[vishy76]

Originally Posted by Drivethru

Great write up on Jetta and your experiences.

This car is a tough one to let go. Frankly there is no car in the 20-23 lakh segment (currently) which can match Jetta's Safety and driving pleasure. I drive a 2012 Jetta AT and I'm sure I have seen your 5820 once on Mumbai roads.

Thanks a lot man. It is indeed a very tough one to let go off. Checked out the Seltos as well a few days back and came out unimpressed.

I actually don't live in Mumbai. The car was bought in 2014 in Mumbai and we then shifted in November 2015 IIRC to Vadodara. Been here ever since and only visited Mumbai once post that.

Originally Posted by iliketurtles

Vishy, I'm glad you've hit 80k kilometers on the Jetta, and hope you bring up a ton.

I know that feeling when you want to move on from the Jetta, but find it to be a tricky proposition since there are only so many cars that fit the bill (reliable, fun, practical), even more when there isn't a huge amount of headroom by way of budget.

My sincere advice; try and hang on to the Jetta. You won't find a better steed than it unless you spend big money. If you go with one of the big 3, you'll be spending more by way of maintenance (can't skimp on it beyond a point), and if you look outside that clique, the options are a bit limited, in my mind. For instance, the 320D would definitely fit your budget, but is it that much better than the Jetta? I would argue it's about 20% better, if that, and worse in some respects. You be the judge of that.

Almost 2 years on from selling mine, I still miss her some days. She was a fabulous tourer, reasonable to maintain, and classically beautiful. They just don't make them like anymore, quite literally and figuratively.

Thanks a lot Karan! Your immaculately kept Jetta is missed by me as well. But I am glad you have moved onto a RWD Sedan. I did consider the 320D but the maintenance costs are a lot more than the Jetta and I don't think the 2.0 Turbo is an upgrade over the already capable TDI of my Jetta. That aside, I haven't heard very good things about the rear end composure of the 3. The A4 and C class can't come close either the way I see things.

The best option is to hang on to her. The clutch, flywheel, headliner, tyres and battery are going to be replaced in the next 2-3 months and she will most probably stay for 2 more years.

Originally Posted by viXit

Amazing review!
If only I could write as well. But it comes with passion, and that one you have bucket loads of.

The jetta surely must be fun, but go out redlining on that little chevy once in a while, smaller cars are so much fun. I prefer driving my Safari for it's torque and easy to drive nature and visibility. But give me my grandpa's Maruti 800 and I'm not coming back home until I drive the wheels off of that tiny little thing. Small cars are so much fun. Hope you get your license soon and get behind the wheel soon.

Where are the teamBHP stickers?
mods, we request an infraction upon this guy!

Thanks a lot! The Jetta is fun but yes the Spark with the hydraulic power steering and small size is a very chuckable and fun car to drive (weak bottom end aside). I do hope I get my license soon. Can't wait to sample both the cars!

Originally Posted by Sumanyu17

I'd love to know about the headliner fix. Can you please tell who has quoted you 7-8k for the job. When I inquired from the dealer for my passat he quoted around 40k. Please update here when you get it fixed.

The headliner upholstery is a known issue on these cars. I have been quoted prices ranging from 5.5K-12K. My advice:

- Find someone who has done this before

- I would personally stand next to them and supervise the work being done. One thing I absolutely despise is some numbnuts using flat head screwdrivers to dismantle interior trim and pry open retaining clips. If you do have to pay a premium for getting this done properly, please do.

I will most probably be sending it to an FNG. He hasn't given me an exact quote yet but has said it will be in the 7-8K ballpark. Will update the thread when I get this done for sure.

Originally Posted by MADMAX111

Nice summary. Well written.

I have a 2015 used Jetta Highline TDI AT in excellent condition, Bought it 2 years back with 45K on Odo and have maintained it very well. It has done 70 K now. I have avoided the dieselgate fix by talking to the company workshop, so the car is still explosive.

I would like your advice on Remap. Following are the queries:-

1. Quantum or Wolf and reason for preference??

2. Have you done the pollution check after remap, Is it Ok or more than before. Does it throw any black smoke under any condition/hard acceleration?? In Delhi pollution is a big issue.

3. Do you feel the need for any brake upgrade. Nothing major, probably better pads??

4. If I go for remap, would you advice getting the dieselgate fix before, or do it as it is. My car is completely stock till now.

5, What is the effect on FE.

Thanks

Thanks man. Here's my answers in order of your questions:

1. Wolf has an advantage when it comes to custom maps. Rajiv and team will tailor it down to your requirements unlike Quantum where you get a fixed generic map (of course, its a different matter the map has been dynoed and tested extensively). Having said all this, if you are willing to wait for the Wolf team to come down to your place and do your car, I would pick Wolf. Rajiv is very honest upfront and open to talk to. To sum things up, if you don't mind getting a generic map with slightly higher power figures its quantum. If you want a map tailored to your requirements with arguably better support later on in case it needs any improvements, Wolf.

2. Yes I have done the PUC twice after remap IIRC. The emissions have gone up slightly for sure but the car passed with absolutely no issues. Incase you need the exact figures, do tell me. I will hunt for the records and post them as well. As for the black smoke, another stage 1 owner did complain of black smoke under WOT. Diesels do smoke even without the remap TBH. You might observe a puff of smoke under very hard acceleration or turbo spool up and that's normal. It doesn't belch smoke though.

3. To be brutally honest, my dad isn't someone who drives pedal to metal style. Short bursts of acceleration and in gear pulls is what matters to him. Having said all this, me or any other stage 1 Jetta TDI owners haven't found the need to go for better brake pads or suspension. Everything on the chassis front remains the same.

4. Yes, I definitely would. VW folks will keep chasing you for it otherwise. Instead of constantly having to worry about them flashing your car and deleting your remap, get the dieselgate done first. At least their database will then say that your car has been fixed. Get the remap done after. I still make it a point to warn my SA not to touch anything on that front though, just in case.

5. I haven't really observed any effect on FE. Under spirited driving, yes the FE will drop for sure based on how hard you go on the car. However, if you drive sedately, you might actually observe an increase in FE. In my case, thanks to the increased tractability, I don't need to shift from 6th to 5th in order to perform overtakes at 80-90. Simply mashing the A pedal does the job. Thus, I get 20+ easily on highways while steadily cruising between 100-120.

Most of the highway trips have seen the Jetta return figures of upto 20.8 km/L with 4 adults on board at speeds of 100-110. This was when the service was due. Quite sure it would have touched 21 comfortably after servicing. My car doesn't encounter city traffic all that much so can't comment on that front. My dad's daily office commutes see the car doing about 15-16 Km/L. All in all, I am very satisfied on the FE front as well. No complains whatsoever.

[vishy76]

Hasn't been long since the last update but I already have a lot to share. The past few months have been full of new learnings for me and the car. I shall update this thread by the end of next week.

