[MaheshY1]

Originally Posted by kpamit

Major (75%) use of the car is expected to be road trips during the weekends + 35% use in the city.

Hey there,

Looks like you are going to extract 110% out of your new car.
If that's the case, you better go for Polo. Of course it's a personal opinion but my opinion comes from a recent revelation I experienced when considering my next car.

I was slipping back and forth between Beat vs Figo. There were no discounts the base diesel Figo so I asked the sales executive that I won't be coming for the test drive. The executive (Sonia- Harpreet Ford, Kirti Nagar) insisted that I still take the car for a TD even if I'm not interested in buying.

And man what a drive! When I was driving the car all I could think of was how well it handles compared to the Beat.
On papers, the Beat has:
- Better FE
- Low maintenance (Oil change at 15000 Kms)
- Electronic power steering (So no effect of FE)
- Good discounts (So low upfront cost)
- 20000 Rs better evaluation for my current car from the dealer
Driving Figo made me (almost) throw all of those specifications out of the window.
Two days back I was all sold on Beat for its VFM factor. Today, I'm still buying the Beat (head won over heart,) but I understood what driving pleasure means. I always thought the car was only as good as the driver; now I realize how a car can bring out the better driver out of you.
If only I hadn't driven the Figo, I would have been one happy Chevy customer. Considering my super tight budget constraints and needs (vs wants,) I'm sticking with the Beat but the DRIVE FACTOR will be my most important point when I trade in my Beat for a new car five years later.

Back to your question; my recommendation would be to test drive both cars back to back and then some more if you feel the need. You'll immediately know what you want. I'm betting my money on the Polo.
And please for God sake, throw the specifications out of the window.
Just drive.
Happy hunting.

[s_pphilip]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

The mid-range is totally flat and you feel something lacking here. It didnt feel like a enjoyable tune to me.

The Swift on the other hand has a pronounced turbo lag, but is a delight once the turbo kicks in, urging you to push it more. I would choose the Swift here.

Aaah, I missed to add the 'Acceleration' & 'NVH/Refinement' parameter, didn't I, thanks Crazy Driver, infact wanted to add this yesterday but since I was shuffling, had time constraints.
Agree to what you have mentioned, precise.


Acceleration: In fact I have noted the punny Swift in turbo zone can hold its ground against bigger competition. Maruti has a trick up its sleeve when tuning for acceleration stakes and it shows. You can make that motor scream & deliver.
But yes after that acceleration, I like the Polo because you feel composed to maintain that speed. Also I feel Swift has that slight initial roll compared to Polo but with that communicative steering does better at corners. Maybe it comes from me using the Fabia, so its personal.

Let me cite my personal experience here, again not promoting speeding, on the NH4 E-way to B'lore, when I felt the Fabia hit an invicible wall, an old gen Swift D effortlessly overtook me, of course it was driven well too, and none were racing, just making up for time driving with respect, he'd take a fag break and again overtake me doing those speeds, of course can't compare as the Fab has a crude motor, but would I want to trade the Fab for that acceleration, I don't think so as I felt the Fabia always made me feel safe. But point is Swift gets my respect here.

However everyday stop/go driving, Polo should do better, but each has his own taste towards such.


NVH/refinement: Again Maruti scores, somehow VW seem to mess this everytime.
The new Polo is vastly inproved against the racket making VW contraption in the Fabia.

Originally Posted by kpamit

Swift - 6.7L Ex + 25k Ins + 79k reg + 9k EW - 16.5k discount = 7.67L;
Polo - 8.59L Ex/Ins/reg + 15k EW + 5k road asst = 8.79L

But that swift's response. So visceral. The muted thrum of the engine filtering through to the cabin when the music's off and you have your foot against the floorboards. You can almost hear it sing with the ups and downs of the gas pedal.

Compared to that, the polo's mill sounded unrefined and gruff when stressed (altho leagues ahead of the old 3 pot)

I've decided to take the plunge and book a torque blue swift zdi.

The head won out in the end. A car i can have fun .... better resale won out in the end.

True, you'd have a hassle free ownership and get better resale at the end of it all. Couple that with the 1.1L you save outright and you are a happy customer. As I said earlier, either way you are the one having fun. Congrats!

[VeyronSuperSprt]

It's a no-brainer actually.

Go for the German IF, AND ONLY IF you feel that it has the virtues of a mind blowing girl friend whose tantrums and expensive habits you put up with because of the mind blowing experiences with her.

If in your assessment, you feel anything Japanese comes close and is even comparable, go for the Japanese - its a no brainer. The peace of mind, reliability and service experience far outweighs everything else if YOU feel the German is only marginally better.

Germans are worth the trouble of owning if, only if, in YOUR assessment, there just is no comparison with the option(s) available.

As I tell my friends - If in doubt, the Germans are out.

[raihan]

Originally Posted by s_pphilip

Acceleration: In fact I have noted the punny Swift in turbo zone can hold its ground against bigger competition.

