[anilkalvani]

The Requirement


The Car


The Look

[anilkalvani]

It all started way back in August 2010. Everyday driving in Bombay from Home to Factory was becoming a nightmare. The hard clutch of the Logan, The heavy steering in start stop traffic dodging cars, buses, auto-rickshaws, cabs, tempo's, trucks, bikes etc. in Andheri East Saki Naka was increasingly adding to the misery. It wasn't getting easy. I gave up. Spoke to Dad that its time we got an automatic. Ever since we bought the i10 AT, it opened up my eyes. Why, oh why was i suffering for so long, the incessant pain in the left knee was killing me. After all, we were averaging just 900 kms a month maximum in the daily use car, The Logan (Purchase: May 2008). The cost saving wasn't enough to warrant a diesel after all. Dad though, had a point. He said that even in heavy traffic, the Logan's worst fuel efficiency was 12 kmpl with 100% a/c. A petrol, that too an automatic, would give us 8-10 kmpl in our traffic conditions. The difference was between 3.5k to 4.5k, but then, a driver's pay is also around 8-10k in Bombay. Still I said ok, lets retain the Logan & get a driver. But because of bad experiences earlier, dad swore off drivers. Finally dad got convinced that ok, its now time we change the car.

In between all of this, dad fell ill. Everything else was put on the back burner for a while. Then the Vento was launched. Though dad was recovering & i was tied up with work, got to the showroom to test drive the Vento & got hold of a 1.6CR. Whoosh. That was my reaction alongwith a barrage of 4-letter explitives. Man, what insane thrill was this? I said to myself, Automatic/Wotomatic ka bhoot chodo. Went back to my car, opened briefcase, got my cheque book out, went back to showroom, gave cheque & got this.



Delivery time was quoted as 3 months. I was still told that i will get it by 3rd week of December. Time flied & Dad had another series of unfortunate operations. There was a sombre mood at home & any sort of celebration, business expansion or even a small purchase except the essentials just did not feel right. Then we got a call that the car would now be delayed & we will get it in the end of January due to a production cut at the plant in December. Frankly, it did not matter much to us. We had other things on our mind. Things seemed better with Dad recovering & in between, after giving a lot of thought & since i was driving a lot of the i10 to work, just felt it would be better to get an automatic instead. Discussed at home with Dad, Mom & the Wife. Mom went to the showroom & changed the booking to Automatic. We were told that we will get the car in Jan 2nd or 3rd week. In between, discovered that even Jesal has booked the same Candy White, same HL AT variant. In fact, my car was supposed to come before his. Then fatefully, dad had to undergo a couple of procedures more. We all were so frustrated & we unanimously decided that we will postpone the car purchase for a while till things stabilize.

[anilkalvani]

Circa April 2011. We're back to thinking about a new car purchase once again, after all is well at home. We have limited choices as we now did not even discuss any manual transmission car. This time Mom says that lets buy another i10 but the Asta variant & retain the Logan, so we can keep 3 cars. But due to parking problems in our building, we would have to keep one car on the road & outside our house, the road is narrow, so its just not possible to park our car. Then, mom said ok, lets get the i20 AT, but then we needed a car with a boot for those airport trips which would otherwise warrant us to hire a cab or drive 2 cars to the airport when my sister's visit, which would get cumbersome.

After a car with a boot was decided, we again drifted from our set 10L budget & thought of the Cruze LTZ AT & the Laura DSG. The Civic was not even considered because of the soft suspension & low egress & ingress as my Mom has Osteoporosis, and neither was the Altis because we weren't even interested in it.

The Diesels were then rejected due to 3 reasons:
1. If i would buy a diesel, i would be driving it to work & i clearly wanted a mid-sizer/nimble car to negotiate traffic.

