29th November 2014, 18:31
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| BHPian Join Date: Apr 2014 Location: New Delhi
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| My Pepper Grey VW Vento TDI Highline – 30,000 kms Report This post has been pending since the time I joined Team BHP. I have been following this forum for the last 6-8 years. It was quite helpful in helping me decide which car to buy and understand the positives and negatives of the ones that I didn't. This is my first post here and I thought what better than to start off with an ownership report. I have been driving a Pepper Grey Volkswagen Vento TDI (Highline) since the last 2 years (since Apr 2013). It has completed two services and in this thread I'll post the ownership report along with the service reports and my experience so far with the car. It will be a long post so please grab your coffee mugs before you start reading further. This post is all about:  It all started in Jan 2013, with a decision to buy a Sedan for the family. I had always driven a small car (Maruti Alto) and the decision to upgrade to a sedan was driven more by family desire at this point in time than the need for one. Though the need would arise in another 8-10 months, so I thought that it is time that I should start looking for one. The process of shortlisting the cars and taking the TDs started. Now, my office is open 6 days a week, so that leaves me with only Sundays to do all this stuff along with other personal work. So took a couple of months before finalizing the car. I had a budget of max 10 lacs for the car, but if I found anything in the 6-7 lacs bracket it would be absolutely great. Decisions to be made - Petrol or Diesel - I wanted a diesel since my daily commute is approx 90-100 kms, but was not out and out against a petrol car as well. Cars considered: 1) Honda City - The current favorite on the Indian roads. Have a couple of these in the close family. Have driven a friend's City as well as Civic and liked the response of these cars. Now the only pain in the neck with Honda cars at that point was no diesel engine. So decided to hold on the TD and go with it only if I didn't find a good diesel car. (This was prior to the launch of current Honda City) 2) Volkswagen Vento - TDI Vento was high on my list after reading the Initial review by GTO. Thanks GTO. Also, the experience of the other members on the forum had prompted me to consider this car seriously. I also quite liked the neat and clean exteriors of the car, which were a fresh breath after looking at all the fluidicity floating around Delhi. This was the first car that I test drove and fell in love with the car. The response of the engine absolutely blew me away. The handling of the car was superb. I had read throughout the forum that the clutch is hard on the Vento, but given that the clutch was equally hard on my Alto (this was due to worn out clutch plates which were later changed in May 2013), I didn't feel so. I found the ICE system to be ok (not very good), but one that would serve my needs adequately. The things that put me off initially were 14 inch spare tyre and dummy Bluetooth button. If you don't have Bluetooth, why put a dummy button, to tease the owners? However, my wife was not very comfortable with the interiors - personal choice, but she didn't like them much. 3) Hyundai Verna - This was a close competitor initially, but after reading about the handling of the car at higher speeds, I was a bit concerned. Anyways, decided to TD the car and went to the Hyundai showroom. The showroom was packed and there was no parking in the showroom. The guard told me to park down the road. Kept looking for a parking spot, didn’t find one so decided to come another day. The day never came, so didn’t even TD the Verna 4) Nissan Sunny – Hyundai’s loss was Nissan’s gain. As I was unable to find parking spot near the Hyundai showroom, decided to visit the Nissan showroom, which was just a km down the road. TDed the Sunny. The interiors were quite nice and spacious, decent to drive too. Though not as responsive as the Vento, but not bad also. What put me off – the round spaceship type centre console. Absolutely hideous in my opinion. Other cars considered but not TDed – SX4, Ertiga and Fiat Linea. I was all over the place as I was very confused. Read up a lot more about all the cars, as had more time on hand at the laptop than to visit the showroom and thanks to Team – BHP, decided to go for the Vento TDI. Decided to go for the Highline version, though it was a bit out of my range as the complete safety features, Leatherette seats, and now the Bluetooth