True that, once I was behind the wheel of my friends Altis while returning from Ooty on Mysore road, a new swift zdi driven rashly by a lone person who looked like a driver gave us a hard time.... we were 4 with luggage packed for 3 days & I wasn't taking unnecessary risks at night.
I think the swift's torque to weight ratio came into play here.
I was pretty pissed about it then but not any more since I've acquired 'a pre-owned laura TSI

[s_pphilip]

Originally Posted by raihan

not any more since I've acquired 'a pre-owned laura TSI

Wow, you are the one having the last laugh now. TSI, that's neighbors envy, owners pride. Drive safe and have fun.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by kpamit

Well, after reading all those replies, many of them more than once to not miss any grains of knowledge, discussions with family and looking at the reality of what i really need, I've decided to take the plunge and book a torque blue swift zdi.

Congrats!

I myself had booked a Torque blue ZDi once, before ending up with the Punto 90HP after waiting 6 months for Maruti to deliver the car. Thankfully waiting issues are a thing of the past now. It is the best colour for the Swift IMO (Other than white which is just too common!).

Enjoy.

[amiya.c]

Am I late here? If not, here are my 2 cents.
Both the cars are equally good with some pros and cons. The biggest issue with the Swift is it's small boot. On the other hand Polo has a high maintenance cost. But the most important factor that you should look into is your driving style. Swift is high rpm friendly, it accelerates once in turbo zone and is real fun on open stretches. The engine noise is comparatively low with other diesels in the same segment. If you are heavy footer then Swift is the car for you. The Polo on the other hand has an exceptional low end torque which is good for city drives, but it is a bit loud when pressed hard. On paper the torque looks equally spread across the rev range, so it should be fun to drive too. Check if Polo's throttle response suits you more. If so, go for it. Otherwise it's Swift all the way if you can live with that boot.

cheers

[noopster]

Originally Posted by kpamit

This is my major concern with the polo and a possible deal breaker. VW group service is average at best and atrocious at worst.
(...)
I'm based out of pune, so there are multiple options for both Maruti and VW service, although about how good they are, I don't really know.

I own a Swift and a Vento so can guide you here...for VW BU Bhandari is the default choice: they are by and large competent, prompt and honest. The other dealer Vidyut Motors is not too bad but definitely less professional than BUB; however the advantage he has is that is he in the city. As a VW owner for nearly 4 years now, I have not had any major issue with either of these.

Pune has MAS'es galore. Sai Service (JM Road and Hinjewadi) are reputed to be the best- used the latter and they are quite good. There are many others: the good thing about MAS is that if you are unhappy with one, pick another. In recent times the level of personalization of services has dropped significantly and it does appear that MAS advisors try and push unnecessary and expensive services on you to inflate the bill.

VW costs 10,000/- a year for at least the first 4 annual services/60,000 km. Maruti will be a little lower than that, I reckon.

Best servicing option for Marutis in my opinion is a trusted and reputable third-party garage. There are certainly a handful of those in Pune. With VW it's a dicey proposition because VW refuses to sell parts over the counter so their price in the open market is inflated.

Overall- either way you go, service is not something you need to be overly worried about .

[speedmunster]

How long are you planning to keep the car. If it is going to me more than 3-4 years, then definitely go the Polo way. In the long run the better build quality will keep you happy. The Swift on the other hand does not take ageing very well. Creaks and rattles can be heard in Swifts less than 3 years old (especially considering the condition of our roads).

What you also need to keep in mind is the cost of maintenance. The Swift is going to be cheaper to maintain any day.

Keep these two points in mind before making a decision.

[suhaas307]

Originally Posted by Auswechseln

We have a Swift ZXi. Seeing that you are planning for a diesel, I am not going into engine details.

Our main criteria was that the rear leg-room must be good for a 6-footer if another 6-footer is driving. Some of my observations after 2 years of ownership of Swift are:

Pros:

• Good legroom for a 6-footer at the rear.

I've gotten myself fairly familiar with the Swift and I've often found myself rather uncomfortable at the back, right behind the driver's seat. This is when my friend drives the car. For the record, I'm a 6-footer too.

In fact, I find myself struggling for room even when his father drives the car and he's about 5'8". My knees are in perpetual contact with the front seat and they sort-of dig-in when my friend is in the driver's seat.

The Polo's cabin space is almost identical to the Swift, IMO. I'd say the Polo has a slight advantage in terms of accommodation when you consider the larger boot.

I do agree with everything else though.

EDIT: Other than the poor fit-finish / general build quality of the Swift, it's a package that's hard to fault.

[noopster]

Originally Posted by suhaas307

I've gotten myself fairly familiar with the Swift and I've often found myself rather uncomfortable at the back, right behind the driver's seat. This is when my friend drives the car. For the record, I'm a 6-footer too.

I'm 5'10" and I barely fit in the back seat with the front seat adjusted for a 6-footer. And mine is the old shape- I believe the new Swift is even more cramped!

[raghav135]

Looks like you are already in love with this car. Please go ahead and follow your dream .

