[lamborghini]

Originally Posted by cloudno19

This is the first time I would be trying this out, but don't want to pressure myself into something if it involves unnecessary risks and more than that if it leads to any unpleasant experiences (I generally avoid getting into situations of arguments).

Generally not an issue with most dealers are long as you aren't paying cash and get a receipt for the same.

That being said unofficial bookings are more for those vehicles which are expected to have high demand, and where a delay in delivery could result in a price hike.

Historically the Tiguan has been a slow seller and in my opinion : its better to keep the booking amount in your hands earning you interest, rather than the dealer. Once VW announces their pricing and launch : go ahead and do the booking.

However, if that isn't an option : Make sure the dealer gives you a receipt and acknowledges the booking amount (keep it as low as is possible), intended purpose, and cancellation charges on their letter-head / official email account.

[hrishig]

Originally Posted by cloudno19

Fellow BHPians, I am considering to place an unofficial booking for 5 seater Tiguan (due to an auspicious time for me - Home ministry) with B.U. Bhandari Pune, but I have few questions around this and need your help, inputs and any experience around this process-

• What are the key differences between placing Normal booking and Unofficial Booking?
• Are there any risks involved?
• Can a dealer dupe me for entire/part booking amount?
• Can a dealer force me to purchase me the vehicle in case I wish to cancel my booking for any reason- don't like the car, doesn't fit my budget?
• What kind of documentation can I expect for unofficial booking?
• Would dealer document the terms of my booking? for ex. Full refund no questions asked, flexibility to purchase insurance from outside
• Any risks/unpleasant experiences with specific dealer (B.U. Bhandari- Pune)?

This is the first time I would be trying this out, but don't want to pressure myself into something if it involves unnecessary risks and more than that if it leads to any unpleasant experiences (I generally avoid getting into situations of arguments). I have tried searching for a thread that can offer some information/experiences around this, but unfortunately I could find none.

Look forward to your responses.

@Moderators: Please feel free to move my post to any relevant thread as deemed appropriate.

Short answer:- Do not book the car unless the prices are out.

Long answer:- I recently burnt my fingers on prebooking of C5 aircorss despite written nonconditional refund confirmation on the booking receipt.
Getting the initial booking amount back was a troublesome experience from a new brand and dealer like Citroen and B4motors.
Imagine the hassle/pain involved in getting back money from B.U Bhandari if you don’t want to close the deal.

Few other points
1) Tiguan, Kodiak might be launched within a difference of one-two months. Why not wait and then decide?
2) B.U Bhandari Pune is taking Tiguan prebooking from March. Even if you book now, there might be more members ahead of you.

[thechinmay]

Originally Posted by cloudno19

[*]Any risks/unpleasant experiences with specific dealer (B.U. Bhandari- Pune)?[/list]

B.U. Bhandari is one of the rare VW dealerships in the country with good customer satisfaction. Even by volumes moved, I believe they are the largest dealer group for VW in India.
I had purchased my car from them in 2018 and it was a seamless experience. I don't think there is anything to worry about as long as they give you a proper receipt for the advance paid.

[cloudno19]

Originally Posted by hrishig

Short answer:- Do not book the car unless the prices are out.

Thanks for sharing your experience with Citroen and that is precisely what I would like to avoid.

Meanwhile, taking suggestions of @lamborghini and @hrishig here, I have decided to not make any unofficial bookings (going against my home ministry ) and wait until the car is launched.

This especially after seeing this news past night that Tiguan would only be planned post Taigun launch in the 3rd week of Sept, so assuming (Oct-Nov launch date for Tiguan)-

https://youtu.be/T9JPi3zHBD0

Finally, I am not looking towards Kodiaq as I am not interested in a 7 seater or that sized vehicle this time and more interested in a 5 seater crossover. Even skipped Tiguan all space past December when heavy discounting were offered on it.

[crazyro]

Just sharing my experience of pre-booking T-Roc at B U Bhandari and later cancelling it

I had pre-booked the T-Roc with B U Bhandari with a booking amount of 50000

After looking at the prices I decided to cancel it and called them
They readily agreed to cancel it and refund my booking amount

The booking amount was in my bank within a week

So my experience with B U Bhandari was good

[delta5]

Just spoke to my local VW SA, who was calling to check if I would be interested in Taigun, while I have only registered interest for Tiguan. It seems like he misread the name of the car. This is going to be frequently happening mix-up from either end of sales.

So the news on Tiguan launch is Dec 2021/Jan 2022. The way this launch is being postponed, we might have to get the thread title changed. While this timeline fits my requirement, I hope thet won't be selling 2020 kits in 2022.

Cheers,
D.

[crazyro]

As per the report in Autocar India it will be launched during the festive season and not year end

https://www.autocarindia.com/car-new...-months-421535

[adimicra]

When I test drove the Tiguan last year, I really liked it - clean and elegant styling, good to drive, car like handling, great feature set, well-appointed interiors etc. However, one feature which was missing is the ventilated seats. Is there a change VW will provide those in the Tiguan, now that ventilated seats are available in the Kushaq and taigun. Also, VW should soften the ride quality a bit, it was too stiff for me.

I think it's a tough choice between Compass and Tiguan.
Tiguan clearly scores in the performance department while Compass scores with gorgeous looks and good ride quality. Both are pretty feature rich - I think Compass does get the ventilated seats, while Tiguan might have some additional features over the Compass butI am not sure how important are those. The deal breaker for Compass are the bad automatic transmissions - the petrol is terrible and the diesel is just okay. For manual transmission, the diesel compass makes a very strong case though.

