[execve]

This is my first long post on Team-BHP; and I am no great writer but hopefully this thread gives a view about my purchasing experience and ownership so far.

29th of September 2015 is a day I am unlikely to forget -- for a while at least; it was the day that I got my spanking new VW Vento TDI DSG home. It was after many many months of deliberation, sleepless nights and poring over scores of Team-BHP threads.

But now, I am jumping the gun – let’s step back a bit.

My existing car: a 2008 WagonR LXI having run around 65000 kms. A trusted steed that has been serving me very well. Not once did it give up on me during a ride! Somehow felt the need for a refresh - an upgrade; there were a plethora of options available and I was also not fixated on a particular segment - so like many, cross-shopping - across the C2 segment and SUVs. Given that I have my current car for 7+ years; my expectation is also that I keep my new car for 5+ years. I could have started looking at cars in the D1 segment as well - but finally thought that it might be quite stressful to drive a higher value car through the city everyday!

Wifey was very very keen on a larger vehicle - either compact SUV or SUV like; I on the other hand was not too keen due to practicality of it. She was also trying to tell me that this might be my last big upgrade – which I found extremely offensive! My requirements also kept changing though as you would see below ; and this helped narrow the purchase down.

The entire purchase was spread across more than a year! Since there was no compulsion to upgrade, I kept going for those test drives and reading up more and more.

*** Cars that were evaluated:
Innova: This was one of the first that I tried - I found the Innova ridiculously priced, its looks plain ordinary and there was also the taxi look-alike factor. The Toyota sales team had some kind of attitude and did not seem to want to sell - it was more like if you want it, you have to wait for it. Driveability was OK, but nothing that strikes out. The Innova was never high up on my list – just to tick it off!

City: I tried the City out at the nearby Honda showroom – once again appalled by the Honda Sales team attitude – it seemed that they did not want to sell the car at all. I did a test drive of the Petrol manual; car was good to drive, the interiors looked good but for some reason we found it too low to sit in. The city was also the car that I attempted to TD more than once and the second time I wanted to try the CVT; but the sales exec told me that they do not have a TD vehicle for the CVT and I was welcome to try out the manual instead. I just walked out at that point.


XUV: I loved the looks of the XUV - and I had almost selected it. It was extremely drivable; the driver’s seat was like a cockpit with all the "high-tech" gizmos available! I actually liked the previous look better compared to the new XUV5OO. I wanted to confirm that this is the right choice by going for another test drive and that is when I tried my hand at the new XUV500. I found the drivability even better than before - however I found the clutch to be problematic in terms of its position and play. What took me away from the XUV were the many niggles indicated by the owners on Team-BHP as well as the clutch and the fact that this car would be my office drive and with me as the sole occupant.

Now, this was around the time, that I had some very bad experiences on a couple of weeks in a row in bad Bangalore traffic – I was stuck there for 2-2.5 hours on my way back from work. That was when I changed my view that I should look at automatics instead; given that the situation is not going to improve anymore. This was actually one of the main reasons to drop out the XUV5OO from the list.

Verna: The first time I went to the Hyundai showroom, I got probably the worst sales guy there – they didn’t have the car available for the test drive – the safety features were really what made the Verna attractive. The car looks were OK for me – I am not a big fan of the fluidic design. The second time, I went to test drive the diesel automatic – I knew it was a 4 speed but I drove it after experiencing the Vento TDI ; and the Vento DSG was clearly on top.

Ciaz: I liked the way the Ciaz looked – as usual Maruti had come up with not very strong design tones so as not to put anyone off. The drive was OK as well – I felt the under thigh support was a little lesser than I would have liked. What ticked me off was that they were not providing the top-most variant in the automatic. So basically I would have to lose out on the alloys (which really looked nice), leather(ette) seats and the ANV system (now don’t remember all the details – so apologise if I made a mistake here). No cruise control as well. The Ciaz was great from a price point of view, the Maruti dealer was even willing to give an additional 15K discount if I was willing to make an exchange.

Vento: I loved the way the Vento’s timeless design was. Classic and solid looking. I test drove the new Vento – loved the steering wheel, the push-back on kick down. It is difficult to explain but the car somehow struck a chord – which was difficult to beat. The body looked and felt so solid - even when one put a bit of pressure with ones hand against the door and bonnet sheet metal. I knew that it would lose out in terms of gizmos. In all I did three test drives of the Vento (two with the TDI, and one for the TSI – but we will come to that in a bit). The closing of the doors also felt so much more solid than the other cars in the list. I then started discussing the price with the VW dealer – and it was very one sided and short. No discounts except a 7K corporate discount. I am no hard bargainer and I know that – but I play tough a few days – but they didn’t budge at all. This was when I saw the Rapid.

