[iliketurtles]

I remember Rehaan talking about it and revelling in the beauty of that color, even if only in a picture. Like you said VW said the color is a no-go so if there's been a U-Turn it's something interesting.

Incredible to believe that the Merc is being sold at that price (a little higher than the Jetta would put it at mid 20 lakhs, correct?), it seems like a throwaway price. Why not put up the details of the Merc in the used car thread and check everyone else's opinion on it as well?

[Sheel]

Originally Posted by iliketurtles

The key to happiness. I'm the guy wearing the tablecloth-like shirt, if you must know.

Oh! That was pretty obvious seeing the shoes you were wearing. Puma (some drifting shoe if I recall)

Best wishes for a lovely sedan & please continue to log-in miles & keep updating here.

Sorry for being severely OT

[iliketurtles]

Originally Posted by Sheel

Oh! That was pretty obvious seeing the shoes you were wearing. Puma (some drifting shoe if I recall)

Best wishes for a lovely sedan & please continue to log-in miles & keep updating here.

Sorry for being severely OT

Not everyone notices someone shoes and comes to a correct deduction. You're a regular Sherlock, Sheel

Yes, they must have been Puma's, it's a particularly favorite brand of mine and I don't honestly have many shoes that would go with the colors of that shirt

I will surely keep the thread updated with details as they roll in. Currently I've logged 2500 kms in a little less than 2 months and I'm itching to take her out for an out-of-Mumbai drive. Hopefully that materializes soon!

[Akshay1234]

Originally Posted by iliketurtles

I will surely keep the thread updated with details as they roll in. Currently I've logged 2500 kms in a little less than 2 months and I'm itching to take her out for an out-of-Mumbai drive. Hopefully that materializes soon!

A few of us are taking our Germans to Nashik on Sunday morning, let me know if you would be interested.

[iliketurtles]

Originally Posted by akshay1234

A few of us are taking our Germans to Nashik on Sunday morning, let me know if you would be interested.

Sounds good, I know there's a thread on this somewhere too because I've seen it around.

I'm definitely interested, what time are you guys thinking of leaving? Got a thread for sign-ups or anything, in case I need to (so to speak)?

[Chethan B G]

Originally Posted by iliketurtles

Incredible to believe that the Merc is being sold at that price (a little higher than the Jetta would put it at mid 20 lakhs, correct?), it seems like a throwaway price. Why not put up the details of the Merc in the used car thread and check everyone else's opinion on it as well?

Possible.. Luxury cars depreciate fast..

IMHO, this is a new trend catching up and we may soon see other cars in the 35-40 L range falling in line. Big challenge for D segment cars like Jetta and Octavia - Excellent choice to the buyer.

IMO there is no risk, if the car is in good shape, has a decent service history, is still under standard warranty and eligible for extended warranty / maintenance contract. If at all, it will be a "calculated risk" which is fare enough.

How is the AC effectiveness in your car? Now that summer has set-in, I felt avg effectiveness on hot days with 4 people in the car...

Is this normal in Jetta or any thing to do with my car.. Settings or something else..?

[iliketurtles]

Originally Posted by Chethan B G

Possible.. Luxury cars depreciate fast..

IMHO, this is a new trend catching up and we may soon see other cars in the 35-40 L range falling in line.

I think that it's been a trend for a few years now that brand new German car from the big 3 will depreciate quickly. What caught me out is that it's a big drop for a car less than a year old, that's all. Even the Jetta won't hold it's value as well. It's just a reflection of our market sentiment where the reliability and no-nonsense nature of the Japanese sees them hold their value better, the Fortuner is a case in point.

In any case, I would love a pre-worshipped current gen 3 a few years down the road, touch wood

Originally Posted by Chethan B G

How is the AC effectiveness in your car? Now that summer has set-in, I felt avg effectiveness on hot days with 4 people in the car...

Is this normal in Jetta or any thing to do with my car.. Settings or something else..?