also, was available on this version. By the time I booked the car, one of my annoyances, i.e. Bluetooth dummy button had been addressed. Somehow, convinced the missus, that it would be a great car and you will love the interiors after getting used to them. So, went ahead and booked Highline Vento TDI in February, 2013. I booked the car with Volkswagen Delhi South (Bhasin Motors). They are no longer an authorized dealer of VW cars (deauthorized in 2014), hence I am not adding any comments on dealership experience as it won't be of any use. Now the wait- Initially was promised the car by mid March 2013. However, that didn’t materialize and after some regular follow up calls, my car was available for delivery in first week of April. Told the dealer that I want to do the PDI. He asked me to come down to the stockyard, which was very far from my place. So told him to get the car to the showroom for the PDI. Went for the PDI on Sunday, 7th April, and the car was ready for delivery on 10th April. However, it was getting a little difficult for me to get leave that day. So my dad and my BIL, went and inspected the car once again on 10th and got the car home. Unfortunately, I couldn’t go to get the delivery of my Vento. Final OTR price – INR 10.90 Lakhs. This price includes:
Version Purchased - Vento TDI Highline 1.6 Safety and related requirements which were present in this version included:
What I liked about the car at the time of purchase:
Concerns/What I didn't like about the car at the time of purchase:
I mean just look at this:  Wheels & tyres - I love the alloy wheel design offered on the Highline version purchased by me in 2013. Post that they have changed the alloy design which I don't like so much. Tyres are non exactly to my liking but are fine for Indian conditions. Will upgrade to a better set once these wear out. Interior Design, Space and Comfort - Good interior design, which is a continuation of the smooth edges seen on the outside of the car. Seat design is good with adequate lumbar support. Have not felt tired due to the seating posture even on long drives. Rear legroom is quite good:  I also quite like the 3 spoke steering wheel design, it is quite comfortable to hold:  Driving position, ergonomics, controls & MID - I like the driving position after adjusting the seat according to my height. The driver's seat gives a good view of the front. The car is thoughtfully designed for comfort on both the front as well as rear seats. Good rear legroom provides for good comfort of passengers seated on the rear seat as well. Visibility & size of mirrors - Outside RVMS have good visibility, but inside rear view mirror is too small. The reverse parking sensors are quite useful and it would have been difficult to reverse the car without the rear parking sensors Air conditioner cooling & effectiveness - Aircon quality is quite good and effective in Delhi summers Really like the Auto climate control and the rear AC Vents. What is missing is an option to close the rear AC vents like the front vents. Question for the experts - How does the heating in VW Vento work? There is no hot air blowing out of the air con vents when the temp is set above the ambient temp, but still the inside of the car is heated in some time. Have not been able to figure this out. Audio system & sound quality - Decent Audio system. I'll rate the sound quality as only average, but nothing that can't fulfill my needs. The good part about the sound system is that it accepts all kinds of inputs, i.e. Pen Drive, iPod, SD Card, Aux In, Bluetooth etc. An integrated navigation system would have been a great add on. Interior storage, practicality & boot space - The front door pockets have space for 1 litre bottle and rear doors have space for only 500 ml water bottles. There is space for 2 cups in the space under the Entertainment System console. Vento has a very spacious boot, which can easily accommodate 2 large and 2 medium size suitcases. There is space under center armrest to store mobile etc. The lock of the center armrest is broken, which VW has refused to replace under warranty citing it to be a plastic part subject to normal wear and tear, which is ridiculous according to me. Reference pic:   Engine performance & driveability: This is the best part about Vento. Extremely responsive engine and the turbo just brings a smile to my face everytime I floor it. I need to be extremely careful about going over road with potholes as the everytime it goes in a pothole over a bad road my heart just stops beating for a while. I don't even remember how many times have I got down on my knees and checked the under