[vipinS]

Originally Posted by adimicra

When I test drove the Tiguan last year, I really liked it - clean and elegant styling, good to drive, car like handling, great feature set, well-appointed interiors etc. However, one feature which was missing is the ventilated seats. Is there a change VW will provide those in the Tiguan, now that ventilated seats are available in the Kushaq.

I am pretty sure new tiguan will come with all the bells and whistles including ventilated seats and panaromic sunroof which they missed even in octavia. I am just afraid it doesn’t cross the 30 lakh mark on-road for top end 5seater version . Been waiting for it to decide between superb,octavia and Tiguan.

[troika]

I think 30 OTR is a little too optimistic. The Tiguan has an AWD and a panoramic sunroof with all the bells and whistles. I think the ex showroom cost for the top end will be around 31.

[84.monsoon]

Originally Posted by adimicra

I think it's a tough choice between Compass and Tiguan.

For those buyers who are clear on the fact they want a petrol SUV, the Tiguan is easily the better choice. The Jeep compass petrol is known to have abysmally low fuel efficiency and also the engine is underpowered for the segment of cars it belongs to. An 1.4 turbopetrol fits better in the lower 20 lakh segment where Kushaq and Creta are offered, not in the 30-35 lakh segment. Plus., the Compass does not offer a 4WD in the petrol guise. On top of all this., the Tiguan will be more spacious and comfortable than the Compass.

For those who want a diesel SUV, the Compass is a good choice as it comes with a strong angine and an advanced transmission as well as offers 4WD.

[cloudno19]

Originally Posted by vipinS

I am just afraid it doesn’t cross the 30 lakh mark on-road for top end 5seater version . Been waiting for it to decide between superb,octavia and Tiguan.

Bad news Alert!!!

I just came from Volkswagen B. U. Bhandari showroom from Pune (had been their for T-Roc test drive) and checked with salesman on expected price for Tiguan.


Couple of things he told me with lots of confidence-

• 5 seater Tiguan would be launched at least around 40lacs if not more. There's very less chance of this coming anywhere below 40lacs.
• Tiguan 5 seater will also be imported as CBU and not CKD (I was under impression it was CKD) hence the pricing expectations.
• Tiguan All space is all sold out for the year (I could not see anything in showroom) and they are not taking any bookings for same. I had checked for this information, as Volkswagen website has stopped showing price of Tiguan All space.

He said, Volkswagen group (including Skoda) are investing in a lot of research in market for their products and they understand and knowingly want to play a different (premium) strategy when compared to other competitors. This was also reflected in recently launched Skoda Octavia pricing which was much more than what the customers expected.

Finally (slightly off topic), it seemed the sales person was specifically pissed with VW leadership, especially with the latest interview of Ashish Gupta and for messing with product launch (with delays). As per him, he has already lost 5 bookings a days after Ashish Gupta interview. When I checked with him why VW is so slow and inactive on social media (in comparison to Zac Hollis), he actually acknowledged it suggesting this is exactly the frustration for the dealers as well, as most times even they are not updated on things and they come to know on information from customers when something is shared in some untimed interview which is embarrassing in front of a customers.

I could only sympathies with the SA.

While I would still want the SA to be proved wrong on Tiguan pricing and hope Tiguan doesn't cross 38L onroad including extended warranties and service packages, but unfortunately I get a feeling this might only be a wishful thinking as yesterday I also received a call from an SA in Skoda dealership where I was discussing about Superb and he too confirmed to me a similar information on Tiguan with confidence (Sir, Tiguan pricing will be very much aligned to Superb and than you won't get much discount given it's a new product). Ofcourse, he wanted to push through his product (month end target completion), but he did say that sales team generally get this information in advance and in a similar way they always knew about Octavia pricing much before it launched.

[adimicra]

We have had many pricing blunders in the Indian car market recently but 40L (OTR) for a Tiguan 5-seater will probably take the top spot.
Frankly, I don't think this can be true because this will more or less position the Tiguan in the luxury compact SUV segment competing with Merc GLA, BMW X1 etc.

VW/Skoda group has put lot of money and effort in getting a stronghold in the Indian market but their strategy seems all over the place. As a VW car owner, I am actually worried if the brand will be around in India 5 years from now. The way top global car brands are leaving the country is not a good sign for car enthusiasts like us. Hopefully, our desi Tata and Mahindra will step up further ..

[Axe77]

Originally Posted by vipinS

I am just afraid it doesn’t cross the 30 lakh mark on-road for top end 5seater version .

Have you checked the last retail on road price of the Tiguan before it was discontinued? Exactly what math is causing you to even hope it could be launched at sub 30 lakh on road for the top of line variant?

[Hayek]

Originally Posted by adimicra

We have had many pricing blunders in the Indian car market recently but 40L (OTR) for a Tiguan 5-seater will probably take the top spot.

Huge difference between MH pricing for imports and pricing in other states. In MH, any import (and for that matter, any corporate registration) is subject to a 20% one time tax. So a ₹ 33 l ex show room would get you to a ₹ 40 l OTR price. Would be ₹2-3 l lower in most other states. Don’t see how the Tiguan will come in at much less than that level. The 2.0 TSI DSG Tiguan (not Allspace) lists at GBP 36,900 or over ₹37 l in the UK - so at ₹ 33 l, you would be getting at at below UK prices despite 60% import duty and 50% GST. VW is undoubtedly selling its high end imports at a loss in India just to preserve the brand - all in the hope that they recover this through sales of the Taigun, Kushaq et al. If the MQB A0 IN strategy fails, we will see one more player exit India in the next 4-5 years.