[SmartCat]

Knowing VW, they would probably deglamourize Laura by stripping it off all the features - like they did to the Fabia, after the launch of Polo. Especially if they notice that Laura is eating into the sales of Jetta.

[drmohitg]

Originally Posted by smartcat

Knowing VW, they would probably deglamourize Laura by stripping it off all the features - like they did to the Fabia, after the launch of Polo. Especially if they notice that Laura is eating into the sales of Jetta.

Well that might be a possibility. BTW was there any issues reported with the ACC of the old Jetta? I mean why will VW take that off? That is a feature visible to every customer, well versed or not. Many people like my dad for instance do not understand and are not interested in hill control and ESP. Amongst the safety features its the number of airbags which catches everyone's eye and they get impressed seeing the 6 or 8 of them. But they do notice that there is a manual AC. Although the shape, finish and placing of those knobs gels extremely well with the whole Dash set up.

Offtopic: Is the Jetta still on the top of your list?

[vinj14]

Laura vs jetta...
No clear winner here.. Would solely depend on personal opinions and preferences. I, for one, dont really care about auto a/c and would rather have an extra couple of airbags.

But i think it would be fair to say that the new jetta doesnt really offer enough to win over the laura fans..But the story might start to change if VW starts offering the DSG box in the lower trims as well..

Still,its good to have these options in the market. Now we can start looking beyond the plastic toys offered by the japs and koreans!!

[Abhi_Automobile]

Originally Posted by drmohitg

Well that might be a possibility. BTW was there any issues reported with the ACC of the old Jetta? I mean why will VW take that off? That is a feature visible to every customer, well versed or not. Many people like my dad for instance do not understand and are not interested in hill control and ESP. Amongst the safety features its the number of airbags which catches everyone's eye and they get impressed seeing the 6 or 8 of them. But they do notice that there is a manual AC. Although the shape, finish and placing of those knobs gels extremely well with the whole Dash set up.

Offtopic: Is the Jetta still on the top of your list?

It's on top of my list for sure. Unless, VW does what it does quite often: Deglamourize Skoda (Laura). Which works even better for me. I hope they come up with a Luara 'classic' on the lines of Laura 'classic' TSI. I am a 'quality conscious buyer' and I don't care about features much, other than the basic important ones (for e.g. I also think that no A.C.C is a definite miss). For me, engineering is most important.

If I go the Jetta way, it will be the Trendline. So, I clearly want a quality car with as low an entry point as possible. The unfortunate thing is: that low entry point currently stands at 15 lacs OTR Gurgaon for the Jetta Trendline after the corp discount. The good news is: My purchase is 3-6 months away so I have time to watch this space.

For all those who are saying that the new Jetta is costly with no features: You are right. But that's what VW has always been. You get less than what you pay for. However, whatever you get, is of good quality.

If you want multitude of features, either:

1. Spend super moolah and go for Germ,an top end.
2. Buy Hyundai (Korean). Maximum bang for buck.

[drmohitg]

Originally Posted by Abhi_Automobile

If I go the Jetta way, it will be the Trendline. So, I clearly want a quality car with as low an entry point as possible. The unfortunate thing is: that low entry point currently stands at 15 lacs OTR Gurgaon for the Jetta Trendline after the corp discount. The good news is: My purchase is 3-6 months away so I have time to watch this space.

Well I am eyeing the CL. Love the new design in white. Have to choose CL as the TL has not got autofoldable ORVMs. That is something I have started loving on my cars. Plus some of the other added goodies also made sense to me to go for the CL.

If you want multitude of features, either:

1. Spend super moolah and go for Germ,an top end.
2. Buy Hyundai (Korean). Maximum bang for buck.

Well I guess no car is perfect and in the end you have to just analyse your needs. Toyota and Honda are lowest in equipment levels but still sell so much just on there reliability factor. So with VW its the good built, german feel, excellent safety features and a good engine.

PS: If its not too much of trouble can you find out the OTR price in gurgaon for the CL Jetta? How much of a difference is it compared to Delhi?
Also I was thinking of exploring the chandigarh route. The road tax there is peanuts!

