[el lobo 6061]

Originally Posted by nileshch

Folks, need a little help. I am running at 6.3k on the odo now and the engine oil (which had blackened now) level has come down to the C level (lowest, from manual) in the dipstick test. I am going on a long drive the coming weekend. My schedule for the week is tight and I may be unable to go to the VW workshop which is 20km away from my house.

Would it be advisable to have the engine oil replaced from an external workshop as against taking the car to the VW workshop? If yes, what should be the specific grade & brand of engine oil I should buy?

I wouldn't advise you to go on a trip without refilling your engine oil. According to the manual Vento drinks 0.5 lt every 1500 kms.
So that means your car needs 2.3 lt of engine oil ASAP. You don't need to replace the engine oil just because it looks black. Get it done when you have crossed 15000kms or 1 yr as according to the manual.
And if you drive in heavy traffic with stop go traffic get your car serviced at 7500kms or 1 yr that too is recommended in the manual. In Mumbai its of utmost necessary.
Before going on the trip have nitrogen filled up in your tyre, which will keep your cars tire cooler compared to normal air and try 33 front and 35 rear will suit car well with luggage on board.

This also marks my 100th post on the Vento thread.

[Ricky_63]

Originally Posted by nileshch

Folks, need a little help. I am running at 6.3k on the odo now and the engine oil (which had blackened now) level has come down to the C level (lowest, from manual) in the dipstick test. I am going on a long drive the coming weekend. My schedule for the week is tight and I may be unable to go to the VW workshop which is 20km away from my house.

Would it be advisable to have the engine oil replaced from an external workshop as against taking the car to the VW workshop? If yes, what should be the specific grade & brand of engine oil I should buy?

I am no authority on the subject. But you can simply add 500 ml of Shell Helix to the engine & check if the oil level rises to acceptable levels. Else ofcourse. Have it changed - the manual would tell you the quantity & grade of oil



Cheers

[noopster]

Originally Posted by el lobo 6061

I wouldn't advise you to go on a trip without refilling your engine oil. According to the manual Vento drinks 0.5 lt every 1500 kms.
(...)And if you drive in heavy traffic with stop go traffic get your car serviced at 7500kms or 1 yr that too is recommended in the manual. In Mumbai its of utmost necessary.

Damn, thanks for that. I am at 11,500 km and was planning to finish my planned 2,000 km roadtrip and THEN service the car. Perhaps i should go ahead and do it right now instead.

[bala80]

It is perfectly fine to top up your engine oil from any place as long as it is the right grade. The following useful post provides you all the details you will ever need.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/offici...ml#post2435195

Since its just a top-up I'd suggest stick to Castrol. Just ensure that they dont overfill, but then I'd expect any decent enough mechanic to know it.

Originally Posted by nileshch

Would it be advisable to have the engine oil replaced from an external workshop as against taking the car to the VW workshop? If yes, what should be the specific grade & brand of engine oil I should buy?

[souravc]

Originally Posted by nileshch

Folks, need a little help. I am running at 6.3k on the odo now and the engine oil (which had blackened now) level has come down to the C level (lowest, from manual) in the dipstick test. I am going on a long drive the coming weekend. My schedule for the week is tight and I may be unable to go to the VW workshop which is 20km away from my house.

Would it be advisable to have the engine oil replaced from an external workshop as against taking the car to the VW workshop? If yes, what should be the specific grade & brand of engine oil I should buy?

Nilesh , do it from a well known reputed workshop which sells engine oil . I have done away with the recommended Castrol and shifted to Mobil which is fully synthetic and conforms to 5W/40 , intend to stick with that . I have done 9K on the synthetic (Mobil) and at least it lasts longer than the Castrol which I understand is semi synthetic

[RavenAvi]

I have a query, friends.

I know most of you are Vento TDi owners (except Noops who has the petrol AT) and I have gone through most of your threads religiously in the past few months, and I would like your thoughts and feedback on the Vento petrol MT (I went through chet's thread on the Vento petrol and it has increased my confusion).

I am getting a new sedan by Jan-Feb 2012, and my usage is pretty limited so petrol it is. The two cars which I have finally zeroed in are the Honda City and the VW Vento.

Vento (over City) - Better GC, bigger fuel tank, remote trunk opening button on remote, host of new features, European build.

City (over Vento) - Better interiors, interior & rear bench space, stylish looks, more powerful engine, A.S.S., cheaper maintenance (?), better FE (?), bigger trunk (?), Honda quality.

Not to mention that the Vento Highline (petrol MT) is nearly priced the same as the Honda City S MT, and for the same money you get some more features in the Vento than the City (alloy wheels, fog lamps, etc.). The City V MT model is almost 40K expensive.

