Hyundai has a long withstanding reputation of manufacturing vehicles that are ideally suited for a car market like India. The company has enjoyed tremendous success in India owing to its wide range of hatchbacks that include famous i10 and i20 models. Over the recent years, i20 has been touted as one of the best premium hatchbacks of the country. The car gives away a superlative engine performance combines with its fully loaded features. However, Volkswagen is planning to take away the cherished title from Hyundai i20 through its recently launched Polo GT TDI model. The recently launched car of Volkswagen is aimed to lure the high end buyers of hatchbacks that seek both comfort and power in a car.
On comparing the Polo GT TDI and Hyundai i20, a clear winner cannot be predicted right away. Therefore, a detailed analysis is necessary to examine the different aspects of both the cars made by their respective companies. Coming to the most important aspect of performance, Volkswagen has provided a 4-cylinder 1.6-litre diesel engine in Polo GT TDI that is mated to the 5-speed manual gearbox. The car generates a maximum output of 103 bhp while giving away a peak torque of 250 Nm. On the other hand, i20 is equipped with a 1.4-litre U2 CRDi diesel engine that displaces 1396 cc. The car is provided with a 6-speed manual transmission that further transfers power to the rear wheels of the car. Hyundai i20 is capable of reaching a peak power of 88 bhp and 220 Nm of torque. So, in terms of engine and performance, Volkswagen Polo GT TDI scores over Hyundai i20.
To decide the winner in terms of interior space, a comparison between the dimensions of both the cars was made. Volkswagen latest offering Polo GT TDI is 3970mm in length, 1682 mm in width and 1453 mm in height. The hatchback of Volkswagen also has a ground clearance of 168 mm. While for Hyundai i20, the figures stand at 3995 mm, 1710 mm, 1505 mm with respect to length, width and height. As evident from the figures, Hyundai i20 has got the necessary room that one needs and is far more spacious than its counterpart. For ground clearance, i20 falls marginally short of Polo GT TDI.
Coming to exterior design, Volkswagen Polo GT TDI is derived on the same platform of Polo hatchback. On examining Volkswagen's car from outside, it bears almost the same design of Polo and is provided with minor add ons as compared to its sibling. For Hyundai i20, the car recently had gone through a facelift and now comes in with LED fog lamps and different set of tail lights, besides the overall changes. Talking about the comparison of both the cars in designing aspect, a few would argue that Polo GT TDI is better than Hyundai i20.
In the interior design aspect, Hyundai has a long reputation of providing the best-in-class interiors and going by what is provided in i20, it clearly bridges the gap between its rival. The i20’s dashboard is certainly more attractive than the Polo’s owing to the extensive use of chrome and the blue back lighting as given in the instrument panel and the different screens of the car. In terms of features, both the cars share identical characteristics having Anti-lock Braking System and engine immobiliser. What is extra in Hyundai i20 is reverse parking sensors whereas in Volkswagen Polo GT TDI, this feature comes under the optional list. Apart from it, the car of Volkswagen is provided sans the Bluetooth connectivity as given in Hyundai i20.
In terms of price, the premium hatchback of Volkswagen is offered at Rs. 8.08 lakh while for top-end diesel variant of Hyundai i20 is available at Rs. 7.64 lakh (all prices are indicative of ex-showroom Delhi). Coming to the final take on both the cars, Volkswagen Polo GT TDI is provided with a powerful engine whereas in every other section be it appearance, features or price, i20 clearly leads its competitor by a good margin.
