[Aromal]

For someone who is a regular reader of Team-Bhp, Applying for Team-Bhp membership is a natural thing. But never did I thought Membership approval will come as a surprise Christmas gift for me. So I would like to take this opportunity to thank Moderators for approving my membership request & I must say it's a privilege to be here amongst you all

I'm Aromal S, a true automobile enthusiast from Kerala. I'm an engineer by education & currently on job search. In my home, dad is planning to buy a new car for replacing our aging Santro. He loves Honda City, but I insist on having the Vento or Rapid DSG keeping in mind the sheer comfort factor of automatic car. According to him automatic cars are problematic & cars with high maintenance cost. I'm too skeptical about the reliability of the auto box from VAG. Anyways having a Team-bhp membership gives a lot of courage on these occasions.

So that's a bit about myself. My Christmas Wishes & Advance New Year Greetings to all Bhpians & your families. Wishing you all a peaceful & prosperous year ahead.

Cheers

Aromal

[a4anurag]

Welcome to T-BHP, Aromal!

Auto boxes were a pain in the initial days but the current development in that sector is phenomenal and going head-to-head with Manual transmission cars. Reliability factor with the AT from VAG (DSG) is a question but seeing the ownership reports on Team-BHP and elsewhere say that the issues have reduced and can be trusted in the gearbox.

So if you so plan to get a AT equipped car, I'd say do look at Vento/Rapid DSG. They are reliable but I will not guarantee you happiness when it comes to after sales experience from either of the companies!

Do browse and post you requirements in the "What Car?!" section for clearer views from BHPian's.

Welcome once again, enjoy your stay!

Anurag.

[Aromal]

Originally Posted by a4anurag

Welcome to T-BHP, Aromal!

Thank you sir, I feel welcome.

Originally Posted by a4anurag

Welcome to T-BHP, Aromal!

Auto boxes were a pain in the initial days but the current development in that sector is phenomenal and going head-to-head with Manual transmission cars. Reliability factor with the AT from VAG (DSG) is a question but seeing the ownership reports on Team-BHP and elsewhere say that the issues have reduced and can be trusted in the gearbox.

Thank you for your insights. I will surely look in to those sections.

[Starfire]

Congratulations mate and welcome aboard!

As for your new car need, just to clear a bit of misconception, gone the days when auto boxes weren't that reliable. Now days with the increasing demand for auto boxes and overall competition between giants, manufacturers are trying their best to rule out all the gremlins associated with the tranny's.

Yes there are the DSG's which come along with their share of reliability concerns, however they too are being improvised on.
Still if you want to play safe, do check out the Verna diesel Auto. Its got great power with decent economy. Although it's a 4-Speed, it boasts of better reliability than the DSG's. Especially with the new facelift coming in which is rumored to have a 6 speed gearbox, it will be a total no brainer.

I too have a Verna auto and have sucessfully completed 16k kilometers without any Hassels whatsoever and it still manages to wow me like its very first day.

Anyway, all the best and may you have a splendid time here at Team-Bhp.

Cheers!
Starfire

[Samba]

Hello, first of all congrats for making it to Team Bhp. Wish you a very pleasant stay over here and i agree a Christmas Gift cant be any better. The moderators of Team Bhp are the real Santa for you this year!

Originally Posted by Aromal

In my home, dad is planning to buy a new car for replacing our aging Santro. He loves Honda City, but I insist on having the Vento or Rapid DSG keeping in mind the sheer comfort factor of automatic car. According to him automatic cars are problematic & cars with high maintenance cost. I'm too skeptical about the reliability of the auto box from VAG. Anyways having a Team-bhp membership gives a lot of courage on these occasions.

Regarding automatics i agree with others that now a days its much more reliable than before. So you can definitely go for an automatic. As your dad loves the city and you want an automatic and though the DSG twins are hoot to drive you are a bit skeptical about its reliability. So why don't you check out the city automatic? Barring the fun to drive factor you will get Japanese reliability, lesser maintenance cost, more friendly after sell service, better mileage and resale value. Barring the fun to drive factor City automatic can arguably be a better bet for you than the DSG twins!

[Aromal]

Originally Posted by Starfire

Congratulations mate and welcome aboard! Starfire

Thank you very much sir

Originally Posted by Starfire

Yes there are the DSG's which come along with their share of reliability concerns, however they too are being improvised on.
Still if you want to play safe, do check out the Verna diesel Auto. Its got great power with decent economy. Although it's a 4-Speed, it boasts of better reliability than the DSG's. Especially with the new facelift coming in which is rumored to have a 6 speed gearbox, it will be a total no brainer.

I too have a Verna auto and have sucessfully completed 16k kilometers without any Hassels whatsoever and it still manages to wow me like its very first day.

Anyway, all the best and may you have a splendid time here at Team-Bhp.

Cheers!
Starfire

Yes Verna is a worthy contender, I was skeptical about the handling & hope next generation will be better in that area. Good to know that your are a happy owner of Verna. Hyundai is brand one can rarely go wrong with.

Originally Posted by Samba

Hello, first of all congrats for making it to Team Bhp. Wish you a very pleasant stay over here and i agree a Christmas Gift cant be any better. The moderators of Team Bhp are the real Santa for you this year!

Thank you sir, you know I'm a regular follower of your posts in this forum. I have a great time reading your travelogues of Kashmir, North Sikkim, Andaman etc. Being not a member of this forum I wasn't able to thank you for your wonderful travelogues & photographs. So I'm taking this opportunity to thank you for giving me a great moments through your travelogues. I hope you will soon visit Kerala & I'm really looking forward for it.

Originally Posted by Samba

Regarding automatics i agree with others that now a days its much more reliable than before. So you can definitely go for an automatic. As your dad loves the city and you want an automatic and though the DSG twins are hoot to drive you are a bit skeptical about its reliability. So why don't you check out the city automatic? Barring the fun to drive factor you will get Japanese reliability, lesser maintenance cost, more friendly after sell service, better mileage and resale value. Barring the fun to drive factor City automatic can arguably be a better bet for you than the DSG twins!

The reason I didn't consider the city was the lack of DSG box in diesel. However I'm a fan of 1.5 I-VTEC of Honda, I have a great time redlining the motor on various occasions.

[Samba]

Originally Posted by Aromal

Thank you sir, you know I'm a regular follower of your posts in this forum. I have a great time reading your travelogues of Kashmir, North Sikkim, Andaman etc. Being not a member of this forum I wasn't able to thank you for your wonderful travelogues & photographs. So I'm taking this opportunity to thank you for giving me a great moments through your travelogues. I hope you will soon visit Kerala & I'm really looking forward for it.

Please don't call me Sir.

And wow am just overwhelmed to know you have read my travelogues even before you joined Team Bhp! Well thanks a lot for this appreciation, you really made my day! Am feeling great! Thanks again & thanks to Team Bhp too for giving us the opportunity to share our happy times.

Regarding Kerala i was in Bangalore for 8 years. During that time i have extensively driven through the God's own country covering a major part of it. Unfortunately that time i was not in Team Bhp so i do not have any travelogues on Kerala! But to be honest Kerala is such a beautiful place, am sure i will visit it again some times in my life!

Originally Posted by Aromal

The reason I didn't consider the city was the lack of DSG box in diesel. However I'm a fan of 1.5 I-VTEC of Honda, I have a great time redlining the motor on various occasions.

Oh okay. If diesel then the Vento/Rapid any day will be a better bet. Even am not a big fan of the I-DTEC, am too a fan of the high revving I-VTEC.