Sell It To The Indians: A Polo At Four Times The Price

Volkswagen Polo is the German automakers entry level offering in India. It is offered in three engines – 1.2-liter diesel 75 BHP, 1.2-liter gasoline – 75 BHP and 1.6-liter gasoline – 105 BHP. It is by no means a hot hatch, but is positioned as a premium hatchback in India. DC Designs is one of the leading after market car designers in India. He has done various projects, including one-off specials for movies. Recently, he worked on the Volkswagen Polo for a client, transforming the vehicle from a 5-door hatchback to a 3-door crossover.

DC Designs has raised the vehicle, added a wide body kit, made some changes to the lights and removed 2 doors. The front looks a lot like the Range Rover Evoque, while the rear tail lights are a big piece of rectangle. There is fake carbon fiber on the tailgate, while twin exhausts are offered as well. The interiors have received changes too, with the most prominent ones being the bucket seats. The complete job does look well finished. However, there are a few problems.

The biggest problem is the price. The Volkswagen Polo is priced at Rs. 7,00,000/- ($12,500), while this modification job cost Rs. 28,00,000/- ($50,000), not including the donor car. Now that is four times the price of the car itself. The second problem is that no windows function anymore due to the increased length of the doors. Lastly, DC Designs has not improved the performance of the Polo, which has to labor harder due to the increased width of the tires and higher weight.

Faisal Ali Khan is the owner/operator of MotorBeam.com, a website covering the auto industry of India.