Rapid: I preferred the looks of the Vento to the Rapid; but still went for a test drive of the Rapid due to the fact the VW was not willing to budge at all in terms of the pricing. This was the only car that I did a test drive of without visiting the showroom. The sales exec was extremely enthusiastic and I was also given some discounts to the tune of 40K on the OTR. I didn’t like the ride quality of the Rapid – I have the feeling that the car’s tyre air pressure was way too high – it was a brand new car and I was supposedly the first to test drive it. I also clearly preferred the Vento’s interiors to the Rapids. At the price point of the car, and given that I was going for a company lease option – 40K discount did not make a big difference.

*** The Vento - TDI or the TSI?
Now by this time, I had fixated on the Vento – and now I had the quandary about TDI or TSI. There were couple of excellent threads on the topic:

Here is a thread on the subject started by rockyjee
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/sedans...g-tdi-tsi.html

And then there is also the below ownership thread by ventoman as an example where someone did a transition from TDI to TSI
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...s-tdi-tsi.html

I test drove the Polo GT TSI since the dealer did not have a Vento TSI and was blown away – if one thinks that the TDI is a free running engine, the TSI is even more so and would be even more easier to drive with the DSG. The only concern was the realistic fuel efficiency that could be expected from the TSI in bumper to bumper traffic.

My usage is not very high - ~1000km per month, but I do expect to increase my number of road trips with the wife and kid. Secondly, I do not believe the difference between the petrol and diesel prices is going to close down anytime in India – given the political nature of the topic. I was hoping that the noise of the TDI engine is something that I can adjust to – even though in some threads it is mentioned almost sounding like a tractor!

Given the fuel efficiency of the TSI and the fact that I did not want to be in misery each time I refilled at the petrol bunk – I decided to go ahead with the TDI.

Then there were the DSG concerns – but as most recent owners I could not find any recent examples; and hoped that all the issues were nailed down for good. This was the one part that I knew I was taking a chance with.

By this time I had become so obsessive about the car purchase, that my wife had warned me to stop talking about them! MY 4 year old however shared my enthusiasm – and he started spotting the Volkswagens on the road and reading them to me – V-W V-e-n-t-o ;-).

*** Model and Variant
The Vento Automatic diesel comes with only one engine variant - the TDI 1.5L with the DSG (Direct-shift-gearbox). This comes in two trims - the Comfortine and the Highline. Recently VW has launched the Highline Plus, but that option was not present at the time of my booking or delivery. In addition to few cosmetic changes, the most important additions to the Highline from my point of view were the alloy wheels, leatherette seats, the cruise control, bluetooth connectivity, steering wheel mounted controls and the folding ORVMs. I was interested in all of these, hence selected the Highline.

*** Safety Features
The good thing about VW and the Vento is that there is absolutely no difference in terms of the major safety features across all the trims. The car comes with ABS (Anti-lock Braking system), ESP (Electronic Stability Programme) for the DSG variants, Hill Hold Control for the DSG variants and Dual Front Airbags. I do wish that the Vento would be launched with 6 airbags for example ; that would be one "Highline Plus" variant that I would have been interested in!

*** The leap of faith
I finally then decided to take the leap of faith – and go with the Vento HL TDI DSG. Night Blue was the colour I loved – I also liked the White, but finalised on the NightBlue. VW Whitefield was the dealer I was visiting throughout told me that 4-6 weeks is the timeline that I should be prepared to wait. I also double checked with VW Palace Cross and they told me that realistic timeline for the NightBlue is 2 months. I was willing to wait for the month or so, so decided to continue with VW Whitefield.
Final price breakdown:
Ex-showroom: 12,08,102
Road Tax: 2,27.969 ==> paid by the company since it is a company lease
Handling Charges: 6,900 ==> I could not get them to waive this off
Corporate Discount: 7000

Then the paperwork and the wait begun

• Paid a token booking amount of 5K which would be adjusted later – this was on 23.08.2015
• The long wait – when will it leave the factory. I ensured that I spoke to the sales exec every few days to ask him if something was happening. Apparently, the dealer has no visibility until the car is started to be transported.
• Got the car allotted on the 3rd of September. There was some confusion with the VIN decoding since it was indicated as a 2016 model – apparently VW changes the model in the VIN during Q3 of the year.
• I did a pre-registration inspection of the car in the yard. The sales exec had not got the keys of the car and so could not check the inside – but the car looked amazing. One worry was the goodyear tyres on it, and that was something then that I needed to decide on.
• The dealer then prepared the Form-20 for the registration – and made mistakes few times in terms of the cubic capacity, the chasis number – which really ticked me off.
  

