[iIncepted]

Hello,

Allow me to take you through my journey of car buying experience


Part I: The Idea
Well, it was another day as we were nearing to end of August when during dinner my dad out of nowhere suggested that I should look for a new car. This was so random that it seemed unreal. Moreover we had purchased a new Corolla Altis in Oct'09, so idea for another car seemed to be too soon. But if you consider the fact that our Accent is now 10yrs old and Santro Xing 7yrs, new car didnt seem so bad. Then again why would it? So after a brief and casual discussion with my dad, his idea was to buy a new car to replace Accent. When I asked him about the budget, he suggested to go for a decent car which will serve us well. There and then only I had an idea that we would be looking somewhere around 10L and I was right.

Part II: The Search
To be honest, I was nowhere involved till now in our previous car buying decision due to several reasons.
1) Altis: Was in UK, suggested my bro should look for one.
2) Santro Xing: Mom liked it alot, it was recently launched, no other alternatives on the list.
3) Accent: Was too small to make any suggestions.
So this was my first time and my dad gave me complete power to make the decision. He even said that I don't need to consult him and go ahead with whatever I choose.
So I started by saying to myself "A sedan will only be replaced by a sedan". I was kind of familiar with all the respective car dealers, so I first decided to call up some friends to get their suggestions and inputs. As I was expecting, I was pulled in all the different directions with criticisms and appreciations on different brands. This was the time I decided to use the aid of google to help me and thats how I found team-bhp and started reading a lot of interesting posts. From collecting valuable information here and suggestions made by friends, I narrowed my choices to Honda City, Maruti SX4, Fiat Linea, Ford Ikon & VW Vento. I outright rejected Swift Dzire because I did not like the looks at all.

Part III: Narrowing it down
After a bit research and TD's I finally narrowed down my choices to these three
Honda City: Many of my friends have it, so I had exchanged the car with one of my friends for a day. The car was truly awesome. I really liked the silent engine and smooth ride. Moreover I was told that Honda service in Nagpur is truly awesome. I had my heart set on the car but it got rejected.

Why did I rule this out?
Well to be honest, I was very much interested in this car but my brother who was in Mumbai during that time said that he was least interested in driving a Honda City. He went so far saying that if I buy ANHC he will never drive that car. I tried to reason with him which gave no result. He said he was ok with me buying any other car except Honda City.

Maruti SX4: I told one of my friends that I would like to have a look at SX4. He said he got contacts with one of the Maruti Dealers in Nagpur and he will ring them up. After half an hour, I got a call from a very friendly sales man who explained everything about the car. After 15minutes of Q&A's he asked when would I like to have a TD. I told him that since my mom is not in town right now, he would have to wait for another week. The sales guy offered that he can send the car again for my mom to see which I politely refused. So moving forward a week, during work I get a call at about 11:00am from the same sales guy asking whether my mom have arrived so he could send the car. I made a request for 2:00 PM and rang up my mom asking her to be at home. Right at 2:00 PM the car arrived, turns out the person I was talking to on the phone was sales manager and he had sent one of his sales guy to show the car. The salesman who came was even friendlier than the manager. As soon as we sat inside the car, he started explaining different things. The guy was very well trained and knew his stuff. I was really impressed by the car performance and the salesman's knowledge.
Why did I rule this out?
I ruled out SX4 only because I changed my decision to go for a Diesel car and not a petrol one. The car was awesome and Maruti's reliability and after sales service was a tough one to let this go.

VW Vento: Oh yeah, I booked this.

