[joey645]

Apple Auto (VW Whitefield).

The Dealership that almost, almost won me over.

Walk into Apple Auto (Volkswagen whitefield) dealership and the first thing that will hit you is the unmistakeable look and feel of a well laid out showroom.

After reading rave reviews of VW dealers in Bangalore (haha, sorry but I could not resist!) I decided to approach this with all the caution that caution could afford.

It took a few minutes for the first sales guy to approach me. He spent a good 20 minutes explaining all the fantastic things that make the Vento so… unmistakeably German?. The build quality, the interiors, the ride, the handling… on and on he went, like a marriage counselor offering advice to a soon to be wed couple.

I could tell that he wasn’t too sure if he should take me seriously. And who can blame him. My legs were never the type that can be flaunted by a pair of shorts, my feet shouldn’t have been covered by a pair of well worn Hawaii chappals and my angry birds t-shirt was sure to make a distinctively childish impression on anyone. But he persisted to his credit.

Three weeks later, I went back there to relive the decision making process.
And a further 2 weeks later, I’d booked my Vento with them.

So here’s my take on the entire experience:

The Showroom Itself: Elegant & efficient, there was something really quietly industrious about the place. Maybe it’s the knowledge that “he who enters here shall spend at least 8lacs once they are lost in the marvels of german engineering” or maybe it was the way the place was designed. I was too busy drooling over the Jetta to think straight.

The test drive: Well, I TDéd the Vento, the Jetta and the Passat, and was particularly smitten by the Jetta. But obviously, financial considerations meant that the Vento was the only contender and I already have the Polo. The TD vehicles were a bit worse for wear (loud & rough) but spotlessly clean, tuned for revving and all in all, a delight to be in once you got past the noise. (this is a first for me with diesels.. I'd always been a petrolhead)

The staff: Frankly, I was disappointed and pleasantly surprised by them. The disappointment came from the fact that the first sales guy never made an effort to follow up. The surprise came with the second guy’s follow ups, his eagerness and his overall sense of professionalism. Subsequently, there was another blip when they tried to pawn off an older model on me despite having categorically promised me a newer one but once they realized that I wasn’t that big an idiot, it was smooth sailing. Right from test drives to document collection and payment collections, they came to my office on time for every meeting, and ensured that the whole process was as simple and friendly as it could have been. Kudos to them for that. It almost makes me want to look at the first sales guy’s lack of interest and the subsequent attempt at peddling an older vehicle as an exception rather than the norm.

The service bay: With 20-25 bays in the service area, I was put at ease about the capacity. The service centre has been operational for the last 6 months so am in no real position to comment on the quality of their worksmanship. What worries me is not their capacity but the lack of overall dealership spread (nothing new there I suppose!) - covering that many polos and ventos between 4 dealerships across Bangalore is a bit tough but my guess is that it’s just a matter of time before VW really get their socks up.

Delivery: They arranged for a vehicle to pick me up and bring me to the showroom for a 4.00pm delivery. The pickup was on time and they even agreed to go a little out of the way to pick up the missus from her work place as well. The handover was a bit rushed, didn’t get the PDI report despite asking for it, and they’d branded the car with their dealership stickering despite being categorically told not to. They were a friendly bunch, I must admit. Almost a bit too eager to hand over the keys and be done with it

Of course, the true measure of how good they really are will be known only when I go in for my services / read the reviews of others who've taken the chance.

All in all, they were a pretty good outfit. I liaised with all four VW showrooms while haggling my quote and these guys wanted my business the most, and it showed with the effort they made. It was a tough call between VW Palace Cross and these guys, but they won by the slimmest of margins.

One thing though… these guys don’t bother if it means they have to give you a good deal even if they really want your business.. getting discounts and stuff can be a tedious affair. Haggling will budge them only if you compare their quote to that of another VW dealer.. but if you compare it to a Hyundai or a Honda or any other brand, they’ll just look at you like you’re the idiot for comparing the mighty German Shepherd to the puny ShihTzu.

But I’m assuming it’s more of a VW thing than that of a dealership thing – the attitude is one of “if you’re buying German, don’t haggle.. it’s beneath you and me to go down that road!”. Also, not sure if this is useful, but they do accept card payments, with a 2% surcharge (Didn’t go for it cause the 2% surcharge would have negated the value of the reward points that I wanted to get as a result of using the card), negotiable down to 1.5% if your SA really likes you.