Pictures of the car at the yard - the car was much cleaner than I was prepared for!




*** Insurance
I must make a mention about the Insurance. For my first car (Wagon R), I had gone with the dealer insurance itself. I have read in many blogs and also on team-bhp that taking the insurance yourself has a big benefit. This time since I was taking a company lease, the insurance payment is made by the leasing company -- but I get to choose the needed add-ons. Just to show you the difference.
VW Insurance: 44,947/-
Tata AIG Insurance: 28,821/- (for the Pearl Plan).
Pearl plan includes 0-Depreciation cover, Road Side assistance, Key replacement, Emergency Transport and Hotel expenses and Loss of Personal belongings.
Just looking at the difference one can guage what a big scam the dealer insurance is.

*** Extended warranty & Road Side Assistance
I wondered if I should delay the purchase of the extended warranty until later instead of making the payment right away, but then decided to make the extended warranty and 3rd and 4th year RSA payment at the time of purchase itself. I received the extended warranty certificate around 3 weeks after the delivery. I am yet to receive anything about the extended RSA, so need to still follow up about that. Extended warranty costed me Rs. 17949 and Extra RSA cost me Rs. 3333.

*** Accessories
I was not interested in the standard accessories for the Vento – only the mudflaps and they costed around 1300/-. I tried to find out about the 3D KAGU mats but could not get information whether it accommodated a dead pedal in the Vento. I did not like the mats that VW was offering and so decided to go with the Star 3D mats available via Amazon here. They costed me around Rs. 1900.

*** Tyre upsize or not?
I am no auto expert myself, but relying on the comments and judgement passed by the experts; the Vento comes with tyres one size too skinny for its engine - especially the TDI. It comes with 185/60/R15 tyres. Stock tyres are provided by different manufacturers like Apollo, MRF, JK and Goodyear. The recommended sizes to upsize to were the 205/55R15 or the 195/55R15. The best option if one wanted to upsize was to go to a tyre dealer and swap the tyres out immediately after the delivery to ensure that one got the maximum rate for the stock tyres. Upsizing the tyre to a non-stock size voids the suspension warranty - atleast VW; and this was something that I was not too keen on. I knew that the stock tyres would meet a certain minimum standard and given that I am more or less a sedate driver, one option was to see how the Goodyears' perform. The key point was if I was willing to risk the suspension warranty for just around 10K (the price I was getting for the good years) – and the answer was no. I thought it wasnt worth the additional peace of mind.

Finally delivery was agreed to 29th of September. My sales exec was unwell and so had put another person in place of him for the delivery. I again armed myself with the printout of the PDI checklist and took half a day off from work and reached the showroom at 9:30 AM. I took around 3 hours and there were no problems as such. I had taken my purchased mats with me, and requested the dealer to fit those which they kindly agreed to. The mats fitted very nicely.


Classic picture; notice the fit of the Star 3D mats


The red-I ; I had noticed this the first time in the yard




*** Running in - wats dat saar?
Then I asked the sales exec and the mechanic – what is recommended about running in and they told me nothing is needed – that is the speciality of VW! I didn’t believe that, and made a note to check the manual through later.

What the manual (page 253) recommends:

• Do not depress the accelerator fully
• Do not rev the engine beyond 2/3rd of the max engine speed for the first 1000 km
• From 1000 to 1500 km, gradually increase driving performance to top speed and highest engine speed

Additional running in:

• Brakes take 200-300 kms to run in
• Tyres take 500-600 kms to run in

*** Booking and delivery experience
Overall experience at VW Whitefield was nice. They were courteous, willing to answer all possible questions patiently and also patiently answered when I was following up with them during the wait of the car. I went for three test drives and the sales team was willing and enthusiastic. Booking was very smooth and done via the NEFT ; scanned copies of the receipts were sent. At the time of the delivery I got the originals.

