VW Vento Highline TDI in Reflex Silver (Initial report)

[EARTHed]

Congrats msd. Vento looks fresh and cool!

Originally Posted by Habanero City

As GTO himself is surprised about your sales experience with VW, I hope VW does not end up as another Skoda or FIAT in India.

VW Downtown though not best, is good enough. I have been given Vento six times for test drive without any hesitation, that too during weekends!

Please don't compare Skoda and FIAT. Whom has FIAT 'cheated'? Please avoid making such remarks which makes no sense.

[miharbe]

msd63,
Congrats on getting your car so soon! i too have booked the Vento diesel highline (14th August) at VW Navi Mumbai. I was promised a delivery in 3rd week of September, then last week of October or first week of November but just got a letter stating that it has been delayed by 3 more weeks. i went to the showroom and apart from an apology they did not have much to say. i asked them for a date but there was simply no commitment.

i dont know if the engineers are crying but the customers sure are crying waiting for the vento. if only it were not such a good car i would have cancelled and bought something else.

Congrats once again. this is truly an amazing car to drive and definately a great buy. in fact a friend of mine was head over heels in love with the linea and was about to book the diesel came with me to the VW showroom. i just asked him to take a short test drive of the diesel Vento. he had driven the diesel linea 30mins back. the moment he shifted in 2nd and floored the car there was a smile across his face. i asked him post the TD what he thought of it. he said forget linea i m booking this car. too bad the waiting period quoted is 4 months for petrol and 5 months for diesel.

[ajay_satpute]

Heartiest Congratulations!

It's surely a great car. You have written your report really well and it's terrifically unbiased, which is what I like most.

VW has given 2 excellent cars to India, first Polo, and then the Vento. But it's a little sad to hear about all those soar experiences people have had and are having with the Sales team. But, on the other hand, I also think we can't entirely blame the Sales team. They don't have much in their hands.

Anyways, enjoy your car. Please do post your experiences as you add more KMs on the odo.

[msd63]

Originally Posted by Habanero City

msd63,
Congratulations for your Vento and that too being the privileged first few in Bangalore.
Just a couple of questions.
You mentioned that you did consider ANHC while buying and considering that you have logged just 1,100 Km in a month which does not really justify Diesel car, what were the specific reasons for ruling out ANHC?
Second question concerns the service center experience.
By now you would have gone for the first service and could you please describe your experience for us.
From your posts the sales experience with VW seems to be unpleasant and you are yet to get some of the basic fittings
As GTO himself is surprised about your sales experience with VW, I hope VW does not end up as another Skoda or FIAT in India.
In fact due to this uncertainty and the long waiting period, I chose the "known devil" rather than the "unknown angel".

HC

Yes you are right that I have done only about 1100kms in a month. I had anticipated an increase in my travels and therefore I had booked the diesel vento. It is now apparent that my travels will be the same and no increase. Honda city is equally impressive and more roomy with a great petrol engine. However the price difference is negligible between City V and Diesel highline. I felt the Vento scored over city in build quality and handling. Moreover I had owned a Honda before and went for a change. It is reassuring that Vento Diesel is getting good reviews and in my opinion it is good value. Hope VW India do not become greedy and jack up prices. As for dealers, since they are not busy selling cars by the truckloads they should take care of existing customers and potential customers better.

[oxyzen]

Congratulations
This is undoubtedly the best sedan in 10L that money can buy.

Originally Posted by msd63

The suspension is on the softer side and I would have preferred a much tauterone to be labelled an enthusiast's car.
The handling is good and I feel the steering is apt. I don't feel it is light at all.

Originally Posted by GTO

The Vento has a distinctly firm edge to itself at low speeds.
Body roll is well controlled too.

Well I did testdrive Vento but I did not find the suspension to be too soft. It is almost like Linea. Cars will stiffer suspension - I will say Fiesta S and Swift 1.3 & Gypsy. They are way too stiff to endure the broken roads of India.
The steering was a bit of a bother for me. Owners reported an improvement with up-gradation to wider tyres.

Since you were almost ready to shell out money for a Jetta, why not plan a few upgrades with the Vento? A powerbox maybe?

