[sidby]

Hi Coolboy,

Yup paid up and got the car back.

The last line of your post is very interesting.

My car is still running like it used to before it went in for replacement of EGR, Fuel injectors etc. Maybe there is a slight increase in FE and maybe a slight decrease in noise. But if there is a change, it is subtle. The performance remains the same. Im not complaining per se about the performance. It is a beauty to drive and all, however, compared to my friends vento ( Jan 2013 ) the engine feels "heavier" "rougher" and there is a distinct lack of turbo kick.

This is the part which confounds me. Very roughly done estimates of a 0-60 sprint in both Vento's yielded roughly the same timing. Everything else is the same, but his gives more of a surge/kick at 2200-2400 RPM, whereas mine seems to be more linear and missing the quick.

I realise this post is getting long and confusing, but please allow me 2 more observations:

1. After 2500 rpm, both our cars behave the same. Performance in 4th and 5th gear are the same!

2. Mine has a slight turbo kick at 2200-2400 in the 3rd gear and not in the 2nd. Whereas his "kicks" in both 2nd and 3rd gear.

Some additional info. Mine is nov 2010 done 48000. Pre owned. I bought in may 2013 when it had done 31000. His is a new vento bought in Jan 2013 with 42k on the odo at present.

I will be very greatful for any insight you can offer. I am throughly bewildered.

Have i been gipped? Did they indeed replace the injectors and EGR and turbo hose? I doubt they would be foolish enough to give me an invoice without actually having done the work. Especially since they claimed that VW had agreed to do it all FOC, and I did pay for turbo hose!

Have a good day

Originally Posted by coolboy007

The hose pipe is a rubber part and believe me no manufacturer will ever cover the part after standard warranty expires. Rubber hose/rubber suspension parts are never covered under extended warranty as they are a wear n tear item.

Just pay the sum and get your car back, no use fighting for this as VW will never cover this repair under warranty. It is just bad luck that the hose was damaged, there is no compulsion that it has to be changed in 4th/5th year, it must have cracked so it is getting changed now.

When the turbo hose cracks, you will feel a drop in power/missing turbo kick and a reduced fuel efficiency.

[anandharamanp]

Philips Essential Vision H4 100/90W Rs. 300 per piece X 2
Philips Blue Vision HB4 9006 55W 4000K Rs. 675 per set. X 1
Philips Blue Vision T10 W5W 4000K Rs. 100 per set. X 2
All the prices are including Vat 12.5% with bill.
Total = Rs. 1475 with bill. But it is definitely worth it.


Thanks!.


No relays used, as stock were 51W and the new ones are 55W. 4W wont cause much difference in heat and most companies use 55W as standard compared to 51W that were present in my Vento.


I am a great fan of white light as you, and my heads turn when ever i see one. I own a vento which is 2 months old (2000 kms)and i would like to upgrade my headlights to white light as yours. Please help me understand the following:
1) Can i change the buls alone without any additional realy,Is there a risk of the OEM wire harness being burnt or damaged if i upgrade to 100/90 white light. how was your experience so far?
2) Will VW make the warranty void in nspite of me not cutting any wires.
3) Will the quality of reflectors fade or headlight case develop a black tinge due to the excess heat generated. Reason i am asking is that i my santro headcase developed moisture collection inside shortly after i upgraded the bulbs to 100/90 with relays.
4) Mine is double barrel headlight, do you think you have any suggestions on the configurations that i need to procure.
5)Worst case scenario, if any or all of the above did not work out, i am planning to proceed with philips white light with same wattage of stock bulbs. Is it available with philips and is that a complete safe option.

Please suggest, many thanks.

[joslicx]

I can try and answer some of your querries

Originally Posted by anandharamanp

1) Can i change the buls alone without any additional realy,Is there a risk of the OEM wire harness being burnt or damaged if i upgrade to 100/90 white light. how was your experience so far?

