Being relatively new to the forum I wanted to ask about longevity...

What's the MK2F like as a distance tourer round Europe?

Anyone done major mileage in one?

a well maintained one should be fine for any distance , obviously with thier age alot are badly neglected

Mark_Crox has just done a tour of Belgium & Germany in his Mk2. See the Front page news section

Spritmonitor.de shows three Polo 2f NZ's reaching 200,000 kilometers on average. At that point car might have died or owner moved on to something else.

If you've got a 5 speed gearbox should be okay for autobahn/autoroute cruise which tends to flow nearer 80mph, but you won't be in the big boys lane with only 55bhp and may get hassled by lorries.

I used to drive from Germany to England and back in a newish Mk2 GT and did the same journey one-way in my SP at 160,000+km. Both 75bhp. I recommend a tilting sunroof or side-window deflectors (Heko?) for hot summer.

Breakdown cover for cars over 15 years old or trips exceeding 90 days can be much more costly.

Yeah, it's the breakdown cover that's the killer on long distance trips. I wouldn't leave the UK without it, though, just in case.

Ultimately any car can break down, at least with a Polo it's likely you'd be able to fix it at the roadside or at least without any major headaches.

I used to do mega miles in mine, and I've been to Germany in it, I always found it was very comfortable on long trips and it used to be a proper little workhorse. It should be fine, but obviously don't go knowing you've got dodgy bearings or anything like that or you're asking for trouble.

A 3 week trip would be all I'd be looking to do...

Possibly a Club Polo adventure I anyone is interested???

The 'ring in Germany then either on to Monaco, back via Le Mans...

Or after Germany down to Turin and round Italy...

Edited 9 May, 201511 yr by MW2K8

Hello,,

Yep just done 2000 miles in mine taking in France, Belgium, Holland and Germany including Essen and Wolfsburg.

Was perfect enjoyed every min of it and the car was perfect. One think I am so glad I had was a ATV (G40) gearbox. I would not liked to have done it running my GT gearbox! :)

Got another one planned August,

Just make sure you car is in really good working order. take a few spares and get Euro Breakdown just in case :)

Very reliable mk2 on bike carbs you got thier mark Some lads last year went to Mongolia and back in a mk2 carbed polo they were gone for over 3 months I think, only prob they had that I saw was a blocked fuel filter and thier alternator bolts falling out lol

Edited 14 May, 201511 yr by Buxton

Hey Mark, if you don't mind me asking....

What sort of budget are you thinking for a trip like that?

M

Well a lot of the expense has already been paid for as we are going with Retro Cars mag and it's their euro rally so its just fuel and food really. So I don't really know how much that's going to cost, but I can't imagine thats much :)

I did 2k miles in a 9n staying in hostels in 5 major cities in Germany and camping in Germany and Holland a few years back. For 2 of us it was about £1500.

Obviously not an old polo, but it gives an indication of costs. In fact we're going to Oktoberfest this year and doing a similar thing. I will take an old polo one day!

Regarding reliability, I regularly did trips to Cornwall in my mk 2's and back (500 miles) with no hassle except for a sticky choke one time. Half of those trips were done with a 4 speed too, which is tedious. But so long as you take things slow and don't rag it about and heed the advice above, you should be ok

Edited 16 May, 201511 yr by prankstar2003

Thanks folks...

Lots of updates on your August trip please Mark! As I aim to do a similar route / style of trip next year

Will do.. I plan on posting lots of pictures :)

I live in the very north of the Netherlands and made multiple trips to Germany and a few times to Belgium with several MK2f Polo's and even with my old MK1 Derby.
Never had issues with long distance trips. However 5 speed is a must for comfortable highway cruising.

Main spares I used to take with me are a spare dizzy, spare coil, some hoseclamps in case bad radiator hoses, and a toolkit.

if you drive a car for longer than 4-6 months, you should be able to decide by yourself if you trust your car enough for a long distance trip or nah.

hose-clamps, a screwdriver (there's a reversible one in the long arm of the wheel brace usually), and some radweld/kseal.