Until then, here's a teaser. The Jetta is back from VW ASC after a hefty bill:

[chaudh2s]

What is the timing belt change interval for this 2.0 tdi engine? My 2016 Sharan has this same engine and it has run just 40k kms in the last 5 years, should I get the belt replaced and also water pump? I also occasionally face this another issue when the car takes 3-4 seconds to start in the morning, say once every 2-3 weeks, have you faced this issue?

[vishy76]

Originally Posted by chaudh2s

What is the timing belt change interval for this 2.0 tdi engine? My 2016 Sharan has this same engine and it has run just 40k kms in the last 5 years, should I get the belt replaced and also water pump? I also occasionally face this another issue when the car takes 3-4 seconds to start in the morning, say once every 2-3 weeks, have you faced this issue?

Hi. The timing belt change interval for the TDI series is 1.05L km or 7 years, whichever comes earlier. I had mine changed just a week back at 6.5 years of age as a precaution. It's always good to keep an eye on the health of the belt and the water pump as the car crosses 5 years. It's always advisable to change the water pump too since these are prone to failing on the EA189 2.0 TDIs.

I have personally never encountered a long crank. Even on a weak battery, the engine will crank slowly, but fire up within 2 seconds max. I think the battery would be a good place to start. If it's too cold there, your glow plugs might be on their way out.

[vishy76]

85,000 Km Update



It hasn't been very long since I updated the thread and a sudden impromptu update on a team-BHP thread means something isn't quite right. Here goes the story.

Yokohama BlueEarth AE51s

Immediately after the previous service, I was quite happy. The car was doing well, and I also swapped out the 4 year old Michelin P3STs (Served me impeccably for 45K km) for a new set of Yokohama Bluearth AE51s.

A lot has been said on the forum about these tyres, so I won't go too much into depth. Having said this, I will say they are a good compromise considering the lack of options I faced due to the import ban on tyres. The only ones available were these and Goodyears, and there was no way I was going back to the crappy NCTs. They aren't as silent as the Primacy series and nor do they offer leach like grip levels associated with the Pilot Sports, but overall, they are good VFM and tyres I don't really mind having on the car at this point.

The reduction in road noise and the decrease in steering weight was evident right off the bat. Overall ride also felt a tad supple, but the change wasn't day and night (Goes to how the Michelins had aged very well).


The Oil leakage saga

It had been about 2 months since the car had been serviced at the FNG. I had very elaborate plans for the Jetta including a clutch and flywheel change followed by a headliner upholstery change immediately after, post which I hoped to write off my expenses for the year. Little did I know what was to come.

October and November were tough for me personally. So much so, that I even failed to keep track of the Jetta. The car kept serving my dad well enough with no issues. December 7th, 2020. I had done the usual chore of feeding the street dogs in the locality when I decided to check the oil levels. This was a completely out of the blue ritual, but something inside me told me I just had to. I am generally very lazy when it comes to going down and doing it, but this time I didn't faulter. I did the usual job of opening the bonnet and going for the dipstick. It was around 9 in the night so all I planned to do was pull out the dipstick, give it a wipe, put it back in and use a torch to check levels.

I did exactly as mentioned and to my horror, what came out of the hole was a bone dry dipstick. Not a smear of oil on it. I did know that oil levels fluctuate with engine temperature and the engine was at about 80-85 degrees, but I had never seen a completely empty dipstick. I flashed the torchlight on the engine bay and saw something I had never seen before. Everything around and below the oil cooler area was covered in oil. All the way down to the sump guard. In fact, the sump guard itself was drenched in oil around the edges. I had a can of Castrol Edge lying in the boot with about 700ml of oil. Assuming the car had leaked even a litre in the worst case, topping up all of this should have ensured that at least a smear of oil would make it to the dipstick. I hastily poured it down and pulled the dipstick out. Nothing.

At this point, I knew the issue was getting out of hand. I asked my dad (who couldn't understand how serious the issue was) to not drive the car for the next few days. I contacted VW who wanted to tow the car in straight off. I was still confident it wasn't a fast leak and decided to get in touch with an FNG a known had suggested. The guy was kind enough to send in a mechanic with a can of oil 4 days later. The 4 days had also given me enough time to do a proper physical inspection and conclude that the leak had originated around the oil filter housing. I also turned the ignition on and off multiple times (obviously without starting the engine) to see if I do get an oil level low warning (the Jetta has a sensor in the sump to detect low oil levels), but nothing came up.

The mechanic topped up around 1.5-1.7L of oil, and it was only then that the dipstick finally indicated the oil in the sump had reached the top. He then fired the car up and almost immediately, a very small spurt of oil started emanating from the periphery of the filter housing. He was confident it was a very slow leak and with the amount of oil topped up, the Jetta would easily make it to the garage. I gave him the go ahead.

I received a call the same afternoon, claiming the oil filter had not been installed correctly by the previous FNG.

There are 3 O-rings that are a part of the filter assembly. Two sit inside, while one sits on the periphery of the filter cover. It appears one of the inner rings had not been installed correctly, leading to oil accumulation inside the housing and excessive pressure buildup, pressure the cover ring was not designed to take. It eventually gave up and oil started leaking out of the cover and onto the oil cooler, sump guard, the oil sump itself and also reached the compressor below.

Finally, all of this was cleaned, a brand new filter installed, and new engine oil poured in. Total bill was around 5.5-6K and I was satisfied that the issues had been left behind. (I was wrong again)

Around Jan, I again started noticing oil deposits on the oil cooler and sump guard. This time however, the leak was caught on time and was very minute. Barely 300ml of oil was lost before it was attended to. The top cover seal was changed and a new drain plug gasket was put in. This marked an end to the oil filter leakages and did give me a lot of relief.

The car did well enough for the next two months with no incident, but in March, I had to send it to VW to get the radio unlocked. The FNG who had worked on the car in October 2020 had disconnected the battery, leading to the HU going into security mode. My dad was also complaining of some clatter emanating at idle from the engine bay.

With all these complaints, the Jetta went over to VW. Since I still had very little confidence in the FNG which had worked on my car in October, I asked the SA to do a complete inspection and tell me what all needed replacing. The estimate as expected was quite a large one with a number of issues being highlighted as below:

- The biggest issue was a tappet cover leakage. The entire cover would need replacing which would cost around 20K

- Both lower control arm bushes and link rods at the front had worn out completely. Total estimate was around 4K for the link rods and 14K for the control arms

- The timing belt rollers had some play in them and the kit would need changing. This would come to around 12-13K

- The serpentine belt tensioner had gone bad leading to the sqeauking noise at idle. Replacement cost would be about 4.5K

- A wiper washer nozzle had gone bad. Would cost around 1K to set it right

The S.A also advised I switch back to VW spec Shell 505 01 5W40 oil instead of the Shell Helix Ultra 5W40 505 00 I was using, apart from a complete service. He offered to change all filters and fluids for around 9K which I felt was fair. I gave him the go ahead for all these and the car took a week to come back since the link rods, control arms, tensioner and tappet cover weren't in stock.