Theoretically you can but it is highly highly advisable to use relays with the higher wattage (100/90) bulbs for protection.

2) Will VW make the warranty void in nspite of me not cutting any wires.

Of course any such mod is grounds for denial of warranty!

3) Will the quality of reflectors fade or headlight case develop a black tinge due to the excess heat generated. Reason i am asking is that i my santro headcase developed moisture collection inside shortly after i upgraded the bulbs to 100/90 with relays.

I am using this setup for more than 2 years and no issues so far

4) Mine is double barrel headlight, do you think you have any suggestions on the configurations that i need to procure.

You should find out if the new Vento still uses H4 bulbs. Basically you will need to find out the exact bulbs in your headlamp cluster and then you can procure appropriate replacement bulbs

5)Worst case scenario, if any or all of the above did not work out, i am planning to proceed with philips white light with same wattage of stock bulbs. Is it available with philips and is that a complete safe option.

In stock wattage, the best out there are Osram Night Breaker Unlimited and Philips Xtreme Vision+. Before moving to 100W setup I had tried Osram Night Breaker Plus (the previous iteration of Unlimited ones) and it was waste of money frankly. These are no match for 100W setup! Rest it should be individual's own call, for the new reflectors in the new Vento might be better and even Philips XV+ might suffice, for example.

[anandharamanp]

Thank you for your inputs, good to hear that the upgrade is working fine with your car.

I don't prefer to get the warranty void and hence may be I should check out the last option.

Even in my Sabitri which I owned that time, I did upgrade initially to osram and it was absolute waste, then I got them replaced with Philips h4 and it was excellent.

Will give it a thought and decide for my Vento , many thanks.

[el lobo 6061]

Originally Posted by anandharamanp

1) Can i change the buls alone without any additional realy,Is there a risk of the OEM wire harness being burnt or damaged if i upgrade to 100/90 white light. how was your experience so far?

Since yours is double barrel setup, you cannot upgrade to 100/90 bulb H4 setup. Most probably you will be having two H7 bulbs, not sure though.

If anyone upgrades to 100/90 bulbs, its always recommended to have relay installed, else you will literally melt the connectors as they are of plastic. Relays are of ceramic.

The best you can do is upgrade the bulbs to Philips white light ones in stock wattage. Try to keep color temperature under 4400K kelvins. Above that will impact overall visibility.

Originally Posted by anandharamanp

how was your experience so far?

One word, GREAT. 100/90W with white lights all round including fogs and parking lights looks superb. No two thoughts about it.

Originally Posted by anandharamanp

2) Will VW make the warranty void in nspite of me not cutting any wires.

No.

Originally Posted by anandharamanp

3) Will the quality of reflectors fade or headlight case develop a black tinge due to the excess heat generated. Reason i am asking is that i my santro headcase developed moisture collection inside shortly after i upgraded the bulbs to 100/90 with relays.

There isn't black tinge in my Vento headlamp casing due to use of 100/90 bulbs use. Regarding moisture, there is a rubber cap behind the bulb fitting, make sure it sits tight and there wont be any complaint regarding moisture in Vento.

Originally Posted by anandharamanp

4) Mine is double barrel headlight, do you think you have any suggestions on the configurations that i need to procure.

At best you can upgrade to stock wattage Philips white color bulbs. Just check the bulb number, should be H7. Even better can be a projector setup.

Originally Posted by anandharamanp

5)Worst case scenario, if any or all of the above did not work out, i am planning to proceed with philips white light with same wattage of stock bulbs. Is it available with philips and is that a complete safe option.

Yes, this is your best option and bulbs should be available. Check your car manual for bulb number and procure from nearest Philips distributor.

[anandharamanp]

I remember the user manual mentioned both H4 and H7. Most probably i will upgrade to white light in stock wattage, taking the safe route Many thanks for sharing your experience and suggestions.