GC is a concern where I am at (with speed breakers all over the place). I will use my car mostly (around 90%) inside the city, with very sporadic runs on the highway.

What I want to know, is how does the Vento petrol perform? Is it a good choice vis-a-vis the City? I have the budget to either go for a Vento Highline or a City S MT, and for the features and GC alone I am inclined towards the Vento.

(my father being a huge fan of VW is also a pulling factor, I must mention here!)

[Abhinav.Daos]

Need a little advice here, I have my first service due next month but the car has run only 4000 KM's. The engine oil levels are also good. I don't know if it would be a right decision to spend 8-10k (though I understand servicing petrol car should be slightly cheaper than diesel).

Would it be advisable if I get it serviced but leave engine oil unchanged for 6-7 months more till I hit 10k and get top-ups if required in between as that would save a lot in servicing costs. Are there any other things I could leave out? Would delay in servicing effect warranty in any anyway?

[nileshch]

Originally Posted by TopSpeeder

I was in the same situation few months back, Adding thread link to give you more info

Originally Posted by bala80

It is perfectly fine to top up your engine oil from any place as long as it is the right grade.

Originally Posted by souravc

I have done away with the recommended Castrol and shifted to Mobil which is fully synthetic and conforms to 5W/40 , intend to stick with that.

Originally Posted by el lobo 6061

You don't need to replace the engine oil just because it looks black.

Thanks guys for the info and links!! Just to repeat for others' sake -- 5W40 grade oil from Castrol (Magnatec Professional), Mobil 1(Delvac) and Shell (Helix Diesel Ultra) is best suited for the Vento.

Yesterday evening, @evilshantanu (or should I say @angelshantanu ) called up. He has half a bottle of Castrol engine oil lying in his car and he said I can use that for now. Thanks, Shantanu!

So that solves my predicament for now. Since I am only topping up, it is better to stick to Castrol which is the one currently in the car. Will see if I can get the oil replaced soon (driving down to Mumbai this weekend).

Originally Posted by Ricky_63

The manual would tell you the quantity & grade of oil

Ricky, I got my Vento a year after it has been launched in India. Even now, the manual says the information on grade of engine oil to be used is not available at the time of printing.

[prabhuferrari]

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

I have a query, friends.


Vento (over City) - Better GC, bigger fuel tank, remote trunk opening button on remote, host of new features, European build.

City (over Vento) - Better interiors, interior & rear bench space, stylish looks, more powerful engine, A.S.S., cheaper maintenance (?), better FE (?), bigger trunk (?), Honda quality.

Hey RavenAvi. I think you can post the queries here where there is a similar discussion going on. http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/sedans...bia-1-6-a.html

One quick thing I want to mention is that the GC in 168 mm on a Vento and speedbreakers of Bangalore does not cause any problem. At the most the mud flap might scrape the road but its nothing to be bothered about.

[ethanhunt123]

Originally Posted by Abhinav.Daos

Need a little advice here, I have my first service due next month but the car has run only 4000 KM's. The engine oil levels are also good. I don't know if it would be a right decision to spend 8-10k (though I understand servicing petrol car should be slightly cheaper than diesel).

Would it be advisable if I get it serviced but leave engine oil unchanged for 6-7 months more till I hit 10k and get top-ups if required in between as that would save a lot in servicing costs. Are there any other things I could leave out? Would delay in servicing effect warranty in any anyway?

Though you can run your car with the same oil till 10K, i would not recommend it. Simple reason - VW guys would have a reason to deny you warranty if you don't stick to their service schedule/oil change schedule. Once you are out of warranty, do what you want

[RavenAvi]

Originally Posted by prabhuferrari

Hey RavenAvi. I think you can post the queries here where there is a similar discussion going on. http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/sedans...bia-1-6-a.html

One quick thing I want to mention is that the GC in 168 mm on a Vento and speedbreakers of Bangalore does not cause any problem. At the most the mud flap might scrape the road but its nothing to be bothered about.

Hey Prabhu, I have checked that thread in detail. Sadly it doesn't say much about the Vento petrol.

Good to hear about the GC. Thanks. I am a bit relieved now.

What I want to know, is how does the petrol Vento perform, in comparison to the City? The Highline's features are quite appealing, and I am seriously considering it over the City (as I mentioned in my above post).

GTO's initial post (in his in-depth review) mentions that the petrol is at par with the competition (despite having some lower specs than the City), and I am interested to know about it's handling, FE, pull, power, etc. Most of the ownership threads are also about the Vento TDI, and I found only one (Chet's thread) on the Vento petrol MT (apart from Noops' AT one).