As the timing kit was anyways being changed, I also gave the SA the go ahead to change the water pump (around 2.5 years old now) as a precaution and the brake fluid (3.5 years old and well overdue). I have attached the bill below. The total came to about 85K post a bit of haggling, with the Tappet cover making up a massive 20K+ of the total amount.

This is a lesson learnt the hard way. A badly tightened oil filter gave me nightmares for 2 months (Not once mind you, TWICE). It just goes to show how lax certain FNGs can get when it comes to servicing cars. All said and done, I wasted a grand total of 17K undoing what the incompetent FNG had done to my car. I have decided to get all routine servicing done at VW henceforth and major wear and tear (suspension, clutch etc.) at another trusted FNG.

I am not very happy with how VW directly replaced the control arms in their entirety (instead of the bushings only), but I guess its company policy end of the day. Part costs are high, but in all honesty, I genuinely don’t mind paying up the extra for quality imported parts as compared to the cheap localised crap VW resorts to using for the Polo and Vento. All said and done, my stock suspension needed touching at 85K km, an achievement considering the condition of the roads here.

All the parts replaced in one frame. This is by far the most expensive service done on the Jetta:


The timing kit consists of 2 rollers, 1 idler pulley, and a tensioner bearing. Kindly note that the water pump is NOT included in the kit. It has to be changed separately. The rollers had some grease oozing out of them and had developed play. The belt was slightly frayed at the edges. Tensioner bearing was in almost perfect nick. The idler pulley was not returned to me for some bizarre reason:






The serpentine tensioner pulley. Again, the nylon bearing is missing from the returned part. The newer part has a metallic bearing. The serpentine belt has also been localized now and costs around Rs. 400:


The link rods. As you can see, the outer boots have split exposing the ball joints inside. I was also able to move the rod ends by hand, something that should be virtually impossible:


Control arm bushings could have gone on for another 5-7K km, but I didn’t want to wait for them to start making noise. You can clearly see they have split. If the arm itself is intact physically (very rarely does a control arm suffer structural damage), you can get away with changing only the bushing. A quality bush kit from Febi or Myle costs around 4-4.5K all inclusive:


The piece de resistance of the entire saga. The tappet cover. As expected, it’s made of plastic. A total of 5 seals are a part of the cover. 4 seals are for the injector periphery (1 for each injector) and one seal outlines the tappet cover perimeter and seals it to the engine head. The latter is available for 3.8K on boodmo, but the former are not supplied separately by VW. Most FNGs resort to putting in OES seals:


The water pump. Was a pleasant surprise seeing little to no corrosion on the pump. The previous one that came out of the car felt like it had been salvaged from a shipwreck in comparision. On a related note, VW has also switched to G12 EVO coolant from G13. G12E has a purplish tinge to it as compared to G13:


The choked washer jet. Mercifully, this one is shared with the Vento and Polo instead of the Passat. The Passat uses heated jets which cost 6K a piece. This one was much cheaper at 1K:


The Jetta feels a lot tighter to drive now. The front end used to be all over the place before after encountering a pothole or speed-breaker. Changing the link rods and control arms has brought that firmness back to the front end. The overall NVH levels remain more or less the same, and I don’t expect any difference until the flywheel is changed. I do have complete peace of mind now that the timing kit has been changed though. Better to spend 15-16K proactively on a new kit than to spend 10x that rebuilding the engine head.

Things that will need looking into:

- The sagging headliner cloth has decided to come off entirely now. It has to be changed compulsorily. Have received quotes varying from 5.5K-12K for setting it right


- The flywheel continues to create a racket when the clutch is held at the biting point. No slippage has been observed in the clutch itself though, so I think it should hold up till the 90K km mark

- The rear suspension and the front dampers are surely on their way out. My guesstimate says they will hold up till the 90-95K km mark provided I put up with the harsh ride quality


- The gearshift linkages and shifter tower are two things I am keeping an eye on. Notorious for failing on the MK6 Jettas, the shifter linkage snaps and the gearbox gets stuck in third gear

- Lastly, the primary radiator fan has been suffering (making a loud whining nosie) for the past 2 years, ever since the car was driven through flooded water. Might have to get the motor assembly overhauled and the hub cleaned


Both me and my dad considered replacing the car and had a look at some options. The top two contenders were the Harrier and the Tiguan. The Compass was too small for the price it demanded and I didn’t even want to look at the Seltos/Creta duo. Here’s what I think about them.


Tata Harrier XZA

What I liked:
- Striking looks and stance
- Good equipment list
- Excellent rear legroom and seat comfort
What I didn’t like:
- Overall plastic quality and fit and finish on the inside were not upto the mark
- Reliability was a huge question mark
- Tata’s after-sales in this part of GJ is not the best

My dad wasn’t ready to even TD the Harrier. He walked out of the showroom and asked me to enquire about the Tiguan Allspace.



Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace

I would be lying if I said I hadn’t been smitten by the Tiguan. A lot of it felt unmistakably Jetta, and that wasn’t a bad thing at all. Also went for a short test drive.

What I liked:
- Understated looks paired to solid build quality
- Excellent equipment list
- Great ride and handling balance, almost sedan-like
- The added advantage of the 4motion AWD system
- Spacious cabin, albeit a rudimentary 3rd row

What I didn’t like:
- No 2.0 TDI. The TSI is an excellent engine, but my sort of running warrants a diesel only and the home ministry wasn’t too happy with the 9.8 km/l figure on the TD car’s MID either
- Part costs were unchartered territory considering this was a CBU
- Overall reliability of the 2.0 TSI and the DQ381 GB was again unproven
- Not what I would call a proper upgrade in terms of performance as compared to a remapped Jetta considering I would be paying 30+L end of the day

Contemplated on this one a lot, but it didn’t make sense buying a TFSI in haste and then regretting FE figures or buying the car itself.

A used Tiguan 2.0 TDI also came my way but again, I would be splurging 20+L into a used car which essentially had the same engine again, with more features thrown in and an AT gearbox. Didn’t make sense.

In the end, decided to keep the Jetta for another 2-3 years. The car is fundamentally sorted and most of the expenses that lie ahead are general wear and tear which shouldn’t be a huge issue.


Conclusion

I have said this many times over and will say it again, I have accepted the Jetta for the good and for the worse. She's not perfect, has her share of reliability issues (Most of them minor thankfully), and isn't a car a non-nonsense man would want to own. Some have even said the car has brought bad luck to me with the oil leaks and the huge bills. The devil inside then is quite convinced that the Jetta is a troublesome companion to own.

However, the angel thinks otherwise. My car has not been a garage queen at all. Haven't detailed it, never showered attention on it and never really bothered about cosmetic upkeep at all in all honesty. The car sees industrial backroads meant for heavy duty trucks and lorries chiefly on a daily basis, has to make the annual pilgrimage to Surat, Rajkot and Ahmedabad several times a month, and has also covered the entire west coast of India taking us on several road-trips without as much as an electronic glitch. Granted, issues do exist, and the very people I marvel at for engineering this car are the ones I curse many a times and oft.

