[Carpainter]

Hi Chetan..
I'm a regular follower of your thread for a long time which means I've been following your thread well before I got my membership approved. Infact your previous Polo ownership thread had a great influence in my decision making when I bought my Polo back in Feb 2011.

Anyway I've had a peaceful ownership experience with my Polo so far, Touchwood. But lately I have been thinking of upgrading my ride. I have not decided on any particular model yet but Jetta does fancy my imagination. If all things are well then I wish to buy a Jetta someday. But there are some concerns I have before I can dream of owning this beauty.

First of all I've heard on this forum that the normal servicing cost is not too much and you've said that as well. But you've also said that accidental/scratch repair cost are a bit of a problem. Now I'd like to know how much is the difference of the same repair from Polo to Jetta. Like for example I've heard that the ORVMs cost 8k a piece. Is it true? And howmuch is the expected dent repair cost if you have any such experience so far. People say that VW keep spare parts price of Jetta high because these parts are shared with Audi A4. Do you have any first hand experience at that? These questions may sound stupid but I need answers to these questions to get an idea of how much the actual ownership cost might be. Really confused whether to go for a practical car like Corolla(But with an underpowered diesel engine) or take the risk and buy a Jet.

Till then enjoy your ride and wish you many happy miles.

[Santoshbhat]

Originally Posted by Chethan B G

Jetta is the only car in my family. Therefore, question of solo drive comes in, only for official drives.

I don't think I can practically keep 30 psi.

What is your opinion on having CR90 all round?

30 psi works for me even with passengers on board. For me, 30 psi is my 'in-city' air pressure irrespective of load. Speeds are low, lots of broken patches of road, so it gives me good plush ride quality. And I don't think it hurts tire life or mileage either. Try it once, you'll be pleasantly surprised.

I've never been stopped by cops with CR 70 for the front and CR 90 for the sides. CR 90 is nearly as effective as CR70 in cutting out the heat.

I had installed CR 70 for the front and CR50 for the sides before for the no sun film rule. After the rule was made, I stripped CR50 from the sides and installed CR90. CR90 is virtually impossible to detect (3M guys install it without the watermark these days). CR90 is an ideal solution to cut out the heat in this no sun film era. The way I see it, we are abiding by the spirit of the law (transparency) although technically we may be breaking it.

[Chethan B G]

Originally Posted by Carpainter

Hi Chetan..
I'm a regular follower of your thread for a long time which means I've been following your thread well before I got my membership approved. Infact your previous Polo ownership thread had a great influence in my decision making when I bought my Polo back in Feb 2011.

Anyway I've had a peaceful ownership experience with my Polo so far, Touchwood. But lately I have been thinking of upgrading my ride. I have not decided on any particular model yet but Jetta does fancy my imagination. If all things are well then I wish to buy a Jetta someday. But there are some concerns I have before I can dream of owning this beauty.

First of all I've heard on this forum that the normal servicing cost is not too much and you've said that as well. But you've also said that accidental/scratch repair cost are a bit of a problem. Now I'd like to know how much is the difference of the same repair from Polo to Jetta. Like for example I've heard that the ORVMs cost 8k a piece. Is it true? And howmuch is the expected dent repair cost if you have any such experience so far. People say that VW keep spare parts price of Jetta high because these parts are shared with Audi A4. Do you have any first hand experience at that? These questions may sound stupid but I need answers to these questions to get an idea of how much the actual ownership cost might be. Really confused whether to go for a practical car like Corolla(But with an under powered diesel engine) or take the risk and buy a Jet.

Till then enjoy your ride and wish you many happy miles.

Nice to know that my posts have been of some help to you. Thanks for the appreciation!

Maintenance of any car (D1 segment) can be broadly divided in to three categories:

1. Periodical / Oil change maintenance: Most car companies are the same when it comes to regular maintenance. In case of VW, as you already know, we need to take an appointment, we get the car back on the same day or the next day. Jetta's service expenses are up by about 20% compared to Polo; Considering that a larger engine takes higher amount of engine oil, price difference is justified. Jetta's regular consumables like, air / fuel / oil filters are not expensive.

2. Breakdown maintenance: I would strongly recommend extended warranty for any German vehicle. That way, there is piece of mind for 4 years. Usually, during this period, we will have an additional burden of loan / EMI.