[anandharamanp]

Will the following bulbs suit for double barrel headlamp in vento, without any need for additional relays:

High Beam: Philips H1 12258 X-treme Vision Headlight Bulb (12V, 55W)

Low Beam: Philips H7 12972 White Vision Headlight Bulb (12V, 55W)

Fog Lamp: Suggest what type of white bulb be used for fog lamp in stock wattage.

parking Light: Suggest white bulb for parking light.

looking for your recommendations:

[el lobo 6061]

Originally Posted by anandharamanp

Will the following bulbs suit for double barrel headlamp in vento, without any need for additional relays:

High Beam: Philips H1 12258 X-treme Vision Headlight Bulb (12V, 55W)

Low Beam: Philips H7 12972 White Vision Headlight Bulb (12V, 55W)

Fog Lamp: Suggest what type of white bulb be used for fog lamp in stock wattage.

Kindly check the user manual as would have listed the bulb type. Most probably it will be H1 & H7 combination of pair of two of either type. For fog lamp also you will need to check. 2011 Vento came with HB4 type bulb.

The best choice would Philips White Vision 4100K. Mine are 4000K.

Originally Posted by anandharamanp

parking Light: Suggest white bulb for parking light.

It is W5W type bulb. Your white light one is: Philips Blue Vision T10 W5W 4000K. Comes in pair. Get 2 of them, even for rear number plate. If you have LED number plate lights, then you can purchase one set for headlights.

[anandharamanp]

Thank you , El lobo for your suggestions.will do the upgrade and let you know.

[anandharamanp]

Finally i upgraded my vento headlight bulbs to Philips Crystal Crystal Vision. I was really worried that i might end up damaging the headlight unit if i do a DIY and hence asked the shopkeeper to install it and he directed me to a labour who does it for a charge of 450 rs. The labour who did it really irritated me as he did the job very carelessly and most of the time he held the bulb by the glass and not by the Base, i need to keep on insisting about it every time and still he continued to do on his own way. I recognized that i made a mistake of not doing a DIY, just out of fear.

Thanks to fellow Bhpians in helping me finalize the right upgrade and also in helping me explore where to buy the genuine accessories(i went to chandru automobile shop in GP road as suggested by many here) and i am happy that it was made in Germany and not a China make. the owner Haresh was really accomodative to all my questions and i liked his approach.

Following are the bulbs i purchased:
Headlight bulbs: H7 Philips Crystal Vision - Stock wattage of 55 W - 4 numbers(as mine is double barrel headlight unit)
Fog Lamps: H11 Philips Crystal vision - there was no indication of Wattage in the pack but Haresh from Chandru shop confirmed me that they are stock wattage ones.
Parking Lights: WB T10 (it was provide as a package of 2 headlights and 2 parking bulbs)

Look and Performance: Overall look of the car is enriched by the white beam, the car looks amazingly good with white lights on during the night

In city roads, i would say the beam performance to okay but somewhat felt that the throw of beam was too focussed inspite and did not provide a wide spread inspite of being a double barrel one.

Out to over enthusiasm i sat in front of the car with my eyes straight and inspected/admired the white throw for few minutes - OMG, i got a some irritation in the eye for few hours after which i was ok. I am yet to take by Carbon steel beast with white lights on highway which i will be doing during my kids summer vacation.

When i was talking about this upgrade(colour temperature, visibility, china make and German make, where to buy etc) to my colleague who owns Polo, he was surprised and asked me how did you know all these info, I told him that i was actually zero in all these, if i did not become a member and follower of team Bhp

Thanks team BHp and fellow Bhpians from whom i learn a lot. really proud to be a part of this forum.

I could not post a quality picture of the white beam (the one that i took was very glaring) and hence posting the box package of the bulbs for reference.







Just to clarify: the bulbs in the pictures are the OEM bulbs placed safely in the Crystal vision box

[el lobo 6061]

Long Pending Update: Almost 1.5 years. Here it goes. Have some popcorns handy!