Part IV: VW Vento
Well, while I was in UK one of my office colleague had VW Golf. Always riding in his car and hearing from him that how easy it is to maintain, I had decided that if VW Golf would launched in India, I would buy it. So when I read GTO's review on VW Vento and heard praises from one of my friends, I seriously considered going for VW brand. As Vento fitted perfectly under my budget I rang up the dealer on 5th Sept to know the details. From there it started my experience with the VW delaer.
I was put on hold for like 4mins and when I decided to hang up and ring back I heard a voice.
Sales Guy: Yes sir, what would you like to know about the car?
Me: Obviously the details, models and stuff.
From there he started reading his boring script.
Me: OK, can you send the car for TD at my home tomorrow?
Sales Guy: Sorry sir, no car is available for TD yet. Not even in showroom. We will call you when we open TD's, but we wont be able to send the car inside the city until end of the month.
So I gave him my number and waited for him to call. More than a week passed by and he didn't bother calling back. I called him on 14th Sept again and some different guy picked up and confirmed that TD is available now, but I have to come to the showroom. Called one of my friend and took half day off from the office and went to TD my possible future car. We were warmly greeted and were immediately handed keys to TD the car. The diesel variant was really superb. The gear shift was so easy to use. I really liked the pickup and balance of the car. I drove for like 10mins then handed over to my friend. He also praised the car. We both fell in love with the car. After the TD, they took my contact details again and I left the showroom.
Next day, I decided to bring my mom to the showroom to show her the car. I decided that if she liked it, I would immediately book it. I took her to the showroom only this time to be greeted by a new sales guy. I told him that I came in yesterday and would like to speak to the same sales guy. He said he will help me and that I should not worry (well why would I worry?). I asked him for water and to explain the car to my mom till that time I decided to have a look at Beetle. My mom also liked the car and gave me a green signal. We sat down and again asked for water. The sales guy went inside and came back saying they are brining both water and tea. So he asked me whether I would like to book it. We tried to negotiate on the price, but he said that there is 2+ months wait so there is no chance there will be any negotiation. I tried to push a bit, but couldn't get anything. He said that he will ensure I get top quality service and will never have any problem (well no water till now, is that an indication of top quality service?) I tried to negotiate delivery date asking him to try make it 1st week of Nov, but he didn't budge. He confirmed that he cant promise anything before 23rd Nov. So finally after couple of call then and there only, I decided to book Black Vento Trendline Diesel as he suggested that he will be able to deliver that color and variant positively by end of Nov. Signed a 75k Cheque, took the receipt and left with 75k short in the bank and very thirsty throat (yes, water never arrived)

Part V: I stand today without no Vento and no possible future date.
Well, its 25th Dec today and the dealer is unable to deliver my car. I am suspecting he has already delivered 20+ Ventos in Nagpur but none in black. Using my contacts somehow, I managed to speak directly to the owner who confirmed that the car will go into production on 27th Dec so I shall expect the delivery near about end Jan. He was kind enough to offer me a white or silver during first the week of Jan which I refused. I have been told a lot of things by the sales guy which I believe none were true. My mom suggested I should cancel my booking and go for a different one, but my heart is set on VW Vento and that also black. So the balls pretty much falls on the dealer's court as I have no option but wait. I had arguments with the sales guy, but none mattered as he only could apologize and not help me in the situation. So right now I am out of the frustration phase and learning from my experience till now wont be surprised even if the delivery date is pushed till Feb.

But the big question is how does Honda Jazz comes into the picture? Well heres the story.

Phase VI: Honda Jazz
When I rang up the VW salesman on 20th Nov (no communication between booking and this date) he said that the car will arrive before the end of Nov but didn't had any date. I asked him to keep me informed. Called him again on 25th, still not date. Called him again on 30th, got it pushed to 1st week of Dec. Called on 3rd Dec, he pushed it to any date before 20th Dec. For the first time had an argument and he apologized, but still was unable to give exact date. Called him again on 18th Dec where he said that it may take 2weeks more. I got really frustrated and hung up without saying a single word. The guy called back and I didn't bother picking up. Arranged mobile number of the owner and spoke directly to him. Now during all this time, I kept my dad in the loop, but he didn't bother at all. So while I was once explaining the situation to him, my mom suggested that we should cancel the booking and go for a new car. Me+my mom+ my brother got the most unexpected reply. My dad suggested that we should not cancel the booking and go for another car as well replacing Santro Xing. He felt like both the cars are now pretty old and needs to be replaced. After some discussion, we decided to book another car. My same logic applied "A hatch should be replaced by a hatch". Moreover the car was for my mom, her choice would matter the most. This time I and her had a clear picture and had only two option i20 and Jazz. Mom didn't wanted Figo and Palio and Polo was out of the question. I started reading threads on Team BHP again and concluded from the posts that if you have budget to go for Jazz, then dont look at i20. Didnt even bother TD i20 and went to Honda showroom on last Monday i.e. 20th Dec. Really felt welcomed with the salesman explaining the features very politely. Didn't felt like he was reading from a script. He offered a TD, I told him I would like to take a big TD which he didn't object. I rode the car for like half and hour and the whole time we were having a Q&A session. The sales guy explained a detailed description as to why I should not go for i20 and go for Jazz (right from key to the engine). Was really impressed by the car. Went in the showroom again, negotiated and was able to struck a good deal. The guy was ready to give delivery on the same day, but I decided to give him ample time to prepare the car and not to hurry up as it was already 2:00pm already. I paid him via RTGS and decided to take the car during 2nd half of the next day. The staff was very helpful and clarified before taking the booking what they can and cant do. Got delivery at the time promised where the sales guy kept ringing me up every couple of hours from 9am telling me the car's status. Took a print out of GTO's check list and took my friend along. We inspected the car for like and hour, took a test ride and checked everything. All upto the mark and were fully satisfied. I took a box of ferrero rocher for the sales man. He appreciated it and told that we can call him anytime in case on any problem. Overall great experience with Honda people.

