Volkswagen Polo: A disaster - Dealer unable to deliver the car. Update: Now delivered

Thad E Ginathom · 27th June 2010, 01:41

Bunty, somehow I missed your good news from yesterday. Perhaps things may be looking up!

buddha · 27th June 2010, 01:45

Quote:

Originally Posted by Subaro123

Now, I am in dilemma if Kashyap finally get the dealership back then what would happen to delivery of my car. Any comment what should I do?

Not that I am a subject matter expert in things dealership related, but here are my two cents: I think you should indeed cancel the booking with Kashyap ASAP tomorrow. What do you lose that way? Not much, since VW has agreed to give your original booking date some importance when you change dealers. Even if (and thats a big if - see below) Kashyap is reinstated I dont see how things will muck up for you.

VW has barely any dealer presence in India, and if they still booted out some dealer, then the sh*t must have really hit the fan. Again, these are big decisions, so I dont think VW acted in a knee-jerk fashion and may now reinstate the dealer after negotiations. I would imagine that customers are told of a dealership cancellation at the very last stage - when all talks have broken down and there is no hope for reconciliation. And even if they do sort things out, I would be very wary of Messrs Kashyap and co.

Best of luck, and here's hoping you lay your hands on das delectable auto real soon!
RR

carfanatic007 · 27th June 2010, 10:21

Quote:

Originally Posted by bunty

STOP PRESS

Hi all.

Guess what. Volkswagen responded, apologized and my car has been delivered.

And that too within the week. She is resting with the dealership now, waiting for the registration formalities. As RTO is closed for the weekend, the registration shall be done on Monday and the car delivered same day. I shall post pics of the car once I get it.

I have cancelled the i20. Sorry Hyundai. Next time.

Thank you all for the support, feedback, guidance and most important; empathy. I shall send a link of this thread to VW. They have to know what the Indian consumer demands. This forum has shown today what the Vox Populi can do.

Regards,

Bunty

PS: Mods- VW has admitted that the Dealership was committing delivery dates as per their instructions. May I request you to again move the thread from Indian Dealerships to General section.

Congrats Bunty but how did it happen? Did you continue bashing dealer and he bent of VW customer care or the mail id's given earlier in the thread?

diffsoft · 27th June 2010, 10:24

Quote:

Originally Posted by bunty

STOP PRESS
Guess what. Volkswagen responded, apologized and my car has been delivered.

Bunty:

Could you tell us what you did that made VW wake up from a state of apparent slumber? That would be useful to all in the future when dealing with Das' Auto

Subaro123 · 27th June 2010, 18:03

Finally, I cancelled my booking for POLO guess what I was not the alone who cancelled the booking with Kashyap Vehicle Works in the wake of cancellation of their dealership. Tomorrow I will book POLO with other dealer.

Thad E Ginathom · 27th June 2010, 19:03

I suppose it probably the same with other manufacturers too, but once a booking has been made, they should look after the customer. However, I guess the contract is with the dealer, not the company, so there is not much us poor consumers can do about it.

diffsoft · 27th June 2010, 19:20

I was just wondering why VW is delaying Polo deliveries (who on earth would want to miss on such juicy demand growth). This led me to so some simple / simplistic back-of-envelope calculations.

Total annual capacity at Chakan currently - 110,000 cars
Annual capacity with a single shift - 36,000 cars (about 110,000/3)

This is a capacity of 3000 cars monthly. We know Polo bookings have exceeded 5000.

We know VW is running only one shift. This means they are not geared to produce more than 3000 cars monthly. This includes not only the Polo but also the Fabia (well I don't know if Fabia is still produced or they are selling last year's stock)

Polo is clocking about 1800 odd deliveries based on April / May sales (IIRC). That will stabilise to close to 3000 say in a month or 2.

If bookings are about 5000 every month (again what I remember having read), the backlogs are only going to pile-up and delivery delays are inevitable. VW also said it is going to add another shift, increasing capacity to about 6000 monthly. The latter is likely to take time because the entire supply chain needs to be geared up for 2 shifts.

Maybe that's why the delays are inevitable for a while but not forever. My 2 cents. Any thoughts from anyone?

Cheers,

@Mods: An appropriate heading for this thread should be: Delivery delays on VW Polo and what you should do.

I also agree with Bunty's suggestion that this should move to the "Indian Car Scene"

xingamazon · 27th June 2010, 20:24

Quote:

Originally Posted by bunty

STOP PRESS

Hi all.

Guess what. Volkswagen responded, apologized and my car has been delivered.

And that too within the week. She is resting with the dealership now, waiting for the registration formalities. As RTO is closed for the weekend, the registration shall be done on Monday and the car delivered same day. I shall post pics of the car once I get it.

...................
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Regards,

Bunty

Bunty,
I am really pleased and happy to note that, you have got the good news to share about your car being delivered etc. Thats really good.

But I am equally unhappy, about few things.
You first came out complaining the company is not good. and later you said you will give them a boot by booking at Hyundai.
Then this raised all the VW haters' rage and they start scolding VW with all sort of things. and people praising you for standing by your will and going to Hyundai.