[execve]

*** External styling and design
I love the Vento's styling. I find it a timeless kind of design and both the front and the rear of the car look extremely elegant. I prefer the straight line design compared to for example a fluidic one which is now seen in many cars. The front chrome finished grill also adds a lot of character to the car in my opinion. The chrome exhaust and the double barrel headlamps look so awesome! I must admit though that one car I like more than the Vento in terms of looks is the Jetta Highline with the LED DRLs!


Now - who would not like the styling of this.

*** Build Quality
One word - solid! Love the way the doors close; they open in a three-stage fashion. Have to keep telling the wife and other family members to close the doors gently - the Wagon R always needed a stiff push ; but the Vento needs a very light push. During my PDI in the yard, I had checked for panel gaps and could not find any uneven gaps. The roof is laser welded - and you notice the tight factory fit.


No uneven panel gaps


3-stage door action

*** Driving comfort
The drivers seat has height adjustment, and the steering has both tilt and reach adjustment. Overall there is very good range for the adjustment of the height and the position of the seat as well as the steering reach/tilt. So it is fairly easy to find a reasonably good position to drive at depending on whether you want to be far from the steering or close to it. All controls are very accessible from the drivers seat. The boot open button is on the drivers door and the first time I had a bottle in the door pocket which completely covered the view of that button and I was then searching desperately for it! The arm rest is simply awesome - very soft cushion feel on the top of it and one can also change its angle - the back part of it is fixed. It can accomodate the elbows of both of the front passengers with a little adjustment. The arm rest does creak a bit if one slightly moves ones elbow without lifting it - that is annoying, but it might be that I am nit-picking. This makes be think that the arm rest might be a little weak, but I really hope I am wrong here. I wish there was a bit of padding on the door arm rest as well - that would have taken the comfort to another level altogether.

*** Interiors
I found the interiors styling clean with the grey and beige tones - I am a bit worried how the beige will hold its ground over time. I already see some dark marks on the drivers side door armrest. One does not feel claustrophobic at all and the cabin feels extremely roomy. I suspect that I will need to spend a bit on interior detailing every 6-9 months or so to keep the interiors looking as good as new. The plastics of the buttons and the stalks feel good; however there are some items which I am not so sure if they will sustain for years. Few of these are the 12V charging point cover, the cup holder in the rear. There is good amount of leg room in the back seat ; very good under-thigh support. Though I have not sat in the back seat except when checking the car at the showroom, but feedback so far from others is that it is very comfortable.


Decent leg room in the back - with the drivers seat adjusted for a 6 footer.

The single cup-holder at the back, might not withstand my kid's testing!

*** Entertainment System - RCD320
In tune with the interiors, the music system is a very functional unit. It can play from a variety of sources like CD, Bluetooth, SD card, USB and AUX in. I have used the CD, USB and Bluetooth until now and havent seen any issues. Bluetooth pairing is very straightforward and one can then start using the phone to play music or also take calls. The microphone is towards the central console - so somethimes (only couple of times) the other party doesnt hear you. The voice commands also work well - and I have actually used it well. "Call Amma" works well - thank you Google! The sound quality is decent - it is better than the Sony music system that I had in my Wagon R. I found the bass a little heavy and made some minor adjustments to the Bass / Treble settings - and find it a little better now. The volume can be turned up pretty loud and there is no distortion at sane volumes! I understand that the earlier version had a visual aid when the reverse gear was engaged using the parking sensors, but that was dropped in the RCD320 - I wonder why!

*** Storage
Looks like the people targetted by the peoples car (Volks-wagen) didnt need so any cubby holes. I terribly miss the multitude pockets from my WagonR when I drive the Vento. I was quite surprised that the team-bhp official review indicated that there is a lot of space for storage -- for me the practical space is not much. There is nothing under the steering for example. If you put a big bottle in the door pocket the rest of the door pocket is practically unsable. The rear door pockets do not accept 1L bottles easily. The shelf behind the rear seats is practically useless - due to its incline, with slightly hard braking objects keep sliding onto the rear seat or the laps of the passengers! A stark contrast from my Wagon R where the felt like fabric on the parcel tray would avoid any kind of slippage. I need to find a way to make stuff stay there safely! The boot is huge and will easily handle the airport trips that I struggled with in my Wagon R - my 4 year old son wants to sit inside it! It also has a bulb illuminating it. I havent got a chance to experience it in pitch-dark environments yet.


The huge boot, bottom picture also highlights the boot illumination.