As for the other two, if you value your time, money and patience, you’d avoid VW on Hosur Road (Elite Motors/ Downtown) like the plague. Those guys are crooks. When you try to pawn a comfortline with some added accessories, at a highline price, to a customer who’s asked for a highline, and then inform him one week later that the prices have changed, discounts are cancelled and that it's an accessorized CL, you’re either thinking that you’re very smart or that I’m someone who’s not looking to buy a car but is actually seeking to be voluntarily lobotomized.

As a summary, on a scale of 1-10, I’d give them a well-deserved 7. Would have been 8 or higher if they hadn’t been stingy or tried to take me for a ride initially by allocating an older model.

[joslicx]

Thats a pretty well written review of the dealership joey. Thats the place from where I picked up my Vento AT. Almost a similar experiece, I had. A professional first interaction when we dropped in there one day and a test drive, booking was done in my office premises, after that a month of my non-existence for them and then promise of a revised schedule (which to their credit they kept). With regards to haggling/freebies there were none. I was so excited about getting the car I didnt care frankly. The friendly Honda SA from Whitefield Honda also refused to entertain any freebies/discounts on the Honda City AT at that time so it didnt matter at all. They allowed me to do a PDI before delivery which was smooth. Delivery was on time and professionally handled. Though my SA during the pre-sales process had left the dealership and another guy (one Mr. Imran) handled delivery instead. He was good enough to spend some time with me explaining the features on the delivery day (when I was least interested in that really and consequently missed out on working of the fuel lid opening and had an embarrasing moment later at the petrol bunk).

Overall I was also a satisfied customer and would recommend them. I think Speed Kills also picked up his Vento from them recently. How about jotting down your experience with them Prashanth?

[Schoudhury]

Yes, i have seen the showroom, but didn't know that it also had a service center along with the showroom.

Hope these guys are able to provide good service also .As im sure alot of people might not be very comfortable with VW A.S.S so far.
Vento is also in the mind if i look for an upgrade in near future, but the service is the only part which makes me think twice.

Originally Posted by joslicx

I think Speed Kills also picked up his Vento from them recently.

Prasanth, picked up a Vento ? When was that ?
Hope he still has 1.6 with him .

Cheers

[joey645]

Originally Posted by joslicx

Thats the place from where I picked up my Vento AT. I was least interested in that really and consequently missed out on working of the fuel lid opening and had an embarrasing moment later at the petrol bunk.

Overall I was also a satisfied customer and would recommend them.

Joslicx: Thanks Joslicx! You, ninja, saurav and bala were among the main reasons behind my decision to go with the Vento. I remember reading your post about the fuel lid opening and making it a point to remember it at the bunk when I went in to fill up today I would recommend them for sure. They just need to work on finding a better way to say no when it comes to freebies rather than an outright no. After all, everyone's looking for a deal! More than the freebies, it was the attempt at pushing the older model on me that really got my goat. But all's well that ends well I guess.

Originally Posted by Schoudhury

Yes, i have seen the showroom, but didn't know that it also had a service center along with the showroom.

Cheers

The service center's been operational only for a few months now. They're not keen on advertising it because *apparently* they're already handling a heavy backlog from customers of the other dealers incl. VW Palace Cross

I say apparently because I take it with a pinch of salt when the SA says that his dealership is preferred over Palace Cross, which as far as I know has had very few complaints.

Note from Support - Posts merged. Please use multi-quote feature to reply to multiple posts instead of submitting back to back posts.

[joslicx]

Originally Posted by Schoudhury

Prasanth, picked up a Vento ? When was that ?
Hope he still has 1.6 with him .

Cheers

Yup. Proud owner of a Shadow Blue Highline Tdi. There are some pics on the Official Vento thread also. True to his nature, he has already carried out a few modifications , some of them at Whitefield VW.

[AMG_ang]

Guys, I need to get the 3rd servicing done for my Polo HL. Can anyone on the forum let me know their car servicing experience with VW whitefield?

[rjalihal]

There is a complaint against Apple motors. Follow the link below:-

https://www.facebook.com/Volkswageni...08028715874341

They apparently took a long time to figure out it was an engine issue and now claim the damage to be 3.85 lacs! I wish we could help this innocent person out. So much for VW as a potential next car!

