[Ramsagar]

What Car?
My hunt to own a good performance vehicle had started long time ago and that should be a perfect balance of Power, Handling & ride quality within range of 10Lacs plus or minus. Have test driven all kinds of Hatchbacks & Sedans that came-in, none of them did reach my expectations. Finally after quick calculation, the decision was between Scorpio & Vento.
My better half had declined Scorpio for not being comfortable & it is difficult to ingress/egress. ANHV came in. Wife was flat looking at it but my friend was against. After going through the reviews, I had to decline due to certain reasons though we were ready to compromise on Styling & Features that was packed in. Wanted to wait for New Fiesta but then the scoops & reviews did let me down when it came to power delivery on paper from 1.6L Diesel engines. There was no other choice than Vento.

Vento:
A friend & also T-Bhpian’s, both us found Vento to be perfect with great heart & better ride quality. Rear was very comfortable with good leg room & head room. Never felt claustrophobic and this is what, is expected from a Sedan. Lack of Features were little disappointing, but had to compromise. All my family had voted for VW for its Brand Value and it is truly a German Engineering.
Booking:
My dream had come true on 27th May 2011. Had paid an advance of one lac at Volkswagen Downtown, Bangalore. Promised date of delivery was 1st week of October but was delivered within 22 days flat.

Car Delivery:
The day had arrived and took the delivery on 18th June, Saturday. Ruled-out all the accessories except Rear spoiler, Door sill, Sun visors. Thank god there were no last moment surprises, the delivery was on dot. Went to Banshankri Temple, did pooja and just parked the car in the garage. End of Day one.

Engine:
That is too loud to say, but not when you get-inside. Dampening is perfect and you hardly hear the noise while in idle. Should say surprisingly less when you start cruising. You forget all of these when you rest your foot on the A pedal. Drive is fantastic and it’s a delight to drive neither in city nor on highway. I wonder why CR engines sound similar to PD engines. Wasn’t this take care? I feel like truck!
Yes, it gets sluggish when AC is switched on and that is negligible. I could able to notice the difference when the rpm reaches 1K, its starts pulling from there and this become intense at 1.5k rpm and goes on till 3k in every gear.
Gears:
Just one word: Perfect. You can slot into any gear in idle (Switched off) condition. G.Ratios are brilliant, every gear you throw-in, will leave you with a smile on your face. I start rolling directly with 2nd gear itself and then move on to next at 2K rpm. Every gear you slot in is packed with power. Tuning is absolutely perfect. I always slot in 4th, and turn back for the vehicle to move backward

Ride & Handling:
It gallops like a horse ever knowing the rough patch and swallows all the small puddles with easy. Have taken turns in 80’s and there was no fishtailing and I was absolutely confident in doing so. Never had a chance to sit-back and enjoy the drive. So can’t comment on the same.
I could hear “thunk…” kind of sound when dropped into a ditch in a good speed. That worries me a little.

Ground clearance:
Have driven the vehicle close 1000Km in 17 days, never had touch the ground once. I should say, perfect for Indian conditions. Was expecting at least the front nose would dip-in while entering/departing a speed-hump in good speed, neither did happen.

Braking:
It’s a perfect balance with the kind of power it has. Bite was little scary at the initial stages. Then I recalled the term “Brakes have run-in period” in our very own T-BHP, was happy to see the same was happening.

Comfort:
Felt to be more ergonomic in the back with good leg & Head room. Positioning of Rear Armrest was perfect. Not an idle place for third person and would suffer during long drives with the T.tunnel in the center. Height adjustable F.seat is a good add-on and the edge of the hood can clearly visible. Design of A-Pillar is good, and there is negligible hindrance. Rear head-rests completely spoil the rear view along with high boot. Have to rely on sensors or camera.

Fuel Efficiency:
In city with AC, I squeeze 10 to 11kmpl in Peak Hrs. 14 kmpl in non-peak Hrs. On highway with AC it goes upto 19.7 kmpl. This was the highest I could see in the Trip meter. I drive very conservatively and zoom if I find an empty stretch, namely ring roads.