*** NVH
Let's just say that the engine can be heard. Depending on your frame of mind you might find it irritating. I haven't yet found it so, and liken the sound of it at sedate speeds to a purr. With music on like I have most of the time at volume level 6 or 7, there is almost no engine noise during normal driving. There is very slight vibration which can be felt on the pedals but it is quite minor in my view. Since the car is new, I need to observe how this develops over time as I push the engine to higher RPMs and also as the engine ages.

*** The first week
Filled up the tank at my regular bunk and then went to top up the tyre air pressure. Let's say there was no air filled - only removed. The tyres were filled at a ridiculous pressure of something like 45 or so ; and this is despite me explicitly telling the dealer to ensure that the tyre pressure is checked. I filled this to a value of 33 psi and will fine tune based on my experience.

I took the car for a run on NICE road during the weekend and the road was almost empty in the afternoon. The ride was awesome – before I knew it, I was hitting 100 – 120 and then had to remind myself to be patient – the engine was just ticking at around 1200-1500 RPM in seventh gear which kicks in around 80 kmph.

During the first week, I also had my first shocker. It was pouring in the evening in Bangalore and I was stuck in the Bangalore bumper to bumper traffic. After around 1 hour in the very heavy rain, I realize that there is an occasional drop of water that I can feel coming inside on the drivers side. I push the beading from the inside of the door with my fingers – and I get a few drops at the finger tips. It is not much, but clearly there is a problem. I get really worried about this since never once have I seen this kind of issue even on my 7+ year Wagon R. I raise it up to my sales exec who first says that please bring it to the showroom in the morning. I checked on team-bhp and see one case discussed in the Vento test drive thread where it was mentioned that it was a problem due to door alignment. When I set off in the morning, he says that they might be very busy with appointments, but then I anyway discuss and get a window. Park my car, have a chat with the Customer Relations manager and she somehow gets a technician to take a look – he comes to my car – takes a look and says its an alignment problem, adjusts some screws knocks the internal door clamp with a hammer – adjusts some screws again. He does this for the drivers door and the rear left door. I have no idea if this is the best way to do this, but he told me that it is now fixed and not to worry. The only way I can find out now is if it rains heavily again and I am in the car for an hour or so.

*** DSG Feedback
Basically just slot to D mode, and lift your leg off the brakes - and the car will start creeping. If you do not press the brake, the speed gradually increases to something like 10 kmph. I have been mostly driving in D mode - have just tried the manual once, and now recently tried the sport mode a couple of times.

The manual mode does not allow one to upshift to a higher gear unless once crosses a minimum RPM level. This is even for lower gears; whereas when the DSG is in Drive mode, it moves very fast to D2. D1 is only used when one is starting or just about to stop.

Gear shifts are lightning fast, and one typically does not notice them.

I have not done a full kick-down but with a heavier press of the accelerator there is a lag of fraction of a second - maybe 0.5 to 0.75 seconds. It seems a bit lesser in the sport mode where the engine is always tried to be kept on a boil ever ready to leap ahead.
About the DSG care, since I am regularly in bumper to bumper traffic, I shift to Neutral when I stop for a more than a ten seconds or so. I know that some will say that this is an automatic and doing this shifting defeats the purpose, but I think I need to do my bit to de-risk any issues coming up with the DSG.
The DSG is “smart” – I don’t know if other automatic technologies do it, but the DSG always keeps the engine in the correct power band – for e.g., if I am on an incline and accelerating, it avoids up-shifting even though in a flat road it would have shifted to the next gear. One can also feel the engine braking in the lower gears at least.

The jerks from D3 to D2 exist, but they don’t bother me since they seem like a normal engine adjustment to a lower gear. Once or twice I have noticed that they become a bit more pronounced especially after very long time in bumper to bumper traffic (1-1.5 hours) and also I noticed the engine is more sluggish / loud – but I am not 100% sure about it.

Also on the ramp descent to my basement for parking, it doesn’t upshift to a higher gear if you do not accelerate beyond a point.

These were things that I was worried about in terms of real-world performance, but I haven’t found any issues so far.

One warning about the Vento DSG. If you are stopping the car and putting on the hand brake you should move the DSG to P or at least N. If you make a mistake and continue keeping it in D, I accidentally found that the engine tried to add more power to overcome the handbrake and the finally the car starts inching a bit ahead. It clearly is a mistake on the drivers side, but the consequence could also be dangerous to just rely on the hand brake. This kind of mistake is more likely to happen when one is coming from a manual transmission background.