Finally you end up getting the car back (most likely) on an orally agreed timelines, and you are happy to accept the offer, despite having given strong statements about VW and their attitude.

See, I am with you on all your enjoyment of getting car. But slightly disappointed with the way you reacted earlier. Which people like me and of course Poloman have been insisting was not necessary etc. Thats the drawback with these kind of forums you just cant go back and take back your words.

Enjoy your car..

fiat_tarun · 27th June 2010, 20:36

Quote:

Originally Posted by diffsoft

I was just wondering why VW is delaying Polo deliveries (who on earth would want to miss on such juicy demand growth). This led me to so some simple / simplistic back-of-envelope calculations.

Total annual capacity at Chakan currently - 110,000 cars
Annual capacity with a single shift - 36,000 cars (about 110,000/3)

This is a capacity of 3000 cars monthly. We know Polo bookings have exceeded 5000.

We know VW is running only one shift. This means they are not geared to produce more than 3000 cars monthly. This includes not only the Polo but also the Fabia (well I don't know if Fabia is still produced or they are selling last year's stock)

Polo is clocking about 1800 odd deliveries based on April / May sales (IIRC). That will stabilise to close to 3000 say in a month or 2.

If bookings are about 5000 every month (again what I remember having read), the backlogs are only going to pile-up and delivery delays are inevitable. VW also said it is going to add another shift, increasing capacity to about 6000 monthly. The latter is likely to take time because the entire supply chain needs to be geared up for 2 shifts.

Maybe that's why the delays are inevitable for a while but not forever. My 2 cents. Any thoughts from anyone?

Cheers,

@Mods: An appropriate heading for this thread should be: Delivery delays on VW Polo and what you should do.

I also agree with Bunty's suggestion that this should move to the "Indian Car Scene"

The 5000 Polo booking were over 2 months. And every new launch will always see good numbers for the first two three months. So expect Polo to settle down to around 1.5-2k cars per month, mainly due to their sparse dealership network.
From what i have heard (working in the auto industry) VW is waiting for localisation levels to increase before they start manufacturing at full capacity. As of now, lot of the components are imported which will definitely affect profit margins in the long run...

autoweirdo · 27th June 2010, 22:59

Congrats bunty for arrival of car after all these hassles.

Regarding delay in delivery of cars, one of my friend works in VW pune plant - as per his info currently 100 cars are been assembled daily of which nearly 30 are fabia, 50 polo and rest other models. Since the plant is still under completion they are not able to utilize the full capacity. Plus they have been severely hit by attrition at all levels (as per friend the HR has lackluster response for the same.)

They are expecting by third quarter the production will be doubled from current output which will surely resolve the delay.

Subaro123 · 28th June 2010, 16:48

Booked POLO comfortline again with Bhasin Motors South Delhi after cancellation of Kashyap Vehicle works dealership. Hope everything's gonna be fine.:S

diffsoft · 28th June 2010, 18:45

Thanks autoweirdo and fiat_tarun:

This helps to improve my understanding.

fiat_tarun: You are right, 5000 is cumulative bookings. On localisation a more rational approach may be to make near term losses by imports and fulfill deliveries while speeding up localisation. If VW is here long term they would want as many customers as possible as many of these would be potential upgraders for life.

autoweirdo: High attrition is bad news!

bunty · 14th July 2010, 23:40

Apologies for not responding to all for a long time. I was out of station for a while and then the www at home was on the fix.

Replying to your queries, yes I did fight it out with the Area Sales Manager. I sent an email to the corporate office in Germany; to which I got a reply after nearly 2 weeks.

I took delivery of the Polo on 30th June. The missus has driven it about 700 kms till date. No complains. But 1 surprise to share.

The mileage is about 18 kms to the litre in the city!!! Volkswagen seems to have gotten something right.

I had promised pics of the car; shall post them next week.

Bunty...

CANPUSH · 15th October 2010, 18:06

I was not as lucky as you I got my polo delivered on 15th July (Booked on 4th March).

Yours must be a special machine Bunty. In Pune most other Polowalas I know are getting approx 12-13 kmpl in City. Congratulations on getting this good FE!

Do keep sharing your experiences.

Happy driving

Sudipc · 7th December 2010, 12:14

Frankly I am not surprised as I had the exact same problem. In fact mine was worse as they had cancelled the dealership with whom I had booked. The variant is the same. VW didn't bother to inform even once, it was a member of Team-BHP who was kind enough to provide assistance in terms of contact details of specific persons at VW and in Delhi.
Things started to move once I escalated to these people. With all the disappointment, I was overly impressed by Head Sales (North) of VW who exceeded all expectations of Customer Relations.
However I agree that VW unfortunately has no Customer centric policies or initiatives in India.