Pros:
Superb engine with good amount of torque.
Ample of Legroom & Headroom.
Decent looks from Front & side.
Durable interiors, built to last.
Automatic boot opening from remote
Closing/opening of glass through remote
Double crank protection
Front & Rear seats are ergonomically positioned
Good fuel efficiency
Ground clearance is idle for our road condition.
Illuminated power windows

Cons:
Lack of Features (AUX, USB, Bluetooth, Folding mirrors, steering mounted controls)
Failure of Central locking from inside is a disaster.
Rear view from inside is not great either.
Engine is too noisy.
Placing of Armrest is awkward. (I’m able to engage/disengage H.brake)
Center Transmission tunnel is hindrance for third passenger.
Boot hinges obstruct luggage while closing when loaded till the brim.
Mouth of the boot seems to be narrow while loading. I could be wrong here. Let me know if anyone would have faced the same problem.

Glaring omissions
Chrome ‘0’ finish at the bottom of the steering is missing
Chrome Light knob
Leather finish on steering is also missing

I’m really happy to own this beauty and it always leaves a smile when I think of it. It scares me when I think of service bills & prices of spares. But who cares it’s a long way to go for visiting the service stations.
I thank you all Bhpians who had directly or indirectly supported me in making me buy THE KNIGHT RIDER.

[Ace F355]

Vento delivery in 22 days! and where are the pics, damn it!

Congrats Ram on your new VW, I wish you thousands of happy miles with her! What was the final price paid?

[Ramsagar]

Originally Posted by Ace F355

Vento delivery in 22 days! and where are the pics, damn it!

Thanks and yes, got delivered in flat 22days. Have taken many snaps but not able to upload due to large size.

[Ace F355]

Originally Posted by Ramsagar

Thanks and yes, got delivered in flat 22days. Have taken many snaps but not able to upload due to large size.

Please resize the pics and then upload them. A guide to do so can be found here.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/announ...-team-bhp.html

Can't wait to see the gleaming beauty of your Knight Rider!

[Reinhard]

Hey Ramsagar, hearty congratulations on the Vento and wishing you unlimited safe and happy miles with her. Please don't test our patience for the pictures :-D. Resize them "ASAP" and upload soon please!!!

As for the Cons, I believe they are easily negated by the pros in the Vento. The only thing I miss with it is, when there are no steering mounted controls, they should have provided horn pads at the "thumbs" position. Would be good for those like me who have the habit to thumb the horn from steering's edge. For that reason, I infact hate the steering mounted controls.

Keep updates coming!
P.S. - a reminder for pictures again :P

Cheers!

[bluevolt]

Hi Ramsagar,

Congratulations for your brand new VW Vento TDi - The best diesel car IMHO in C segment. And you got the car really quickly.

Please do post some snaps of your ride as any ownership thread is incomplete without pictures.

Wishing you happy and safe driving.

Cheers!

[charthom]

Ramsagar,

Congrats!!Wisely chosen and promptly purchased. Crisp brief review.

Would have loved pictures.Please post soon.

A few points of interest.Hope no trouble.

Originally Posted by Ramsagar

What Car?
Yes, it gets sluggish when AC is switched on

Is the reduction in power noticeable?Don't remember many other Vento owners pointing this out.

Gears:
Just one word: Perfect.

How do you find the reverse gear in Vento? Is the shifting method difficult to familiarise?

Glaring omissions
Chrome ‘0’ finish at the bottom of the steering is missing
Chrome Light knob

Could not get the first point.Can you enlighten?

Do you view lack of excessive chrome glaring?

Enjoy your new car-drive safe

[oxyzen]

Congratulations.

Nice review. I agree to almost all points.

Glaring omissions - Pictures.

Originally Posted by Ramsagar

Drive is fantastic and it’s a delight to drive neither in city nor on highway.

I dont think that is what you meant.

Originally Posted by Ramsagar

I start rolling directly with 2nd gear itself and then move on to next at 2K rpm.

I would not do that if I were you. It puts more load on engine. Clutch will wear out faster. Bad for FE also.

Originally Posted by charthom

Is the reduction in power noticeable?Don't remember many other Vento owners pointing this out.

Frankly speaking I have never turned off the AC. I have only done it at idle and feels like the noise becomes a bit less.

Originally Posted by charthom

How do you find the reverse gear in Vento? Is the shifting method difficult to familiarise?