[vb-san]

Originally Posted by S350L-E240

I have a 1.9 TDI DSG previous generation Jetta, and believe me a lot has been spoken about the new car not having plastics of high quality, while they may feel rough, they are a lot more durable compared to the Jetta I have, trust me some of the soft touch materials have now started peeling off in cracks, and now it's all white under it.

I would much rather prefer the new plastics which will last longer than to make me smile for the first time I get the car.

I think this is the best car in it's segment, features may come and go, but it's the entire package of engine / dynamics / gearbox / safety / appeal / over all experience that matters a lot more then not having the ACC or Memory seats. Yes opinions differ but none of the omissions are worth not buying this car for

Excellent point. It’s always interesting to know how a car hold together after a couple of years of use. Along with the cost-cutting , maybe this could be another reason for changing to ‘not so soft’ plastics.

Originally Posted by drmohitg

The space is really nice. I am contemplating between the Altis diesel and the Jetta CL. Will buy one of the two or maybe both. But the point is that Altis was the best on inside space till now. But the new Jetta matches it or may have bettered it. The Altis did feel slightly more Airy inside due to more amount of glass. The Jetta looks awesome to look at. And the TL and CL variants are total paisa vasool even over the Laura.

Its a nice car to drive. Ofcourse you must be above 40 and my Dad fits the description of the typical Altis buyer. Also the toyota reliability and much lower service costs come into the picture ( approx 5k/year for the altis vs 15-20k for the Jetta).

Well, if you have the means to spend on the Jetta, go for it. Just two points should be good enough to make the choice – (1) The 140ps engine, and (2) Safety. Comfortline variant should be sufficient, and I don’t think Altis D is of any match.

[lamboguy]

A bit off-topic here

I had booked the Jetta on 29th August - Comfortline (CL) - Silver Leaf Colour (not Reflex Silver) with , say Dealer A. The est. delivery date given to me was somewhere towards September end.
Today i got a call from another dealership in Mumbai (Say Dealer B) and I inquired the Delivery time for the Silver Leaf in CL and to my surprise I was informed that VW has neither started production and nor plans to start the production of Silver Leaf colour for the next delivery cycle and hence I would get the vehicle only after 2-3 months!
With this fresh info at hand, I called up the Dealer A and asked him what the delivery schedule was and he said that the dealership has no intimation yet about the same!

So now the real question is:
1. Has the Dealer B made false claims to clear off his current stock and ordered lot of other colours?
2. Or is the Dealer B correct, which implies that Dealer A is taking me for a ride with an arbitrary delivery date?

Could the senior members/ mods help me out with getting a clear picture from their past experiences or through any 'information sources' from VW?

[Aurum]

Originally Posted by lamboguy

A bit off-topic here

I had booked the Jetta on 29th August - Comfortline (CL) - Silver Leaf Colour (not Reflex Silver) with , say Dealer A. The est. delivery date given to me was somewhere towards September end.
Today i got a call from another dealership in Mumbai (Say Dealer B) and I inquired the Delivery time for the Silver Leaf in CL and to my surprise I was informed that VW has neither started production and nor plans to start the production of Silver Leaf colour for the next delivery cycle and hence I would get the vehicle only after 2-3 months!
With this fresh info at hand, I called up the Dealer A and asked him what the delivery schedule was and he said that the dealership has no intimation yet about the same!

So now the real question is:
1. Has the Dealer B made false claims to clear off his current stock and ordered lot of other colours?
2. Or is the Dealer B correct, which implies that Dealer A is taking me for a ride with an arbitrary delivery date?

Could the senior members/ mods help me out with getting a clear picture from their past experiences or through any 'information sources' from VW?

Here's my two bits. I was clearly told by the Mumbai West dealer that three colours are scheduled for delivery in September, and the remaining three will only happen in October or after. Toffee Brown was one of them in Sept. unfortunately, I don't remember about Leaf Silver. As of yesterday, I was told that my Toffee Brown car is under production, and should reach the dealer in 10 days, after which it will take time for registration etc.