[souravc]

Originally Posted by miharbe

msd63,
Congrats on getting your car so soon! i too have booked the Vento diesel highline (14th August) at VW Navi Mumbai. I was promised a delivery in 3rd week of September, then last week of October or first week of November but just got a letter stating that it has been delayed by 3 more weeks. i went to the showroom and apart from an apology they did not have much to say. i asked them for a date but there was simply no commitment.

i dont know if the engineers are crying but the customers sure are crying waiting for the vento. if only it were not such a good car i would have cancelled and bought something else.

First and foremost congrats on the gorgeous car msd

miharbe , you are lucky that you at least got a letter .. RSM Motors just keeps on hanging up on me whenever I inquire. The other day I visited their showroom with the intent of cancelling the booking and go for ANHC ( which I was about to book when Vento launch was announced ! ) - the sales guys seem overwhelmed and the issue seems to be at the factory end who are not keeping the dealers informed . It seems pretty messy. The car that I was promised ( verbally) by October end has now been delayed till Nov end. As someone said, if it was not that good a car I would have cancelled it.

[Chethan B G]

Congrats MSD! You must be enjoying your highway drive! Now that you have crossed 1000 Kms, you can start revving the engine up-to 80% of the limit (red line).

Changing from Petrol to Diesel Car can be a bit puzzling, to begin with. It happened to me as-well. But drive these modern Diesel cars for a couple of months and you will not feel like touching a Petrol car again! Probably only Tsi can change this!

You can buy a door-mat available in the market. They are of better quality. Take care of the Turbo-Charger! 45 Secs idle!

Drive safe! All the best!

PS: We want all the Pics on your thread. It has to be extensive. Please!

[msd63]

Another thing that I have noticed is if I drive away without idling for long first thing in the morning the engine noise is much harsher, ? knocking. Subsequent starts are fine. Anybody else noticed the same?

[Chethan B G]

Originally Posted by msd63

Another thing that I have noticed is if I drive away without idling for long first thing in the morning the engine noise is much harsher, ? knocking. Subsequent starts are fine. Anybody else noticed the same?

Please idle for a minute on cold starts. Do not race / high-rev the engine for about a Km. This is advisable for any car. More so, for a diesel engine.

I always stick to this routine - Even before, with the petrol car. I have not faced any problem. But any engine will sound a bit harsher, until it warms up.

[evilshantanu]

Originally Posted by msd63

How the Decision to buy Vento was arrived

Overall the strengths of the car are build quality, responsive engine, FE, highway cruiser and simple attractive design. The weakness appears to be a quite a few ergonomic mistakes, soft suspension and slightly tricky city driving.

Thanks for a good ownership report, this would definitely help.
However the wiper issue is serious.....

[evilshantanu]

Originally Posted by msd63

My experience is that the car gets much smoother after it clocks 1k kms.

What distance does the VW recommended the first servicing ? Like in Swift etc is it at 1000 KM ?

[noopster]

Originally Posted by evilshantanu

What distance does the VW recommended the first servicing ? Like in Swift etc is it at 1000 KM ?

15,000 km is the first service recommended.

[imjimmy]

Originally Posted by msd63

Another thing that I have noticed is if I drive away without idling for long first thing in the morning the engine noise is much harsher, ? knocking. Subsequent starts are fine. Anybody else noticed the same?

As pointed out, it is best to let the car idle on a cold start. The engine RPM goes down in 45 seconds (or so) and the temp needle also rises marginally. After that one should drive out. and be easy on the gas pedal until the engine warms up fully. That's what I've done with all my cars - petrol and diesel.

FWIW, In case you decide to take out the car without warming up, it's good to not rev it up too much on a cold engine which won't be as well lubricated.

Also I doubt the engine is knocking. Knocking is a very distinct sound and should be examined ASAP, as it might indicate more serious problems..

[khoj]

@msd63
Have you been able to get any accessories for your vehicle, also how about some photos of the interiors.

[msd63]

Unfortunately the Vento does not have a temperature guage. Even the MID displays the outside temperature not the engine's. I wonder why it has been left out as most cars have it. As for servicing there are no free services at short intervals as with other cars. The only thing I was told was that the servicing is at 15K or 1yr whichever is earlier and in between if needed to top up the engine oil.