Cheers!
Rohan

[joslicx]

Originally Posted by rjalihal

There is a complaint against Apple motors. Follow the link below:-

https://www.facebook.com/Volkswageni...08028715874341

They apparently took a long time to figure out it was an engine issue and now claim the damage to be 3.85 lacs! I wish we could help this innocent person out. So much for VW as a potential next car!

Cheers!
Rohan

This is horrible really. Thanks for sharing. I just cannot believe VW dealer's arrogance I thought they were the better one here in Bangalore but they are all the same

[nileshch]

The above complaint is from my office colleague. I had encouraged her to post on FB also, given the pathetic customer care we have at the dealer side. She just got a reply from VW Germany as well as the Indian Customer care.

I'll keep this thread posted on the response from the dealer.

[poloman]

Finally completed 3 year service for my Polo at 33000Km. Was very skeptical of going back to VW downtown or Elite Motors, due to pathetic experiences last two times. So decided to try out VW Whitefield which was any way closer to my home. I should say I came back impressed. A big relief from the chaotic,free for all, BP raising environment of VW downtown. Though a bit slow everything was systematic.No slanging matches, no traffic jams inside showroom..
The bill came to 10774 and this included the front brake pad replacement. I find the figure quite reasonable. Labor charges were quite nominal.The SA took pain to explain each and every heading in the bill and everything was in order.
Overall came back as a happy customer. 3 years of ownership and not a single complaint other than the poor VW Downtown dealer experiences. Well done VW.

[joslicx]

Originally Posted by poloman

Finally completed 3 year service for my Polo at 33000Km. Was very skeptical of going back to VW downtown or Elite Motors, due to pathetic experiences last two times. So decided to try out VW Whitefield which was any way closer to my home. I should say I came back impressed. A big relief from the chaotic,free for all, BP raising environment of VW downtown. Though a bit slow everything was systematic.No slanging matches, no traffic jams inside showroom..
The bill came to 10774 and this included the front brake pad replacement. I find the figure quite reasonable. Labor charges were quite nominal.The SA took pain to explain each and every heading in the bill and everything was in order.
Overall came back as a happy customer. 3 years of ownership and not a single complaint other than the poor VW Downtown dealer experiences. Well done VW.

Thanks for the feedback. I am lined up for my 1st service on the 6th. Hoping for a good experience. Anything particular I should keep in mind regarding 1st service?

[poloman]

Originally Posted by joslicx

Thanks for the feedback. I am lined up for my 1st service on the 6th. Hoping for a good experience. Anything particular I should keep in mind regarding 1st service?

Nothing in particular. Take an appointment and walk in to the service area to get a SA assigned. If you prefer to do wheel balancing and alignment outside, inform them. Better to give them one day or overnight delivery so that things are not rushed in. I did not mind, since I had to wait 4 hours just to clear the cars in front of mine to drive out in VW Downtown last time.

[AMG_ang]

poloman: Even im due for my 3rd service of my polo. thinking about getting it done from VW whitefield. could you kindly provide me the breakup of your service costs? Was there any updates for the ECU software done on your car during this service? How bad were the break pads for you to get them replaced? I have clocked around 28k on the odo.

[poloman]

Cost break up for third service
Only Major heads are mentioned
Labor charges 2516
Inspection service 404
Brake pad relacement ~500
Washing and cleaning 450
Parts 8256
Oil 2909
Brake pads 2686
Sticker weights for wheel balancing 691
Dust filter 570
Oil filter 325

Total 10774

I saw a good will contribution amount of Rs 716 in the bill. They told something vague like they have waived of VAS charges. But could not find any ECU updates in the bill.
Regarding your query on brake pads,I have not seen a fresh piece. So not in a position to comment on how badly they are worn out. Hope the picture below can help.I think they were good enough for few thousand more kms.

[SalsaCorp]

they are second to none when it comes to cheating customers...I went there for replacing LHS door glass.. they confirmed it would cost 600+labor charge and some consumables - total 1200 including tax over the PHONE

After replacing they gave me a bill
630 part price
900 - labor charges
after tax total came to 1800


when i asked the SA to explain the cost of labor he said they use speacial tools to fix the glass and so the high labor charges, But i could see in the bill they had charged thrice for the labor

Volkswagen Whitefield sucks...especially the 4 feet, fat service advisor