Wednesday 29th January 2014

Manual gearbox for Polo GTI

VW does an about face on gearbox options with a manual coming in 2015

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We don't know who's calling the shots at VW at the moment, but their decisions wholeheartedly receive the PH thumbs up. Just a few days after the Polo R and 370hp Golf Evo were confirmed, it has now been officially announced that the revised Polo GTI will get a manual gearbox option.

GTI has been DSG-only since launch

The DSG that has been the hot Polo's only transmission since 2010 will continue. In theory, the manual will be cheaper given a dual-clutch 'box is typically a cost option on VWs. With the 3-door GTi currently £19,730, a three-pedal car could be in 208 GTI territory (£18,895).

Our colleagues at What Car? have covered the Polo facelift in more detail but it's essentially a light cosmetic tweak with some new equipment and the option of electronic dampers. The standard cars will go on sale in April but the updated GTI won't be available until 2015.

It's an interesting development for VW's junior GTI, the implication of this move surely being customer demand for a manual. Moreover, will the Ibiza Cupra that shares its underpinnings follow suit? And what does this mean for the infamously DSG-only Renaultsport Clio?

Hopefully those questions can be answered shortly, plus the most important one of what a manual Polo GTI is like to drive. Riggers was keen on the standard car back in 2010, and the manual Golf GTI we drove recently had a really nice gear change. Could it be the Polo GTI we've been waiting for? Or had the hot hatch game moved on too far?

[Source: What Car?]

[P4ROT]

Wow that must be fairly unprecedented no? Good for you VW!