[prabhuferrari]

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

Hey Prabhu, I have checked that thread in detail. Sadly it doesn't say much about the Vento petrol.

Good to hear about the GC. Thanks. I am a bit relieved now.

What I want to know, is how does the petrol Vento perform, in comparison to the City? The Highline's features are quite appealing, and I am seriously considering it over the City (as I mentioned in my above post).

GTO's initial post (in his in-depth review) mentions that the petrol is at par with the competition (despite having some lower specs than the City), and I am interested to know about it's handling, FE, pull, power, etc. Most of the ownership threads are also about the Vento TDI, and I found only one (Chet's thread) on the Vento petrol MT (apart from Noops' AT one).

One more petrol owner. Starchild
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...h-other-5.html

I think he will able to give you good inputs.

[Baburajs]

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

City (over Vento) - Better interiors, interior & rear bench space, stylish looks, more powerful engine, A.S.S., cheaper maintenance (?), better FE (?), bigger trunk (?), Honda quality.

Better Interiors !!!! . I felt that Vento has one of the best interiors in the segment. Its classy but understated. What you meant may be it is more Jazzy which is correct.

By the way the handling of Vento is far more superior that City . It handles extremely well and the suspension is well sorted out which is a definite play over the city. But the city's engine is a dream. VW cant be compared to that. Also about the *** city may be better. As regards to the cost I dont think Vento will be higher than City. It will be at par or even lesser.

Babu

[noopster]

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

I am getting a new sedan by Jan-Feb 2012, and my usage is pretty limited so petrol it is. The two cars which I have finally zeroed in are the Honda City and the VW Vento.

I would highly recommend you TD the Linea TJet as well. Even if you don't want to risk a Fiat ownership, that is one AWESOME driver's car!

Reg. Vento vs City, mdsaab and me have this habit of minutely examining every feature of each others' cars and doing like for like comparos- do check this post

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

What I want to know, is how does the petrol Vento perform, in comparison to the City? The Highline's features are quite appealing, and I am seriously considering it over the City (as I mentioned in my above post).

The Vento delivers less power (105 ps) per se than the the City (116) but is slightly torquier (153 Nm vs 146). The Honda engine revs more AND is faster to the ton mark than the petrol Vento (there was a number floating around that said it was a 3 sec difference, but it doesn't feel that slow).

Vento (over City) - Better GC, bigger fuel tank, remote trunk opening button on remote, host of new features, European build.

Spot on!

City (over Vento) - Better interiors, interior & rear bench space, stylish looks, more powerful engine, A.S.S., cheaper maintenance (?), better FE (?), bigger trunk (?), Honda quality.


Not to mention that the Vento Highline (petrol MT) is nearly priced the same as the Honda City S MT, and for the same money you get some more features in the Vento than the City (alloy wheels, fog lamps, etc.). The City V MT model is almost 40K expensive.

For me what sealed the deal were the interiors (classy and understated rather than flashy and a little gaudy), the build quality (thuddy German versus thunky Jap) and the absolute clincher, the handling and ride quality at high speeds (no comparo here, the Vento feels more solidly grounded than any car in the segment bar the Linea TJet). There are also other things like climatronic (City gets a manual AC) and the fact that back when I was buying the City was more expensive by a fair bit.

GC is a concern where I am at (with speed breakers all over the place). I will use my car mostly (around 90%) inside the city, with very sporadic runs on the highway.

Get the Vento. Even on stock tyres I have seldom, virtually never, scraped the underchassis on highways or in the city. Don't get the standard hard mudflaps as accessories though- because those tend to scrape a bit

(my father being a huge fan of VW is also a pulling factor, I must mention here!)

Make no mistake: a Honda does command respect in this country and elsewhere but the German marques are in another league image-wise. I am absolutely astounded when people naturally assume my VW costs more than the Honda- the fact that the City is so common in Pune helps!

Frankly I have not had a BAD experience with VW yet- will let you know in a couple of days after my first service

The simple fact is that the superb TDI engine has absolutely blown the petrol sibling out of the water, though GTO himself has pronounced it par for the segment. You need to weigh whether what the undoubtedly superior ivTEC engine is something you value more than everything else you have listed above. In my case, it was a simpler choice, since the AT Vento is 6-speed and the paddle shifts on the City didn't excite me once the novelty had worn off. The manual petrol is butter-smooth and a joy to drive as well.

All the best!

[RavenAvi]

Originally Posted by prabhuferrari

One more petrol owner. Starchild
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...h-other-5.html

I think he will able to give you good inputs.