Parts cost is high for any D1 segment cars. Honda's and the Toyota's are not exactly cheap in this aspect; But parts availability and failure rate (Electronic parts) can be better. Therefore, it sometimes makes more-sense to go less-tech with a German car. Go for the MT variant, if you are very concerned.

Parts availability is a concern since most parts depend / vary on VIN number. This can increase down time if the car cannot be used. But most of the times, car can be run with restrictions, unless it is a critical issue (Engine / Transmission / Brake related), which are rare with these cars.

3. Accident maintenance: Since the parts required can not be predicted / planned for Logistics, availability becomes a major issue. Downtime will be high for German cars as of now (VW is planning a major parts hub in India). Cost of repair should not be very different; But Dealer ethics can make a huge dent in the pocket.

Fortunately, Dealer ethics / or the lack of it, is not Company specific; It is Dealer specific. Therefore, it is important to do business with the right Dealer, right from the start! IMHO, choice of the Dealer is as important as choosing the Car itself!

My opinions is; In general, avoid Metro dealers who (if) are arrogant, as they are over fed with orders; Lookout for a good / established dealers in smaller cities around Metro. You will get good services and will be satisfied.

Jetta is a very rugged Work-Horse, designed for harsh climate and conditions. Go for it, you will not repent!

Originally Posted by Santoshbhat

CR90 is an ideal solution to cut out the heat in this no sun film era. The way I see it, we are abiding by the spirit of the law (transparency) although technically we may be breaking it.

Santosh, Thanks.

CR90 looks good! I will get this done before summer.

[Carpainter]

Thanks you sir for your quick response. Jetta is the car I want to buy but before that I have to do a lot of discussions with my dad to convince him to go for a German car instead of a Toyota. Although that is quite a few months away.

Thank you once again for your reply. Do update your thread. I will definitely be keeping an eye on this. And might end up asking some stupid questions in future as well. Advance apologies for that. I hope all the discussions here will help all those people who are not Bhpian yet but are willing to know more about Jetta before they make their buying decisions.

Originally Posted by Chethan B G

Nice to know that my posts have been of some help to you. Thanks for the appreciation!

Maintenance of any car (D1 segment) can be broadly divided in to three categories:

1. Periodical / Oil change maintenance: Most car companies are the same when it comes to regular maintenance. In case of VW, as you already know, we need to take an appointment, we get the car back on the same day or the next day. Jetta's service expenses are up by about 20% compared to Polo; Considering that a larger engine takes higher amount of engine oil, price difference is justified. Jetta's regular consumables like, air / fuel / oil filters are not expensive.

2. Breakdown maintenance: I would strongly recommend extended warranty for any German vehicle. That way, there is piece of mind for 4 years. Usually, during this period, we will have an additional burden of loan / EMI.

Parts cost is high for any D1 segment cars. Honda's and the Toyota's are not exactly cheap in this aspect; But parts availability and failure rate (Electronic parts) can be better. Therefore, it sometimes makes more-sense to go less-tech with a German car. Go for the MT variant, if you are very concerned.

Parts availability is a concern since most parts depend / vary on VIN number. This can increase down time if the car cannot be used. But most of the times, car can be run with restrictions, unless it is a critical issue (Engine / Transmission / Brake related), which are rare with these cars.

3. Accident maintenance: Since the parts required can not be predicted / planned for Logistics, availability becomes a major issue. Downtime will be high for German cars as of now (VW is planning a major parts hub in India). Cost of repair should not be very different; But Dealer ethics can make a huge dent in the pocket.

Fortunately, Dealer ethics / or the lack of it, is not Company specific; It is Dealer specific. Therefore, it is important to do business with the right Dealer, right from the start! IMHO, choice of the Dealer is as important as choosing the Car itself!

My opinions is; In general, avoid Metro dealers who (if) are arrogant, as they are over fed with orders; Lookout for a good / established dealers in smaller cities around Metro. You will get good services and will be satisfied.

Jetta is a very rugged Work-Horse, designed for harsh climate and conditions. Go for it, you will not repent!

[Chethan B G]

Update: ODO @ 26K Kms

Encountered 2 problems with the car.

1. Right side Rear door failed to lock!

Problem found with the door lock actuator. Same was ordered and replaced under warranty.