2. The Logan has done 30,000 kms in 3 years whereas the i10 has done 7,200 kms in 2 years, which actually does not warrant us getting a diesel. It wouldn't actually benefit us as much anyways. Also driving a petrol would be lighter & easier than a heavier diesel with the vibrations, etc. I have owned the Indigo since 2004 & now the Logan since 2008 & thought the time has come to switch back to petrol till i am in my current set-up. And, to tell you honestly, i love driving the nimble i10 with its light steering negotiating narrow bylanes in Andheri East, Marol & Saki Naka's two wheelers, taxi's, trucks, mini-tempo's & the worst of the lot, Autorickshaws.

3. We are planning to commission another machine this quarter at our factory & did not want to unnecessarily spend more than 10L as we did not want to go for financing the car, etc. Tired of the paperwork involved & cash down was what we wanted to do.

So finally, it narrowed down to the Honda City AT & the Vento AT in the 10L bracket.

Surprisingly, this time VW West - Tornado Motors at Santacruz West had a TD AT car. So we went off for a test drive & it ticked many boxes in our list. Also went to Arya Motors besides and TD the Honda. First thing that put me off was the flimsy sheet metal. Really disappointed with that. Secondly, experienced the inherent soft suspension first hand which got me thinking, Yup, i knew it. Thirdly, the gear shifting in D mode were a bit delayed just like my i10. It was like it went hunting for a gear & suddenly came up with it, ok here you go. The engine though was a gem. Buttery smooth & no noise compared to the Vento. But the City just did not cut the ice.

So, it was a unanimous choice. The Vento. Booked a Candy White Petrol 1.6AT Tiptronic Highline on the 18th of April & gave them 3 instructions in the booking form.

1. Give me the VIN Number before registration.

2. Delivery Required on 6th May, 2011 on the occasion of Akshay Tritya (Akhand Teej).

3. Absolutely no stickers on my car. Whatsoever.

Next... The Delivery Experience.

[anilkalvani]

On the 2nd or 3rd of May, i get a call from the showroom that if any accessories are to to fitted, please do decide so that the car will be ready fitted with accessories by the 6th of May. As i have a busy schedule here at work, i decided to get most of the things done at the showroom & not scout around for accessories like i usually did. Visited the showroom for getting accessories for scheduled Friday delivery.

Got following Accessories booked at the showroom:
- Carpet Mat Full (Including Rear Center Tunnel)
- Car Cover (Silver)
- Mud Flaps
- V-Kool Front 94% (VK-70) & S/R 76% Elegant Range Silver Blue
- Stanley Black Italian Full Leather with Door Trims with New Passat Style Fit & Pattern Design

Seat Covers i was told would take total 4 days from order to fitting, so i decided i will take delivery as it is & leave the car for a day. Tyres mostly she said its Apollo Acelere as i was getting a Jan 2011 make as per VIN No. But i decided that if it was JK Vectra, i'd drive to the Tyre Shop right from there and change to Yoko C-drives 195/60/R15. I needed a good touchscreen Music System with Reverse Sensor, Navigator, DVD Player, etc. basically a fully loaded solution.

So, comes Friday, the 6th of May. As it has always happened with me, nothing in life has come easy. As there were many deliveries scheduled due to Akshay Tritya, i was called one day earlier on the 5th to confirm that will get delivery at 1pm. It was 11am & my excitement knew no bounds. I called the sales executive but she did not take my call. She messaged me that somebody else would be handling my car delivery today & texted me his mobile number. So i called him. He said i will get the car at 4pm. I asked why? He said that the system at the workshop are down & the final PDI was not done. I was furious. Firstly, why wasn't i informed. Secondly, my car was registered on the 30th of April, so why wasn't the PDI done in advance on 3rd, 4th or even 5th? You had ample time. Why this carelessness? Really frustrated, as everyone in the family had prior engagements cancelled just for 1pm. Told them to come to the showroom now at 4pm. At 3.30 pm, i called him up again. He said Sir, the car will still take time. Please come by 5.30pm. Man, i just blew my lid. First of all, this guy did not care to call me & keep me informed. Even if there is a genuine problem like they had, they should have kept my informed from time to time. This was really getting to me. Finally, Dad & me left from office at 5pm. We got to the showroom at 5.30pm & guess what? Our car had still not come. Mom & Wifey also came to the showroom & we made Dad & Mom sit in the waiting area & wifey & i stood out, looking at people gleefully performing their pooja's, clicking pictures, taking delivery of their cars. Innumerous Polo's, Equal number of Vento's, 2 Jetta's & 1 Beetle.

