[varunraizada]

Buying a new car is always super exciting. Right from the first “family car” – The Maruti Zen in 2000 to the Chevy Beat (2011) and the Chevy Enjoy (2013) (My family has grown you know ), the entire process has been pleasurable.

It was time for an upgrade for the Beat! And as usual, I chose December to close my deal where I can get in the best deals for the car

With a budget of about 7L, I had a few options to look at

Purpose and Usage Patterns

We use the car quite sparingly. I have started driving to work now so it would mean around 35kms per day and a trip of around 400 kms on an average per month, so given the sparing use, I shortlisted only Petrol versions.

Test Drive Day

Hyundai Elite i20
The car was Feature rich, had the oomph factor, but really not fun to drive. I liked how my Beat behaved in comparison with the i20. I think, my expectations were much higher from the Car of the year !

What you will like
Features – Huge list !!
Space and practicality
Super styling

What you won’t
The ride quality at higher speeds
The plastic quality (when compared to Polo / Jazz)

Honda Jazz

I had left home thinking of zeroing in on this, and surely loved the machine, but my budget allowed nothing but the basic version which was really not as appealing as any other car I checked

What you will like
The engine
The space
The practicality of the interiors – Huge boot and so much space inside

What you won’t
Quite expensive
ZERO discounts
Somewhere the interiors looked compromised in terms of the quality. The shiny stuff really did not appeal to me.

Volkswagen Polo (Petrol – Manual)

I stepped in, closed the door and the thud it made really raised my eyebrows!! The interiors were unmatched – Simple and top quality – Limited feature list but everything it had showed no signs of any cost cutting. The drive – The 3 cylinder petrol sounded and felt sluggish off the blocks, but I think I was already in love.

What you will like
The Build quality
Zero Cost Cutting
The safety features
The german DNA of the car where the driver is made to feel most special
The engine sound at high revs.
Stability and confidence at high speeds
The looks are just wow
The flat bottom steering wheel

What you will not like
The space in the rear seat – Can seat only 4 in the car
3 cylinder engine – Sluggish off the block


And as you would have already guessed, I went in for the Polo.

Reasons for choosing the Polo
For lack of a word, The "FEEL" was just mind blowing – With all the negatives of limited features, less space, sluggish feel taking off, the engine and car has a poise about it that no other car in the segment could offer to me. The solid build, plush and high quality interiors and majestic road presence were just too much for anyone to come close.

The variant
A mid version (Comfortline) sounded the best, but I went in for the highline due to 2 main features 1) The steering mounted controls which would have been really difficult to install aftermarket and 2) alloy wheels. But if you look at it, it was more of an emotional and a “feel good” decision to go in for the highline – I convinced myself to spend that extra 55k for a cool glove compartment, cruise control, alloy wheels, Bluetooth, steering mounted controls, rear parking sensors, speed sensing auto door locks, automatic climate control, cornering head lamps.

The Negotiations
It was time for some number talking with the dealer. I went to Automark Motors Pvt. Ltd. (Volkswagen Mumbai West) and it was an awesomely amazing experience. The front desk was extremely welcoming and The Sales Consultant (as they call themselves) was extremely fresh, knowledgeable and warm in his dealings with me.

On road price for the Highline Petrol is 7.8L
The immediate discount was 45k
I squeezed another 20k by investing 1.5 hours with a cheque book in my hand.
Then I asked for another 10k as I would exchange my Beat against the car. I got a good price for my Beat through the dealership – Almost 60% more than what the Hyundai dealership offered me !

And the final squeeze was a 5k discount on the 2 year extended warranty. (The listed cost for this is 11k)

So an 80k discount got me to an on road price of 7.00L with a Mumbai registration.