Thanks for the link, prabhu. Wonderful thread and superb detailing by Starchild, indeed. It has been of immense help.

Originally Posted by Baburajs

Better Interiors !!!! . I felt that Vento has one of the best interiors in the segment. Its classy but understated. What you meant may be it is more Jazzy which is correct.

By the way the handling of Vento is far more superior that City . It handles extremely well and the suspension is well sorted out which is a definite play over the city. But the city's engine is a dream. VW cant be compared to that. Also about the *** city may be better. As regards to the cost I dont think Vento will be higher than City. It will be at par or even lesser.

Babu

Yes, City's interiors are more snazzy and in your eyes than the Vento, which is subtle yet classy.

I am getting some good reports about the VW dealer of my area, so I feel more confident about the A.S.S. Hopefully, they won't disappoint. Still a couple months left before I book my car, so some more research should help me finalise my "Golden Raven".

Originally Posted by noopster

I would highly recommend you TD the Linea TJet as well. Even if you don't want to risk a Fiat ownership, that is one AWESOME driver's car!

Reg. Vento vs City, mdsaab and me have this habit of minutely examining every feature of each others' cars and doing like for like comparos- do check this post

The local Fiat dealer's response to my queries about the Punto has put me off them bigtime. But one of my colleagues owns a T-Jet, so I might ask him for a TD, just to see how it stacks up against the feel of the Vento/City.

I have mdsaab's thread bookmarked!

Originally Posted by noopster

The Vento delivers less power (105 ps) per se than the the City (116) but is slightly torquier (153 Nm vs 146). The Honda engine revs more AND is faster to the ton mark than the petrol Vento (there was a number floating around that said it was a 3 sec difference, but it doesn't feel that slow).

It's still 105 ps, so the Vento should be no slouch. The i-VTEC should be the clear winner here, but I don't think the Vento would go down without a fight.

Originally Posted by noopster

Spot on!

For me what sealed the deal were the interiors (classy and understated rather than flashy and a little gaudy), the build quality (thuddy German versus thunky Jap) and the absolute clincher, the handling and ride quality at high speeds (no comparo here, the Vento feels more solidly grounded than any car in the segment bar the Linea TJet). There are also other things like climatronic (City gets a manual AC) and the fact that back when I was buying the City was more expensive by a fair bit.

One of the main reasons why the Vento is vying for my attention right now. I am a big fan of quiet, subtle classy stuff and the Vento pulls those strings right now. When I looked at it the first time, I dismissed it as a Polo clone (ala the Swift/Dzire and Punto/Linea), but then slowly it has grown on me. Of course, Dad's continuous nagging about the German might (he wants a UP! as soon as it is launched in India) is also a factor here.

One more reason - I have noticed an increase in the number of Citys in Jagdalpur. Ventos are still hard to spot around these parts so there will be a bit more exclusivity as well.

Originally Posted by noopster

Get the Vento. Even on stock tyres I have seldom, virtually never, scraped the underchassis on highways or in the city. Don't get the standard hard mudflaps as accessories though- because those tend to scrape a bit

Great to hear. I don't want to close my eyes with an audible wince everytime my car went over a bumper!

Originally Posted by noopster

Make no mistake: a Honda does command respect in this country and elsewhere but the German marques are in another league image-wise. I am absolutely astounded when people naturally assume my VW costs more than the Honda- the fact that the City is so common in Pune helps!

Frankly I have not had a BAD experience with VW yet- will let you know in a couple of days after my first service

The simple fact is that the superb TDI engine has absolutely blown the petrol sibling out of the water, though GTO himself has pronounced it par for the segment. You need to weigh whether what the undoubtedly superior ivTEC engine is something you value more than everything else you have listed above. In my case, it was a simpler choice, since the AT Vento is 6-speed and the paddle shifts on the City didn't excite me once the novelty had worn off. The manual petrol is butter-smooth and a joy to drive as well.

All the best!

Tell me about it, Noops. Everyone around me is telling me to go for the City blindfolded, if not for anything than for the flaunt value alone.

But there is something about the Vento that makes it grow on you. I can't place my finger on it right now - whether the front looks which are inspired by the stunning Polo, the side profile which looks simply fantastic, the plain yet classy rear, the wonderful interiors - there is something about the Vento which makes you come back to it. Add to that a host of new features, a very competent petrol engine which should be more than adequate for the needs of someone like me (a city commuter most of the time with occasional highway jaunts and vacation getaways), and it is suddenly a very strong contender alongside the City.

Looking forward to your first service report. And thanks!