6.30pm goes, 6.45pm goes. The clock ticks away. Finally, from the distance, i see a White Vento. My heart pounds. See the driver taking a U turn to come towards the showroom. And. Disappointed. It was a White TDi as i could not see the back till he reversed into the showroom. And that repeated for another few moments. Finally, i see another Vento but seems like the cry wolf story. As he reverses, i see its a Petrol & a Highline (by the painted door handles & the Alloys) Go near the car & see its an Automatic! Then go see the VIN Number. Match it with the number the sales executive gave me.

A moment when my wife said, "You had a silly grin on your face, right there."



















Relieved i got Apollo














It was already post 7pm. We did our pooja, i did a short visual recce of the car. He gave us a demo & then we were off for home. Not before stopping for a refuel. Gulp!



And a picture the next morning

[anilkalvani]

Got the car home. One of the biggest tests was reversing the car into the compound as we have a huge speed breaker at the gate & thankfully it passed that test where my Logan scrapes the under body everyday. Took her out for a couple of drives to town from Bandra. One was a night drive with a friend. Took her out specifically from the old route & not from the Sea Link. Did not try the Tiptronic. Then, on Wednesday 11th, took her to town to Opera House to get the Kagu 3D Mats via the Sea Link. Tried the Tiptronic. Whoosh! It was awesome. The adrenalin rush you get is something only to experience. The car shifts to higher gears really fast in D mode, maybe because it was tuned for efficiency. On both these trips, i got FE reading as 10.3km/l on the MID. Anyways, got to Opera House & found the shop that folks here on Team-Bhp suggested, Car Point. Got the Mats. They fitted to a Tee. Got the black ones & not the beige as the beige was fabric feel, whereas the Black was plastic feel. Felt it would be easier to maintain in the long run.











Drove back home & again tried the Tiptronic. Was exciting. One more thing about the V-Kool's. Don't regret it one bit on spending on them. They really do their job well.

Next day, i left the car at the Tornado Motor's showroom for the Stanley's fitting. Picked the car back late in the evening. But it was a job well done.





















While i was at it, also got door Side Step Sills


I hope that the Mods will allow me to post this ownership report as the car is not going to be used as much, considering the i10 AT which has been our home car for 2 years did just 7,500 kms in 2 years, that too because it was the work car for 3 months in between.

Also as i conclude, for folks here on Team-Bhp, Fahrvergnügen is German for Driving Pleasure.

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the Initial Ownership Reports forum!

P.S. Hope your Dad's feeling better now. Please wish him good health from all of us.

[Zappex]

Congrats on the buy! Interesting thought process you went through. Find it great to know that the Vento AT fit your requirements perfectly. It is indeed becoming difficult to drive in Mumbai traffic these days.

You attitude to postpone the car purchase to focus on your dad's health was really touching. Here's wishing him a speedy (Whooshy!) recovery.

Do update the thread even if the mile munching is less. On the accessories front looks like you went all out on this one!

Lastly, Wishing you dad good health.

PS: Enjoy your ride!

[anilkalvani]

Originally Posted by GTO

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the Initial Ownership Reports forum!

P.S. Hope your Dad's feeling better now. Please wish him good health from all of us.

Thank you GTO firstly for the good wishes for my Dad. Nothing is more important than family for me, everything else is trivial.

Secondly, Thanks once again for shifting my thread to this forum. Appreciate it!