So far I have driven 70Kms (only). The car is smooth like butter. I cant say that the car doesn't come with the price, but I feel its value for money. Its very spacious from inside and I am loving the interiors. I have decided to register the car on 4th of Jan. My mom is yet to drive the car, so its me who is taking it to the office which is very nearby. I cant think of any negatives except that the select model should have been given USB atleast.

I basically have posted my story from booking a VW Vento to delivery of Honda Jazz. I will post my detailed take once I run the car atleast 200Kms. Till then thanks for reading and below is just one picture.As I was clicking, my friends came and demanded to join in the celebration. By the time it was over, it went dark. So I will click some more pics and will post later

[camchennai]

Welcome to Team-BHP, Congratulation on booking Vento and taking Jazz delivery

Now, tell us what is the discount/offer you got for Jazz. I would love to see some interior pics of your jazz, so please

what is the status of Vento?? is the dealer giving out any compensation in the form of interest or any freebies for your car for his mis commitment??

[9thsphinx]

Welcome to the niche Jazz owners club. Wishing you many happy miles from here on... Drive safe!

[theragingbull]

Congrats on the Jazz!! One of the best hatchbacks int he country. What deal did you get on this? BTW I also see a beautiful Jaguar XF behind your car Any pics of that?

[Klub Class]

Congratulations on the Honda Jazz!

I'm very much interested to see more drool worthy images of the Jaguar XF than your Honda Jazz. Yes, more pictures please.

I'm looking forward for your driving impression. Do keep us updated as you cover miles in your car. Drive safe.

[GTO]

Congratulations on the car! Please note that Team-BHP does not permit booking / buying experience threads in the Test-Drives section anymore. For the benefit of members & guests alike, it is now imperative to include a complete driving / ownership report on your car.

This thread is temporarily closed. Please PM me or report this post once you are ready to update this thread with a complete driving report; that's when it shall be re-opened. Thanks for your support.

[iIncepted]

First of all Thank You GTO for reopening my thread and sorry for a little delay in posting my driving experience. Last Sunday there was a party at my friend’s farmhouse. So we had to arrange everything, got a chance to drive around various places inside the city to pick up all kinds of stuff. I decided to ride around in Jazz instead of my friends Land Rover to explore the car better. Here are some of my thoughts

As we were on a mission to collect and transport a lot of stuff, Jazz didn’t disappoint us. The magic seats were fully exploited combined with the original ample boot space.

Interiors are simply amazing. As appreciated by every buyer there is ample of space and it doesn’t feels like you are sitting inside a hatch. Moreover, they have carefully designed the interiors to keep small things like mobile, glasses, soda cans, etc without compromising on the looks

The ICE provided also adds to the beauty. No complaints expect the USB, which is not available in the select model.

The fit and finish of the car is simply perfect. Nothing looks cheap or out of place.

As previously mentioned, the engine is dead silent. While I use to drive Accent or Santro I could easily feel the engine running when waiting on a green light. The case is totally different with Jazz; it feels like you are sitting inside an idle car.