side of the car for any visible damage. Gearshift & clutch - The gearshift in Vento is extremely smooth, however the clutch is a bit hard. The clutch becomes more hard with usage and my service advisor has told me that the clutch will need an overhaul at approx 4-5th service (close to 50,000 kms) and the cost will be close to 40k. This is damn high! Fuel efficiency - The car returns decent FE. Till about 3-4 months back it was giving me greater than 16-17 kmpl in city. Recently it has dropped to 14-15 kmpl. Do I need to get it checked? I had not sold my Alto, so that was still my primary drive for the next 6 months. The car completed only 2000 odd kms by September and was problem free. In October, I decided to sell my Alto and buy another car for my wife (story of another thread) and that is when the Vento became my primary car. Have been driving the car daily, since October 2013 mostly to office (80-90 kms per day). The car has also covered 2 outstation trips with me and my wife, which are detailed later in this post. Overall thoughts after driving for 6 months:
Car’s first casualty – Oct, 2013. Left side power window stops working. I am like??? Totally non operational and dead. First visit to the workshop (VW Delhi West, Moti Nagar). Explained the problem to the SA. He said they’ll have to keep the car and diagnose the problem, could be a wiring or a motor problem. Left the car at the workshop. The problem could not be diagnosed that day. SA called up the next day and informed me that it was the motor which had gone kaput. Replaced FOC under warranty. Total time spent at the workshop – 3 days. Outstation Trip 1: Delhi to Mashobra and around When: Dec, 2013 Total Distance Travelled: 890 kms Total No of days : 3 Started from Delhi on Sunday morning at around 5 AM. The weather was quite clear. By the time I crossed the first toll on Delhi – Chadigarh Highway (NH1), there was a thick fog and was hardly able to see anything. The stomach was also grumbling so decided to stop at the next dhaba for breakfast. Stopped at around 6 and started the journey again around 7 in the morning. With a lunch stop at a McDonalds, reached Mashobra at 1:30 PM Total Distance travelled: 390 kms Total Time taken: 8.5 hrs (including 1.5 hrs stoppage) Had my stay prebooked at the Club Mahindra resort at Mashobra. Checked in and decided to spend leisure time in and around the resort on that day. Monday - decided to visit Tattapani. This particular place is known for its hot water springs. I had also thought about doing river rafting here, but the river flow was not at all encouraging. Had lunch at Tattapani and returned back to the resort. Total drive was approx 110 kms during the day. Had started late, so reached the resort back by 5 pm in the evening. Was in two minds about going to Shimla, but wife wanted to spend leisure time at the resort instead of roaming in crowded Shimla Mall road, so decided to stay at the resort only. Tuesday – Got up late as I knew I had plenty of time to get back. Started return journey at 11.30 AM. Again encountered extremely dense fog near Delhi. But this time there were other vehicles which were also moving on the road, so decided to follow one of these packs and continued at a slow pace. Sometimes, I became the leader of the pack and this was the most scary in extreme fog as no vehicle was willing to overtake. However thanks to the almighty, reached home safe and sound. Reached around 9 pm at my place. Distance travelled – 390 kms Time taken – 9.5 hrs (including 1.5 hour stoppage for food) Average Fuel Economy for the trip – 18.2 kmpl Any problem with the car – None, except one tyre puncture, which I discovered after returning to Delhi. Fast forward to March, 2014. The car meets its first accident. Repair 1 The accident took place at the Pragati Maidan traffic junction near mandi house. I was coming from ITO and was supposed to take a right towards Mandi house. The traffic signal turned yellow and I slowed to stop. However, there was a tourist Volvo bus on my left, which also had to take the right turn. He thought that he will be able to cross the light before it turns red and thus sped. He turned more than he should have and thus hit my front left fender. Left fender got bent and left front tyre also punctured. The driver apologized, understood that it is his mistake and told me that his bus owner would meet the expenses for the repair. He was carrying foreign embassy tourist and thus he was in a hurry. My mistake – I believed him in good faith. Changed the tyre to spare tyre and drove back home slowly. Called up the owner of the transport company and he flatly