*** Braking
The brakes feel very very solid – I know that 4 disc brakes would have been sweet – but I know from experience that they work well. I had an incident in the first few days after delivery where a tempo cut across the road without giving a signal and I had to perform emergency braking – I had a shock since the car was just a few days old and I knew the braking performance would not be at its best, but it stopped giving good confidence. The pedal is not spongy and there is good feedback from it - it feels firm. I started disliking the Wagon R brake pedal after using the Vento for a few days - it started to feel a bit spongy and wouldnt give good feedback.

*** Ground Clearance
I have had one touch to a speedbreaker (or should I say car braker!) in my first week of driving. Earlier when it was just me, the wife and kid over the same spot - there were no problems. But when I added my in-laws and dropped the kid - the car kissed the speedbraker. I could not see any damage done - but there was definitely a kiss. I suspect that this is something that one needs to watch out for with the Vento especially when the car is loaded. For normal sized breakers there is no issue - it is the unscientific ones which we have a plethora of in Bangalore that are likely to cause a problem.

*** Engine performance
The engine seems to be like another entity within the car - it seems alive. Clearly it shines on longer drives with inviting open roads - and I perfer to be in just environments with the car. In the city it performs well - except when in bumper to bumper traffic where I find that very slight diesel lag while starting out in creep mode. One of the best things I love is if one gently depresses the accelerator and then you slowly see the gears moving upwards every few seconds, the speed creeping up and the engine RPM is still less than 1500 RPM. Even before you know it you could be at 80 kmph!

I love having passengers in the car and then pressing the accelerator a little more and getting that kind of milder pushback to the seats - and more than once I have heard - wow or woah... it just brings a grin to my face!

I have not found the engine itself wanting in any respect. Of course, I believe that I can pass a better judgement after 6 months of ownership with a few long trips under my belt.


The heart of the matter.

*** Headlights
I havent yet taken the car out for a highway ride during the night - and I strictly do not use high beam in the city and also avoid it in the highway unless necessary. Most of my long trips are during the day time. In the city itself though, I found the headlights lacking - this was mainly in terms of intensity but also in terms of the spread. There is also one small part closer to the car which has some kind of shadow / lesser amount of light falling on it. I have seen discussions revolving around upgrading the bulbs and even moving to projectors; but I am holding onto the stock lights for now until I also have some more experience with this.

*** Suspension / Ride quality / Handling
The suspension is firm - very small potholes or slightly uneven surfaces can be taken at higher speeds without any jarring. However, one needs to be very cautious about the bigger potholes and they need to be taken at lower speeds. The Vento review and ownership threads mention about the classic "thud" sound while going over a pothole / speed breaker - but I have not experienced it yet. Overall wife is also pleased with the ride quality on the back seat.

The car handles very well. As said before, I am a sedate driver; but the car inspires me to take a turn or corner more aggressively than I would normally do. There is almost no body roll and the car feels very secure.

*** Air conditioning
The air conditioning works well in Bangalore - but I think it would struggle in a Mumbai/Chennai/Delhi. It takes a bit to get started - so it helps if one turns it down to the lowest setting (marked LO) for a few minutes -- where the air conditioning is maxed out and then set it to the desired temperature. Overall the climatronic air conditioning works very well - once can see how the blower speed is increasing as the cabin temperature goes up a bit due to harsher sunlight for example. I expected the blower to be a bit more silent than it currently is - with the blower at its default setting of 2, one can hear it quite distinctly. The good thing is that all AC vents except the one for the rear seat have volume control -- which means that one can turn off the vents that are not in use thereby increasing the effectiveness of the others that are. I have read reviews and experiences that the AC vents are very delicate - and break off! To the touch of the hand, they seem normal, but this is also one item to monitor.

*** Starting up
After a cold start, the engine feels quite sluggish until it reaches the operating temperature of 90 deg C. It takes almost 2 km or more of driving to get there – the VW manual recommends that one start driving normally instead of idling the car and wasting fuel. I also noticed that the engine warms up faster when one is driving instead of idling while parked.

*** Fuel Efficiency
On my first tankful I got an average fuel efficiency of 12.78 kmpl. I just crossed 1000 kms recently and with the second tank, I got 13.05 kmpl for an overall average of 12.91. I believe this number will increase in the coming weeks and I already see that with an open road the MID even indicates the "real time" FE as 17.x kmpl! So, thumbs up and a good decision to stick with the TDI!