The handling is good, if not the best. Inside the city it feels very easy to navigate within the traffic.

Like many other cars, audio control of the steering makes it easy while driving alone.

Coming to FE, the sales man advised that initially FE will be somewhere between 10-11 but will increase after first service. Currently my display shows 12.something, so considering his word I am happy. One of my friends Jazz that is 10months old displays FE of 10 and the other whose is 4months old displays 14. So still have to get a clear picture.

Another added advantage that I feel is pickup and drop facility for service, also the reminder calls which is pretty good as concluded by the feedback I received. For our Altis, they only offer pickup but no drop facility.

Here are some negatives (In my honest opinion)

I am little short, so not able to get a clear view of the front bonnet. This makes parking little difficult, period. This was even pointed out by my mom. As she is used to Santro, which has clear bonnet visibility (so does accent).

I feel the indicators are highly sensitive. Many times just tilting (and back) the steering switches off the indicators. I think it’s just me because none of my friends have complained out this.

Have to shift down the gears too often while in traffic. The control makes it easy to navigate but needs to coordinate it with the gears as well.


One of things my Mom had said while riding Santro was sometimes the parking is too tight. People park their two wheelers or cars in such a way that makes reversing an issue. So I got reverse parking sensors installed. They are working fine and mom said that the second time it became easy. As of now this combined with the seat covers (directly purchased from the dealer) are the only add-ons, which I Have done in the car expect the obvious car floor mats.

[shk 8896]

Congrats ,buddy on the jazzy honda .Tafeta white looks the best on her.Please post more pics .The best feature of the jazz is its practicality and flexible interiors.Enjoy your drive and drive safe.
Cheers
SHK

[Reinhard]

Hey welcome to TBHP and hearty congratulations on your car. A Jazz is definitely an eye catcher and makes you one of the rare class on roads. All other cars are common on the road. Its the Jazz that gets noticed out there. Wishing you & your family unlimited happy and safe miles with it. Jazz up your life!

P.S. - You dumped the SX4 for diesel. Did you also think about a diesel hatch to replace your Santro? Or it was a Petrol only decision? Vento is definitely a brilliant car. You'll still be getting it right? Do post your experiences with that one too.

[noopster]

Congrats dude. Is it possible your Dad got replaced by Santa? Tis the season n all you know . But great choice- Jazz is easily the best hatch in India today if you can afford it, and Vento is the torque king of the C segment!

Originally Posted by iIncepted

Currently my display shows 12.something, so considering his word I am happy. One of my friends Jazz that is 10months old displays FE of 10 and the other whose is 4months old displays 14. So still have to get a clear picture.

I would attribute that to varying driving style and traffic conditions. 12 kmpl is a very good average for a new car.

Originally Posted by iIncepted

I am little short, so not able to get a clear view of the front bonnet. This makes parking little difficult, period. This was even pointed out by my mom. As she is used to Santro, which has clear bonnet visibility (so does accent).

Hey, in most modern cars you can't see the front bonnet at all. Drive using your judgement- be ultra cautious till you get used to it. Or you can tie a little flagpole on the edge of the bonnet like some guys do!

[iIncepted]

Thank You very much all for replying and welcoming me to this amazing site.

Originally Posted by camchennai

what is the status of Vento?? is the dealer giving out any compensation in the form of interest or any freebies for your car for his mis commitment??

Yep, had a chance to talk with the owner once again. He said there is no further development. Even now my friends are pushing me to cancel and move to a new one. I have decided to wait for another month (or a two?).

Originally Posted by theragingbull

BTW I also see a beautiful Jaguar XF behind your car Any pics of that?

Why not? Next time I meet my friend I will surely click some.

Originally Posted by Reinhard

P.S. - You dumped the SX4 for diesel. Did you also think about a diesel hatch to replace your Santro? Or it was a Petrol only decision? Vento is definitely a brilliant car. You'll still be getting it right? Do post your experiences with that one too.

Not really, Jazz and i20 were the only options. Moreover, as the car is for my Mom petrol was the choice. As for Vento, yes I am still waiting on it. I just hope the dealer doesn't push delivery date till Feb end or March.