refused to bear any expenses. (result of my mistake that I let the driver leave, should have filed a police complaint then and there). Nothing much could be done now, lesson learnt and decided to claim insurance (Had zero dep policy). This happened just 1 month prior to renewal of the insurance (which was due for renewal on 11th April). Anyways, was not willing to drive for a month with a damaged car, which might have other internal damages as well. Left the car next day with VW Delhi West, Naraina (this is their bodyshop, the workshop and the showroom are in Moti Nagar, Delhi). My bad luck just didn’t end there. I got assigned the most lousiest of the service advisors I have ever met. Had to chase him to even open the job card. Job card opened, problem explained, forms filled, I left for the day. This service advisor (I’ll not name him publicly and he has anyways left this workshop now) was absolutely lousy, had a don’t care attitude. It took me 10 days to get the car repaired after numerous follow ups. The SA didn’t even take calls and I had to call him thrice to get a single answer. But, I kept my patience and went to collect the car after taking a leave from office. The tyre had burst and had to be replaced with a new tyre. When I reached the service center, to my horror:
This is when I lost my patience. Called the workshop manager and he asked me – “Do tyres have a manufacturing date printed on them?” I was like what??? Had to shout to get the work done, along with a hard worded written complaint to VW customer service helpline. Took another week to get all the things resolved, but finally got the car back after a good 20 odd days since I gave it to the workshop and that too with some scratches still there as those parts were carelessly missed out by the SA when the insurance surveyor had come for inspection. (Got this verified from the insurance surveyor). But not much could be done now and hence took the car back with a few minor scratches. Total Hit to my pocket – INR 4,000 Total Bill – Approx 15,000 Hence approx payment made by Insurance Company – INR 11,000 First Service Update and Insurance renewal – Apr 2014 The car had clocked 13,000 kms and had completed 1 year, thus was due for 1st service. Took the car to VW Delhi west moti nagar for service. The service bill came to INR 15,673/-. The break up is as follows: Labor details: 1) Paid Service – 1,742 2) Synthetic Lubrication – 561 3) Surface Refinement – 1,124 Total Labour – 3,427 Parts Details: 1) HBL – 530 2) Antiglare Treatment – 1,688 3) Engine Oil – 4,134 4) Filter with gasket – 383 5) Fuel Filter – 1,287 6) Air Filter – 392 7) Dust and Pollen Filter – 664 8) Plug - 165 9) Distil Water – 40 10) Windshield Cleaner – 321 11) Airconditioner Reiniger – 1,500 12) Silicon Spray – 1,000 13) Pressure Lock – 142 Parts Total – 12,246 Total Bill – 15,673 Things which I could have avoided – Surface Refinement (1,124) and Antiglare Treatment (1,688); Total – 2,812. I didn’t even get the Wheel alignment and balancing done, which I performed at Tyre Emporium, Malviya Nagar post the service. Rest I was advised are a part of the normal service. Hence the bill would have been 12,861 had I not opted for these. I still believe that the bill is on the higher side. I am unable to make out why. Experts please comment. Not much change in the drive quality post the service, though the AC definitely felt better and was cooling faster. Insurance Renewal – Wanted to go in for a zero dep policy only, so contacted my current insurance provider (Bajaj) as well as a couple of others (Bharti and Tata). Bharti gave the best quote and also offers a cashless facility at World Class Automobiles, so went in with Bharti AXA zero dep policy. Total Cost – INR 28,161. Aug, 2014 – Suddenly one day center AC vents stop working. The side vents are working fine but the center vents are not working. Dropped the car for a checkup at World Class and also asked them to do an Engine oil top up. The SA called up later in the day and told me that the vents have been fixed and it was some minor adjustment needed. Asked him that if he feels they will malfunction again. Wanted to understand whether I should push for a replacement, but he assured me that they will be fine. Have been working fine since then. Also, he told me that the disc brakes needed cleaning. Asked him to perform the cleaning and he told me it’ll take 2 days as the discs need to send to a lathe machine outside the workshop. Cross checked with the advisor I had dealt earlier with and gave him the go ahead. Got the car back after 3 days. Work done – Center AC vents fixed, Engine oil topped up