A big negative for the Indian market is the non availability of any service packages. All services are paid, but VW recommends each service only after 15000 kms or 1 year

[varunraizada]

The Pre Registration Inspection

Thanks to my recent addiction to Team BHP forums, this is my first car for which I did a complete PDI to my satisfaction. Almost spent about 45 mins checked the exteriors, every internal feature, seats, lights, tyres. I had taken along a friend as I was too emotional at this stage

Delivery

Delivery Date – 8th January 2016

So finally I had to get it home – The experience at Volkswagen Mumbai West (Automark Motors) was an awesome one to say the least. I had read at many places that the negative of buying a VW is bearing up with the high nosed sales people, but I beg to differ at least during the sales bit right upto delivery.

Here's my experience
1) The entire kit with the user / service manual, invoice, etc was handed over and explained in detail
2) The customer care rep introduced us to the service head in the service center through phone and provided all the contact details through SMS
3) It was time to move to the car - It was covered with a blue cover just like a gift.
4) Wow we were asked to open up the gift and once unveiled, there was the red beauty !
5) We took a "parikrama" around the car & the standard ceremony of breaking the coconut
6) The 3 cylinders of the engine got the missionary "teeka" of sindoor and the bonnet wore a lovely garland
7) Every staff member was out clapping for us and congratulating us - What a lovely feeling
8) It was time for a demo - Every single aspect of the car and the service schedule was explained through a practical demonstration in the most professional manner
9) It was now time for some sweets - Every staff member was given chocolates by me
10) I also gave the sales consultant who helped me through the entire process a gift and I can't tell you how happy he was

Suggestion: Do hand over a gift to the sales person - You will make his day (or a few days) and why not, he has helped you with your priced possession

I also inquired about the running in of the engine and the guy said "It's a Volkswagen sir.. It has already been run in at the factory. Just go and enjoy the ride without worrying about the running in". (I am still taking it easy though and not pushing beyond 3k - 3.5k rpm yet - The ODO reads 800km)

The First feel of the new engine and first reactions

On cranking up the engine, it makes some noise and the start feels unrefined. As soon as it starts idling at 800 rpm, the engine and car seems so much at ease
The ODO read 12kms when I engaged 1st Gear and got it off the blocks.

The pick up was average to say the least and then 2nd gear even more disappointing at about 1200 rpm. On moving to 2000 rpm, things seemed so much better.

Well the first 30km to Bandra and back did not allow me to test anything in the engine including the 3rd gear. But this gave me enough time to make me comfortable with the music system, the gadgets on the steering wheel, the climate control, the lights, the various details in the dial



The experience thus far

Exteriors

The most beautifully designed car I have owned yet. I loved the design of the Beat as well, but this beauty is something else! The sparkling red makes it even better to drool over. Touch it, and you know where your money has gone in. SOLID and strong the exterior gives a sense of power.

Few pics from all around

You'll love to see this in your rear view mirror. The chrome on the grill and also on the bumper is just so smooth and enhances the look from the front.



Back - I'll love to see this car even from the back. So well balanced in the looks



The sides





The solo Polo - The Volkswagen text has been done away with and I like it that way - The back looks more clean



Headlamps – The smoked dual barrel headlamps look mean and awesome. The throw of light is acceptable for me – Read a few reviews on the GT where projectors were suggested, but I do not feel the need





These cornering lamps (below) at the side of the fog lamps get switched on when
1) The Indicator comes on
2) When the reverse gear is engaged.
Lights up the sides quite well and they are quite useful when the car is parked in a dark area / taking a sharp turn when it's dark, but something that has only limited use so a fancy feature for me



The lovely tweak to the VW badge to open up the boot is “wow”.

A negative here is that there is no button to open up the boot from the inside - It is irritating when the security guard at that hotel does keeps knocking at the window waiting for you to open up.
I think VW should have that option built in as well.



The rear sensors are nicely integrated into the bumper – Does not seem to be intruding at all.



The road clearance seems just fine with every speed breaker comfortably handled so far.
Alloy wheels add so much more to the already amazing looking beauty. MRF tyres on this and they seem to be doing well enough so far.



Interiors

The doors open upto 90 degrees with 3 stops at 30, 60 and 90 degrees. As solid a feeling you can get.

