The Volkswagen Polo Mk4 is the fourth generation of the Volkswagen Polo supermini car produced by the German manufacturer Volkswagen. It was marketed from early 2002 to 2009 in most countries except Argentina and the USA. It was manufactured in South Africa until 2017, it was sold as the Polo Vivo. The Mk4 replaced the Volkswagen Polo Mk3, while the Polo Vivo replaced the Citi Golf. In 2018 the Mk4 was replaced by the Volkswagen Polo Mk5 Polo Vivo. In Brazil, It was manufactured until 2014 with a second facelift called 9n4, It was replaced in 2017 by Volkswagen Polo Mk6.
Overview
Launched in September 2001 at the Frankfurt Motor Show, the fourth generation Polo (internal designation Typ 9N) was made available in early 2002. In keeping with Volkswagen's aim of floor pan sharing it shares its platform with the SEAT Ibiza 6L, SEAT Córdoba 6L, Volkswagen Gol Third Generation, also called G5 or N.F.- Not to be confused with Volkswagen Golf - and Škoda Fabia Mk1. The car is all new, and bears more structural resemblance to the 6K than the 6N, outwardly the most recognizable change is the quad round headlights similar to the Volkswagen Lupo.
At a length of over , the South African-built Polo Vivo is longer than the first generation of its larger sibling, the Volkswagen Golf Mk1, in length.
Release in North America
In January 2009, Volkswagen Group of America CEO Stefan Jacoby announced that the Polo will finally reach North America to join the vehicle line-up as a true entry-level car below the Rabbit. However, the Polo Mk4 was never released in the North American market, leaving the speculation for its successor, the Polo Mk5. When the Mk5 was introduced in European markets, it was not made available for US sale. Due to the increased demand for SUVs, VWoA management confirmed the Mk5 was not slated for a US introduction in the foreseeable future. If the Mk5 had been introduced in the US, it was anticipated to be built at Volkswagen's plant in Puebla, Mexico, alongside the Jetta and New Beetle. As of 2016, there are still no plans to introduce the Polo Mk5 or future generations of the Polo in the US.
Models and specifications
The model range includes the norm for current Volkswagen models, from the Comfortline to the Trendline and Highline, whilst featuring an extensive list of extras that had now become norm in mid-sized small cars. Items such as ABS, power steering, front and side airbags and front and rear head restraints were standard on all models and ESP, brake assistance, air conditioning, satellite navigation etc. were optional on higher spec models.
It is the first Polo generation to use a semi-automatic air conditioning system, with automatic climate control, named Climatic, that adjusts the interior temperature automatically to the value set on the control panel, whereas the air distribution and air blower speed are adjusted manually. A fully automatic air conditioning system, named Climatronic, was also offered.
It was available with a choice of a five-speed manual gearbox, a six-speed manual gearbox, only for the sporty 1.9-litre diesel model, or with a four-speed automatic gearbox, used only in combination with the 1.4-litre petrol engine. A six-speed semi-automatic transmission (Tiptronic) was added from mid-2006, after the facelift, also available only with the 1.4-litre or with the 1.6-litre petrol engines.
There was also a crossover version of the Polo, with off-road styling, named Polo Fun (Polo Dune in the UK, Polo Soho in Spain, CrossPolo in South Africa), released in 2003 - despite its appearance the car was never available with 4WD.
Engines
The Polo was available with several petrol and diesel engines: a 1.2 L three-cylinder petrol engine with or (depending on the number of valves per cylinder, two or four) and a 16-valve 1.4 L 4-cylinder with or petrol engine, the last one on the 16V-badged model.
Both turbocharged and unturbocharged diesel engines were available such as the 4-cylinder 1.9 L SDI (Suction Diesel Injection) which also offered but with of torque, slightly more than some petrol powered units. As well as the unturbocharged SDI engine, newer TDI PD turbodiesel units were also available, these being a 1.9 L with and a three-cylinder 1.4 L model (the 1.9 with one cylinder less) with . A sporty 1.9 TDI PD model, named Polo GT, was launched in 2004, with .