90% of the time, it's just me in the car and at most 1 other occupant, so setting the temperature to 23 with the blower at 4 bars does the job during the day, but it does take a little while to get the cabin temperature down, with the AC not chilling the cabin at that temperature but rather just keeping it cool.

Have no idea how it is for anyone that sits behind and to be honest I've not had 4 occupants in the car that much! Whenever that has been the case, there have been no issues with cooling, although I do wish I could put some tints of some kind to improve the AC's efficacy. The AC isn't bad, but it doesn't chill you to the bone, so to speak! It's not your car, I reckon it's just that we have to really turn the temperature down, which is what i guess I'll do.

I think I'll wait for a few more weeks and see how the AC fares with a reduced temperature setting. So far, it's been decent, not bad but not great, just about average as you say. Will see how it goes as the summer rolls on.

[Chethan B G]

Originally Posted by iliketurtles

90% of the time, it's just me in the car and at most 1 other occupant, so setting the temperature to 23 with the blower at 4 bars does the job during the day, but it does take a little while to get the cabin temperature down, with the AC not chilling the cabin at that temperature but rather just keeping it cool.

Have no idea how it is for anyone that sits behind and to be honest I've not had 4 occupants in the car that much! Whenever that has been the case, there have been no issues with cooling, although I do wish I could put some tints of some kind to improve the AC's efficacy. The AC isn't bad, but it doesn't chill you to the bone, so to speak! It's not your car, I reckon it's just that we have to really turn the temperature down, which is what i guess I'll do.

I think I'll wait for a few more weeks and see how the AC fares with a reduced temperature setting. So far, it's been decent, not bad but not great, just about average as you say. Will see how it goes as the summer rolls on.

My experience is also the same...

Any idea about "stay-cool" micro coating? Link: http://stay-kool.net/index.html

There is also a thread on this: http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techni...e-sunfilm.html

Thought of trying this out, if available in Bangalore...

[graaja]

Originally Posted by Chethan B G

How is the AC effectiveness in your car? Now that summer has set-in, I felt avg effectiveness on hot days with 4 people in the car...

Is this normal in Jetta or any thing to do with my car.. Settings or something else..?

I am in Kavassery, Kerala attending the pooram festival. At 40 degree celsius, With 6 people in the car (couldn't avoid), full auto mode and 19 degrees setpoint, the AC is very effective. Also did not bottom out on any of the speed breakers as well.

[iliketurtles]

Originally Posted by Chethan B G

Any idea about "stay-cool" micro coating? Link: http://stay-kool.net/index.html

Yeah, I remember reading about that. From what little I recall, the cost seemed prohibitive, that was what put me off. I reckon I (we) have been rather conservative with the AC control, I'm going to turn it down a bit more to see how much better it gets and take a call

Originally Posted by graaja

At 40 degree celsius, With 6 people in the car (couldn't avoid), full auto mode and 19 degrees setpoint, the AC is very effective.

Thanks for that graaja, will give a lower temperature a go before opting for staykool/virtually invisible tints etc.

[iliketurtles]

It's Sunday, and today is only good for one thing: doing absolutely nothing.

But before I got down to being my usual lazy self, serendipity struck. Just as I was plotting and planning a nice drive somewhere (almost anywhere) out of town and spoke out aloud, akshay1234 (or just Akshay, really) popped in and asked if I wanted to tag along.

I must admit I am many things, but I am not a morning person. Never was, never will be. But the thought of a drive out of town on the Mumbai-Nashik Expressway up to Sula's vineyards sounded very, very tempting indeed. And so it was that at 7:45 on a Sunday morning, I was waiting at the Thane toll naka with Rohan and Aman (sorry guys, didn't get your user handles) for everyone to turn up. In time, Karan (karan561...I think), Akshay, Narendra, Vishoo and Manish turned up and we made our way along with some spirited driving.