But doors need to be closed with more effort than lots of other cars. It takes some time to get used to, till then, we needed to close the door twice to have it firmly in place

Audio and Speakers

I'm still figuring out the company whose system has been fitted by Volkswagen, but going by what the dealership told me, the console and the speakers are all Blaupunkt (Always my personal favourite).

The audio is brilliant. The 4 speakers on each door ensure sharp and powerful sound. The Bass is brilliant with superb treble reproduction even at ZERO equalizer settings.

You can change the settings as per your liking. A big plus this.

The steering – Flat Bottomed – As close as it can get to my super car dream. The steering is extremely light which is against my liking, but superb response. The leather wrapping and piano finish adds to the luxury factor of the Highline. The feel of the steering wheel changes with the leather wrapping especially the one that is factory fitted feels even more special

The mounted controls help with
1) Switching between the functions in the dash board
2) Changing the track / searching for the next frequency. Surprisingly, you cannot switch between pre saved channels (Or may be I have not discovered how to)
3) There is a mute button
4) Receive calls

The audio controls are basic. To switch between folders, I need to go back to the console. The voice command has a 50% accuracy rate so I don’t really know the dependency on the feature. While on call through Bluetooth, the rear passengers are also well audible – A lovely experience



The rear leg room is miniscule and to add to the woes, the transmission tunnel is extremely high and intrusive at the back. So I would take my Chevy Enjoy for even a 5 people outing.





The Climate Control works beautifully and may be is the wrong time to comment on the AC as Mumbai is experiencing a nice and pleasant winter



The boot – Can house that big bag along with 2 more small ones. I don’t need to keep anything in that rear seat anymore. One of the most practical boot in the options I had considered. Had the boot test yesterday where we housed a big (large sized) bag, a cabin bag, 3 backpacks. I think it passed the boot test.

Had the boot test yesterday where we housed a big (large sized) bag, a cabin bag, 3 backpacks. I think it passed the boot test. And yeah raised eyebrows to see the boot gobble up so much


Engine

Getting under the hood, the 3 cylinder engine almost plays spoilt sport when you first feel it. Although it is beautifully refined and still feels amazing to get going post around 2000rpm. I love the sound it makes when revved to 3000 rpm – It’s sound and not noise here

The second gear is the most sluggish one. The engine cannot handle that speed breaker in 2nd gear. We need to shift to 1st to tackle that bump. 2nd gear hates low rpm and it sometimes is quite irritating in the city traffic
As soon as we shift to 3rd gear though, things change dramatically. The engine seems like a completely different one and starts responding beautifully.

On paper the power is 74bhp with 115Nm of torque. Let me tell you, it feels like MUCH more than those numbers showcase.

The clutch is a long throw clutch. Post driving this, driving any other car takes some doing as the clutch throw is almost half.

Ride Quality and Cabin Noise

I can already start feeling those doors making those famous VW squeaks everyone in Team BHP has written so much about. I want to do the DIY, but am scared to touch the new thing!
The NVH engine noise insulation could have been much better than it is, but I somehow like the sound this engine makes, so don’t mind it at all. Can’t hear too much of the road or other external sounds – It does not trouble / irritate me sitting in the cabin.

Suspension

I'm not sure if it is because of the alloy wheels or the suspensions, but when going through big pot holes, there is an irritating thud that enters the cabin.
Pot holes irritate the Polo and it ensures you know about it.

Apart from the sound, handling of the pot holes in terms of smoothness is acceptable but I expected better from such a well built car.

So suspensions are a negative for me.

The cruise control is quite accurate and a lovely feeling. VW have put in a "smallish" foot pedal for THIS !! On Mumbai highways though, it was a scary few minutes of cruise control with my right leg ready to hit the break as soon as some freak interrupts

Through the two buttons on the left (in the picture below), you can increase / decrease the cruise control speed while it is active !



Handling & Fuel Consumption

This thing is unbelievably stable even at 120kmph @ around 3200 rpm @ 5th gear (have not pushed it further yet). The gushes of wind on the sea link are not felt at all – Which I have felt even on the City. Handling the light steering is a cake walk and maneuvering the car into spaces is quite simple.

