[dark.knight]

Originally Posted by YashD

Just read the comments above, Ameo initially been launched with just a petrol engine option is absolutely a disastrous decision by Volkswagen. They are already killing the product by this move, I would say instead they should simply delay the car to iron out issues with the diesel engine but launching it with that dull 1.2L MPi 3 Cylinder engine is certainly not the right move. The average performance of the same is going to turn down a lot of potential customers building a negative in the market.

Few reasons why Ameo will flop :
1) Looks - Yes it sure isn't as proportionate or even half as good looking as Polo even if both look like twins, thanks to that unwanted kink in the rear called a boot.

2) Space - Zero advantage here, zero. Polo has it bad in the rear as it is, Ameo doesn't improve on it nor has a substantial boot-space increase. It sure cannot take on the 400L of Amaze or the 407 of Xcent and both have massive rear space in comparison. YES! The compact sedan should be evaluated purely on practicality and space.

3) 1.2 Litre Petrol 74 hp 3 Cylinder Engine - If the top 2 were not reasons then this surely has to be one. In my view, the worst engine I've ever driven. The sound is more like a rickshaw when going above 60, it is pathetic in terms of torque and each gear struggles to hold speed and to top it off it isn't fuel efficient either. The one engine that never should've gone past the drawing board. Surely wont hold a candle to the 1.2 83hp of Xcent or the Amaze's 1.2 90hp engine even with the poor torque.

Between the Ameo and Polo, Polo should be the choice all day long, VW should stick to its specialty, the GT TSi and TDi are great engines for the Polo. They cannot win the war with the Koreans when it comes to practicality and space.. best is to hold their own in the compact, feature packed, torque-laden hatch segment where there is zero competition.

[anand.shankar]

Seriously, our people need to shake of this false 'Status' tag they associate with the (compact) Sedans. Most of my friends who own a CS use 'its a Sedan' line to justify their purchase. For them, they have moved up the Maslows pyramid by buying a Dzire or an Xcent!

Well, I would prefer a full size Hatch like a Baleno, Polo, i20 or a Punto over these ugly contraptions. Apart from the Kite S none of them look aesthetically appealing. As it is, proper sedans like Vento/Ciaz are Sub Compacts by international standards, aren't they ?

or Else, we should at least collectively appeal to increase the length limit to 4.2 meters so that we don't have to see these eyesores everyday!

coming to Ameo, it doesn't make any sense why VW would try this trick now! Like many mentioned, the market is moving towards large Premium Hatches and Compact SUVs. Considering even a 50K premium over the Polo, this would be an expensive Compact to own, whereas, New launches like Tiago CS will have a Pricing advantage. We will sure find out in the next quarter I guess.

[itsashishsharma]

Originally Posted by anand.shankar

we should at least collectively appeal to increase the length limit to 4.2 meters so that we don't have to see these eyesores everyday!

Couldn't agree more with each word you have just spoken. But this line just makes all the more sense.
If the length limit was a healthy 4.2m, the likes of Zest would look more proportionate.
Moreover we would see manufacturers launching bigger hatchbacks, e.g. the Golf, the Focus etc. here.

[Turbo Head]

I tend to differ with the opinions posted by fellow T-BHPians, I guess every individual has different requirements.
Talking about mine, I am looking for a replacement of Swift (used by spouse for commuting) since really long time. She is impressed with the current crops of so called compact SUVs, however nor any CSUV neither any hatchback/compact sedan could fulfill our requirement, which was pretty basic for us; a Diesel with AT transmission.

Yes, TATA offered Zest with so called AMT, however its nowhere near DSG boxes, we are spoiled with. Yes, Ameo is downright UGLY, especially with 3 quarters and back, however it ticks all other options (safety/fuel efficiency/ICE/Diesel/AT etc), anyone can expect from compact car. Not that I will straightway buy it (looks are hard to ignore), however it is indeed a very strong contender.

[RavenAvi]

The Volkswagen Ameo compact sedan will enter production on May 25th, 2016.

According to Overdrive, the first batch of Ameo cars will roll out from Volkswagen's Chakan plant near Pune, Maharashtra, on that date.

The Ameo isn’t a chopped Vento but a Polo with a boot. That essentially means that the wheelbase is identical to the hatchback and so are cabin space and the angle of the backrest for the rear seat.
Expect the boot space to be in the range of 275-325 liters.
Unlike the car showcased earlier though, we will see LED daytime running lights on the final production-spec Ameo.

OverDrive

[vin_b]

Came across app on Google Play store for Ameo. Looks like VW is betting big on Ameo

Link

The Volkswagen Ameo app enables you to explore its legendary build quality, segment-leading features and bold style.
With unmatched safety standards, drivability - the Volkswagen Ameo is a special piece of engineering that’s designed and inspired by India.