Originally Posted by Zappex

Congrats on the buy! Interesting thought process you went through. Find it great to know that the Vento AT fit your requirements perfectly. It is indeed becoming difficult to drive in Mumbai traffic these days.

You attitude to postpone the car purchase to focus on your dad's health was really touching. Here's wishing him a speedy (Whooshy!) recovery.

Do update the thread even if the mile munching is less. On the accessories front looks like you went all out on this one!

Lastly, Wishing you dad good health.

PS: Enjoy your ride!

Thanks for your wishes on both counts Zappex. Yes, driving in Mumbai is becoming nightmarish. And it makes sense driving an automatic when you have the option. I will update my thread regularly, in fact, i will find more & more excuses to take her out more often.

On the Accessories front, yes, i did go all out. No regrets. Wanted the best.

Also, in my report i forgot to thank people because of whom i made the decision to buy the Vento. Rush for the fabulous T-bhp test drive, and Vento AT owners Jesal, Sahil, Noopster, Subodh, etc. who's various inputs helped. And other Vento owners too, thanks for your pointers too.

[Guna]

Congrats!
I suggest get the photo with the key number removed. It is supposed to be a secretive.

[bluevolt]

Congratulations on your VW Vento. Nice write up with good pictures. Keep the thread updated with loads of photos and servicing experience regularly. Wishing you many years of happy driving.

PS- As Guna said keep the duplicate key and key number in safe area.

[nvluv]

Congrates on your new ride. looks good.

How much did you spend for the stanley.

[anilkalvani]

Originally Posted by Guna

Congrats!
I suggest get the photo with the key number removed. It is supposed to be a secretive.

Thanks for the advice. Hope the mods can help me here by blurring the key number.

Originally Posted by bluevolt

Congratulations on your VW Vento. Nice write up with good pictures. Keep the thread updated with loads of photos and servicing experience regularly. Wishing you many years of happy driving.

PS- As Guna said keep the duplicate key and key number in safe area.

Thank you. I will try to update this thread as often as possible.

Originally Posted by nvluv

Congrates on your new ride. looks good.

How much did you spend for the stanley.

Thanks. Stanley's cost me 40k with bill + 1 yr warranty.

[shk 8896]

Congrats on the vento automatic,Anil.Great writeup and anice pics too.It's raining Ventos in TBHP.The Vento looks great in white.I liked the first 3 pics very much.Do update
Drive Safe
Sreehari

[Suess]

Originally Posted by anilkalvani

Also as i conclude, for folks here on Team-Bhp, Fahrvergnügen is German for Driving Pleasure.

Hi Anil, many congratulations on your new car. I believe it is the best choice in this segment
Nn price range. Wish u a long vergnuegen with German excellence. BTW this word vergnuegen is one of the toughest word to pronouns

[anilkalvani]

Did some more research on the Caska Head Unit. The model specific for the Polo/Vento/Jetta is The Caska CA3621.



Here is a demo video i got on You Tube:

YouTube - CENTRAL MULTIMIDIA CARGPS CASKA CA3621 JETTA/PASSAT/TIGUAN/EOS/CC/VARIANT

Called up the Auto Trendz distributor here in Bombay, Matrix in Santacruz West. They said the unit is not available/not in stock at present. Took my number & said will contact me as and when available. So the hunt for a good HU is still on as i don't want to rush & regret later.

Had another good learning experience yesterday. While climbing down from Mount Mary to Bandstand the road is very steep & the car was shifting to D3 & moving fast. Slotted the stick to the left & downshifted via the Tiptronic to 2nd Gear. This helps in taking the load off the brakes. Learning something new everyday. Also, driving short distances takes a toll on the Fuel Efficiency. Had 3 drives yesterday of between 1.5 - 5kms each. Got 8.3km/l, 8.9km/l, 9.7km/l. And on the longer trips of more than 10kms, i have got over 10km/l.

Thanks @shk_8896 & @Suess.