All said and done however, the current value of my car as it stands is determined by what can replace it. And this question is one which I don't have an answer to (unless members can come together and raise about 80L in funds following which I might book a 530D).

A parting shot of the interiors. They look as good as new if you excuse the sloppy headliner upholstery:

[Tgo]

I can understand the “man proposes, god disposes” situation you found yourself in. Its always a battle between wishful thinking and unknown troubles that keep marring plans of owners who love their cars and have decided to live with the flaws of unreliable parts.

I face the same situation, and am keeping a fund aside for the clutch job as of now. But an odd suspension leak can send that for a toss. It’s not the cost that pinches, its the fact that you have a sudden uninvited visitor to deal with, which spoils the mood.

Even though you don’t share the same faith in your upkeep, he car looks well maintained. Maybe you hold yourself responsible for not pampering it as much as the professional detailing sessions one knows one should be availing more frequently.

Good luck with your headliner job. It will give your affection for the vehicle a shot in the arm.

[ranjithrnair]

Originally Posted by vishy76

85,000 Km Update

Attachment 2162974

It hasn't been very long since I updated the thread and a sudden impromptu update on a team-BHP thread means something isn't quite right. Here goes the story.

Yokohama BlueEarth AE51s

Immediately after the previous service, I was quite happy. The car was doing well, and I also swapped out the 4 year old Michelin P3STs (Served me impeccably for 45K km) for a new set of Yokohama Bluearth AE51s.

A lot has been said on the forum about these tyres, so I won't go too much into depth. Having said this, I will say they are a good compromise considering the lack of options I faced due to the import ban on tyres. The only ones available were these and Goodyears, and there was no way I was going back to the crappy NCTs. They aren't as silent as the Primacy series and nor do they offer leach like grip levels associated with the Pilot Sports, but overall, they are good VFM and tyres I don't really mind having on the car at this point.

The reduction in road noise and the decrease in steering weight was evident right off the bat. Overall ride also felt a tad supple, but the change wasn't day and night (Goes to how the Michelins had aged very well).

Attachment 2162976

Hi vishy76 ,

Would you please upload the bill details as well , I have PS3 225/50 R16 on my Jetta , at 30K they have become very hard and couple of tyres are bulged on center area. Have been looking for replacements for past two months and ae51's are the only ones said to be available by dealers. I dont want to really compromise on the grip part , however i doubt if we have any other choice now.

[vishy76]

Originally Posted by ranjithrnair

Hi vishy76 ,

Would you please upload the bill details as well , I have PS3 225/50 R16 on my Jetta , at 30K they have become very hard and couple of tyres are bulged on center area. Have been looking for replacements for past two months and ae51's are the only ones said to be available by dealers. I dont want to really compromise on the grip part , however i doubt if we have any other choice now.

Hi Ranjith. Apologies, I don't have the bill with me currently. However, the tyres set me back around 7.5K per piece for the entire set with the rest of the things (valves, WA/WB and nitrogen) thrown in for free. My experience with them so far has been good. I would say they are a good no nonsense option.

Having said that, if your driving style isn't sedate or you do value handling above all, then try and hunt down a set of PS4s. Conversely, if you value comfort and refinement above anything else, get the Primacy series by hook or by crook.

The Yokos are a good choice otherwise. I see myself changing to them again if availability of other makes becomes an issue.

Originally Posted by Tgo

I can understand the “man proposes, god disposes” situation you found yourself in. Its always a battle between wishful thinking and unknown troubles that keep marring plans of owners who love their cars and have decided to live with the flaws of unreliable parts.

I face the same situation, and am keeping a fund aside for the clutch job as of now. But an odd suspension leak can send that for a toss. It’s not the cost that pinches, its the fact that you have a sudden uninvited visitor to deal with, which spoils the mood.

Even though you don’t share the same faith in your upkeep, he car looks well maintained. Maybe you hold yourself responsible for not pampering it as much as the professional detailing sessions one knows one should be availing more frequently.

Good luck with your headliner job. It will give your affection for the vehicle a shot in the arm.

Couldn't have put it any better myself. Uncertainty is the essence of life in the world currently and to see that my car has become an element of it is something which hurts end of the day. I share a very deep emotional bond with the Jetta, just like you do with your Dusters I am sure. I am also fairly enthusiastic when it comes to solving issues but end of the day, it isn't my car. How I keep it is upto my dad. Hopefully, better times prevail and I get to see her in the pink of her health, just like she was when new

[ranjithrnair]

Thanks Vishy76,
the bill i were referring to was for the 85K Service Job one .

[sidg]

Hey Vishy76, great to see you decided to retain the car. I am also one of those who believes in keeping cars for long. Just wanted to know if you can share the details of FNG who screwed big time in Oct-20 service as I also belong to Vadodara and own Chevy Cruze 2010. So, by any chance, I do not end up getting my car serviced at the same place.

[AKSarkar1]

Originally Posted by vishy76

A parting shot of the interiors. They look as good as new if you excuse the sloppy headliner upholstery

Not only the cabin, but even the car also looks as good as new! This is the amazing thing about most VW cars that they tend to age gracefully at least when it comes to cosmetics/looks IMHO.

Regarding the headliner issue, I have seen this problem mainly in Jettas, Passats, and Superbs from that generation. Is this normal with age for the model? Does VW directly rectify this issue and if yes then is it cheaper/more expensive as compared to the other options?

Either way, it was a pleasure to read about the long-term review of your Silver Sprinter! Hoping that you run the mileage of your car into lakhs of trouble-free kms!

[Karvel]

Originally Posted by vishy76

85,000 Km Update

The Jetta feels a lot tighter to drive now. The front end used to be all over the place before after encountering a pothole or speed-breaker. Changing the link rods and control arms has brought that firmness back to the front end. The overall NVH levels remain more or less the same, and I don't expect any difference until the flywheel is changed. I do have complete peace of mind now that the timing kit has been changed though. Better to spend 15-16K proactively on a new kit than to spend 10x that rebuilding the engine head.

Congrats on the ride (though a bit very late one, of course). Jetta is a good ride and we have one in the family, mostly highway driven and about 100 k kms done as of now. Touchwood, other than water pump issue, no other faced now.

And its a good decision to retain it as replacement cost is going to be high for such a ride.

Are some of the issues related to remapping, just curious to know your view.

[vishy76]

Originally Posted by ranjithrnair

Thanks Vishy76,
the bill i were referring to was for the 85K Service Job one .

Apologies for the misunderstanding. I will attach the scanned copy of the estimate in the next post

Originally Posted by sidg

Hey Vishy76, great to see you decided to retain the car. I am also one of those who believes in keeping cars for long. Just wanted to know if you can share the details of FNG who screwed big time in Oct-20 service as I also belong to Vadodara and own Chevy Cruze 2010. So, by any chance, I do not end up getting my car serviced at the same place.

