[Dry Ice]

Congratulations on the Jetta VW2010! And a very nice subtle shade you got there, Elegant!

Wishing you miles of happiness with the car!

[noopster]

Congrats VW2010. The Jetta was the car that my wife fell in love with when we first went to check out the Vento in the VW Downtown Mumbai showroom in August. Since they had no demo car yet the salesperson gave us a tour of the Jetta- and it was love at first sight! But budget constraints and the fact that the Vento was half the price with the same (1.6L Petrol) engine meant that we settled for our first choice.
Nice pics too. Off-topic: how did you get the Team-BHP watermark centered and on top? When I upload pics it always comes on the lower left corner.

[VW2010]

how did you get the Team-BHP watermark centered and on top? When I upload pics it always comes on the lower left corner.

I just loaded all the pictures into the Garage and pasted link to the pictures here.

I paid close to 18L on road. I will write a small review on the sales. Least said it was the worst experience. Not sure if i should blame Abra motors or the particular salesman. I am going to talk to the MD there and see if he has any explanation. I was treated better while getting a Swift .

[noopster]

^^ That sucks. You buy a 20 lac car, you gotta be treated nice. Be sure to fry the MD nice!

[crackingride]

Hi:
Had a couple of quick questions:
First, looks like your comfortline has a dark leather interior; i was under the impression the trendline had a dark fabric interior and the comfortline came with beige ?
And secondly, i thought i read the spec on the comfortline included electrically folding RVMs. Is this correct?

Congrats on your Jetta. It's been tugging at me, and is a toss up right now between this , what we at home call the "Jetty" (Yeti), or waiting for the new VW sometime later this year (with the strong possibility that it will be the horrid US spec version, and the regret of not picking up Euro spec when I had the chance)

[VW2010]

the comfortline came with beige ?

White and Black colors come with Beige interior

Heaven blue and silver come with dark leather interior(This is dark black unlike the grey ones)

i read the spec on the comfortline included electrically folding RVMs

Yes it does come with Electrically folding RVM's that also has a puddle light.

call the "Jetty" (Yeti), or waiting for the new VW sometime later this year

Dont know if i can help you but here is my take. I started of with Yeti in mind, drove a superb and laura, then drove the Jetta and never looked back. The salesman said the new Jetta may arrive in India only sometime around December or Jan 2012. Also me and my wife never liked the front grill of the new Jetta. We just went ahead and picked the 2010 Jetta and we are not planning to worry abt new models. We get to drive a Jetta that will remain a Jetta for another few years. Its a tough decision but I dont regret it. 2012 Jetta may look even better compared to 2011 and we may keep waiting for ever.

Review continued:-
I wanted to at least drive the car on the Highway before commenting on the performance. We did a 200km drive this Sunday and here are my initial impressions.

Steering - The steering is perfect. The response is great at low speeds as well as high speed. At low speed city driving the steering is so soft and reminds me of driving a Hyundai. At high speeds the overall dynamics of the car makes you feel like you are still driving inside the city with so much ease and pleasure to operate the car. The response is very impressive even at 100kmph when you want to make the quick move towards the left or right lane.

Seats - Seats are very comfortable. Lumbar support only adds to the sitting pleasure. Head rest is pretty good and is not too far back from the seat. One need not strain too much to maintain the straight neck position one needs to compromise on the view to rest ones head. Seats come with storage compartments and overall feels very snuggly. Has lots of legs space.
Visibility - The car is quite easy to operate with very good overall visibility. The A pillar or the C/D pillars do not hinder drivers view of the traffic. One part that is completely difficult to judge is the rear of the car. On highways it’s never a problem But while parking the rear of the car requires some getting used to, to understand the distance from the driver.
On the highway the rear view mirrors combined with the side mirrors provide enough coverage of the traffic around to make your moves safe and steady.

Front seats storage space.


Rear Seats


Engine - The performance of the engine is already reviewed across the web. All I can say is the engine always feels like there is lot left in it. Even at 100 you can be sure to surge ahead with very little effort giving that extra confidence to complete your overtakes or quick jump out of the traffic. The engine is quite from inside. At 100KMPH the engine spins at around 1800 RPM. This translates to one of the smoothing rides at 100kmph. In comparison the same feeling sinks in, in my swift VDI at around 75KMPH. Cruising at 100-120 does not feel like pushing the engine. At any point you are almost always below 3000RPM. Unless one consciously pushes the engine beyond 3000 RPM driving madly at lower gears I don’t think anybody can perform the gradual running in for this engine. The power is well packed that one hardly needs to push this car. For enthusiasts it could be a different story. For most of us the engine has everything one needs to work around in the city or do a highway trip with very little effort.

