New VW Polo GTI goes on sale in South Africa – Pricing and features

VW has announced the launch of a special limited edition of the Polo GTI – the Edition 20 – to celebrate 20 years of the hot hatch, produced solely in South Africa.

The arrival of Edition 20 coincides with wider celebrations at VW, with the brand commemorating 30 years of local Polo manufacturing at its Kariega plant, following the model’s 50th anniversary last year.

“The Polo GTI Edition 20 commemorates two decades since the first Polo GTI was introduced in South Africa in 2006, marking another important chapter in Volkswagen’s hot hatch heritage,” noted VW.

“The continued popularity of the Polo GTI highlights a strong market demand for a compact performance-focused hatch, making a commemorative edition both timely and relevant.”

Only 400 units of the special heritage edition have been made available for sale in South Africa.

Performance

The first Polo GTI built in South Africa featured a 1.8 litre turbo petrol engine, which was replaced by a twin-charged 1.4 litre engine in 2011. The third-generation model was fitted with a 1.8-litre turbocharged TSI engine from 2015.

The Polo GTI Edition 20 features the same 2.0 TSI unit – capable of a 147kW output and 320Nm – that can be found in the current-generation Polo GTI models.

VW combined this with the familiar 6-speed DSG gearbox, which drives the front wheels of the Edition 20 and allows it to accelerate to 100 km/h in 6.7 seconds before topping out at 237 km/h.

As a performance-focused hot hatchback, the focus is not necessarily on fuel efficiency, yet the Polo GTI maintains an average consumption of only 6.4l/100km.

Features

As a special edition offering, the Edition 20 has been fitted with distinct visual upgrades to give the model a distinct look, as well as stand out from the rest of the Polo GTI line-up.

The exterior features a black roof, 18-inch smoked clear Faro alloy wheels, exterior mirror housings painted black, and front and rear door “20” decals.

The Polo GTI Edition 20 is available in three exterior paint finishes, namely Kings Red Metallic, Crystal Ice Blue Metallic, and Ascot Grey, with the latter two featuring rear diffusers finished in King’s Red metallic.

Inside, it receives a leather-wrapped multifunction sports steering wheel, a piano black dashboard with “20 GTI” decals, centre console, door trim panel inserts, sports leather seats with red vinyl, and front mats with “20 GTI” embroidery and red stitching.

In the back, privacy glass can be found from the B-pillar backwards, including the rear glass, as well as rear floor mats with red binding stitch colour – without embroidery.

Buyers have the choice of adding VW’s optional features, which include IQ.Light and an NCAP Safety Package.

Pricing

The Polo GTI Edition 20 launches as the most expensive model in the Polo hatchback line-up, which looks as follows:

• VW Polo hatch 1.0TSI – R373,800
• VW Polo hatch 1.0TSI Life Manual – R420,800
• VW Polo hatch 1.0TSI Life Auto – R445,400
• VW Polo hatch 1.0TSI R-Line – R499,100
• VW Polo GTI – R585,800
• VW Polo GTI 20 – R605,700 (NEW)

These prices include VW’s 3-year/120,000km warranty and 5-year / 90,000km service plan.