Thanks a lot sidg. I cannot explicitly state the FNG name but it is am FNG which is off the radar in general and there's little to no chance you will end up going there. If you do need any recommendations though, I would suggest Kedar motors. Going to give my Jetta to them in order to sort out the headliner and some air conditioning work. You can find them on Google.

Originally Posted by AKSarkar1

Not only the cabin, but even the car also looks as good as new! This is the amazing thing about most VW cars that they tend to age gracefully at least when it comes to cosmetics/looks IMHO.

Regarding the headliner issue, I have seen this problem mainly in Jettas, Passats, and Superbs from that generation. Is this normal with age for the model? Does VW directly rectify this issue and if yes then is it cheaper/more expensive as compared to the other options?

Either way, it was a pleasure to read about the long-term review of your Silver Sprinter! Hoping that you run the mileage of your car into lakhs of trouble-free kms!

Thanks a lot for the kind words. Yes, these cars do age very well aesthetically though Indian conditions mean they suffer a lot mechanically.

Yes it's a common issue with most German cars, not only VAGs. The glue holding the cloth decays and the backing material also gets weak which means the headliner eventually sags and falls down.

Originally Posted by Karvel

Congrats on the ride (though a bit very late one, of course). Jetta is a good ride and we have one in the family, mostly highway driven and about 100 k kms done as of now. Touchwood, other than water pump issue, no other faced now.

And its a good decision to retain it as replacement cost is going to be high for such a ride.

Are some of the issues related to remapping, just curious to know your view.

Excellent. It's always good to hear of hassle free Jettas. Yours is bound to age well since it's chiefly driven on the highway. That's where this car belongs.

Frankly speaking, if you get a remap from a reliable and well known tuner, you should not face any issues at all. Basic maintenance practices such as timely oil changes, turbo idling and not going WOT for very long intervals of time is what matters. If not followed, even a stock car will end up having issues.

None of these issues are related to remapping whatsoever. A remap cannot cause oil leaks or radiator fan issues or any of the suspension issues I stated. These are all wear and tear. Each and every issue would have manifested even if I hadn't remapped the car.

[vishy76]

92,000 Km Update

It hasn't been very long since I updated this thread. As they say in German car ownership, no news means good news. Unfortunately, I have a lot of news to share. However, I will share the minor updates first before moving onto the major ones.


LED DRLs

I have always found the idea of halogen DRLs to be lame. Of course, something is better than nothing, but when you are equipping a car with DRLs; lights that only serve to be fancy (majorly), then why not go the whole hog and put LEDs. In fact, I recently discovered that a close friend's US spec Jetta comes with LED DRLs integrated into the double barrel halogen setup! Us Indians only got the LED DRLs on the Highline with the bixenons.



With the intent to spruce the car up a bit, I decided to explore the idea of putting LED DRLs. I only had two criteria:

- Shouldn't be the cheaper variety which has a whitish tinge to a blue shade rather than being icy white with a hint of blue

- Should be having an inbuilt resistor so that the bulb monitoring system of the car doesn't cry foul

The second point needs some explanation for those lucky few who don't have to contend with this feature. Most cars have the ability to monitor all electronics including bulbs and whether they are fused using the CANBUS (essentially a communication line for all electronic modules and components on the car). This makes it easier to find electronic faults instead of testing them manually. A simple DTC scan will tell you what bulb has fused.

Many cars like the Jetta and above take it one step further. If a bulb has fused, an orange error light comes up on the instrument cluster with a corresponding message on the MID stating"check XYZ bulb" or "XYZ bulb fused". How does the car know the bulb is fused? Using internal resistance! If the resistance of the bulb is zero or less than what the system knows it should be, it's assumed the bulb has an issue.

For an LED bulb, the internal resistance is far lesser than a halogen bulb (also the reason why it produces far less heat for the same amount of current and running time). This means the CAN will always throw up an error on start-up as it will think the DRL has fused due to the almost negligible internal resistance of the LED bulb. Hence, it is paramount that the replacement LED has an inbuilt resistor (some resellers call it a chipset too). As the name suggests, the resistor is added in series to the LED so that the final resistance is the same as the halogen it is replacing. The CAN this way will not throw errors. Do note that this applies to all types of factory fitted halogen bulbs on the car.

I casually posted this want of getting LED DRLs on the Jetta owners group, and a member gladly offered his spare set that was lying around unused (he had originally ordered it from the USA, but had ended up putting locally sourced DRLs from Amazon). It turned out later that he was a bhpian too and we ended up chatting about a tonne of Jetta related things. You never know when you get to make some great friends while bonding over cars. Thanks a tonne for the DRLs Akshay. They look smashing!


Fitting the DRLs

Procuring the DRLs was a piece of cake. Fitting them not so much. I knew how tough it would be so I went down to the car, popped the hood open and got to work.



These were sourced by Akshay from desertcart. Here's the link to the bulbs:
https://www.desertcart.in/products/232319710


The first order of business is to get the dust cover off. The dust cover on the outer side of the headlamp is made of plastic. It simply needs to be rotated like a jar lid and it comes off. I started with the driver side first. The dust cap came off easily:



The next step is tricky. Insert two fingers into the hole where the low beam and DRLs sit. You will have to feel for the DRL connector and shake it a bit while looking at the headlamp from the front. Once you have ascertained it is the DRL connector you have gripped, you will have to twist the connector anti clockwise. Once it rotates by about 120 degrees, it will come free and you can pull the holder out.


With this done, simply twist and remove the old halogen bulb and install the new LED in the same fashion. Before putting it back in, flick the key to on and check if it lights up. If it doesn't, you might need to reverse polarity and try again. Fortunately, it worked well for me at the first try:



The CANBUS gods were also quite pleased with no errors on the cluster:



Installing everything back is easier than taking it apart. Just seat the connector in its slot and rotate it about 120 degrees clockwise till it clicks into place. DO NOT force the connector in or misalign and twist it. In my case, the VW ASC had done the exact same mistake while changing the passenger side DRL. The holder just wouldn't come off. In the end, I had to take it to an FNG who resorted to brute force and finally retrieved the bulb holder the next day. This is how the car looked with one LED and a halogen DRL



Driver's side LED DRL in place. Was a 5 minute job at best. The passenger side was 2x more difficult. Firstly the lack of space, and secondly the wrongly installed bulb holder made life hell for me.



With the LED DRLs finally in place. One step closer to being an Audi A4:



I did have apprehensions on how blue DRLs would look on the silver. Though they don't stand out as much as yellow DRLs on a very sunny day (basic physics at play here unfortunately), they do outsmart the halogens in every other scenario! All in all, these are available on Amazon for around 2.5K and are a worthy investment in my opinion.