Experience German engineering with an Indian heart with the Volkswagen Ameo app.

App inclusions:
- Car specifications
- Gallery with wallpapers
- Color options
- Dealer locator
- Contact details
- Pre-book

[Rajeevraj]

Had downloaded the App a few days back. Spent some time on it today. Found it to be a good one. Nice interface, easy to navigate, has the info that a potential buyer will be looking for. Especially customers not following the details in the media. Some screenshots and comments below.

Home Screen of the App



The Side Menu



Interior and Exterior 360 degree view



Features at variant level, swipes will take you across variants for the highlighted category.



Gallery. Pretty standard set of images. First in class features highlighted.



Comparison with competition. Obviously focused on the features Ameo has which are not available/not standard on the others. Interestingly no Zest in the comparison.



The Color Palette view



The Booking screen, enter details, select color, city and dealer. Once you click details and hit enter, it sends an OTP to mobile for verification. Did not go to the next screen as obviously I have no plans of booking. . No option of choosing the variant. or even Petrol/Diesel.



Several screens dedicated to service aspects. An attempt to shake the poor After Sales image I suppose.







This one is interesting. AMC and Volkswagen Care packages. Have not seen these for the Vento/Polo.



Dealer locator. With all details including route maps

Some other small but significant points/thoughts.

• The base Trendline is quite poorly equipped. No Audio System, rear power windows, ACC, Height adjustable seat, remote locking, Anti pinch windows, MID, speed sensing door locks. On the upside, as we already know, gets ABS and Airbags as standard, height adjustable headrests both front and rear and a potentially Polo/Vento like build. Expecting an aggressive starting price for this variant.
  
  
• The Comfortline surprisingly does not get ACC and armrest with rear AC vent, rear parking sensors, Front Fog Lamps. Additionally misses on the obvious top variant features like the Auto IRVM, Touchscreen ICE, Steering controls, Auto Wipers etc...
  
  
• Anyone who wants all the segment first features, will need to go for the Highline.
  
  
• The next point is on the success/failure. I think in general everyone unanimously agrees that this was a bad decision by VW and is headed towards a flop. But the question is as per VW what defines success for them? I don't think they have plans or the capacity for big numbers. Looking at some comments in the press on their capacity and how much it is going to increase due to Ameo, it can be safely inferred that they are targeting around ~2000 units per month- Atleast initially. If they can actually do that without impacting the Polo/Vento numbers, I think VW will be happy.
  
  
• Can they get those numbers? Pretty sure anyone looking at the Aspire will look at this. Those looking for a Diesel AT will definitely look at this as currently the only choices are the AMT's of Zest and Dzire. It will potentially be one of the better Diesels in the segment. Petrol sounds uninspiring, but nothing in the competition that sets the roads on fire. Apart from all this, with the focus on NCAP, the standard ABS and Airbags and the structure of the Polo potentially make it safer (Assumption at this point). Pricing is going to be the key. If competitive, I think it can do the modest numbers VW is looking forward to. Getting 3rd place from the Xcent/Amaze would be a huge win.
  
  
• Of course, ideally they should have got a 1.0/1.2 TSI, made it into a notch-back, or focused on a Compact SUV. Keeping all that aside, working with what they decided and have, the marketing push has started well and looks like there is focus on After Sales with AMC's and Care Packages. Let us see how it pans out.

[dheepak10]

Originally Posted by shk 8896

Anyways, I always fail to understand how VW managed to squeeze a boot into the almost 4m long Polo.

VW have managed to pull out an illusion

Ameo is the same as Polo till the rear three quarter window.

Post that the Polo's roof slopes down as the hatch door after the boot area, while the Ameo's rood slopes down immediately.

So the space that was contained inside the car in the Polo, is now contained inside the boot in Ameo.

So when the need comes to haul luggage, Polo will definitely have more cargo space than Ameo

[rxpaul]

Originally Posted by dheepak10

VW have managed to pull out an illusion

So when the need comes to haul luggage, Polo will definitely have more cargo space than Ameo

I guess the best way to prove this, is to measure Roof length of the Polo & the Ameo and the one having a longer roof wins the SPACE battle.

[dark.knight]

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

The Ameo isn’t a chopped Vento but a Polo with a boot. That essentially means that the wheelbase is identical to the hatchback and so are cabin space and the angle of the backrest for the rear seat. Expect the boot space to be in the range of 275-325 liters. Unlike the car showcased earlier though, we will see LED daytime running lights on the final production-spec Ameo.