27th June 2010, 01:41	#106
Thad E Ginathom Distinguished - BHPian Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Chennai Posts: 11,005 Thanked: 26,447 Times	Bunty, somehow I missed your good news from yesterday. Perhaps things may be looking up!
	() Thanks

27th June 2010, 18:03	#110
Subaro123 BHPian Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: New Delhi Posts: 109 Thanked: Once	Finally, I cancelled my booking for POLO guess what I was not the alone who cancelled the booking with Kashyap Vehicle Works in the wake of cancellation of their dealership. Tomorrow I will book POLO with other dealer.
	() Thanks

27th June 2010, 19:03	#111
Thad E Ginathom Distinguished - BHPian Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Chennai Posts: 11,005 Thanked: 26,447 Times	I suppose it probably the same with other manufacturers too, but once a booking has been made, they should look after the customer. However, I guess the contract is with the dealer, not the company, so there is not much us poor consumers can do about it.
	() Thanks

27th June 2010, 19:20	#112
diffsoft BHPian Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Bangalore Posts: 773 Thanked: 404 Times	I was just wondering why VW is delaying Polo deliveries (who on earth would want to miss on such juicy demand growth). This led me to so some simple / simplistic back-of-envelope calculations. Total annual capacity at Chakan currently - 110,000 cars Annual capacity with a single shift - 36,000 cars (about 110,000/3) This is a capacity of 3000 cars monthly. We know Polo bookings have exceeded 5000. We know VW is running only one shift. This means they are not geared to produce more than 3000 cars monthly. This includes not only the Polo but also the Fabia (well I don't know if Fabia is still produced or they are selling last year's stock) Polo is clocking about 1800 odd deliveries based on April / May sales (IIRC). That will stabilise to close to 3000 say in a month or 2. If bookings are about 5000 every month (again what I remember having read), the backlogs are only going to pile-up and delivery delays are inevitable. VW also said it is going to add another shift, increasing capacity to about 6000 monthly. The latter is likely to take time because the entire supply chain needs to be geared up for 2 shifts. Maybe that's why the delays are inevitable for a while but not forever. My 2 cents. Any thoughts from anyone? Cheers, @Mods: An appropriate heading for this thread should be: Delivery delays on VW Polo and what you should do. I also agree with Bunty's suggestion that this should move to the "Indian Car Scene" Last edited by diffsoft : 27th June 2010 at 19:23.
	() Thanks

27th June 2010, 22:59	#115
autoweirdo BHPian Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Pune Posts: 173 Thanked: 108 Times	Congrats bunty for arrival of car after all these hassles. Regarding delay in delivery of cars, one of my friend works in VW pune plant - as per his info currently 100 cars are been assembled daily of which nearly 30 are fabia, 50 polo and rest other models. Since the plant is still under completion they are not able to utilize the full capacity. Plus they have been severely hit by attrition at all levels (as per friend the HR has lackluster response for the same.) They are expecting by third quarter the production will be doubled from current output which will surely resolve the delay.
	() Thanks

28th June 2010, 16:48	#116
Subaro123 BHPian Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: New Delhi Posts: 109 Thanked: Once	Booked POLO comfortline again with Bhasin Motors South Delhi after cancellation of Kashyap Vehicle works dealership. Hope everything's gonna be fine.:S
	() Thanks

28th June 2010, 18:45	#117
diffsoft BHPian Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Bangalore Posts: 773 Thanked: 404 Times	Thanks autoweirdo and fiat_tarun: This helps to improve my understanding. fiat_tarun: You are right, 5000 is cumulative bookings. On localisation a more rational approach may be to make near term losses by imports and fulfill deliveries while speeding up localisation. If VW is here long term they would want as many customers as possible as many of these would be potential upgraders for life. autoweirdo: High attrition is bad news!
	() Thanks

14th July 2010, 23:40	#118
bunty Newbie Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Mumbai Posts: 17 Thanked: 0 Times	Apologies for not responding to all for a long time. I was out of station for a while and then the www at home was on the fix. Replying to your queries, yes I did fight it out with the Area Sales Manager. I sent an email to the corporate office in Germany; to which I got a reply after nearly 2 weeks. I took delivery of the Polo on 30th June. The missus has driven it about 700 kms till date. No complains. But 1 surprise to share. The mileage is about 18 kms to the litre in the city!!! Volkswagen seems to have gotten something right. I had promised pics of the car; shall post them next week. Bunty...
	() Thanks

15th October 2010, 18:06	#119
CANPUSH BHPian Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: pune Posts: 400 Thanked: 206 Times	I was not as lucky as you I got my polo delivered on 15th July (Booked on 4th March). Yours must be a special machine Bunty. In Pune most other Polowalas I know are getting approx 12-13 kmpl in City. Congratulations on getting this good FE! Do keep sharing your experiences. Happy driving
	() Thanks

7th December 2010, 12:14	#120
Sudipc Newbie Join Date: May 2010 Location: New Delhi Posts: 14 Thanked: 0 Times	Similar Experience Frankly I am not surprised as I had the exact same problem. In fact mine was worse as they had cancelled the dealership with whom I had booked. The variant is the same. VW didn't bother to inform even once, it was a member of Team-BHP who was kind enough to provide assistance in terms of contact details of specific persons at VW and in Delhi. Things started to move once I escalated to these people. With all the disappointment, I was overly impressed by Head Sales (North) of VW who exceeded all expectations of Customer Relations. However I agree that VW unfortunately has no Customer centric policies or initiatives in India.
	() Thanks