IND Style Number Plates




The stock number plates on my car were dealer supplied ones. VW Downtown, Mumbai had a rather chic looking font selection for its number plates which polarized opinions. I was expectedly the only person who got used to seeing them. Nobody else liked them.

That was until a very kind friend and fellow Jetta owner Parth Ahuja decided to have a set made for me in Nashik and send them down. Fitting the plates was a very simple procedure, but it had transformed the overall aesthetics and how! The front and rear end now look the business. The font gels in perfectly with the clean lines of the car. I thought this would be the end of updates to the car, but I couldn't have been more wrong.





RCD 330G HU Upgrade

Those who have religiously followed this thread will know I have shared somewhat of a love-hate (more of hate no doubt) relationship with my car's head unit. Sure, it goes about doing its job without a single complaint, has "acceptable" sound quality and ofcourse as my dad says, is a good no nonsense stock HU that doesn't need to be fidgeted with.

However, I just couldn't contend with the way it looked. The dated monochrome LCD screen, the button layout etc. gave it a very mid 2000s vibe. Mind you, I do like my songs to be from the mid 2000s, but my HU? Nope.

Old Desay SV Automotive RCD 300+ HU. No USB or bluetooth. AUX, SD Card, CD and FM/AM. Was a letdown in terms of aesthetics:



Some more digging reveals this HU does support USB (via an adapter). VW being the cheapskates they are never offered it:



The input to the left (yellow plug) is for the USB adapter. One on the right is the radio antenna input. Coming to the radio antenna, an interesting piece of information is that the Jetta's sharkfin antenna is fake. There's no cables that run to it. The antenna is built into the rear windscreen (the vertical lines you see on the rear windscreen are not for the defogger. They are the radio antenna bands):



HU Quadlock connector at the back:



Managed to fire this unit up at home. Takes in around 15-16A of current on a 12V line so had to use a salvaged PSU from an old PC to do so:



Akshay once again offered his RCD 510. His HU had been swapped out for a Blaupunkt Key Largo and was lying unused. He is one of the fortunate souls who doesn't have an OCD with retaining stock looks, but unfortunately I am not. I was dead sure that I would only replace this HU with another RCD. I had always shyed away from swapping to a 510 or 340G because I was under the impression that my car came with the ancient ISO harness rather than the Quadlock connector that the 510, 310, 340G and even the 330G use. The RCD 030 (The very first HU seen in the Vento/Polo), the RCD 320 (Seen around 2013 and upto 2016 on almost all variants of the Polo/Vento) use the ISO harness. Getting an adapter to convert from ISO to Quadlock isn't a huge deal, but there's always the proverbial if that comes up, especially when you have been asked NOT to fidget with the stock wiring.

I still decided to have a look at the harness aboard my Comfortline. Went down, removed the centre fascia trim, removed the 3 T20 torx screws(yes one was misplaced by the FNG or ASC who worked on the car) and pulled the HU out slightly. A peak at the rear of the HU revealed something quite surprising. As basic as this RCD 300+ looked, it used a Quadlock harness! I wanted to take the deal forward with Akshay but was forced to weigh my options once again.

RCD 510



Pic Source: Gannu_1's RCD 510 thread

Pros:
- Stock HU for the Highline and looks far better than the 300+ anyday
- Colour screen with a touchscreen
- Should have slightly better sound quality (300+ was a Chinese Desay. 510 was by Bosch Portugal)
- Adds USB functionality (albeit with an adapter)
- Supports OPS functionality (atleast that's what I assumed)

Cons:
- Bluetooth isn't built in. An entire bluetooth kit including a mic would have to be sourced, wired and attached
- No Apple Carplay or android auto. Does show its age in that regard quite badly
- No reverse camera support
- Would need a double to single antenna connector adapter

In the end, it might seem the 510 has pros outweighing the cons (by a very small margin), but I concluded it wouldn't be worth the hassle. All I would gain after installing the 510 is a touchscreen and USB.


RCD 330G



The 340G is an HU I have always loved. I have had my eyes set on it for quite some time (I do even now in all honesty). It's got everything I need, has Apple Carplay and Android auto and even a sleek user interface. If there's one thing I don't like about it, it has to be the price. Used units retail for as high as 17-20K, while brand new ones are quoted by local resellers for around 27-30K. I wasn't allowed to spend this much money on an HU upgrade.

I was almost about to drop the entire idea when bhpian fluidicjoy mentioned he had a 330G lying with him. It once did duty in his friend's Polo which now had a 340G. The price of the HU was pegged at around 6K. I made an offer of 5K+shipping and he agreed!

Before moving to the installation, here's the pros and cons of the 330G.

Pros:
- Stock and contemporary looking HU
- Has a touchscreen with physical buttons as a bonus
- Has very good sound quality since it's built by Harman India
- Supports a reverse camera and OPS*
- Supports USB, AUX, Bluetooth telephony and streaming music, SD card and even CD
- Priced quite attractively in the used market thanks to the hype around the 340G

Cons:
- Lacks Android auto and Apple Carplay
- Touchscreen is one size too small for my liking
- Not a very well known unit on RCD forums. No software updates available
- Is known to be a bit buggy at times

Fluidicjoy sent me plenty of images before packing the HU and sending it over to Vadodara. He also made it a point to give me the security code without which the HU is virtually useless.

Unfortunately, when the unit arrived, the antenna connector had damage to it. The courier guys had thrown it around undoubtedly, and HU had hit something. Anyways, I was assured it wouldn't affect functionality and I decided to go down and see if it worked.



Installation

Installation is fairly straightforward but one thing is to be kept in mind. The centre console trim houses the airbag deactivation light at the bottom. The light itself is held onto the console by two clips. Just pry the clips gently and separate the light console from the centre console trim WITHOUT disconnecting the coupler to it. Reason for not disconnecting the light entirely, is to prevent the airbag warning light from popping up which can only be cleared using a scanner.

Rest of the steps are fairly simple and I had no hiccups. Have linked a video below for reference.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93xqwdh_fqk

HU fired up for the first time and asking for the security code:


Playing songs. Did face an issue with speakers not working on some corners. Found out I hadn't seated the Quadlock perfectly:


Gets this classy looking clock as well. Comes on when the HU is shut off. Can be disabled as well if you so wish:


The time displayed here is synchronised with the MID. The music volume also decreases when you engage reverse or switch on the parking sensors manually.

Sound quality was a pleasant surprise! This is a Harman built unit and it shows. The inbuilt amp is far more capable than the one onboard the older Desay 300+. There are two very minor issues I faced with the HU.