RPM and Speed


Fuel efficiency




Note:- These are very initial impressions. More on oil consumption and maintenance to follow.


Transmission - The 5 speed transmission definitely feels adequate. A sixth speed is not required unless one needs to do consistently over 120KMPH for a long period of time with very little noise from the engine. This would only help run the engine at lower RPM to achieve those speeds. The gear ratios are almost similar to swift. There is an indicator in the display unit that advices one to shift down or shift up based on the speed/rpm and this is definitely accurate. One can definitely follow the guide to downshift. Up shifting is based on the needs. The gear shifting is smooth and easy.


Suspension - The suspension is on the stiffer side which is a known fact. How does it translate daily commute is what I can give here based on my 600km experience so far. The stiffer suspension is a blessing driving inside the city. The car glides over bad roads. At appropriate speed nothing filters into the cabin. There is no wayward body movements while riding over speed breakers(should I say body roll). There is a distinctive "Thud" if you drive a little faster over these bumps or speed breakers. The ground clearance is not an hindrance so far. I take almost all the known roads inside the city and I may have avoided roads that may test the suspension and GC. On the highway the ride is almost like gliding. The imperfections in roads like uneven flat surfaces causes a very mild shake. It’s not even noticeable to my wife. I am just being picky here. There is absolutely no body roll at 100kmph. Taking those curves and flyovers at 100kmph is very safe and easy. There is not even a single situation in the highway where you feel like driving at 100kmph. The suspension holds fantastically well taking the car around the corners with ease. The confidence one has can be compared to driving any car at 50kmph around those corners.


Brakes - Brakes are very assuring. The power the car carries needs to be supplemented with good braking system. The brakes hold the car in straight line all the time. I have only driven up to 120kmph and braking at that speed slows down the car fantastically well with no signs of struggle or worry. Brakes just adds lots of assurance to the drive, that one can be absolutely safe cruising at 100kmph (provided other drivers are sane and driving safe like us).

Ride quality overall - Personally five stars. The car is superbly build that no external sound/noise filters into the cabin. This includes the oncoming traffic and the bad roads that usually send all sorts of noises into the cabin. The air-conditioning system works really well with air-75 and v-cool films adding more protection from the sun. The sound system blends well with the cabin. Storage space is more than adequate to carry the “munchables” and drinks. Cruise control is a blessing these days where there are more open roads. The chances of sleeping inside the cabin while riding is more due to the perfect ride quality. At 100kmph the car drives like a dream with exceptional ride quality and cornering ability. The Car always stays in ones control and eats highway with so much ease and grace. The suspension is set really well to enhance cornering and never once did I feel to take my legs of the pedal while taking a sharp corner or overtaking a truck around a corner. The car stays in its track at speeds upto 100kmph as I did not exceed that speed.

more to follow after this........

[crackingride]

Originally Posted by VW2010

White and Black colors come with Beige interior

Heaven blue and silver come with dark leather interior(This is dark black unlike the grey ones)


Yes it does come with Electrically folding RVM's that also has a puddle light.



Dont know if i can help you but here is my take. I started of with Yeti in mind, drove a superb and laura, then drove the Jetta and never looked back. The salesman said the new Jetta may arrive in India only sometime around December or Jan 2012. Also me and my wife never liked the front grill of the new Jetta. We just went ahead and picked the 2010 Jetta and we are not planning to worry abt new models. We get to drive a Jetta that will remain a Jetta for another few years. Its a tough decision but I dont regret it. 2012 Jetta may look even better compared to 2011 and we may keep waiting for ever.

True, one cannot wait forever; My wait is a bit complicated because I am also in the middle of a moving city to start a new business with new partners decision.
For the new place, a Yeti makes more sense to me. So until I decide that, the car must wait.
(The nice part would be that the prices are around 2 lakhs lower than if i were to buy in Bangalore!)
Nice of you to share your take on daily running with your Jetta. It's a useful read, and I personally like the dark interiors myself ( part of the reason I want the Yeti is because there is a large black dog to be transported as well, and it has 'Gobi sand' interiors~ not black, but not beige either!) The Jetta is the only other car I can think of wanting where the option for black leather still exists.

[VW2010]

I have tried to stitch few shots to show the drivers point of view for visibility. Hope the attachment opens properly. Click on the picture for full size.

[JJames]

Originally Posted by crackingride

Hi:
Congrats on your Jetta. It's been tugging at me, and is a toss up right now between this , what we at home call the "Jetty" (Yeti), or waiting for the new VW sometime later this year (with the strong possibility that it will be the horrid US spec version, and the regret of not picking up Euro spec when I had the chance)

I would advice you (provided you could wait a few months) to wait till the new Jetta 2011 is released in India sometime in the 3rd quarter this year. The new Jetta is more contemporary in its design & doesn't look like a booted Golf anymore. Also expect some engine upgrades. If I were you, I would have waited a few months more, than buy a car that would be outdated (at least in looks) after just a few months use. Think about the scenario wherein people refer to your just 1 year old, 18Lac car as that "Old Jetta"...!

