VW’s modded Polo beats Prius in economy and price

While the Prius gets most of the limelight for being economical thanks to its legions of Hollywood fans, Volkswagen’s Polo Blue Motion costs just under $20,000 but manages to get a mpg rating of 72, and a range of over 700 miles.

The Blue Motion is a slightly modified version of the Polo 1.4TDI, which uses a 3-cylinder turbodiesel engine developing 80hp (60kW). VW has optimised the 5sp gearbox, improved the aerodynamics, and fitted 14-inch low resistance tyres to achieve the remarkable economy figures. Normally this would be cheating, but the fact that this car is going on sale shows VW is serious about high economy small cars.