[dot]

Originally Posted by noopster

The Linea's ergs are all screwed up: opening the front window one needs to strettttch the arm a good way, for example. And the dead pedal feels weird- not enough of a gap between that and the clutch and I had to improvise a new way of raising my foot to depress the clutch.

Felt the same after the TD of a Linea. Never got a good steering holding position. The biggest shock was after the TD. When I came back to my car, the Ikon, and sat on the driver's seat, I fell in love with the Ikon all over again. Vento/Polo, on the other hand, was a different story altogether.

This is a personal viewpoint. I hope this post is not perceived as Linea bashing.

[noopster]

Originally Posted by mmxylorider

Nice Noopster Nice! The seat covers have really added a nice touch to the interiors.

IIRC, there is no rear sensor or kind in the Vento (might be mistaken) - How is the feel after moving from your Swift to Vento. Is the bigger bulk causing any problems while reversing?

Another Q> How is the GC in the Vento? Couple of speed breakers on our commute are really cause for worry. You probably would've faced diversions on your Solapur drive and rough roads too. Any concerns there?

There is no built-in reverse sensor. I have added a Nippon reverse sensor because my wife insisted on it for when she drives. I don't think I need one frankly- used to drive an Accent earlier!

But yeah- moving from Swift which is such a darling to park to the Vento with its awful rear visibility (thrugh IRVM) is a pain! Thankfully I have my own intelligent park assist who sits beside me in the passenger seat most times

GC is awesome. Actually it's the combination of GC and suspension setup (Accent's was saggy-soft and used to scrape every conceivable speedbreaker and bump in the road). Couple of times I heard a noise on a particularly bad one but nothing heart-stopping like the Accent used to produce. Didn't have any probalems on the Solapur road on this front.

Originally Posted by dot

This is a personal viewpoint. I hope this post is not perceived as Linea bashing.

Not at all. Far from it: I'd never driven the Linea/Punto so was curious to see if all it had going for it were the looks. Now I know better. The TJet absolutely rocks on several fronts over the Vento, which I have highlighted in my post. Overall however, my car runs in the city most of the time and the AT is a boon in bumper to bumper traffic. The TJet was never a serious contender for my affections: if Fiat relased an AT version, maybe!

[dot]

Noopster, I meant that my post is not perceived as anti-Linea, not yours!!

After reading your post I don't think any reader can say that you didn't like Linea.

[volkman10]

Nice update. Always interested in this thread of yours. BTW not seen any TBHP identity yet in your car!

Cheers!

[noopster]

Originally Posted by dot

Noopster, I meant that my post is not perceived as anti-Linea, not yours!!

After reading your post I don't think any reader can say that you didn't like Linea.

OK. But it's all good. Honest, from-the-heart reviews and opinions is why we come to TBHP!

Originally Posted by volkman10

Nice update. Always interested in this thread of yours. BTW not seen any TBHP identity yet in your car!

Cheers!

Thanks volkman! I don't have my TBHP stickers yet. Waiting to get some minor bodywork on the Swift first. Also am a little hesitant to sticker up the Vento right now. I am not the blingy type and wonder if it will spoil the look.

[naveen.raju]

Originally Posted by noopster

Thanks volkman! I don't have my TBHP stickers yet. Waiting to get some minor bodywork on the Swift first. Also am a little hesitant to sticker up the Vento right now. I am not the blingy type and wonder if it will spoil the look.

You could try fixing the small transparent stickers on the number plate. Wont spoil the look. I have stuck the on my Vento. See pics

[noopster]

^^ Looks lovely. My dealer has unfortunately stickered up my plates which really spoils the look :(

I was thinking of putting a sticker on the rear windshield just above or below the centre brake lights panel. Think it will look elegant there. What say?

Edit: Just ordered my stickers set from the store. Yay!

[naveen.raju]

Originally Posted by noopster

^^ Looks lovely. My dealer has unfortunately stickered up my plates which really spoils the look :(

I was thinking of putting a sticker on the rear windshield just above or below the centre brake lights panel. THink it will look elegant there. What say?

I have even stuck one transparent sticker on the top most part of the rear window. Since the back window is at a sloping angle it's very difficult to spot the sticker. I shall post that pic tonight. I would say not to stick here since it's not visible. See pic. You cant even spot the sticker. If you zoom it, you can see a part of it.

[noopster]

Learn more about this car the more I drive it. Allowed the fuel to come down really low (by my standards) and it gave a warning beep and automatically changed the MID display to the "40 km to empty" and added a nice yellow fuel pump icon to boot!

That really pleases me because it's so in-your-face. In fact when I started the car this morning, it did the same thing: warning beep followed by the "km to empty" display on MID.

Eagerly awaiting 2000 km milestone- any day now!

[mdsaab]

@noopster buddy, great review between the tjet and vento. Glad you ordered your stickers. Awaiting the 2000 kms milestone review.

[mdsaab]

Saturday saw us making our way to MG Rd.at 3:30pm We parked opp bata, and i noticed a red vento parked a couple of cars down. A real beauty. She had her logos. Later the same evening when passing by noticed the car still parked there, in all her glory but wait something was a miss. She didnt have her logo. I was quite shocked. It was around 7:30 pm. So in these 4 hours in broad daylight on one of the busiest roads in pune.someone still managed to flick its logo. That is plain sad. Looks like pune is not so safe for our beauties as is used to be.

[noopster]

Originally Posted by volkman10

Nice update. Always interested in this thread of yours. BTW not seen any TBHP identity yet in your car!

Cheers!

OK- here you go! (picture courtesy nanduchitnis)


We did a drive meet from Pune to Lavasa yesterday. Lavasa is India's first man-made hill station in independent India. It's a bit of a dull place to be absolutely honest but the drive up is pretty amazing.

Posting some pics( rest are in the Pune tapri meet thread):

Debadged look gives it menace?


Centrestage in a sea of white rides!


Panorama drama!


View from the cockpit


My Fraulein meets her twin: fellow BHPian subodh (on right) and me with our respective candy white Vento ATs:


edit: @sidindica- They got stolen within 2 weeks of me buying the car. These days in Mumbai/Pune you'd be hard pressed to find a VW or Skoda that has its original logos intact. It's a serious problem that's not being taken seriously enough by the authorities and people in general. I actually have a spare set but, since the theft happened in my home parking, decided against putting them on.

[sidindica]

Where is the VW logo?

[ajay_satpute]

OT:
I think the logos should be declared as Accessories by VW. Most people will not opt for them and that might stop the robbery as there will be nothing to rob.


On Saturday, I saw a sparkling new Jetta near my house with the rear logo missing. So the owner had painted the VW logo in thick black paint and believe me, it did not look bad at all. Infact, I think that was a near to perfect solution for this stupid act by silly buggers.

[dot]

Hey, I had a great time driving noopster's beautiful Vento on the twisties during the TBHP meet. Since all you had started off while I was getting familiar with the Vento's cabin, I had lots of catching up to do. Which was great since I could push the car quite well. (@noopster, now you know why the FE was low!!). But seriously, it was a great drive. The car took the corners and inclines like a charm with a lovely note of the engine. Like I said, it reminded me of the two gen back 2.2L Camry.