – The New Car World Championships’.
The Best Cars of the Year is a UK enterprise that’s partnered with the British Motor Show and which sees awards dished-out by a panel of judges that includes journalists, broadcasters, designers, engineers and motorsports legends.
And the long-running Polo hatchback has this week been singled-out as the ‘Best Car of the Half Century’.
One of the judges is automotive journalist Mike Rutherford, who founded the awards. He said: “The 20 million motorists who’ve been buying Volkswagen Polos since 1975 can’t be wrong. It’s been the most consistently credible supermini of the past 50 years and has repeatedly hit the sweet spot in terms of design, overall dimensions, build quality, competitive retail pricing, efficiency and low standing and running costs.”
It’s a serendipitous award for the Polo - baby brother to the VW Golf - as the compact hatch is also celebrating its 50th birthday in 2025.
Rod McLeod, Director of Volkswagen UK, said: “We are delighted to see the Polo claim this award; it’s a great way to kick off its 50th anniversary celebrations. The Polo is not just a pioneer in terms of technical innovations, but also represents affordable mobility for all. These attributes and values are as relevant and important to customers today as they were half a century ago, and we believe that’s why our evergreen supermini has stood the test of time.”
A total of 166,304 new Volkswagen passenger vehicles were registered in the UK in 2024, making Volkswagen the UK’s best-selling new-car brand for the fourth year running. Almost 29,000 of those were Polos, second only to the Golf (32,370) among Volkswagen sales in the UK last year.
What’s good about a VW Polo lease?
Affordability is a big factor, with the Polo typically available from around £206 per month* (at the time or writing).
The recently-launched ‘Match’ trim represents something of a sweet spot, sitting just above the entry-level ‘Life’ grade but featuring creature comforts like 16-inch alloys, a rear view camera, rear tinted glass, wireless phone charging, and safety tech like Predictive Adaptive Cruise Control.
Most Polos are powered by a 1.0-litre petrol engine with between 80 PS and 110 PS, depending on the grade.
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The hot VW Polo GTI (above), however, is underpinned by a 2.0-litre TSI petrol engine with power of 206 PS and which is capable of propelling you from 0-62 mph in 6.5 seconds.
Your leasing rivals to the regular VW Polo include the SEAT Ibiza, Renault Clio, Vauxhall Corsa, while the Polo GTI is a foe to the MINI Cooper S and the Hyundai i20 N.
*Prices include VAT. Credit is Subject to Status, Ts and Cs and Arrangement Fees apply. Excess mileage may apply. Stock levels and prices correct as of 05/02/25.
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