- The volume knob is imprecise. Overall button quality isn't as good as the 300+. The knobs and buttons on the 300+ are very well weighted and damped. Won't call the 330G cheap, but it isn't as good as the Desay. The volume knob has a very light feel to it and rotating it by X clicks doesn't always increase volume by X levels. It is a bit imprecise and you will have to rotate the knob a fair bit to reach the desired volume. Not a huge bother since I generally use the steering mounted controls

- There was this one instance where I went down to the car and found the music system on inspite of the car being locked. The HU always goes off once the key comes out of the ignition slot. In this case, it had frozen. Only the screen was on. It wasn't playing music. No matter what button I tried to press, it wouldn't respond. Had to do a hard reset and power it down post which it started working. This only occured once in almost 5 months of usage and hasn't repeated. Hopefully it won't happen again.

Barring these two minor setbacks, I found the HU to be very snappy and the touchscreen to be very responsive. Overall UI is also excellent with everything laid out neatly and easy to find. It also has mirror link, but I am sure it's useless considering how many phone makers support it and the advent of AA and AC. I don't use it. The inbuilt microphone has very good reception, and I have had no complaints wrt call quality. Having said that, phone book integration with the MID, or track name display is something that is missing with this HU (More on that later).


Conclusion

For 5200 bucks, I don't think I could have bought a better HU (OE or aftermarket). Yes, the lack of AA and AC does pinch me sometimes, but I go back to the first sentence again and convince myself that I atleast now have a contemporary looking HU with Bluetooth streaming and calling with USB if the need arises.

An added bonus is the superior inbuilt amp aboard this HU, which even the 340G (Made by Visteon India) cannot boast of. I still toy with the idea of getting a 340G, but I would say it's more of a want than a need in all honesty at this stage.


Suspension, mounts and clutch+flywheel overhaul




I am in the mood to create a separate thread for this so I will just leave the bill here for the job and buzz off. If I start typing out the specifics, I will need another 8-10 posts.

To sum things up, a lot of cash went in, a lot of work was done but the output wasn't what I would call very satisfying. A few niggles still remain. The new flywheel has developed what I believe is an abnormal shudder, the clutch and the GB input shaft seem misaligned to me and there's two to three other loose ends that I will have to sit and correct. Last but not the least, I do believe I have been overcharged heavily.



VCDS Cable and tweaks



I have always wanted a VCDS cable but kept delaying it for some reason or the other. Once again, Akshay offered to buy it and lend it to me so that I could do all sorts of experimentation on it. I did agree but then came the question of where to procure the cable from. After a lot of back and forth, we zeroed down on N2 autotech Pune after recommendation from a friend. Another Jetta owner also decided to get one for himself and even offered to lend it to me first before he even had a chance to use it! Mr Vakku Joseph, if you are reading this, thanks a lot for the offer. It's things like these that really make the Jetta owner's group an awesome place to be. In the end, I decided to borrow Akshay's cable since he was located closer to me (Pune) and his laptop had issues with the USB port meaning he couldn't use it for the time being atleast.

With this, I pinged Nikhil Patil from N2 autotech and placed an order for 2 VCDS cables. Each cable came to about 6500 bucks incl. shipping which although higher than Chinese resellers, is still reasonable considering it was being sold by (who I believed) was a reputed reseller with good ratings. The cable reached me within the next 3 days. Nikhil also installed the VCDS software on my laptop using TeamViewer. All in all, the purchase experience so far was very smooth.

Here's what I activated using the VCDS cable on the Jetta:

- Needle sweep: Success. It's under the "indicator_celebration" option in adaptations in the instrument cluster. Have attached a video of it

- Auto folding/unfolding on lock/unlock: Success. This is one feature I missed terribly on the Jetta and so did many others. Most said the door control modules would need to be changed to enable this setting until bhpian sarfraz1997 posted a proper solution on the official Jetta review thread. I will link his post below for reference. There is zilch hardware changes needed for this to work.

https://youtu.be/P1FBzF9Qkt4

Sarfraz1997's post (Volkswagen Jetta : Test Drive & Review) on the same

A video showing the feature at work. After closing all doors, press and hold the lock button. This will fold the mirrors automatically. After unlocking, opening the driver door will unfold the ORVMs. Perfect!

- Indirect TPMS: Success. Bhpian fluidicjoy helped me with enabling the indirect TPMS on my car using TeamViewer. First he enabled a module named TPMS-II in the CAN gateway installation list. He then enabled the TPMS installed option in the ABS control module long coding helper and that's it.

Do note that this isn't the more conventional direct TPMS found on most modern day cars, which has a separate sensor monitoring the pressure on each wheel and displaying the exact pressure rating. The indirect TPMS we activated uses the rolling circumference of the wheel to judge whether a given tyre is flat or not. Its not the most accurate system out there, but again, something is better than nothing, especially when it's not even coming at the cost of any hardware changes.

The system has thrown an error in my car though probably because I didn't calibrate it. I will update the thread once I flush out all the errors and calibrate it after pumping the tyres up to the appropriate pressures.


OPS functionality on the Comfortline

There are numerous reasons for having a VCDS cable but one of the major reasons why I wanted it was to enable OPS on my HU. I thought it would be a fairly straightforward job since even the connector on the Comfortline and Highline was the exact same. What could possibly go wrong?

I went to the Park assist module and also discovered it's the superior module which supports visual feedback along with audible beeps (some modules only support the latter). I went to adaptations again and enabled the module to display the OPS screen visually too. I then fired the HU up and slotted reverse. Nothing! I tried several permutations and combinations but nothing would work.

Fluidicjoy once again came to the rescue. First off he noticed that 56-radio didn't exist in the gateway installation list at all. Manually enabling it would throw up an error saying the radio wasn't communicating. For some reason, the 330G wasn't able to communicate perfectly over CANBUS. I checked with bhpian sangam_mm93 who is running the same HU on his Comfortline. His efforts to have the HU display the OPS or even the camera failed due to the same reason. After consulting Nikhil again, it was concluded that the Comfortline variant has a different wiring to the Highline. He also said he would have to look at the car in person to guage what was wrong, which was fair enough. I decided to give up on this idea altogether. It's very unfortunate, but it is what it is. No matter what HU I install, it's going to behave the same until I figure out what the wiring anomaly is and fix it.

My experience with N2 autotech was fair till this day. I did ask him how I could disable the speed chimes on a friend's Superb (he was after my life for this one thing) and also asked him if his cable would do the job. He wasn't confident of his cable being able to do the task, which was fair enough considering what I had paid for it and the fact that my research said it most probably wouldn't. He also didn't reveal how I could disable the chime. Again, this is a business among most coders and it's not revealed which is perfectly understandable. I decided I would figure it out myself.


A month later, I casually pinged him because a Jetta owner wanted to fit an RCD 340G in place of his existing 510 and needed a dual to single radio antenna adapter socket. Nikhil's response was abrupt and abusive. He not only spoke to me in a condescending tone, but also abused the owner who wanted the adapter. So much for customer ettiquites. He treated me as if I am a cheapskate who keeps asking about products but never buys, even though 3-4 people had bought things from him based on my advice. I had massive respect for him before for the extent to which he used to retrofit mods on VAGs, and the fact that he was decent in his dealings, but I am now inclined to believe he's just a jumped up mods salesman who thinks his customers don't know what they are getting into.