and disc brakes cleaned. Total expenditure – INR 2,549 Oct, 2014- Second Outstation trip with the Vento. I am giving a brief summary here, and not giving a full fledged travelogue. That can be the subject of a separate post. Covered a distance of 2,067 kms in 6 days covering Delhi – Jodhpur – Jaisalmer – Bikaner – Delhi 2nd October – Left Delhi around 12 noon (Had planned to leave around 5 AM, but got delayed due to some work commitment). Took the Delhi – Jaipur Ajmer Bypass- Beawer – Jodhpur route. On the Jaipur Ajmer Bypass a bull suddenly started crossing the road and hit my left ORVM. The mirror body didn’t get damaged, but the mirror fell out and broke. Had to drive for the remaining trip without the left ORVM. Reached Jodhpur at 11.45 PM in the night. Total distance travelled – 600 kms Time taken – Approx 12 hrs (including 1.5 hrs stoppage and 20 mins of going the wrong way) Day 2 – Local Jodhpur sightseeing. Day 3 – Jodhpur to Jaisalmer Rajasthan has some really good roads and this stretch was definitely one of those. Started from Jodhpur after breakfast and was in Jaisalmer by Lunch. Total distance travelled – 290 kms Time taken – Approx 4 hrs 15 mins. Did this in a single driving session with a 5-10 min break in between for stretching the legs and having tea. Day 4 – Jaisalmer sight seeing, SAM sand dunes, Kuldhara reins and back to Jaisalmer Day 5 – Got a bad stomach and vomiting (probably some bad food) when I got up, so the start got delayed significantly. Had planned to leave the hotel by 8 AM max, but could leave only by 12:30 pm. Now, I had originally planned to drive down to Tanot as had read that the drive to Tanot is excellent and then come back to Jaisalmer and reach Bikaner by evening. However due to delay in the start was in 2 minds whether to skip Tanot or not. Me and wifey finally decided, why not, let’s attempt it (I was the sole driver, wife can’t drive Vento). So left for Tanot at 12:30 PM. Reached back at Jaisalmer at 4PM. Had lunch and left for Bikaner. Reached Bikaner by 10:30 in the night. Total distance travelled – 610 kms (including Tanot return journey) Time taken – Approx 10 hrs (including stoppages of 2 hours at Tanot and Lunch at Jaisalmer) Day 6 – Return to Delhi. Started early in the morning (6:15 AM) and was back in Delhi by 3:15 PM Route taken – Bikaner – Fatehpur (Went inside the city) – Jhunjhunu – Loharu – Jhajjar bypass- Bahadurgarh Bypass – Delhi This route has some beautiful roads apart from some 30 odd kms Total distance travelled – 420 kms Time taken – Approx 9 hrs (including 1 hour breakfast break and one 10-15 min tea break) The stats for the entire journey are: Total Distance travelled – 2,067 kms Fuel Used – 120.50 litres Fuel Economy – 17.15 kmpl Average Speed of the entire trip – Approx 60 kmph Problems with the car – Thankfully none, apart from broked Left ORVM. The car also had 3 punctures, which I discovered almost 10 days later. Repair 2 On my return I gave the car to VW Delhi West Naraina for some minor repairs. This included left ORVM and one dent on the left fender, which someone had nicked while turning left near Dhaula Kuan. I do not like any bent parts on my car, hence claimed insurance and gave the car for repair. The entire process took 10 days and the total bill was 12,000 (Borne by me – Rs.3,100 and Insurance company – 8,900) Now I have a question here – There are 2 types of taxes in the bill – VAT and service tax. I was told that the VAT is borne by the insurance company, whereas the entire service tax has to be borne by the claimant. This amount was approx Rs.900. Hence I had to pay INR 3,100. Is this correct? Nov, 2014 : Second Service Update – The car had completed 15,000 kms from the first service and the ODO had now reached 28,350 kms. Took the car in for second service to VW World Class Automobiles, Moti Nagar. Complaints reported – • Gear, Clutch Hard • Right headlight bulb not working on low beam • AC extremely noisy Service was carried out and the bill came to INR 18,087/- Break up is as follows: Labor details: 1) Paid Service – 2,101 (increased from last time) 2) Wheel Alignment - 415 3) Wheel Balancing and Rotation - 481 4) Synthetic Lubrication – 650 5) Surface Refinement – 1,292 6) Battery Checked - 92 Total Labour – 5,010 Parts Details: 1) HBL – 609 2) Antiglare Treatment – 1,941 3) Engine Oil – 4,134 4) Filter with gasket – 383 5) Fuel Filter – 1,287 6) Air Filter – 392 7) Dust and Pollen Filter – 664 8) Plug - 165 9) Distil Water – 40 10) Airconditioner Reiniger – 1,725 11) Silicon Spray – 1,150 12) Balance Weight – 278 13) Pressure Lock – 163 14) Coolant Additive – 146 Parts Total – 