Actuator took about a week to arrive, once ordered. Until then, I was manually locking the door, through the manual lock provision at the side of the door (concealed by a rubber cap). Use ignition key and turn it clock-wise about 10 degrees, to lock. Use remote to un-lock.




2. Problem with AC:

a) Problem started about 6 months back during cold starts; Even though compressor (ECVDC) would come on, only warm air would flow out of the vents initially. Cool (not cold) air would flow out of the vent only after about 5 minutes. After that, cabin used to cool in about 10 minutes.

b) This eventually became worst. Finally a month back, the AC effect was almost non-existent.

c) Since cabin temperature was higher than SET temperature, Engine idle rpm would raise from 800 to 950. This used to consume more fuel in B2B traffic.

Solution:

AC vents and filters were checked and found to be all-right. AC grill temperature was at 14 degree centigrade. This should be 4 - 5 degree centigrade.

System Leak check was done and found to be fine. Refrigerant quantity / pressure was fine.

Refrigerant was flushed out to see if there was any metal dust (there wasn't any) and was refilled. Compressor oil was checked for contamination (there wasn't any) and was changed, just as a precaution.

It was diagnosed that refrigerant control solenoid valve was defective. This was totally shut (jammed) and was not allowing any refrigerant to flow in to the system. Same was ordered and replaced under warranty.

After replacing the solenoid, AC effect is superb. It starts cooling right from the word GO. Engine idle rpm has stabilized. I clearly find an improvement in FE as displayed on the MFD.

Again solenoid took about a week to arrive. I could use the car without AC during this period. Both these problems together would have left a big dent in my pocket, but for the warranty; May-be to the tune of about 30k including labor. Service experience at VW Mysore was very good. This infact reduced my dis-comfort to a large extent.

Barring these two incidences, my life with Jetta has been wonderful. Enjoying the drive to the hilt!!


I have purchased a luggage net from ebay. Good add-on. Small items does not get thrown around in the boot.

[Chethan B G]

Update: ODO @ 29K Kms

Last 2000 Kms has been uneventful. Engine Oil level has not dropped since last service and so, Oil top-up was not required at all. Problem with AC has been completely resolved, after replacing solenoid and the car is as good as new..

Second Oil-change service was carried out @ 28K on the ODO. All filters were replaced. Brake pads / discs were good enough till the next Oil-change service and did not require to be replaced. Service costed me about 10.8k without wheel balancing / alignment. Service was done at KPR Cars, Mysore; Overall experience was excellent.



Wheel balancing / alignment was done outside which cost me about Rs.700 including weights. NCT5's are still holding good; Grip levels are excellent, but the noise has increased a lot. I am planning to change the tyres to P3ST, at around 35K on the ODO.

I have decided to get 3M CR90 sun-films all round; Waiting for the same as 3M Dealers in Bangalore do not have stock.

[adi_petrolhead]

Originally Posted by Chethan B G

5. Purchased Garmin Navi 2567LM with Garmin India Maps. IMO, this is a lot better than MMI.

Hi Chethan,

Can you pls share your review of the Navigation unit? How big (or small) is it? Does it wobble when you place it on the windscreen via suction cup? Where did you buy it from and what price? I checked Snapdeal.com, it shows for 15K. Actual pictures of the attached device on the windscreen would be appreciated.

Thanks.

[Chethan B G]

Originally Posted by adi_petrolhead

Hi Chethan,

Can you pls share your review of the Navigation unit? How big (or small) is it? Does it wobble when you place it on the windscreen via suction cup? Where did you buy it from and what price? I checked Snapdeal.com, it shows for 15K. Actual pictures of the attached device on the windscreen would be appreciated.

Thanks.

Hi Adi,

Garmin nuvi 2567LM is a good unit. It has a 5 inch display with free lifetime map update and shows live traffic, using our phone data connection through BT. I think I paid around 17-18K when I purchased it - Can't remember

Link: http://www.garmin.co.in/products/ontheroad/nuvi2567lm/

I have been using friction mount since almost 2 years now and it is very good.

Link: http://www.amazon.com/Garmin-Portabl...ref=pd_sim_e_3

I was using the same mount with my earlier navigation unit (50LM). Some pics below:





You can find more details here: http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...ml#post3244845

Invest on the mount. It is really worth it!