[VW2010]

Rear seats pictures.

Rear seat at a glance.


Leg space with front seat set for a 6ft person



Top View. sorry for crappy focus.. Didn't have a macro



Arm rest and Rear seat.



3D mats for the car. They are like trays and very easy to clean the car. Just lift the tray and throw away the dust/sand including spills.



Rear indicator lights.





Rear view with Neck rest in either extreme. The view will be hindered when the head rest is raised.



And a final look at the cockpit to complete this series of pictures.



More to follow....

[rkap01]

The Car is Good. A bit overpriced- but an excellent choice! I will be keen to know about the dealer experience. Have not heard much good about it.

[aviorp]

Congrats VW2010. Excellent review and nice choice of colour. Love those plush leather seats. Waiting to know about VW sales & service.

[VW2010]

Waiting to know about VW sales

The sales experience is definitely not a very happy one. After making the payment it was only me who had to constantly call and get updates about the status of the car. May be my expectation was too high. My expectation was to get some updates at least once a week. I had to chase more than thrice to get the Vin number of the car. Even during registration I was expecting the dealer to call me to discuss about the insurance plans. I had specifically asked for drive assure. Initially the offer during the month of December was the dealer would take care of the insurance which they estimated close to 50K. As the registration date approached and when I enquired about the assure package(0% Depreciation) the sales man said I had to pay 17K since it was not normal insurance but an add on package. My expectation was to give me the assurance that insurance would include the drive assure package before registration. During the day of delivery I reached the showroom at 3. The salesman came to the showroom only around 6pm. I didn’t want to create an issue that day since I wanted the whole process to end well and I pick the car from the showroom with satisfaction rather than anger and disappointment. But my wife was furious and I count disagree with her more. I had to make her comfortable finding a spot to sit down and keep her calm. None of the sales people offered water/seat or any attention. I didn’t care at that time and used this opportunity to complete my PDI list.

When the salesman finally came and handed over the documents I didn’t find the drive assure being mentioned in the insurance. And the insurance amount was something around 31-35K. I refused to take delivery until I was confirmed that drive assure was included in the package. Finally handed over the cheque for 17k and got the drive assure added in the cover sheet of insurance after getting confirmation from Bajaj Allianz. I still cannot understand how they claim to cover insurance estimated up to 49K in the initial pricing list while they only paid 31-35K and also denied to cover the 17K since it was well within the 49K price quoted previously.

Overall I didn’t want my personal experience to be bad at the day of delivery. Hence didn’t raise any question with the salesman.

Also this particular sales man did not reveal the availability of corporate discount. When insisted he first gave an amount that was 3 times lower than actual eligibility. Luckily I had discussed with the other salesman the day before and quoted that specific amount for discount and availed the same. Lesson for other buyers is to ensure you discuss with a couple of salesman to ensure they reveal all the information.


They didn’t even include the safety kit(not a big deal knowing we can pack our own safety kit) or a car cover. When asked the salesman about the car cover, he took me to a shop outside and asked me to pay for a cover. I gently refused and decided to buy one if required.

I do have to make a point here. The same day it was actually another salesman who assisted me by going in lengths about explaining the specs of the car. I would have had a pleasant experience with the other sales guy (I know this for sure because of the way he treats his customers).

The salesman was paid 502 rupees more than what was agreed upon. He did not have the basic courtesy to refund or talk about refund while he just asked me to get a car cover from a shop outside his showroom since the showroom didnt carry any.(I wanted a car cover since I had to park it outside for a couple of days).

I can honestly say the salesman was more interested to save more money for the dealer and he did his job right. But if the motto is customer satisfaction neither I was satisfied nor my wife who accompanied me for the delivery.

PM me for the salesman name so you guys can avoid interacting with him and have a better experience with the other salesman. I do not want to reveal the names in public form. Even if VW dealership reads this post(Mostly someone will) they will easily identify the person in question.

Compared to my experience with Cars India(Maruti), I would rate VW salesman as mediocre if not poor or very poor. I have got the mail id of the MD there and I am thinking of writing my sales experience. Let him decide on how he can improve the sales experience of customers.

Do you guys think I should forget this whole experience and leave it there or write a report to the sales manager?