Well the car had been performing well with injector replacement, all four of them. First two injector 1 & 4 went kaput in Feb 2014 and replaced under extended warranty. Later injector 2 & 3 in July 2014 replaced under extended warranty. Documented in following links.

Link 1
Link 2


Road trip to Nanded:

In January 2015 we decided to for a road trip to Nanded, Maharashtra to visit Hazur Sahib Nanded. One way distance to Nanded from Navi Mumbai is approx 570 Kms. But somehow car had some other plans for us. Around Supa just before Ahmednagar car started having same symptoms of injector failure. So long story short, car was put on flatbed to VW Ahmednagar. Well the technicians over there were incompetent to resolve the issue and lacked skills to address technical issues. The issue was not with injectors as elaborated further.

So we had no choice but to get car on flat bed to VW Autobahn, Navi Mumbai all the way from Ahmednagar. I was not having any RSA. Cost Rs. 18000. We were back home in a taxi same day as our car was out of commission.

Finally car reached VW Autobahn after a few days and they started work on it.

Problem turned out to be, screws holding the injectors brackets which had broken resulting in misfiring by injectors and they further replaced Solenoid Valve controlling fuelling. Though all this was done under Extended Warranty free of cost but the car was turning out to be problem whenever we decided to go for a long drive.

VW Autobahn assured that there won't be any further issues with car after this. Well 1 year and 2 months, car has been performing well.

Parts Replacement Bill under extended warranty:



Road trip to Nanded again: 6 March 2015

Will the car perform or give trouble?

Well our previous trip to Nanded couldn't be possible, so we though of doing it again. As this would be a good test for car as well.

Car performed well and no issues cropped up all through the journey.

Some pictures:















Next: 4th Paid Service: 31 March 2015

As usual the car was inspected and checked for any under body damage. During check up, suspension was given a red flag. 20,000 kms & 4 years later there were some teething troubles with it.

Got a estimate of what all is required to be changed in suspension and got opinion from 2 mechanics personally at VW AutoBahn. Inspected every bush and joint to ascertain whether its needed to be changed or not.

Asked SA to do the regular service and will get suspension done few days later. Didn't want to leave the car with them.

Eliminated all the non-essential, wheel alignment, wash, cylinder lock lubricant, wiper wash fluid, brake opening & cleaning, etc. SA try to sell you interior cleaning stuff, but when you can do a better job on your own, you always say NO politely.

Service Bill:



Next: Suspension overhauling 3 April 2015

Got following parts replaced:

• Front Suspension Connecting Link rods
• Ball Bearing
• Suspension strut mounting
• Rear suspension spring pads
• Engine mount. One of them out of 3 had gone bad.

Post replacement, car driving dynamics improved a lot and it felt more tight. All the parts replaced were thoroughly examined, checked and then only green light was given for replacement. Suspension is a wear & tear part, so all paid from my own pocket.

Parts & Bill:



















Next: Driver Side Headrest issue.

The clip used to move driver headrest up or down was acting finicky. Most of the times it would remain jammed meaning you cannot adjust headrest height. Well its not a big issue, but I like to keep my car all fixed and performing well.

Asked VW AutoBahn if they had the clip mechanism to replace it. They said, they can replace complete headrest which would be exceptionally costly.

Sent mails to VW and got them into action. Finally, they got the clip part number and ordered it. Later replaced it. Lesson, VW customer care always there to help and are a mail away. Replaced in 10 mins and paid for it. Quick in and out.

Bill:









Insurance renewal for 6th year:

Previously I was having BhartiAxa Zero Dep for past 5 years, April 2011 till March 2016. Almost all private insurance firm give Zero Dep till 5th year of ownership. I wanted zero dep for 6th year as well.

After some research, learnt that Govt owned Insurance companies provide Zero Dep till 7th year.

Renewed policy from New India Assurance (NIA). Cost came to Rs 18879 for 6th year Zero dep with 50% NCB. Renewed online on NIA website. Policy issued after payment instantly. One of the most user friendly website.