Originally Posted by noopster

I would attribute that to varying driving style and traffic conditions. 12 kmpl is a very good average for a new car.

Thanks a lot, that gives me bit of a boost.

[scrooze]

Jazz is a great car you will realise as the days pass by.

Originally Posted by iIncepted

As we were on a mission to collect and transport a lot of stuff, Jazz didn’t disappoint us. The magic seats were fully exploited combined with the original ample boot space.

Interiors are simply amazing. As appreciated by every buyer there is ample of space and it doesn’t feels like you are sitting inside a hatch. Moreover, they have carefully designed the interiors to keep small things like mobile, glasses, soda cans, etc without compromising on the looks .

Cant agree more.

Originally Posted by iIncepted

Coming to FE, the sales man advised that initially FE will be somewhere between 10-11 but will increase after first service. Currently my display shows 12.something, so considering his word I am happy. One of my friends Jazz that is 10months old displays FE of 10 and the other whose is 4months old displays 14. So still have to get a clear picture.

I noramlly get a average of 13-14 in city with 100% ac with some light foot driving so achiving this no should not be difficult.

Originally Posted by iIncepted

I am little short, so not able to get a clear view of the front bonnet. This makes parking little difficult, period. This was even pointed out by my mom. As she is used to Santro, which has clear bonnet visibility (so does accent).

As pointed out but other member also this is the case with most cars now days.

[ricky_speed]

Hey guys,

This looks like a perfect opportunity for my first comment on Team-bhp. I went through a similar decision making process before finalizing on the Jazz. Since the Jazz seemed too expensive, I wanted to have look at the Polo. But visiting VW dealership in Delhi was a terrible experience. Firstly, no space to park nearby - Do they expect us to come by a bus to buy a VW? Second, Horrible Dealership Behavior as iIncepted rightly pointed out - no water + no test drives. Compare this to launch party of the Corolla Altis and you'd never visit VW again! (No point talking about Hyundai - we wanted the i20 but the Samara Hyundai Salesperson insisted that we get the i10 since it was for my sister!!)

My jazz is giving an average of 10.2 after 4.5k km. It has slowly improved from 9.x to 10.2 in the last 1k km so I am guessing it is giving me atleast 12 right now. Will reset after 2nd service at 5k km. The gearshift, as mentioned, is just awesome. Also, really long 2nd gear as mentioned in another review on Team BHP. Best to drive on the 3rd gear for usual city drive.

@iInception: The bonnet is so small that you might as well forget it exists. Won't take long to get used to it. You'll be surprised how easy it is to park. Though it is unbelievable that the door mirrors aren't automatic and seat height is not adjustable (actually I feel the seats are not very comfortable - but maybe just because I am used to lumbar support). Btw, just be careful about the door mirrors, they are really huge and many times I have had some other car hit them in the terrible Delhi Traffic.

I guess I just wrote too much for a comment. Maybe will post a full review sometime soon.

Cheers!

[adimicra]

Congrats on your Jazz. I am also an owner of Tafeta White Jazz and very happy with the last 5 months of ownership.

Your mileage is ok. I am not a light-footed driver in any way and the worst I have got is 11 kmpl ( based on tankful method), the MID shows 12.

It is pretty easy to extract 13-14 kmpl with AC if driven a little conservatively.

I thought that the inability to see the bonnet will be a problem for me as I am on the shorter side, but it is so small that it turned out to be a non-issue.
Regarding the OVRMs, they are really B I G. I have hit one security person in my office gate in the initial days as I never imagined that those are so huge. One needs to be little careful while judging the gaps in traffic as the car is pretty wide as well. I wish Honda would have provided the electrically folding mirrors on this car. I also miss the USB and Bluetooth. Apart from this, no complaints

Cheer and Drive safe!

[mail4ajo]

Tafeta White seems to be the most popular colour for Jazz on tbhp. I know 5 including mine.

Looking at the dashboard, I imagined the bonnet is long and was very cautious while parking. I once made my Bro stand near a wall and guide me on parking. I was surprised on how much I could push without touching the bumper.

Have you decided on your sunfilm? Waiting to see what the popular choice is.