The fuel consumption has been 12.5 to 13 in bad traffic conditions and on a Sunday morning a 30 km drive gave me a fuel economy of 16. The dash showed a figure of 18.9 kmpl when I was driving on the highway (Yes you read it right ! 18.9 !!) – Still to take it on that long drive yet

Looks
Well, from a photographers perspective, this thing can keep you busy for as long as you want and you may not have to go to the egoistic models at least for a while – Few pics attached















What I’m happy about
1) The FEEL of being in the car and also when I’m out of it due to the design and lovely looks
2) The build quality
3) The grip and handling of the car
4) The stability at high speeds
5) The German DNA – Making the driver feel special

I’m not happy about
1) The squeaks already coming through
2) 2nd gear vulnerability of the engine
3) Rear passenger space
4) No free Service – Every service is paid
5) Wipers need to be at the Service position – My car wash guy may just accidentally damage the bonnet
6) 3 cylinder and sluggish pick up

[GTO]

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

[Vik0728]

Originally Posted by varunraizada

So finally I had to get it home...

Congrats varunraizada on your latest acquisition and it looks haute' !!

It has got nothing to do with the reason that I own one, but IMO VW Polo is second to only the Elite I20 as far as the looks go:

SIMPLE, SUBTLE...yet SMOKING HOT

A negative here is that there is no button to open up the boot from the inside - It is irritating when the security guard at that hotel does keeps knocking at the window waiting for you to open up.
I think VW should have that option built in as well.

My previous car was a Hyundai Getz and this also had a similar Lock/Unlock system, except for an additional 'Key Hole' to manually unlock the boot. But honestly, that key hole almost looked like an after-thought and would spoil the looks of an otherwise lovely rear.

I personally like the fact that VW did not go in for this and all one has to do is press the 'Unlock' button on the interior driver door grab handle to unlock the doors/boot.

I am very sure you will start liking this sooner than later.

Wish you a very happy motoring and drive safe.

[DevSoms]

Congrats on the new car. What a a beauty she is.

This car and colour is my personal favorite as well. Although i am in love with the GT TSI

Wishing you many miles of happy and safe driving.

Wanted to check with you, did you check if there are any discounts or offers on the GT TSI when you booked your car?

[varunraizada]

Originally Posted by Vik0728

It has got nothing to do with the reason that I own one, but IMO VW Polo is second to only the Elite I20 as far as the looks go:

SIMPLE, SUBTLE...yet SMOKING HOT

Ask yourself deep down, you'll realize that it's emotions (of owning one) that are talking

I personally like the fact that VW did not go in for this and all one has to do is press the 'Unlock' button on the interior driver door grab handle to unlock the doors/boot.

I am very sure you will start liking this sooner than later.

Keyhole no way, but something similar to the Ford's button at the inside which opens up the boot making it idiot proof for the not so knowledgeable. Personally, I love the mechanism.

There's some class about how the click and the opening feels which I have not seen in the VFM cars I have bought thus far

Originally Posted by DevSoms

Wanted to check with you, did you check if there are any discounts or offers on the GT TSI when you booked your car?

Thanks Dev !

The GT twins without discount were 10.5L and the stock discount was 20k as compared to 45k for the Highline petrol.

Surely would have got some more had I pushed, but they still remain a distant dream with a 7L budget.

They are something else to drive. Awesome and amazing. I prefer the manual (TDI) to the Auto (TSI) though. Both are at the same price point.

[DevSoms]

Originally Posted by varunraizada

Thanks Dev !

The GT twins without discount were 10.5L and the stock discount was 20k as compared to 45k for the Highline petrol.

Surely would have got some more had I pushed, but they still remain a distant dream with a 7L budget.

They are something else to drive. Awesome and amazing. I prefer the manual (TDI) to the Auto (TSI) though. Both are at the same price point.

Thanks for this Varun. I loved both of them actually. However the comfort of the automatic for Bombay driving conditions makes me lean towards the TSI. Also atleast you had the 7 lac budget. I have been dreaming about the TSI with zero budget. Mustering up some funds to make it happen.