I didn't fit the shocks into the struts in that HnR setup I had, it came on a car I purchased and I swapped them onto the G, so its plausible that they haven't had the ol' 2p trick down the shock tube, or filling with oil around the front shock to take up any movement in the strut tube.
I did have to with my KW's and haven't before with another HnR kit. With all of them I've found the castle nut to get loose over time, me and adam, the roads in manchester are shockingly bad but im sure thats the same story all over the country.
the last time the kit saw the road was our trip round europe, and everything felt right on the car going over bumps etc, we did get uneven tyre wear on both fronts as if the tracking was out, i just dont think my mate at the garage setup the geometry correctly for toe and castor.
ive always ran HnR or KW's on all on my poloes, and have only experienced budget shocks and springs on Karls GT which is a firm and unforgiving rides, I was always happy with the softer more compliant ride that the more expensive setups gave.
as said in previous correspondence,I can buy you a set of new bearings, or top mounts to replace if you want. if you were closer i could fit them too of an evening.
hopefully when your at a show in the future you could ask to jump in a couple of peoples G40's and get a feel for how they handle as a comparative benchmark, as I'm not sure if you've had any old poloes in the past.
hopefully ill get you a beer in too