VW Up - why does anyone buy them?

Hades

Hades

Hades

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My Golf went in for a paintwork warranty claim on Saturday. I am very unhappy with the service I've received from VW up to that point in trying to get the claim agreed but that story is for another day. Similarly I'm disappointed that a 4 year old Golf needs the boot lip repainting due to rust. Quality has certainly taken a nose dive.

Anyway... to cut a long story short the only courtesy car they had was an Up. I'd always thought they looked fairly nice in the showroom and would have considered one if I was looking for a small budget city car. But my god was it awful. It was flimsy, had an almost non-existent trim level to the point of feeling like I was back in he 80's. Then it started to rain and with no soundproofing in the car it was like sitting inside a tin can being deafened with hailstones.

Luckily it developed a fault within 5 minutes of me picking up the car and the door locks failed. So it went back to the dealers within 30 mins of collecting it and they managed to find a base level Polo instead.

The Polo is actually pretty decent. It's comfortable and very easy to drive. It really does feel like a mini Golf and I would be quite happy to buy one if I was in the market for something small and economical. But there is absolutely no power. In GTI guise I can see it would probably be a lot of fun :) but the base engines are a little disappointing.

But who on earth buys a new Up? It has got to be the single worst car I've ever had the misfortune of driving. It's truly awful. How much do they cost? Surely for the same money anyone considering one should just go and buy something better a few years old instead. I can only assume that someone desperate for a new car is muppet enough to order one.

Sorry for the rant but I was genuinely shocked quite how bad it was :)
 
How much do they cost?

£8185 of your hard earned money for a base model! Just speccing up the top of the range one for a laugh now ;)
 
The UP is what it is, a small city car. It is neither built for long journeys or very well sound proofed. It is easy to drive, very very compliant and nicely specced for such a small car. I don't agree that it's crap, it is for what it is a very good little car.
 
I was quite surprised when looking at these at my local dealer. (Not for me, mum is interested in one). They had a base model on display which quite frankly made us both almost turn around and walk back out is was that horrible. They had a higher spec one parked up round the back that we could look at, and with it's gloss black dash and other interior upgrades it actually looked quite nice. Not my kind of car, but it didn't look bad.

You'd think they would put the nice looking model on display. The salesman even said they were quite shocked when the showroom model turned up, they all thought it was hideous but they quite liked the higher models interior.
 
The Up isn't a Golf or Polo. It's a small, lightweight Eco city car. Soundproofing would just add weight, slow it down and burn more fuel.

I'll be interested to have a go in the Up GT. That should be a right hoot. :D
 
Phantom Shadow said:
You'd think they would put the nice looking model on display. The salesman even said they were quite shocked when the showroom model turned up, they all thought it was hideous but they quite liked the higher models interior.
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It is fair to say the basic model is incredibly basic. The higher up models are nice enough.
 
They should have kept with the Lupo range and just refresh it. The profit margins on it probably were not good enough for the bean counters though.
 
Phantom Shadow said:
I was quite surprised when looking at these at my local dealer. (Not for me, mum is interested in one). They had a base model on display which quite frankly made us both almost turn around and walk back out is was that horrible. They had a higher spec one parked up round the back that we could look at, and with it's gloss black dash and other interior upgrades it actually looked quite nice. Not my kind of car, but it didn't look bad.

You'd think they would put the nice looking model on display. The salesman even said they were quite shocked when the showroom model turned up, they all thought it was hideous but they quite liked the higher models interior.
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Genuine question... did you drive it? I thought the same when I first saw it and totally changed my mind when I drove it.

MagicBoy said:
The Up isn't a Golf or Polo. It's a small, lightweight Eco city car. Soundproofing would just add weight, slow it down and burn more fuel.

I'll be interested to have a go in the Up GT. That should be a right hoot. :D
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As above, what were your impressions if you drove it?



I guess I'm just not the target audience for this car and am happy to say I'm wrong and have missed the point of it. I really wanted to like it, particularly as I'm a bit of a VW enthusiast (well I used to be but most of their stuff is boring now).
 
I've not driven it, but happily would give the opportunity. Been in a colleagues Skoda version and it does what it says on the tin. I'd take it over something like the Aygo triplets in the same class. Massively better than the horrible shed that was the Fox.
 
Hades said:
Fair enough. I guess I'm just not the target audience then :(
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I certainly am not but we borrowed one for a while because we were considering one for my wife. I thought it was an impressive little car compared to the other little cars we drove. It felt neither quiet or lavish but then non of the other cities cars we drove did. What did impress was how well it rode and drove and the fact that it had all of the bits you would really need on the high spec model.
 
The wife's got one (not a base model) and I think it's great, it does exactly what it's supposed to do. The motoring press agree too as it's had favourable reviews all round, even Evo - who obviously judge cars from a dynamics angle - gave it 4 stars.
 
You really have to manage expecations when getting into one of these little cars. Everything about them is supposed to be basic to keep costs down, so things like the lack of soundproofing or kit is a given. They aren't intended to appeal to anyone who wants a golf or even a Polo really so it's understandable that it feels completely different. More an equivalent to the old Ka

I can't spend longer than about half an hour driving in the 107 before I go mad with the noise and tiny cabin, despite all the hype about the UP trio I doubt they're any better regardless of trim level. For just kicking around town it's great though, can give it death everywhere and throw the thing about at low speeds where it'll slip around a bit - I rarely drive the e46 at weekends unless we are going somewhere with decent roads or that's more than say 20 miles away.
 
I had an Up once when the Golf went in for a service. It feels cheap yes, but then it would because it is. It's really nimble and easy to manoeuvre, with hilariously light steering.
 
I don't think you can apply the # years older buys a better car for the money argument because everyone has a limit of how old they are willing to buy and what they are happy spending on running a car. For some people those limits are brand new and <£9k, that is why the car exists.

I think I must get into cars like this with very low expectations because I often find myself being more impressed than I thought I would be.

I'm in a situation where I may need to buy another car. I've got a few quid in the bank to do so but because of my determination to keep an old Mazda on the drive the car needs to be less than 4m in length (ideally with change from 4m because I don't want to have to rely on parking bumper to bumper every day). All it needs to do is get me to work and back and do so while not costing a fortune.

If I was to just pick a car tomorrow I think a VW UP (or the Citigo/Mii) could be on the shortlist. My only requirement would be AC meaning that I'd have to get the second trim level.
 
I'm not sure I 'get' any small cars. I also don't believe in the idea of a 'city car', as I find the city is exactly where I want a big car to insulate against the noise and poor road quality. I've also never had a parking or maneuvering issue, despite a lot of driving/parking/living in and around London. I'm very much in the 'older but bigger' camp for people who need low cost of ownership motoring.

That said, the Up! seemed reasonable well built and is decent enough, but is what it is. I'd prefer an older Polo, Golf, Passat etc. You'd be looking at a similar 3 year TCO for a c. 1 year old Polo 1.4 than a brand new Lupo 1.2.
 
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