[crackingride]

Originally Posted by JJames

I would advice you (provided you could wait a few months) to wait till the new Jetta 2011 is released in India sometime in the 3rd quarter this year. The new Jetta is more contemporary in its design & doesn't look like a booted Golf anymore. Also expect some engine upgrades. If I were you, I would have waited a few months more, than buy a car that would be outdated (at least in looks) after just a few months use. Think about the scenario wherein people refer to your just 1 year old, 18Lac car as that "Old Jetta"...!

For any other car, this would be true. But if you have been following the New Jetta internationally, you will know that the US version has been universally panned for its looks and more so for the sheer scale of "dumbing down" that has taken place inside and out.

A quick search of any forum should give you an idea of all that.

The Euro version is another story, and it comes with better spec, and higher cost. It also is not going to be offered in the USA at all. To get an equivalent, the US consumer must buy a current gen, Golf 6 based SportWagen that is a direct import.

So, given that VW has struggled to sell the bigger autos in their line up in this country at the current prices, and that they have already dumbed down even the Polo and Vento, there is practically no reason for them to bring the Euro spec version of the new Jetta here.

In which case, the argument for engine "upgrades" are also unrealistic, given that Euro spec comes with the kind of stuff we already have ( 2.0 CRDi) and that the US mill is a 2.5 Liter petrol that is never going to come here. As for the 1.4 TSi, if VW cannot bring a 1.2 TSi for a Polo, and is struggling to justify the 1.8 Tsi in something like the Skoda Laura, I think that will not show up either.

You will get a "newer" car, sure, and it might be bigger in the back seat, but that will be about all. In such a case, a Vento should be sufficient!

[noopster]

After reading about your sales experience I am wondering why you are even hesitating to vent some spleen, because it is simply unacceptable.

Originally Posted by VW2010

The sales experience is definitely not a very happy one. After making the payment it was only me who had to constantly call and get updates about the status of the car. May be my expectation was too high. My expectation was to get some updates at least once a week.

That mirrors my own experience. Ironically Honda and Toyota, who I didn't even consider seriously, used to call and check regularly. They were polite,even friendly, and professional. None of the others: VW, Skoda or Chevy so much as bothered with a courtesy call.

I had to chase more than thrice to get the Vin number of the car. Even during registration I was expecting the dealer to call me to discuss about the insurance plans.

Thanks to TBHP I knew you should NEVER take insurance from the dealer. You won't believe how much I saved in insurance costs (PM me for details). In fact I was surprised how easily my own dealer agreed to me insuring it by myself, I think they just expect it and are surprised when someone takes it from them

During the day of delivery I reached the showroom at 3. The salesman came to the showroom only around 6pm. I didn’t want to create an issue that day since I wanted the whole process to end well and I pick the car from the showroom with satisfaction rather than anger and disappointment. But my wife was furious and I count disagree with her more.
(...) Overall I didn’t want my personal experience to be bad at the day of delivery. Hence didn’t raise any question with the salesman.

Your missus is spot on. I appreciate your not wanting to spoil your big day but a quiet and firm word with the manager would be totally warranted! How dare they not offer you a place to sit and refreshments? With due respect even the guy who sells 500/- sarees does that when he knows the customer is serious.

Also this particular sales man did not reveal the availability of corporate discount. When insisted he first gave an amount that was 3 times lower than actual eligibility. Luckily I had discussed with the other salesman the day before and quoted that specific amount for discount and availed the same. Lesson for other buyers is to ensure you discuss with a couple of salesman to ensure they reveal all the information.

VW offers a flat corporate discount nationwide- 16K. It may be higher for the Jetta/Passat, though. This is your right and nobody can deny you that. I think your salesman was either really bad at his job, or just having a terrible day!

They didn’t even include the safety kit(not a big deal knowing we can pack our own safety kit) or a car cover. When asked the salesman about the car cover, he took me to a shop outside and asked me to pay for a cover. I gently refused and decided to buy one if required.

You're too decent- I would have clobbered the guy

I do have to make a point here. The same day it was actually another salesman who assisted me by going in lengths about explaining the specs of the car. I would have had a pleasant experience with the other sales guy (I know this for sure because of the way he treats his customers).

It's quite possible you got stuck with a "lemon" (the salesman not the car!) My own SR was pretty bad and thankfully got fired before I took delivery. Her replacement was fantastic. The human factor is important in thie car buying process.

Compared to my experience with Cars India(Maruti), I would rate VW salesman as mediocre if not poor or very poor. I have got the mail id of the MD there and I am thinking of writing my sales experience. Let him decide on how he can improve the sales experience of customers.

Do you guys think I should forget this whole experience and leave it there or write a report to the sales manager?

Don't even think about it. Compose the mail right now. This treatment is unacceptable- doesn't matter if you're buying a Nano or a Rolls!

Hope this helped.
Noops