Michael, where did you hear about the Polo being available in Canada? I would love to buy the Polo if it were available at a decent price.

nice car,

but we will see the same Problem as with all VW cars;

they are overpriced !

They put enough power in it so people will buy it.
My sister has a petrol Polo. They are fine cars, but nothing to write home about.
This is about the most economical one I have seen.

What we need is sort of ecology line of cars i nthe way we have performance lines. The bigger the engine, the faster you go etc. This sells well and is hard to sell against.
As you point out, 30hp would give better mileage but it would be hard to sell. The trick is to build a stream of versions with progressively better economy and lower performance with a positive "ecology" image rather than a negative "economy" image.

I think most of us got your attempt at a joke, Justin, but you don't have a valid argument. I think it's fair to say that most owners of cars that get 300+ hp will very rarely use more than 200 hp, and they by no means NEED more than 150 hp. I think I have a very valid position when saying that those cars have too much hp.

79 hp seems low by today's standards, but only because 200 hp has become the norm. Putting 79hp in this car should be applauded since it bucks the "I'm more manly than you, I have more horsepower" Neanderthal instincts to which many automakers are appealing.

woo... people complaining 79 hp too much? Indeed, your car can still move pull by a horse. Whats the wind mills at the background hv anything to do with the little car?

I own a 1965 Austin Healey Sprite that is fun to drive but weighs 1600 lbs (727 KG?) and has 42 horsepower. It can go 80 MPH & gets 35 MPG. I would love a modern (less polluting) powerplant with a safer design weighing about 1500 lbs. Weight is the enemy! The modern automobile (excluding power source) is pretty much perfected. We don't need more horsepower, but lightweight, strong, simple cars.... Keep fighting the good fight, we can get there if we work together.

States appeal to Supreme court on CO2 car emissions

"Automobile manufacturers oppose any rules to cut CO2 emissions, claiming they would make cars smaller, lighter and less powerful, which they say, would strip cars of attributes consumers demand."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060303/sc_nm/environment_warming_court_dc

Wow! 79 bhp! My VW Jetta TDI (2005 model) has 100, but my 2005 *smart* has a teensy 3-cyl, 800cc 40bhp mill! It's just fine. I have taken it on several highway trips when it keeps up with traffic and even overtakes from time to time.

A 1960 Land Rover I owned in Kenya (and drove from there to England in 1972) boasted a magnificent 65bhp from 2.3 litres. It too would keep up with highway traffic - despite rather angular bodywork. Overtaking was sometimes a challenge.

The Landy also managed to cross Africa on "roads" which would make a Jeep blanch. And guess what - you do not need 250 bhp to pull you over the Sahara!

When can we get a car like the VW Polo in the States.60 mpg is great.I'm tired of making the oil companies rich. Ed

I am looking for a new car that can replace my 1991 Chevrolet Metro XFI that still consistently gets 65 mpg on highway at 55 mph, and 60 mpg in town. It cruises comfortably at 65 to 70 mph. I am beginning to worry about this car ever wearing out even though it has been the most reliable I have owned, and still does not use appreciable amounts of oil. It had Redline gear oil replacement for the standard variety, and I use Castrol 5-50 Syntec motor oil. I had to have 3 battery replacements and a new set of tires but no other significant expenses. I understand that this car was made by Suzuki and assembled in Canada but discontinued in 1993 or 1994. I have not been able to find any new car in the U.S. like it.

It's unfortunate here in the United States. Americans have become obsessed with big gas-guzzling monsters. Then, Cadillac makes a big deal that the new Escalade gets 19 mpg. Way to go Detroit!! American cars have to be crash worthy against big trucks & suv's. That's why VW is having such a challenge w/ the Lupo & Polo. We also cant forget California emissions. Im sure politics plays a big role too. Damn Bush & his Arab oil buddies. Hopefully, things will change when he's out of Washigton! If Americans could drive cars like Europeans, id love to see how much less oil we would use.