The Baby VW – A Foxy Proposition?

As long as I can remember, the Volkswagen brand has been synonymous with quality engineering, understated style and immense popularity. The Golf and The Polo both command large portions of the supermini market. In the same way that certain lagers are advertised as being “reassuringly expensive”, the VW range has billed itself as the connoisseur’s choice of hatchback. So what happens when Volkswagen go cheap? With prices starting as low as £6,625, Volkswagen are really stooping below their usual price bracket. The VW Fox is here to put its case forward.

The first impressions of the Fox are about as positive as they possibly could be; it essentially looks like a slightly smaller Polo, which is pretty much all you could expect. The trademark boxy looks bare the VW hallmarks that have etched themselves into automotive history. To sweeten the deal, the Fox is also taller and wider than most of its competition. So far, so good. I am an advocate of the popular adage “you get what you pay for”, so to be honest I wasn’t expecting a great deal from the Fox’s drive. And I didn’t get much either. But we have to put this into some kind of perspective, for six and a half grand you can’t expect the comfort or styling of the Golf…it is double the price of the Fox after all. What you do get is a car that has been specifically tuned to pull at low revs. This makes it perfect for city driving, but as soon as you get out on the motorway or country roads, the Fox will struggle. The cars weight is also a bit of a problem when you consider the 1.2 Litre petrol engine only has 55bhp, again it will perform well from the traffic lights, but take it beyond 50 mph and you will hear the effort.

The interior of the Fox doesn’t exactly set the heart racing either. Its grey, it’s very plastic and there are no added gadgets bar the CD player. Again I have to revert to the price argument. For slightly over six grand you can hardly expect in-built sat nav or even air conditioning (which is available to install but will cost you a whopping £925!). The closest you get to flair as standard on the VW Fox are the two cup holders. What you get is…well…functional. The Fox isn’t a particularly pleasant place to sit for extended periods of time, but for the 10 minute drive to the supermarket and back, it will suffice amicably.

The handling isn’t bad at all for the price bracket and the Fox’s steering feels light but intuitive. The Fox feels positively agile compared to some of the supermini competition. If they could match the peppy steering with an engine that could maximise the handling potential, then the Fox would be a fun drive. As it stands, it can feel frustrating at times; you want to go faster, but the heavy bodywork and struggling engine are holding you back.

As a result of all of this I found driving the Volkswagen Fox [http://www.heritagewestbury.co.uk/new-cars/volkswagen-fox.shtml] to be a confusing experience. I knew that I wasn’t particularly comfortable, or enjoying the ride so much, but I know if I bought one I’d be so blown over to own a genuine VW for less than £7000 that I would probably be constantly sporting a smile anyway.

In summary, if you don’t drive for fun or particularly long distances then the VW Fox is a cheap, reliable car that has enough space to accommodate four people comfortably. For weekly trips to the shops you would be pretty silly to splash out any more than the Fox costs. It’s practical, stylish and has the VW badge…just don’t expect too much and you won’t be disappointed.