This part that you have pasted from the article made me laugh.. this has gotten real, REAL confusing now. The Polo came in first, and then VW spoke of making Polo with a large boot and called it Vento. Essentially the Vento IS a Polo with a boot, with a slightly better leg-room in the rear and of course the 400+ litre boot-space. Now the Ameo looks identical to the Polo from the front, but both cars are almost identical in length- the Polo is 3970 odd and the Ameo is 3995 odd, just about an inch of difference between the two.

This makes it obvious that unless the front overhang of the Ameo (engine compartment) is about 4-5 inches shorter than that of the Polo which doesn't seem to be the case going by the pictures, the only other way would be to cut the roofline shorter by 2-3 inches, give that flowing C-Pillar effect and then use that extra inch to give that so-called boot effect. Literally the Ameo is a Polo with a boot AND a Vento with a shorter boot. Assuming the boot-space to be the maximum speculated 325 litres, its hardly 30 litres over the Polo and a bit lesser than say the Jazz.

Sometimes doing nothing is better than doing "something".

[volkman10]

Ameo production starts, expect a June launch

First production compact sedan from the German car maker has been rolled out of the Chakan facility - Ameo, which is a 1.2-litre petrol engine one.

Pic- ZW

Due to the expected high demand for the Ameo, we have recently added a third shift to support extra production volumes at our plant. We are committed to ensuring that our customers get their Ameo as soon as possible

http://www.gaadi.com/news/volkswagen...st-ameo-101204

[vin_b]

Volkswagen rolls out first Ameo

Link

PUNE: Volkswagen on Wednesday rolled out its first sub 4-metre sedan, the Ameo, from its Chakan plant in Pune. The company hopes that the Ameo will enable it to recapture a higher share in the domestic market.
Currently, out of the total cars produced at the plant, 60% are exported to 35 countries.
Volkswagen is banking heavily on Ameo to make deeper inroads into the highly competitive, and price sensitive Indian market. "We are focussing on India. This is a priority market for Ameo," said Andreas Lauermann, president and managing director, Volkswagen India.
The company did not disclose the price of the car and said that it will be available with the dealers from mid 2016.
Out of the 500 cars manufactured by the company at the Pune plant, 150 will be VW Ameo.

[AYP]

Volkswagen Ameo first look video by News Today Live-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mlCSjukoA-Y

[Vik0728]

Originally Posted by AYP

Volkswagen Ameo first look video by News Today Live-

Thank you AYP for sharing that video.

I noticed the following stuffs:

- I thought that VW were launching Ameo with on the 1.2 MPI engine. This video starts rolling with the 1.5 TDI (updated?) version

- I could be wrong here, but the VW's all new "Boot Polo" does not even offer a boot light ?

- Rear AC vents not only adds to comfort but provides a better sturdiness to the Armrest up front. I have had GT for about 2 years and the AC is not the best aspect of this car. So now if they are fitting a rear AC vent, they must have increased the compressor size. Wouldn't this will make the already puny 1.2 MPI struggle on inclines with 4 adults & AC turned on?

- Even the 1.2 MPI engine gets a sound proofing under the bonnet. is this to improve the in-cabin refinement or even VW felt the 3 cylinder motor is just too vocal for a Petrol motor?

- Lastly and probably the most surprising is the fact that Ameo suddenly looks a bit comical to me in the video, which it never did in any of the earlier pictures. Could be that I am just used to seeing a Polo & Vento which look timeless in their own sense, and this in-between design seems to have a serious identity crisis!!

[abhishek46]

Originally Posted by dark.knight

3) 1.2 Litre Petrol 74 hp 3 Cylinder Engine - If the top 2 were not reasons then this surely has to be one. In my view, the worst engine I've ever driven. The sound is more like a rickshaw when going above 60, it is pathetic in terms of torque and each gear struggles to hold speed and to top it off it isn't fuel efficient either. The one engine that never should've gone past the drawing board. Surely wont hold a candle to the 1.2 83hp of Xcent or the Amaze's 1.2 90hp engine even with the poor torque.

You are completely wrong on the torque part.
I have both polo 1.2 MPI and i10 1.2 in my garage side by side.
The polo is better to drive in the city because of better torque in the low rpms. Between 1k to 2k, the torque is much better than the i10, which comes alive only after 2K rpm.

The power delivery is very smooth and linear unlike other 3 cyls out there.
And on the highway, the polo can do 140 without any issues due to it's sleek body. Our i10 labours at 140+ speed inspite of having more horses, due to the tall boy shape.

It is a widely accepted fact that Honda 1.2 has no torque at all below 2K. However, after 2K it is different animal altogether.
But, I am not a rev-crazy guy. I like to keep things silent and smooth, and dont like to cane the engine every time to make progress. That is why Polo 1.2 is better for my driving style.

And finally, Even though the polo's refinement is not good, it definitely does not sound like a rickshaw.