Red Sparrow is an all-rounder

Car blogger and editor of AUTOmativ.de, Benjamin Brodbeck drove the Polo over GTI 3,000 km through the Italian and Austrian Alps and the style-metropolis of Vienna.

Third, second, first, all the while with my foot on the brake, each gear fitting better than the suit of Karl Lagerfeld. Now a sharp turn to the right, without even needing to steer hand over hand. In this fraction of a second, my brain is telling me to go straight on, whilst my foot is pressing down on the right pedal, driving the car full throttle into the tightest point of a 180 degree hairpin bend near Cortina d’Ampezzo. Then, like a stone from a slingshot, I find myself once again in the opposite direction Going into the curve, I could see a Cayman GTS at a distance in the rearview mirror – leaving the curve, I’m greeted by the Alpine panorama. Is this perfection? Well, nothing is ever truly perfect. But this comes damn close.

What does any of this have to do with Vienna and the Hofburg? A scene in the Hollywood film “Red Sparrow” was shot right there. And Red Sparrow would have been a fitting description for the Polo, but the people of Wolfsburg instead decided to call its distinctive colour “Flash Red”. Either way, the Polo looks at least as good as Jennifer Lawrence against this picture-perfect historical cityscape.

A story of performance and my personal farewell to Vienna (for now).

A rare sight indeed: the area in front of the Hofburg in Vienna is only ever empty before 5:30 on a Sunday morning.

Sporty, small and light
The new Golf’s performance derivatives are a dynamic driving delight, enriching the everyday with their power, precision and practicality. But my absolute favourite at the moment is the Polo GTI, hands down. It’s small, compact, agile, has a powerful engine and is equipped with textbook GTI fine tuning.

Golf GTI or Polo GTI for the winding Alpine roads? The Polo gets my vote!

Cornering machine – cornering master

Narrow pass roads where you often have to change to first gear are the GTI’s speciality. It’s here that its advantage over its bigger, stronger brother, the Golf GTI Performance 245 PS, really shows.

My foot’s hard on the brakes until I steer, precisely positioning the Polo GTI’s light rear end before the tightest point of the curve. I let my foot glide effortlessly from the brake to the accelerator and open up the throttle. The front axle feels like its digging into the rough, pitted tarmac, and leads the nose cleanly round the bend. And all this without disruptive forces in the steering, noticeable slippage or having to forfeit the ideal line.

The electronically regulated torque distribution in the front axle simulates a mechanical differential so perfectly that you can hardly tell the difference – at least on narrow hairpin turns – from the actual differential you’d find in a Golf GTI Performance. Right after the tightest point of the curve, I open up the throttle and change to second gear as I let the steering wheel pass through my hands. The powerful torque from the two-litre, four-cylinder, 200 PS engine works with the tight suspension system and sporty seat position to drastically reduce the time to the next turn. Driving machine? More like fun machine.

It would be a mistake to underestimate this athlete, seen here in sports car heaven with panoramic views of the Tre Cime near Cortina d’Ampezzo.

Straight out of the curves and into the long haul to Vienna

After the fun comes the everyday. I should be looking forward to this too, but for me, the there’s little fun to be had in the coming events. I will soon say goodbye to living in Vienna after almost 3 years, and I’m dreading the final meeting for the handover of my apartment.

Vienna’s Burgtheater is among the most beautiful buildings in the city. You’re unlikely to ever see the car park empty, unless you’re an early riser.

But such negative thoughts don’t last long, overshadowed by the Polo GTI’s performance on this long journey. At speeds of 200 km/h and above, the journey is remarkably swift and smooth. The Polo drives as straight and true as an ICE high speed train.

And in this regard, it shows off not only its sportiness, and once again its precision, but also its safety, even when changing lanes at high speeds.

My last morning in Vienna

No other city in Europe is as relaxed, as tidy or as clean as the Austrian style-metropolis. Faced with my imminent departure, I get up just before five on Sunday morning to have the city all to myself.

And indeed, some truly unique pictures are the result of this early time of day: Not even a single person making their way home from one of Vienna’s few night clubs. It’s magical, in a way. How many people can claim to have had the Hofburg, the university or the Burgtheater all to themselves? Well, I’m not truly alone. After all, my loyal companion from the Alps is always by my side. I feel great.

In the unusual stillness of the city, between the mighty buildings and the first rays of the quickly rising sun, this moment is made even better by the Polo’s presence.