You get used to pretty easily.
The 3 cars we drive have 3 different reverse shifting types.
1) Vento
2) Palio
3) Beat

[Nicky]

Congrats Ramsagar for Ventastic Purchase.
It's true that the engine noise is very less as damping is good under the hood.
Punch loss due to AC is too less to get it noticed most of the times (but may be in city driving it feels more).
Are you planning some upgrades?
do updates us about accessories.
Enjoy the ride and have safe driving.

regards

[souravc]

Hi Ramsagar , Congrats on your new car ! Pictures please
22 days booking to delivery ! you have created a record of sorts , good to hear that the bottle neck is getting addressed . A few points I would make :-
Engine Noise - On cold start I have noticed that the engine noise is a bit more than usual when you press the clutch , try to idle it for apprx minute (without pressing the accelerator) before you engage the clutch ( and gear)
Sluggishness when AC is switched on - Never felt that in mine when in one of those rare occasions I drove without the AC and then switched it on while still driving though logically, however miniscule, there should be some loss of power

As oxygen mentioned rolling in 2nd gear is not advisable and ideally you should not stretch it to 2K rpm at least not during the running in period .

Wish you many miles of happy driving !

[brraj]

Congratulations for buying vento. Have to say after a very long research you have bought this car .

[Poitive]

Congrats mate!

About warming up on first start, Isn't one supposed to warm up the car (especially a diesel) a few minutes before putting it into gear? AFAIK, that is good practice. Cold engines have a huge amount of wear and tear.

Happy miles ahead Ram.

[charthom]

Originally Posted by oxyzen

Frankly speaking I have never turned off the AC. I have only done it at idle and feels like the noise becomes a bit less.

You get used to pretty easily.
The 3 cars we drive have 3 different reverse shifting types.
1) Vento
2) Palio
3) Beat

@Oxygen,

The change in noise level after switching off the a/c could be due to the belt disengaging.

Sorry-have not driven any of these!! How about Corolla diesel,ANHV diesel, i20 diesel and The Yeti? Are they similar to Vento or different?

I happen to remember certain reviews of both Vento and Yeti where they have sighted practical operational difficulties with the reverse shift of both during every day driving. But of course,if it is so difficult then only absolute experts would have been buying it.

About warming up on first start, Isn't one supposed to warm up the car (especially a diesel) a few minutes before putting it into gear? AFAIK, that is good practice. Cold engines have a huge amount of wear and tear.

@Poitive,

+1 to that. Not only the engine-the exhaust system will corrode within no time-due to acidic corrosion.

[Ramsagar]

@Poitive: I'm also a registered member in couple TDI forums. They never advised for being idle before slotting into gear. But they have clearly mentioned to be gentle with accelerator for 2-3 kms.

@brraj: Have to thank you as well for answering my queries about Elantra as well.

@souravc: Engine Noise is very rude initially later it gets settles down.
Sluggishness when AC is switched on: Yes I'm habituated to switch-off & on the AC during city drives. I'm able to notice the difference, but it get unnoticed.
OT: I remember my driving days with Alto. But in Alto the power surge when AC is switched-off is clearly evident. I feel like I've NOS installed in my car

Rolling in 2nd gear: I don't like to do start with 2nd gear. But when we move with 1st gear, it jerk. I don't like that movement to be felt, so started moving from 2nd. Yes, I must change this habit. Thanks for pointing it out.

@Nicky: I've answered couple of question above.
Accessories: Rear spolier, Door sill & Door visors. I've parked my plan of changing my HU for time being. EVO(Satya) had given me some options for upgrading my ICE with Components+AMP+Sub with existing HU. Waiting to fill up my pockets.

@oxyzen: You got it right its a mistake. Its good to drive both in city and highway.

@charthom: Slotting into Reverse gear is different, I smile when others ask on how to slot into reverse after trying couple of times. I don't find any problem in doing so.
Reduction in power is not noticeable when AC is switched on. But if you observe keenly it happens.
Ommission of chrome & leather finish is very bad. Not that I like them. I'm not able to digest when other Vento comes and why not the rest

@Reinhard: What you said is true. But this being with Airbag, the horn pad is not extended. I'm doing my R&D in replacing the steering wheel with steering mounted controls & airbag from UK. But I'm not getting proper inputs in doing so.

Sorry for the late upload.

[RemingtonSteele]

@Ramsagar: Congratulations Dude!
Black vento looks fab. Checkout Mikon's pics of his black vento in an agressive stance on the green grass.

BTW where are the pics mate? Its a grave sin to post the ownership report without pics. [Edit: Oops - I just mistimed this post at the same time you posted pics]

Wish you very the best and many more happy miles - Drive Safely.