*** The VW emissions scandal
The VW emissions scandal came up just before I took delivery of my car - given that I really loved the car and the fact that there was no other option or a car that struck that chord, I was clearly not going back to square one. I hoped that the problem would diffuse itself. By the time I took the delivery the charges were very serious and they are getting more and more day by day. I dont know how VW gets out of it and how it impacts me as a customer. I am trying to keep that aside and enjoy the car -- since otherwise it is a rock solid machine and something that I am very proud of. Let's see how this looks when the dust settles by end of the year or 1Q 2016.

[execve]

*** It's a wrap; thats all folks!
Now I try to wrap this post up.

Currently I have done 1000+ kms in around 3 weeks, and finally now I can start pushing the engine a bit more and more above 2500/3000 RPM.

*** What I love about the car:

• The ride - feels so planted and solid. Very little body roll and one feels very confident while driving the car. The car encourages me to take corners more aggressively (albeit safely)
• The steering: feels so solid to hold. It also feels weighted well. I understood from other reviews that at very high speeds it feels light, but I do not have any feedback about that at this point of time ; and most likely I wouldn't even know
• The new car smell – wow; I just love it.
• Wipers – slow speed has multiple speed settings and that helps when the rain is just a drizzle.
• The MID – beautiful white colour ; so readable ; it looks even better at night
• When the car is stopped and one has the brake depressed, after a fraction of a second or so the engine RPM is reduced by around 50-100 – might be a measure to improve the fuel economy. I might post a video of this later -- I like this so much.
• The pushback to the seat on even slight pressure to the accelerator. D3 is when the experience really starts changing.
• Controls / Buttons of the AC – excellent soft touch buttons ; feel like very good quality
• Build quality - thud / thud / thud - the doors go.
• Love the way the cabin lights slowly come on when the car is unlocked - as if the car is waiting for you.

*** What I don’t like:

• Service position of the wiper – my car cleaner nicely tried to pull the wiper and gave the inside of the bonnet a scratch. I am sure almost 50% of VW cars would have this.
• There is very slight pull of the steering to the right - I think I need to get the wheel alignment checked.
• RCD 320 – the entertainment system – very basic, but functional. There isn’t anything very specific, but the interface does seem very premature. Some of the icons like repeat album etc. are not very intuitive and I havent got the motivation to read the RCD320 manual yet!
• Cubby holes – hardly any. The ones that are there - I dont think I can use easily without having things flying around. I know I am comparing this with the Wagon R, but hey – I think a few more in the nooks and corners would help.
• Rear vents do not have volume control
• Thin roof – really felt this the first time the Vento was in heavy rain. I don’t know if others have experienced this as well, but it is extremely noisy
• Hand brake position - pathetic ergonomic design
• AC seems a little weak -- I believe I can survive in Bangalore, but wonder if it would be effective enough in places like Mumbai, Delhi or Chennai.
• Around 100 kmph, one can hear the sound of the air flow near the A-pillar. Given that I am a sedate driver this isn't a big issue for me, but I noticed this one and it is a mild irritant
• Mirror visibility - both ORVMs and IRVM are small and do not cover the area that they should. The good thing is that during reversing, one can rely on the parking sensors which do an exellent job with the audio feedback. I always suspected how useful they would be, but after using it a few days - it becomes second nature.
• Why the MID doesnt have a better TRIP2 meter - having a logic of resetting the counter after 19.99 hours is something I just cannot understand.
• I should also mention that the wife was not at all happy about the transmission tunnel at the back seat, and that was reason enough to almost take the Vento out of the running, it took a lot of coaxing and convincing to get it back to the top.
• The scare I had with the rain droplets seen after exposure to heavy rain -- not expected out of a new car.

I thank you very much if you have read so far, and leave you with a few more shots.


The night view from the driver's seat - there is some ambient light though.

Drivers side window buttons; all are one-touch up

The headlamp / foglamp rotary switch - takes a bit of getting used to if one hasnt driven cars having this.

The music system; here my phone is paired

Excellent firm touch buttons below the AC display - I love the feel of these

Beautiful MID display - the picture doesn't do justice to the clarity. Don't ask me about the fuel economy - was stuck in a huge traffic jam.

Backlit steering mounted controls


The DSG with backlit gear display - these are on even during the day unlike the other backlights


My favourite shot of the car!

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the Initial Ownership Section. Thanks for sharing!

[Vik0728]

Originally Posted by execve

[b]

Currently I have done 1000+ kms in around 3 weeks, and finally now I can start pushing the engine a bit more and more above 2500/3000 RPM.