[Chethan B G]

Update @ 35,000 Kms on the ODO: Driving this car has been like a dream, as usual!

There was one incident last week; The driver side "dip-bulb" gave way and the bulb-out error popped up on the console. Got the bulb changed by an accessory shop and every thing was sorted out.

Other than this, it has been incident free ownership so far.

1. Got 3M-CR90 film on both front and side glasses for Rs.20,000/- ; This is really worth it. Did not get them on the rear wind-shield, as I had to get the parcel tray removed, for a decent installation. I was also worried that the installer might damage the rear defogger, as it had happened on my Polo.

2. NCT5 is still going strong!! and looks like it will go all the way until 50K Kms. But I have decided to change them during my 3rd service, which will be around 42K Kms on the ODO.


This pins me down to choose the right tyre. Choice is between P3ST and PS3 - Both in 205/55R16. Planning to import PS3 if I decide. Right now, I am really confused!!

[Chethan B G]

Recap: It has been 21 months of satisfying ownership with 36K Kms on the ODO. Barring minor irritants such as AC solenoid, Door Actuator and a headlight bulb failure, life with Jetta has been excellent. Till date, there is just a marginal difference of maintenance costs, when compared to that of Polo. Even FE is comparable!

After the de-regulation of diesel price, I have been filling-up only at Shell outlets. This has added to the smoothness of the engine.

NCT5's are really doing a good job. I am very happy with them wrt performance and grip on offer. Only drawback is the tyre noise. Tyre wear is well under control. Following pics are of 36K Kms run tyres!





Had a bizarre experience en-route to Mangalore couple of months back. Tyre had a Puncture on the side-wall and the tyre deflated over night. Got the puncture work done next morning and drove-on. Car has run about 2K Kms after that and no problems until now. I wonder if P3ST's can handle/last this kind of rough terrine? Any comment or suggestions are welcome.




It was time for an other coat of paint protection. This time, I opted for the CQuartz paint protection from UD in Bangalore. This costed me about 12K. With this and the CR90 (baring a few un-avoidable scratches), car looks brand new!

Some pics taken from my mobile. Sorry for the average quality of snaps.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Looing good!

And I bet your dashboard air vents didn't break!

[Chethan B G]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

Looing good!

And I bet your dashboard air vents didn't break!

Thanks!

You are right. Jetta's built quality is V.Good; Be it the air-vents or the ORVM's (as some have complained on Octavia).

That way, even my Polo did not have any problem with air-vents. My-be, I was just lucky. But I believe that the reason was due to my usage pattern; I always use AC - 100% of the time. Therefore no chance of dust accumulation, which in my opinion is THE killer. And also, vents in my car use to stay in one position, without people fiddling around with it all the time. This may have helped?

[Thad E Ginathom]

That way, even my Polo did not have any problem with air-vents. My-be, I was just lucky.

Possibly not just lucky but unique! Any one of the things you mention might have helped, but my view would be that the things are made to be used, not useless!

Backtracking right to the start: your Jetta would have been imported, right? Are they still imported, or do they get built in India now?

[Gannu_1]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

Backtracking right to the start: your Jetta would have been imported, right? Are they still imported, or do they get built in India now?

They are assembled in India (CKD - completely knocked down) and most of the parts come from Mexico.

[Chethan B G]

One of the worst things I have experienced on the Jetta is the quality of the wiper. It is worse than most other cars I have ever driven. Wiper blade / rubber is very thin and shudders, making "Grrreer" noise intermittently. Adding to this problem was, the auto-wiper feature on the Jetta. Due to the feature, wiper comes-on unexpectedly and sort of

I tried polishing wind-shield glass, got the wiper blade / arm aligned and even replaced wiper blade; But nothing worked. Bosch wiper available in India, do not suit Jetta.

Finally, I could source wipers from Amazon and replace them. These wipers are exact fit for the Jetta and the problem is completely resolved.

Link: http://www.tricoproducts.com/Drivers...nce/TRICOForce

Link: http://www.amazon.com/Trico-25-190-F.../dp/B005WTPBZ8

This product ships to India and is perfectly compatible with current generation Jetta and Octavia. Product comes with adapters, which are very easy to fix / connect / install and are of excellent quality.

My problem with wipers, are a thing of the past!