[man_and_machine]

I just test drove this in Texas (may be the trim level is different but the car is the same). I did a marathon test drive on the same day (Read: Nissan Ultima, Accord, Camry, Jetta).

The Jetta had a stiff ride than the rest. The Accord was more sporty, the Camry was over all good, but was a more settled, comfy ride, the Ultima was a pleasure. The Jetta I drove was petrol (so can not comment of the Diesel engine).

The handling is very German, stiff and perfect. You will feel confidant about the car. The space is good and interiors are very functional than jazzy or wow. If you drive frequently with full family then its the car to go for.

[Abhi_Automobile]

Originally Posted by drmohitg

Well I am eyeing the CL. Love the new design in white. Have to choose CL as the TL has not got autofoldable ORVMs. That is something I have started loving on my cars. Plus some of the other added goodies also made sense to me to go for the CL.



Well I guess no car is perfect and in the end you have to just analyse your needs. Toyota and Honda are lowest in equipment levels but still sell so much just on there reliability factor. So with VW its the good built, german feel, excellent safety features and a good engine.

PS: If its not too much of trouble can you find out the OTR price in gurgaon for the CL Jetta? How much of a difference is it compared to Delhi?
Also I was thinking of exploring the chandigarh route. The road tax there is peanuts!

It should be close to 16.5 odd. The Trendline quoted prices was 15.6 with some crappy accesories as 'essential package'. Throw in a corp discount (dealer offered) of 30k and it comes to exactly 15 lacs. The Comfortline should be costlier by 1.5 lacs or so. What's the RT in Chandigarh? In Ggn, it is 6% now.

EDIT: Chandigarh is 3%. So you save close to 45k. That's a lot of money. Worth the hassle if you have your own house/very close relative in Chandigarh.

OT: The RT in Bangalore is close to 20% What a joke!

[.anshuman]

Originally Posted by man_and_machine

I just test drove this in Texas (may be the trim level is different but the car is the same). I did a marathon test drive on the same day (Read: Nissan Ultima, Accord, Camry, Jetta).

The Jetta had a stiff ride than the rest. The Accord was more sporty, the Camry was over all good, but was a more settled, comfy ride, the Ultima was a pleasure. The Jetta I drove was petrol (so can not comment of the Diesel engine).

The handling is very German, stiff and perfect. You will feel confidant about the car. The space is good and interiors are very functional than jazzy or wow. If you drive frequently with full family then its the car to go for.

The American Jetta is different than the European car we get here. The Jetta we have in India comes with more sophisticated Multilink Rear suspension, while the American version comes with a non independent Torsion Beam rear suspension like the Cruze to save costs. Even the Euro version is not as as rich on the insides compared to the outgoing version, American version is even worse.

[vw19d]

Originally Posted by v.anand

There is too much Polo/Vento on the outside with the similar looking front and same door handles.

Very much agree with this! But I love the looks of Polo/ Vento & hence, undoubtedly I like this too. Jetta looks fantastic from the front and rear, however, not so appealing from the sides. I feel somehow the height of the car doesnt match its overall profile.

Missing ACC is a real disappointment given the fact that even the Vento has it.

But, kudos to VW for launching several solidly built cars in India in the last 2 years

[man_and_machine]

Yes, that is true, the American cars are not as good as the European counterparts, I noticed that in all the cars as I drive in Germany too.

[suv100]

In the US, the Cruze and Jetta have been priced at the same level for similar variants. But in India the Jetta has been priced almost 4 lakhs above the cruze. I don't think VW is offering that much over the Chevy in terms of features that can justify this price difference.

[SmartCat]

In the US, priorities of a typical car buyer goes something like this -

1) Big size on the outside
2) Big engine in the engine bay
3) Big space on the inside, especially big seats


In Europe, the priorities of a typical buyer -

1) Small size on the outside (that's why all Civic class cars are sold as hatchbacks)
2) Excellent interior quality on the inside with soft touch plastics everywhere
3) Low CO2 emissions (company cars are taxed on different levels based on this) & high fuel efficiency