NIA Link.


Battery replacement:

After 5 years of service by Varta battery, it finally gave up. It did show signs of dying down when power windows gave issues to roll down.

Replaced with Amaron Flo battery. All working great.

Vento has been performing well. No issues whatsoever, Touchwood!

What Next?
5th Paid Service.

[el lobo 6061]

5th Paid Service:

Date: 5 April 2016
Workshop: VW Navi Mumbai Autobahn Automotive, Turbhe
SA: Mr. Sandesh Chande
Interval: 5th Year / ODO 23483 Kms

Yesterday gave my car for 5th service. Well it was one of the best annual service experience with VW over the past 5 years since 2011. I wish it gets even better as the time goes by. I shall write it up as it unfolded from booking appointment to arriving at workshop at 9:55 am.

So here it goes.

I called up VW Autobahn Workshop on 1 Apr'16 to book an appointment for 5 Apr'16. Surprisingly, they asked if I wished to get the car serviced on 2 Apr'16. Well for the first time ever, VW workshop had availability for very next day. I declined the offer and got appointment for 5 Apr'16 which too was available. I was asked to arrive at 10 am.

I reached the workshop at 9:55 am. The lady on counter took down my details on a register and asked me to wait in customer lounge till a SA is allotted to me. She even asked for tea or coffee.

I asked for my regular SA, Mr. Tausif but he was on leave for the day.

Within 5 mins SA is allotted to me, Mr. Sandesh Chande. Yes you read it right within 5 mins. Earlier I was accustomed to wait for 30 mins. Things are improving.

Me and SA went straight to car. He started filling out the job card. We started the car and took it up for Dialogue Reception. In this they take the car on ramp and inspect under body and suspension for any damage, etc. There was a car parked over ramp which was taken out and my car was promptly put up. They didn't skip this step, earlier they used to. VW Navi Mumbai are following protocols, good going.

Dialogue Reception




Mechanic Pankaj and SA Sandesh


Later car was taken back to parking and job card was filled up on computer. Got my details updated on their database. I asked the SA to draft the list of things he would deem fit for 5th / 75,000 Km service.

Once all was done, he showed me the list. Then I started eliminating jobs which weren't needed:

• Wheel alignment, Wheel balancing and Wheel rotation.
• No wiper wash fluid
• No cylinder lock lubricant

I had got wheel alignment done from outside 2 weeks back, so it wasn't required. Got a bottle of wiper wash fluid with me. Lastly if ever cylinder lock gives me trouble, I got WD40 with me.

Once the estimate was given, it showed engine oil as 4.3 lt. It's correct. What surprised me is, earlier they used to charge for 5 lt and give back remaining back which never was 700 ml.

Inquired SA, what changed? Got to know that they now have direct pipe which outputs 4.3 lt which is operated by computer. No more extra plastic cans. Also due to it cost has reduced from Rs 970/lt to Rs. 836/lt. More reason to be happy. Engine Oil is fully synthetic Castrol Magnatec Professional OE 5w40.

Also got the fuel filter eliminated since odo was at 23,483 Kms and it clocked only 2500 kms in 1 year. Fuel filter has life of 15,000 kms, so it didn't make sense to have it replaced.

Next, brake fluid is replaced after 3 years and then every 2 years. So it should be done, in 5th year as well. In my car brake fluid was replaced in 1st year 2012 due to clutch hose change and then later in 2015 that's 3 yrs after. So next change is due in 2017.

So ultimately estimate cost for 5th service 5th year/75000 kms turned out to be Rs. 8,000. Good.

Also SA didn't push for any add ons like car cleaning or AC disinfectant. May be he understood I'm not just a regular customer.

I was waiting in customer lounge watching TV and hoping car gets done before lunch since there were less number of work to be done.

Then during the lunch time, a lady Ms. Bhavana asked me what would I like to have in lunch? I was like what, VW offers lunch to its waiting customers? She said YES.