13,077 Total Bill – 18,087 Things which I could have avoided – Surface Refinement (1,292) and Antiglare Treatment (1,941); Total – 3,233. Rest I was advised are a part of the normal service. Hence the bill would have been 14,854 had I not opted for these. This time also, I believe that the bill is on the higher side. Experts please comment. Post service – AC noise has reduced. Gear and Clutch still feel the same and the advisor says that it is normal wear and tear. Have been advised to come back after 5000 kms for brake pad replacement. He has told me that the clutch will need an overhaul at approx 4-5th service and the cost will be close to 40k. This is damn high! The car has some scratches due to being parked in the open, rest it still looks like the day I bought it. One query that I had was that MID 2 display resets automatically at 20 hrs or 999 kms whichever is earlier. I had read in the manual that this can be re programmed to 99 hrs or 9999 kms, however the workshop was not even aware of this. Any pointers? Also, the workshop has never updated the ECU of my car as they always say that if there is any update it is applied automatically while servicing and you should not worry about the same. Is this true? My insurance is up for renewal again and have got the quotation from Bajaj and Bharti AXA. The insurance premium has gone up from last year due to the claim made in the current policy. Bharti had given a 40% discount on the insurance premium and they are not willing to give any discount this year. Hence, the premium quoted by Bharti is 38-39,000. However, I am in final stages of negotiation with Bajaj and should be able to close Bajaj Allianz Zero Dep policy at close to 31,000. Will update once the final policy is purchased. I am quite satisfied with the car and the drive quality, the only complaint being not so good ASS and costly maintenance. Have spent close to 34,000 rupees in 2 services (this is only service total) (28,500 kms and 20 months old), which is quite high in my opinion. To sum it up: +ves of the car:
- ves of the car:
Overall Cost of ownership so far: Cost of Car + 1st year Insurance (App 42,000) = 10.90 Lacs 2nd Year Insurance = 28,161 3rd Year Insurance = 31,000 Extended warranty = 12,000 All Servicing and repair, alignment etc total so far = 46,000 Total Diesel Cost so far = 1,06,276 (Diesel used = 1938 litres, avg cost = 54.84 per litre) KMS run = 32,400 Mileage = 16.7 kmpl Total Cost per km (excl initial cost and extended warranty) = Rs. 7.82 per km Some Parting shots:      The Journey will continue:  Last edited by abhinavb : 15th March 2015 at 01:45. |
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16th March 2015, 14:16
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16th March 2015, 15:30
| #3 | |
| BHPian  Join Date: Aug 2014 Location: Kolkata
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| Re: My Pepper Grey VW Vento TDI Highline – 30,000 kms Report Quote:
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16th March 2015, 19:52
| #4 | |
| BHPian Join Date: Apr 2014 Location: New Delhi
Posts: 49
Thanked: 29 Times
| Re: My Pepper Grey VW Vento TDI Highline – 30,000 kms Report Quote:
 You are absolutely right about the drive quality of VW cars and that's the primary reason why I bought a Vento. Regarding the Clutch replacement cost, I myself was quite surprised on hearing such a high cost. I remember that clutch overhaul in my alto had costed me some 6-7000 rupees. I am not sure that what is included in the cost, but as the SA said it is the approximate cost of "Clutch Overhaul". Would request some other VW owners to shed some light on this. 2 questions - When is clutch overhaul generally needed for Vento TDI? and cost that you may have incurred? Cheers | |
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18th March 2015, 01:17
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| BHPian Join Date: Nov 2014 Location: Pune
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18th March 2015, 11:37
| #6 |
| Senior - BHPian  Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Bangalore
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18th March 2015, 17:12
| #7 | ||
| BHPian Join Date: Apr 2014 Location: New Delhi
Posts: 49
Thanked: 29 Times
| Re: My Pepper Grey VW Vento TDI Highline – 30,000 kms Report Quote:
Read both your posts and I must say congrats for the amazing VW service experience. Though the scene is not as bad as it was 3 years back, but still ASS at VW leaves quite a lot to be desired. Anyways, regarding your strut change and planned brake pad change to BOSCH, a major query that I have is - Does this void the warranty? I have purchased an extended warranty which has another 2 yrs to go, hence the query. Otherwise this looks like a great setup at a good price. What about break pads - any feedback that you have regarding BOSCH? My brake pads are also due for a change in the next 2500-3000 kms. I have noticed that your service costs have been quite low compared to mine. Can you post a break up (or a scan of the bill) for both first and second service or guide me to the post, in case you have already posted the same? Which ASC in delhi do you use? and what is your feedback. I use VW World Class Automobiles at Moti Nagar. Headlights - A lot of owners share the pain. But there are a number of alternatives that exist and I believe that these do not void the warranty (but please check). For example look at this: http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/modifi...ml#post3237317 or el lobo 6061's Vento: http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...ml#post2703540 There are several other members who have changed the headlights on Vento, so this is the easiest drawback to rectify. My experience with multiple Hondas and Toyotas in the family has been better, though I would prefer VW any day over Honda/Toyota (in this segment) due to ride quality. Quote:
Glad to hear that your father has not had any issues with the Vento and hope it continues that way. With respect to the NVH levels, it is not the engine noise that bothers me, but there are multiple instances when I can hear loud music playing in the adjacent car at a traffic signal. The road noises don't get blocked as much as I would have liked them to. I generally get a oil top up done some time in between 2 services. I didn't get this done initially, but got this done between first and second service and am planning to get this done at 35,000 kms again. My brake pads are also due for a change at 35,000 kms so have to send the car to the ASC, I'll get the top up also done at the same time. I am not much of a DIY person with respect to the car's engine compartment as don't have much knowledge about it and don't want to tinker without complete understanding. Thanks for your best wishes. Abhinav | ||
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2nd April 2016, 14:16
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| Newbie Join Date: Mar 2016 Location: Delhi
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3rd April 2016, 19:48
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| BHPian Join Date: Apr 2014 Location: New Delhi
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| Re: My Pepper Grey VW Vento TDI Highline – 30,000 kms Report Quote:
Please consider this decision objectively. Let me elaborate on why I say so. Vento is an excellent driver's car and I have enjoyed every bit of driving that I have done in this car. It would be safe to say that no other car within this price can match the driving pleasure of Vento. But, on the other side you need to take very good care of the car and still there is no assurance that the car won't leave you stranded. If you are going to travel to a lot of non metros, where there are no reliable VW ASCs, I would suggest stay away from VW and go the Maruti/Honda way. Yes, there are issues with TDI variety of the car, be it injectors or High Pressure Fuel Pump or EGR, but will it happen to the car you buy? I don't know. If you can live with that chance, it is fine. Also, be aware that in case any failure happens outside the warranty period (which will be the case with any 2012 car, as extended warranty is also for a max 4 yrs), it may cost you a lot of money to get it repaired. For example, each injector costs 21-25k depending on service charges and there are 4 injectors. High pressure pump replacement / EGR replacement outside warranty costs easily upwards of 50k. Also, if it is a diesel Vento, see how many kms it has run. If it has run close to 60-70k in bad conditions, it might ask for a clutch replacement, which without flywheel will cost 25-30k and with flywheel 40k. I am not dissuading you from buying a Vento, as I said, it is a fabulous car to drive, but not easy to maintain (though this is also not true of all Ventos on the forum). Some fellow BHPians have spent minimal on maintaining their cars. Read through this thread for diverse opinions: http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techni...10-2012-a.html All I am saying is please take an informed decision. Cheers! PS: I have recently sold my Vento with 48.5k kms on the ODO and bought a new S-Cross DDIS 200. | |
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