re: VW Vento Highline TDi, My Silver Streak - 5 years, 78000 kms and still raring for many more My Silver Streak completed 5 years in March 2016 having clocked up around 78,000 km in the process . The velocity of zipping the miles have reduced quite a bit since I have got a second car ( A6, from the VWAG stable itself ) as well as due to the fact that I have shifted from Mumbai to Kolkata and here the distances are not as much as Mumbai (though time taken maybe comparable as traffic is much slower) .
I will pen down a few learnings and a few notings which I hope would help other long term Vento owners as well as potential buyers :-
1. When I set out to buy a new car in 2010 , I wanted a car whose body would not creak and rattle after a few years of use . After 5 years of using my Vento , I can vouch for the fact that the build quality is great and there is hardly any deteoriation in the overall physical condition . I love my cars and don't abuse them , maybe thats also a contributing factor however there is no escaping the punishment that our cracked up roads mete out to the car - my Vento has soaked up all of it well over the years. No rusting , no puffed up paints , doors still close with surety , exhaust pipe still remains tightly held , windows roll up and down without a stutter , anti pinch functions without any glitch ..overall I am mighty impressed. (I must add, that the diesel clatter is still the same, the thud when going over humps is as good/bad as the first day .. there is a level of consistency in this car ! )
2. I searched and figured out a very good mechanic who knows Skoda cars very well - this has allowed me to ensure that my car is well taken care of, in fact much better than the ill trained ASS ever did . My car had EW of 2 years however ever since I figured out the mechanic , I am glad that the warranty is over . My car is now pampered with full synthetic Mobil1 , gets proper servicing , have repaired my right front suspension instead of replacing ( 5 grand vs 35 grand) as advised by ASS - in more ways than one my car feels more liberated given that the fear of voiding warranty does not exist any more . My car enjoys a full service once a year however I change the fuel filter, air filter and ac filter every 6 months which is a measure I have taken, given the high level of pollution and impurities in fuel as well as air. Add to it engine oil top up, coolant top-up and battery check every 6 months and you have one pampered drive. As a result of me skipping the ASS, I have to drive with the pump glow light always blinking on the dash, given that the VW VAS can be updated only at the service centre, however thats a small price to pay for much better car care.
3. The engine remains as punchy as ever with the killer 3rd gear never failing to make me smile - if I compare it to my Swift , which had a perceptible dip in performance in 5 years time, then the Vento has shown little by way of giving away its age in terms of engine performance. Fuel efficiency has dipped noticeably however its more due to the stop go nature of traffic within Kolkata where one would be lucky to drive a km without stopping due to traffic lights or a crossing . On the Durgapur expressway, my Vento still returns an average of 15-16 km/ltr
4 . There are AC vents and then there are Vento's AC vents, the ones made of toothpicks. My workaround solution has been to use slender decorative paper clips which are clipped to the vertical columns and use these to move the slits side ways - trust me that this improves the life of the brittle vents though it doesn't reduce the shame on VW for giving us this material.
5. My car is on its fourth set of shoes and my experience with each are as follows :-
a) Apollo - OEM , noise and hard - changed it very early
b) C Drive - Pretty good dry and wet grip , brilliant tread wear - sidewall strength a chink in the armour
c) Goodyear - So forgettable , that I dont even remember the one that I bought ..had to change within 5000 km with tread completely worn out. It was a shocker.
d) Bridgestone B250 - Very good all rounder , done about 5000 km and pretty happy with the braking , noise, grip and most importantly sidewall strength which i can't ignore since I have had to endure 3 incidences of sidewall bulge . Had upsized the tyres however have reverted back to stock specs since availability of tyres in sizes not OEM recommended was becoming an issue.
6. Had upgraded the headlights from the stock long back - through cutouts it has been ensured that there is no damage to the alternator . I would advise people to stay within a 10-15% zone in order to avoid overheating of the headlight casing due to the power output of more powerful bulbs
7. Expected battery life is 3 years .. 4 years tops . I prefer the semi maintenance ones (i.e. which needs checkup and water/acid top-up every 6 months) to the maintenance free ones. Diesel car batteries are high amperage ones and its give me greater comfort if the battery is periodically checked up - I feel that it gives an early warning before battery die out . Given the maintenance schedule of my car and the price differential, maintenance free batteries makes little sense.
8. Interiors and Exteriors are holding up quite well . I had a fear that the carpet would be wasted away however its held up well though its a dust and dirt magnet. I had put a plastic carpet cover which has helped immensely . I get my car exterior polished once in 6 months timing one polish after the monsoons - only 3M products are used.
Hope that helps - in case of any queries, I would be most happy to answer ! |