I thought maybe it would be charged to customers, but little did I know. I asked whether it was on the house? She said YES. I was like

What free lunch! That's first time ever in 5 years of me coming to VW Autobahn! They offer free lunch which they order from a restaurant and selection can be only from VEG.

Brownie points won!

Sadly I refused as I got my home made lunch. Even other customers waiting in lounge refused, since she explicitly didn't mention its on the house.

During this time, all the work was done and car was sent out for trial. All good. Vacuum and washing is done post that. Their vacuum machine was not working. Regarding washing, I prefer doing it myself. Asked them to wash the wheel wells only. It's included in the labour cost. Even if you skip them, you don't get discount for it.

Once car came back from trial, I asked SA to have the ECU checked for newer version, which he said there are no new software version available. I thought its impossible.

Got onto shop floor and asked mechanic Pankaj to have the car checked with VAS. Even though it was lunch time, without hesitation he got the VAS machine (Panasonic Tough book laptop)and scanned the ECU.

Current version: 9971
Update available: 9972



He got the car battery charger and plugged it it. ECU update can drain the battery, so it needs to be put on charging during the process. LAN wire and laptop charger plugged in. Laptop needs to be connected to internet to check updates and even during the updating process.

Even though everyone was going for lunch, Pankaj set everything up and put ECU on update process on. Then only went for his lunch which is for only 30 mins. Hats off to him.

30 mins later, ECU all updated with new update.

Pankaj setting up all. Gem of a guy


Car Battery charger plugged in



Finally it was time to bid adieu.

Final bill: Rs. 8,054, knowing 50% is for oil.




Other tit bits:

1. Free Gift:

While paying the bill, there was a board saying "If SA doesn't take your feedback you will receive a free gift"

I was hoping SA doesn't take my feedback. Well which he didn't. So after payment, I asked him for the gift. He was like . He said, due to electricity failure (which happened 20 mins back and was back just before billing) the system went down and is not up. Fair point, but my gift. I asked Ms. Bhavana, what's in gift. "A coffee mug".

Well VW coffee mug is worth the effort. I asked her, well a customer should get it, since the feedback was not taken and also customer loyalty, 5 years. She said, she will ask the service manager.

Result:






2. Car cleaning kit

VW now sells car cleaning kit. Inquired about it. Rs. 2000 odd for some 7 bottles. I liked the microfiber 16x16 inch size for Rs. 99. Got two of those.












How is the car after service?
Well it feels quitter and refined; engine. New software update did some magic to 1.6 TDi, a gem of a engine.

Other finer points:
VW Autobahn workshop was not at all jammed packed as usually VW workshops are. Earlier getting a car in or out used to require other cars being moved in or out.

Appreciated both my SA Mr. Sandesh and Ms. Bhavana to keep up the good work. Lastly Pankaj who did the ECU update for my car, is a gem of a guy.

Overall a great experience. I wish it gets even better.


Made in Austria Oil Filter.

[F150]

Surprised to see a software update for the old 1.6 TDi. How is the suspension doing after the parts that were change in April last year ?

[el lobo 6061]

Originally Posted by F150

Surprised to see a software update for the old 1.6 TDi.

There will be even more updates given emission norms issue. Mechanics at VW Workshop didn't have any updates on it. Also as per VW solution, a plastic flow regulator and software update is needed to correct emissions. Don't know if they be applicable to Indian market.

Originally Posted by F150

How is the suspension doing after the parts that were change in April last year ?

Suspension is holding well. Car feels tight and no squeaks or noises. Earlier rear coil spring pad was so compressed that the spring was literally touching the metal surface.

During service front suspension was checked and given green light.

All good now.

[motorhead16]

That exact same microfiber towel, but without the VW logo and in a size of 30x30cm is available on Aliexpress for half a dollar. Got it recently and it arrived in the same ziplock bags you have in the photo.