[GTO]

Originally Posted by volkman10

VW has brought the same concept that works abroad, having the spare wheel to a lower size due to ease of handling in fitment of the same.

It's like Domino's giving you 1/2 a Pizza when you ordered a full, and then telling you "Saar, it's for your own good. Less cholesterol, more healthy".

Absolutely rubbish. The primary reason is cost (in the case of the Polo). Then, there are some other cars that use thin space savers because there isn't room for a full-size wheel & tyre combination in their boot.

Originally Posted by R.P.M

Will this be applicable if the car has been booked before the price hike?

R.P.M. if anyone tells you different, take it in writing. The law says, prices prevailing at the time of delivery are applicable.

[r_devakumar]

When i saw this small spare tyres (called donut typres) couple of years back in US, i have asked the mechanic in the SEARs tyre shop about why a normal tyre is not provided as spares. He said the reason why the smaller ones are provided are:
1. Saves space
2. Force you to repair and change at earliest (as there are possibilities of spares wheel may not be in good condition as it could be left unattended for long and also may not have the tyre condition not in-line with other typres which can results in accidents or other troubles).
3. and offcourse cost saving for the manufacturer

Originally Posted by parsh

One thing I would like to ask about Polo: why did VW put a Spare Wheel of 14" (whether alloys or steel is immaterial) on the Highline when it is fitted with 15" Wheels as standard? Sounds pretty ridiculous.

I am curious to get feedback especially having got weird responses from the VW dealerships right to the point of saying that it is only a spare wheel not meant to be used, your tyre cannot go bust on highway, the faulty tyres are meant to be repaired and used, the German company has designed it so etc etc, really amazing reasonings I have heard from VW dealerships.

[volkman10]

VW dealers in Bangalore are now offering the 1.6 Polo for TD from Monday (31st Jan) onwards. SE from Downtown VW has confirmed this. Hopefully this indicates production of the dame has resumed.

Need to translate in seeing more VW Polo's on road!


Cheers,

[parsh]

I quite agree with GTO on the cost cutting and it must be absolutely that and nothing else.

There does not seem any reason than:
The spare holding place seems to be made for 14" wheel with tyre. So they might have to create entirely another mould and manufacturing line altogether to create space for the 15" wheel with tyre.

But, my question is where is the thought to the basic concept of Spare Wheel?

If you are a 100kms away from your destination when the tyre goes flat without anny support for repairy inbetween (and this is an actual situation I have seen on GoA-PUNE route with an Innova), is your car supposed to limp to your destination with a difference of 2" in diameter? It is definitely not a 3 wheel car.

It is indeed quite laughable reasoning from VW dealerships and they are themselves dumstruck when questioned further deeply.

IMO, if providing the proper Spare was a problem, VW shouldn't have created such a situation altogether and offered only 14" on Highline as well with Alloys if they wanted to. And IMO it seems a ridiculous decision on part of VW.

Not that I am looking to buy any VW but I am constantly intrigued by such a decision.

[fiat_tarun]

^^ Although the rim dia. is 14'', the total wheel diameter will be the same. So, i'm guessing this wheel can be used even over moderately long distances without any problems.

[parsh]

I doubt if the diameter will be the same. The tyre specs on the spare are R14 and the wheels must also be R14. Unless with abnormal inflation (which would also be senseless guess), the difference will be quite significant. Maybe an owner who has faced any situation like this would be able to comment better.

[rejoycjohn]

parsh Re: Volkswagen Polo : Test Drive & Review
I doubt if the diameter will be the same. T

Below is the comparison that I got from the website
Tire Size Calculator
For tyre sizes 175/70 R14 and 185/60/R15 .

Doesnt look too much to worry about .

Courtesy
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techni...alculator.html

Original tire
Sidewall: 4.82 in
Radius: 11.82 in
Diameter: 23.65 in
Circumf: 74.29 in
Revs/mile: 852.93
New Tire
Sidewall: 4.37 in
Radius: 11.87 in
Diameter: 23.74 in
Circumf: 74.58 in
Revs/mile: 849.54


Speedometer reading with new tire is 0.40% too slow.
When your speedometer is reading 60mph you are actually traveling 60.24mph.