Narendra and Aman dropped out halfway, while the rest of us carried on. This stretch of road is f-u-n. Not pockmarked with craters and a nice cocktail of straights, curves and ghats. Driving the Jetta flat out (or as flat out as I dared to!) was a great experience, very engaging and fun. I used the S mode as well and she was just a joy to drive, right in her element. In the end, we only made it to Manas Resort in Igatpuri before turning back, but I'm already pondering a drive down to Nashik next weekend. Manish says Sula offers about 5-10% off their retail price at the vineyard and while I agree with him that it's not nearly a big enough discount to justify the drive, it sure might be reason enough to take a drive down

There was some traffic along the way (more on the way back than out of Mumbai, if you ask me) and I got an overall mileage of 14.2 kmpl as per the MFD. Mind you, this is what driving the wheels off the car (or as much as an amateur driver can anyways) and constantly slowing down to change lanes, slot in behind moving traffic, etc.

The highway manners of the Jetta are impeccable, and you can see why Germans love their autobahns so very much! On one occasion, a wayward Innova was drifting leftwards right into me as I was passing by at speed. A slightly hairy moment, I stood on the brakes and veered further left towards the kaccha rasta. Problem with stopping from brisk triple digit speeds? Nope, no problem. The brakes have super stopping power and that combined with its composure in corners makes you very confident when throwing it around.

Sure, it's no BMW or RWD car, but I reckon it's as good as a FWD can get.

I turned the temperature down to 19° C with the blower on auto and I have to say that cooling still was just about average. On the way out, tearing down the expressway, I could still feel the heat of the sun beating down on my right hand but I ignored it. Maybe I'm just nitpicking and holding the car to a very high standard (not that there's anything wrong with that). On the way back, things were much better as the air-con kept things cool and breezy in the cabin even as the tarmac steamed from the heat of the mid-day sun. Maybe I'm just being harsh, I'm willing to give the air-con more time to prove its worth.

Unfortunately, none of us were armed with cameras/go-pros and so we made do with our phones (Steve Jobs zindabad). I didn't take any more than a few pictures, and here's the two I did click, including one panoramic image of everyone's rides.



From left to right (please exsqueeze if I get this wrong): Rohan's 530D, Aman's 535i, Narendra's A4, Akshay's 320D, Manish's X1, Karan's 328i, Vishoo's 520D and yours truly, the black sheep



Objects really are closer than they appear! Karan and Akshay tanking up mid-way.

Will add more pics if and when I come across any. Thanks for the fun drive guys, let's do this again sometime. Now go away and sleep everyone, it's a Sunday afternoon!

P.S: That 328i was every bit as gorgeous as I thought it'd be! Loved Akshay's 320D too. Alright people, ciao. Seriously, I need my beauty sleep. Bye!

[Chethan B G]

Originally Posted by iliketurtles

Driving the Jetta flat out (or as flat out as I dared to!) was a great experience, very engaging and fun.

Had a similar experience on Bangalore-Mangalore highway.. Exploiting 100% of Jetta's power is next to impossible IMHO..

Originally Posted by iliketurtles

The highway manners of the Jetta are impeccable, and you can see why Germans love their autobahns so very much! On one occasion, a wayward Innova was drifting leftwards right into me as I was passing by at speed. A slightly hairy moment, I stood on the brakes and veered further left towards the kaccha rasta. Problem with stopping from brisk triple digit speeds? Nope, no problem. The brakes have super stopping power and that combined with its composure in corners makes you very confident when throwing it around.

Sure, it's no BMW or RWD car, but I reckon it's as good as a FWD can get.

Wow!

Originally Posted by iliketurtles

I turned the temperature down to 19° C with the blower on auto and I have to say that cooling still was just about average. On the way out, tearing down the expressway, I could still feel the heat of the sun beating down on my right hand but I ignored it. Maybe I'm just nitpicking and holding the car to a very high standard (not that there's anything wrong with that). On the way back, things were much better as the air-con kept things cool and breezy in the cabin even as the tarmac steamed from the heat of the mid-day sun. Maybe I'm just being harsh, I'm willing to give the air-con more time to prove its worth.