The attached screenshots also show that I contacted him after a gap of more than a month (I clear chats every month). No conversation took place between us in any way before.

Finally, all I will say is caveat emptor. I have dealt with such people before as well and what has surprised me the most is the fact that they assume customers are gullible fools who don't know anything and don't deserve any respect. For the record, I had also bought another BMW ENET cable from him, only a few days after ordering the VCDS cables. I am not dealing with N2 autotech again for sure.



My Driving Impressions



I don't like ending ownership updates on a negative note, so some good news. I managed to finally (properly) get my hands on the Jetta! The large bill and the amount of trouble (and incompetency) I had to deal with while overhauling the Jetta had really taken its toll on me mentally. I didn't like going down to even see the car. I had left it alone.

That was however until I was handed the keys and finally given the permission to drive her. I will list down my driving impressions below. Do note that she's running (what I think) is a Quantum Stage 1 Blue remap.

Engine

Slot the key in, depress the clutch pedal (which BTW, has gotten very light after the clutch overhaul) and fire the TDI up. You will notice it settles into a fairly silent idle. Even on a cold start, there's little to no vibration on the steering wheel. Having said that, there is always a very feeble thrum audible inside the cabin at all times. It's not instrusive, but it's there.

Slot the shifter to first and slowly let your foot off the clutch. Don't be surprised if you stall the car. The presence of a heavier dual mass flywheel means the engine does need some extra revvs to keep up the momentum. The same applies while lifting off speed breakers in second gear too. You either baby the clutch pedal out slowly, or you give it a few extra revvs and lift off. Failure to do either will again lead to the car stalling. Once you get used to it though, it's not a huge deal.

Within the city, the TDI is a fairly tractable motor, typical of large displacement diesels. She won't mind if you try lifting off speedbreakers from speeds as low as 5 kmhr in second. Throttle response is crisp with the motor responding well to par throttle inputs without acting overtly jerky or sluggish. 3rd gear is also extremely versatile, with speeds as low as 25-30 kmhr possible without a downshift. It's a vital tool while commuting in moving traffic. Coupled with the light EPS (not one finger light like some of the Koreans and Japs), fairly tight turning radius and acceptable visibility (barring the ORVMs which are two sizes smaller than expected), the Jetta TDI is a fairly easy car to drive in traffic. As said before, the sensitive clutch and small ORVMs are two things that one needs to mind while piloting it in traffic.

Out on the open road is where she comes into her own. Floor the A-pedal in 2nd and the tyres beg for mercy with the traction control wanting to intervene ever so slightly. The motor starts coming into its stride post 1700rpm with a strong surge. Performance is healthy, with the 2.0 TDI revving almost all the way till 4700rpm post which power tapers off gradually. The explosive mid range means overtakes are a piece of cake if you are in the right gear. Before you know it, the Jetta is doing silly speeds. The outstanding chassis behaviour (more on this later) and the punchy TDI motor are a tantalising temptation or a menacing paradox. The Jetta is a car that can play the Dr. Jekyl or Mr. Hyde card to perfection. 6th gear is a proper overdrive ratio with 100 kmhr coming in at a relaxed 1650rpm. The upside is excellent fuel economy. The downside is that you can't let speeds drop below 80, else a downshift is the only way to get a quick move on.

The gear shifter housing bushes in my car are running a bit dry (will need replacement a year or two down the line), but the GB has a very sure slotting feel to it with fairly short throws. It's not Japanese gearbox smooth (I would rate the Suzuki and Honda petrols to still have the best gearbox feel), but it isn't a letdown for an enthusiast in any way either.

Coming to the proverbial Indian question, the TDI on an average manages to deliver somewhere around 13-14 km/L in the city and easily delivers upto 20 Km/L or beyond on highways depending on the duration of the journey and even driving style. Do note these are indicated figures. Subtracting around 1-1.5 km/L from these figures in my experience is what the real world fuel economy looks like. Plenty good for a 180hp and 400nm car!

Overall NVH levels are what I would call above average. The motor is well insulated from the cabin with only a thrum being audible inside at all times. Even as the revvs climb, the thrum assumes the form of a muted growl, but never does the engine sound harsh or clattery. On the other hand, wind noise could have been controlled better even at legal speeds of 100-120 kmhr. You can hear the wind cutting through the pillars at these speeds distinctly, not something one would expect from a D-Segment sedan. Road noise control is above average with only the roughest of tarmac leading to some intrusion of tyre noise into the cabin.


Suspension, ride and handling

The Jetta uses a McPherson strut suspension for the front coupled with a multilink suspension for the back with twin charged dampers on all corners. The multilink suspension at the back allows for independent movement of one wheel from the other on the same axle as opposed to a torsion beam where they are both connected. An anti roll bar is also used at the back (just like the front) with link rods to keep wheel articulation in check during hard cornering and prevent body roll.

Low speed ride quality is typically European. Set on the stiffer side. It's not jarring or too discomfoting, but larger potholes (especially ones with a sharp edge) will filter in at speeds below 30-40 kmhr. Pick up the speed though, and the ride improves drastically. The suspension dismisses off all road imperfections with the only bother being the fact that it doesn't go about its work in the most silent manner. It can give out discomforting thuds above speeds of 30-40 kmhr.

The handling is yet another Jetta trademark. The EPS might not be the most feelsome (doesn't have any feel at all frankly) but it weighs up quite consistently and inspires a lot of confidence. Most importantly, it's pinpoint accurate. Point the nose into a corner and the Jetta dives in with aplomb. The stiffly sprung suspension now pays dividends. Outright grip is superb with the car feeling composed all throughout. Bodyroll is minimal and what adds to the sense of security is the multilink suspension at the back, which ensures the rear end always remains composed, even when the Jetta encounters potholes in the middle of a corner. High speed stability is solid and leaves no room for complaint at all. Long sweeping corners or even tight bends are both a speciality for the Jetta. The presence of EDL and ASR means you can simply pick a line through a corner and power through it. It's also reassuring to know that ESP is watching over you as you go about all this.

All in all, it's not only the amount of power the Jetta puts down that impressed. It's also the way the chassis puts it down and holds its own that really makes the car a treat to drive on all sorts of roads. The only thing I would change in a suspension setup like this is to probably put stiffer dampers, though I personally think the stock Sachs dampers offer the best balance of comfort and handling on the sort of roads I do daily.

And on that note, it's time to end this update. The next thread by me in all probability will be documenting the midlife overhaul and unsuccessfully trying to justify the 2L bill attached in the post above. Until then, stay safe folks.

A few parting shots of the car (all chrome deleted) for your viewing pleasure. Do excuse the dusty interiors. This was immediately after work was done and before detailing.

[Akshay_Rebel]

That was an amazing read. Thanks for the detailed review @Vishy76. The car looks amazing even now and am glad that it looks like staying with you for years to come.