But a word of caution, a friend of mine faced high repair cost for a relatively small accident for his polo. So, you should seriously consider bumper to bumper insurance with 0% depreciation.

[Wanderers]

Originally Posted by raghav135

Looks like you are already in love with this car. Please go ahead and follow your dream .

But a word of caution, a friend of mine faced high repair cost for a relatively small accident for his polo. So, you should seriously consider bumper to bumper insurance with 0% depreciation.

Well, if POLO service is costly, swift is no mean either.

Be generous to pay around 9K for swift 40,000 service (I did it last year). This year service (I did it on 10-Sep-14) costed me 12K for 60,000 Service (even though my car just did 50,000).

This after cutting down many things like I did not go for replacement of boot door hydraulic openers and rear shock absorber as it would still last for some more distance.

For accidents, please keep Insurance as we cannot plan for them.
Yes POLO looks expensive as there are no free services and they always use synthetic oil, which itself is around 5K.

[Vik0728]

An interesting twist to the tale here folks:

Read This.


If & When this happens, Swift may quite possibly be 'The Best drivers hatch' in India again, just like the first iteration of DDIS did.

I still don't like Swift and think is quite an ugly looking hatch, but I have loads of respect for that DDIS engine performance.

Recently got to experience that power against my GT on one of our NH's and I agree with this:

Fiat may have the most used Engine in India, but Maruti have the Best tuning of the same available.

[kpamit]

TL;DR: Swift ZDI cancelled (waiting extended by another month). Booked Steel grey Polo GT TDI!! Delivery on 3rd October.

I know the post below is more along the lines of a buying experience report than a quick update, but I'm terribly exited and just typed it all out. Hope you all can forgive me for the wall of text

A quick update,

I'd been pushing for delivery of my blue swift zdi on 3rd October (Dussera and a good day to buy stuff and all that jazz).

9.23.2014

And then I got a call from the sales guy at Maruti.
"Sir I wont be able to get the car for you on the 3rd. There isn't a blue zdi scheduled for delivery to Pune for the rest of the month."
"So what kind of extra waiting am I looking at?"
"Sir, I can't say for sure, but earliest expected delivery is 17th October"
"So, I'll have the car in my driveway on 17th?"
"No Sir, we'll get it on 17th at the showroom."
"So, a couple of days for the RTO stuff, and around 23rd Oct is what I'm looking at. Another month's waiting."
"Yes sir."

Now that just pushed me over the edge. I'd been calling up these guys from the 15th trying to get a commitment for 3rd and they were evasive the entire time. Most discussions were "Sir, I'll call you back in 10 min and tell you the exact date." and then no call back or follow up.

Now I don't know if this is the dealers fault or there isn't transparency in maruti's allocations of unusual color-variant combos to their dealers, but I was done. Immediately told the SA to cancel the booking.

"Sir, I have a grey Zdi, why don't you consider that?". Nope. That shade of blue and cost was the only thing going for the swift.

"Give me 10 min, I'll call you back." The satisfaction of saying that back to them, Priceless!

Heart over head?

Called up the VW SA (named Amit as well), asked him what models he has in stock.
"Sir, I have white, red and blue in TDI Highline and red and grey in GT TDI."
"In stock, on the spot?"
"Yes sir, these haven't been booked yet, but we have had a lot of inquiries come in."
"Grey GT TDI, you sure?"
"Just a second, let me check... Yes sir, grey GT TDI. I have one of each. Red and grey."
"Final on-road price?"
"9.07L outside octroi Sir. I believe during our discussion, you told me your address is outside city limits."

Sheesh. This was unexpected. The grey GT TDI, in stock and available.
Wiped the drool off my face, and said,
"I'll pick up the grey GT!! If you can give me delivery by 3rd, come to my office tomorrow with all the paperwork, and lets get this started."

Discussed the specifics, and the SA said 3rd is definitely possible since verification and sanction of my loan is done (Although I now have to pay the processing fee again to switch from maruti to VW. Sigh. Another 3.5k down the drain) and I had all the required documents ready.

Got a call back from maruti,
"Sir that grey swift zdi?"
"No thank you. Please cancel the booking, I wanted blue, but I cant wait another month to get it"

9.24.2014
VW SA came to my office in the morning. Gave him the documents, gave him a cheque for 50k to book the car.

Told him I wanted to see the car before I paid the down payment. Said he'd get the car cleaned up and ready from me to come down and see it.

Got my bank stuff in order during the day (Thank god for a light work day, everything just seemed to click into place.) and went over to Vidyut motors in the evening.

And there she was. On the upper floor of the showroom glistening under the fluorescent lighting.
The company PDI hadn't been done yet, so couldn't check the boot nor open any of the passenger doors. Drivers door was opened, checked the odo, 28 kms.

Cool.

Went downstairs, cut a check for the remaining amount and voila! GT TDI is gonna come home soon.

The heart won in the end!!

And thanks to this amazing community that gave me sound advice. A bit of a stretch on the pocket, but I just couldn't help it when the Swift deal fell through.

The wait begins anew. Until the 3rd of October then!