[parsh]

@rejoycjohn you have rightly put in the statistics. Doesn't seem quite a worry as such from the stats. The statistical diff in dia is about 2.5mm (quite negliglible). Hope the practical experience is the same and reliable for long runs.

Ofcourse VW must have considered all this before making it a standard on the car, otherwise, they wouldn't do it. This does seem to miss out from even sales and their superiors and engineers knowledge, and you know what, sometimes I have heard them say, "they must have mistakenly put in the wrong spare in this car".

[julupani]

A query for Polo TDI owners, as on request by a friend. Does the TDI tend to get more noisy after a few months??

I had always put down his concerns about excess noise to it being a 3cylinder engine rather than a 4cylinder. Also started noticing other Polo TDIs for engine noise when I could, all of them do sound pretty noisy, but some more than others. A few of them sound really harsh, almost as bad as some old Indica TDIs, especially when accelerating a bit quickly.

Is this something normal, or is there something wrong with the car??

[rejoycjohn]

Originally Posted by parsh

@rejoycjohn you have rightly put in the statistics. .

This does seem to miss out from even sales and their superiors and engineers knowledge, and you know what, sometimes I have heard them say, "they must have mistakenly put in the wrong spare in this car".

Hillarious :-) .
I think we team - bhpians should do some part time work in these showrooms.

I have even seen spare tires which are as thin as cycle tires in Europe . It look very hideous to start with .


I

had always put down his concerns about excess noise to it being a 3cylinder engine rather than a 4cylinder. Also started noticing other Polo TDIs for engine noise when I could, all of them do sound pretty noisy, but some more than others. A few of them sound really harsh, almost as bad as some old Indica TDIs, especially when accelerating a bit quickly.

@ Jupulani , I am not so sure if we can tell technically if a 3 pot engine be noisier than a 4 pot one . Even the Figo engine is very noisy . May be the Fiats / Mahindras are quieter compared to Figo or Polo .
But if the noise is increasing with time , then it has to be checked by the technician .

If some gurus in the form can help ?

[julupani]

The 3cylinder engine generally vibrates more than a 4cylinder which in turn is worse off than a 6cylinder, because lesser balancing can be achieved. Thus a bit more noise is generally found.

The noise isn't exactly increasing with time, at least not in the last month or so, acc to my friend.

His engine is definitely noisier than any Figo, and way noisier than any MJD powered car from FIAT, Maruti or Tata.

[NevGin]

Originally Posted by julupani

The 3cylinder engine generally vibrates more than a 4cylinder which in turn is worse off than a 6cylinder, because lesser balancing can be achieved. Thus a bit more noise is generally found.

The noise isn't exactly increasing with time, at least not in the last month or so, acc to my friend.

His engine is definitely noisier than any Figo, and way noisier than any MJD powered car from FIAT, Maruti or Tata.

All depends on how long back the car has been started. When the TDI is cold there is significant clatter, as is in all other diesel engines. Drive away as soon as you start and preferably with the HVAC on else it takes more time to heat up. Also note that the 1.2 TDI software version has been upgraded twice. The latest upgrade has made it very silent. Another point of mention is faulty injectors that have found their way into the TDIs which are also contributing tremendously towards the noise. By and large after 3K kms, I can tell you the engine is inceasingly becoming super smooth and noise and vibrations reducing. The car has become more driveable in congested traffic conditions as well. Keep the oil topped up and rev this little machine. It does not let you down.

[wolf_lone]

I wonder how this would fare against the new Polo 1.6

[julupani]

Actually, his noise problems have started after the 3000km mark. The noise does decrease with continuous running, but its still much worse than it was before the first service. He is not facing any power issues at all, just more noise and vibrations.

Wont the authorised service guys have upgraded the software at the 1st service??

[opendro]

Originally Posted by parsh

I doubt if the diameter will be the same. The tyre specs on the spare are R14 and the wheels must also be R14. Unless with abnormal inflation (which would also be senseless guess), the difference will be quite significant. Maybe an owner who has faced any situation like this would be able to comment better.

Of course, if the tyre spec is R14, wheel must also be 14". But that is not the wheel diameter. You have to take the tyre rubber height (profile, e.g. 170/70, i.e. 70% of 170 mm) etc into account.