Congrats execve on your latest acquisition and is one of my favourite shades on Indian cars

I can really comprehend the overwhelming feel of quality/fit/finish/engineering that you have started experiencing, coming from Maruti. But I am quite sure you will feel right at home very soon and probably may not like sitting in Maruti/Tata cars going forward

Wish you a happy motoring and many mile munching.

[trek]

Congratulations on the beautiful new purchase! The facelift has added just the required amount of extra elegance to the already classic design.

I'd pick this up any day over the tin can City and the bland Ciaz.

Good luck and wishing you a great ownership experience.

[aneezan]

Congratulations on the new Vento. I would pick a Vento any day over the Rapid as well. And I know how it feels coming from a Maruti.
Happy motoring.

[avira_tk]

Congratulation on getting a DSG, its good that you went with diesel. If you average around 1000km a month on a Wagon R, you'll be doing a lot more on the Vento. The highway network is improving,and the driving will be more convenient and economical for families when compared with bus fares. Get stick on shades, it improves the AC performance especially if you are headed to hotter and more humid places from Bangalore.

[GKMahajan]

Rated 5 star.
You seem to have done the right thing.

For me, I had this on top of my list, seconded by my wife too! (Luckily!)
However, due to various reasons (will require a full thread - so not putting those here) we have gone in for a Honda Jazz V-CVT. It is already at the dealer, and I should get it in the next few days.

But, the interesting part is that I have two cars and I am confident that having one manual and one automatic is going to be problematic. So, replacing the other car - we are still evaluating! AND - the Vento DSG Highline is still a contender.

Your beautiful analysis of a user is very confidence building. Thanks once more.
I am sure many fence sitters will be influenced by your experience.

Thanking you once more,

Girish Mahajan

[Srikanthan]

Congratulation on your new toy and welcome to VW world. The emission scandal did break the faith, but the fun of driving a torquey VW is what keeps people stick to them.

Two departments need immediate attention from VW:

1. The A/C. I drive in Chennai and now you can figure-out why I complain!
2. The headlights. They ARE POOR!

Once again, Best Wishes for happy and safe driving.

[ambivalent_98]

Drive safe buddy. You have a gem of a car Vento TDI.
I have enjoyed an older gen manual TDI and still continue to be amazed by it even after 70k kms and 4 years.

[AR123]

Blue looks amazing on the Vento. I also have an older manual TDI and that torque continues to put a smile across my face every time I floor the throttle. The DSG should make it even more fun to drive.

The understated neat quality and finish should be leagues apart from Japs and Koreans and you should feel a jump in build quality from your Wagon R.

Wish you many happy miles! Drive safe.

[anandkumargb]

Conngrats on the purchase!
A month back I was in the market for an automatic sedan. Loved the new Vento TDI DSG but backed out due to 14.7 lakhs price however the older version TDI DSG highline was available for 13.7 lakhs but only in white color. Went with my check book to book the Rapid DSG TDI Ambition plus which was around 12.5 lakhs, sales guy said the toffee brown isn't available and next month the face lift will come. Returned home thinking about the facelift. Just for the heck of it test drove the city CVT, was floored by all the gizmos like paddle shifters and sun roof, bought it :-)

City CVT is for sedate drivers, no match for the DSG TSI or the TDI.

Things that I think Vento TDI DSG scores over City CVT is 1) Fast performance 2) Superior ride quality 3) I get 8.5 -10 kmpl in city

Things that I think City CVT scores over Vento TDI DSG are- 1) paddle shifters 2) Sunroof 3) Reliable transmission 4) Space at the rear.

Happy Motoring!
Literally, Keep revving!!! :-)

[Rajeevraj]

Congrats and wish you all the very best. It is a great car and the dsg is brilliant and ensures that you never feel any constraint of an AT in any kind of Indian traffic condition
Love the color too.

[execve]

Originally Posted by avira_tk

Congratulation on getting a DSG, its good that you went with diesel. If you average around 1000km a month on a Wagon R, you'll be doing a lot more on the Vento. The highway network is improving,and the driving will be more convenient and economical for families when compared with bus fares. Get stick on shades, it improves the AC performance especially if you are headed to hotter and more humid places from Bangalore.

Thanks to all for the wishes! Yes, I am enjoying the car thorougly so far!!! Waiting to take her out for a longish drive.

Yes, I have also been considering shades for the rear windows. Do you know of a good set which could be purchased ? I briefly checked online but could not find a good one.