Jetta has lot of glass cover. IMO the heat insulation is not good enough. We may have to get the coating done? OR do you think it is better to ignore / tolerate for 2 months in a year, since it is not that bad?

I am waiting to hear about some user review on Stay-Cool... Maybe those prices will come down by next summer?

[graaja]

Originally Posted by iliketurtles

It's Sunday, and today is only good for one thing: doing absolutely nothing.

...

What a fantastic way to spend a Sunday morning. Was really excited to read about the highway performance of the car. Just waiting for that perfect opportunity!

Originally Posted by iliketurtles

Driving the Jetta flat out (or as flat out as I dared to!) was a great experience, very engaging and fun. I used the S mode as well and she was just a joy to drive, right in her element.

Dare I ask what speeds you were able to reach? Maybe you could PM me if the speeds were out of the forum's legal limits

I am yet to experience the true highway manners of the Jetta. In the couple of long drives that I took it out, I could not cross 90kmph either due to the narrow winding roads of Valparai, or the heavily-under-construction roads to Palghat.

[iliketurtles]

Originally Posted by Chethan B G

Jetta has lot of glass cover. IMO the heat insulation is not good enough. We may have to get the coating done? OR do you think it is better to ignore / tolerate for 2 months in a year, since it is not that bad?

The A/C certainly isn't the chill you to your bones type, I think VW really couldn't be bothered tuning it to the Indian summers Even this morning, with the MFD displaying a temperature of about 31-32° C outside, I set the A/C to 19 and it only really kept the cabin cool and me comfortable. I might just be able to live with it, but here in Mumbai day-time temperatures are high at least 9-10 months of a year. If someone comes up with a more affordable version stay-kool or those invisible tints, I think I'd jump at it. For now, I'm going to leave it as it is. I'm not completely ok with the Jetta's cooling system but I'm not completely put off either.

Originally Posted by Chethan B G

I am waiting to hear about some user review on Stay-Cool... Maybe those prices will come down by next summer?

I don't think Stay-Kool's prices will come down, they have a bit of a monopoly with the absence of any competition and the banning of sunfilms (very stupidly). One can only hope they get some competition in the same space, that'll force them to correct their prices. Right now, they're just milking the market for all it's worth.

Originally Posted by graaja

What a fantastic way to spend a Sunday morning. Was really excited to read about the highway performance of the car. Just waiting for that perfect opportunity!

Get out at the first opportunity you can, you can thank me later. The Jetta will put a big wide smile on your face.

Originally Posted by graaja

I am yet to experience the true highway manners of the Jetta. In the couple of long drives that I took it out, I could not cross 90kmph

Ah, no worries. You have plenty of time to get acquainted with the high speed manners of the car. Map out a nice patch of road, clear your schedule and enjoy.

With the wife back in town on Wednesday, I'm already planning a trip to Nashik this weekend, whether I go or not is another matter altogether!

[dj78]

Originally Posted by iliketurtles

Nope, not at all. It just happened all of a sudden, leaving a very grainy, rough feel to the surface of the paint almost all over the car. It was almost sandpaper like in its feel, as if grime and grit seemed to have stuck to the surface and couldn't be cleaned off. I could have bought a clay bar and all that and done it myself, but Motoshines was very close-by and I figured I'd see the quality of their work. The glass felt fine to me, bizarrely.

Let's see if I do a complete care package. Still early days, and so far I'm managing to keep the car pretty clean. If I feel it's too much of a hassle, I'll opt for the full monty after 6 months. I'll do something or the other from a professional detailer for sure though.

iliketurtles - were you able to get rid of the surface contaminants on your car? If so how - did you use the clay bar or some professional service instead?

I have the same issue going on with my car including all the glasses - so interested in finding out. BTW I have posted the same queries looking for experiences around the same. http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techni...ml#post3422739