Volkswagen Vento [2014-2015] User Reviews

Dear Sir,

I have purchased Volkswagon vento 1.6(MT) trendline  in Oct 2011. Since then I am regularly driving the Car on daily basis. I regular cover around 15-20 KM per day.

From last 2-3 days I found the problem in shifting the gear while driving the CAR on inclined roads. Once I select the gear to 2nd,3rd and 4th even though accelerating the vehicle I am not able to move forward the VEHICLE but in 1st gear it is working fine on inclined roads. When I contacted the service centre person he suggested me to replace the gear selector mechanism.

But I am very disappointed by hearing this, because

·         Its only 3rd year and such a major gear transmition failure happened in the CAR

·         My feeling is volkswagon is the most reliable design and within 3rd year of car purchase such major failure is causing me to change my perception

·         After I purchased the CAR my 16 friends purchased the CAR in my company and your company has selected “Secure Meters Limited Udaipur (Rajasthan) in corporate discount list

·         I am the single person who drives this car

·         I am driving the CAR on daily basis since 1998, almost 16years.

·         I drove Maruti, Hundai and never found any problem in their CAR but the first experience of Volkswagon is very bad for me.

·         Till date I covered near to 22000KM

I am attaching the snapshot of same for your reference.

Request you to please look into the problem and give me proper resolution by replacing this gear selector mechanism. I hope you also conduct the root cause analysis of this problem.

Please also find my details

Name – Vibhanshu Bhardwaj

CAR no RJ27-CB- 9785

Location – Udaipur Servise Centre

Contact No - **********

Warm Regards

Vibhanshu Bhardwaj

Recently, my vehicle has problem of intensed vibration from Engine while running. Reported the problem at Automark Ahmedabad. I understand from Service station that Fuel Injection has failed and had to replace. I had to pay for this. I had discussed this issue with Customer Care Executive at Showroom as well as Service Head over phone, I did not get satisfactory response. Further, Customer Care Excutive assured that she will take up this issue with Concerned Authority and give soultion. I have yet not received any such solutions. I understand now that there is serious problem of Fuel Injector from most of Diesel Engines and feeling that i might end up in maintenance problem.    Recently, my vehicle has problem of intensed vibration from Engine while running. Reported the problem at Automark Ahmedabad. I understand from Service station that Fuel Injection has failed and had to replace. I had to pay for this. I had discussed this issue with Customer Care Executive at Showroom as well as Service Head over phone, I did not get satisfactory response. Further, Customer Care Excutive assured that she will take up this issue with Concerned Authority and give soultion. I have yet not received any such solutions. I understand now that there is serious problem of Fuel Injector from most of Diesel Engines and feeling that I might end up in maintenance problem.

Exterior

Simple yet classy looks. The looks are a sure headturner. The headlamp and tail lamp design is really impressive  

Interior (Features, Space & Comfort)

Comfortable for 4 adults. 5th adult will be a problem due to the rear hump.

Great features with safety at the top of the list. Certain features are missing in comparison to its competitors.

Features like a rear parking camera, LCD touch screen, Cruise control etc. could be added.

However, all the main features are present. Bluetooth, Great audio system, Powerful AC and a well equipped on-board trip computer. 

Engine Performance, Fuel Economy and Gearbox

The 1.2L TSI is brilliant. The engine is a real gem on highways, powerful and smooth, resulting in a really fun to drive car. The DSG perfectly complements the engine. There have been questions about the reliability, but no problems as yet with the gearbox (Too early to comment)

But even the polo has 1.2L TSI. A 1.4L TSI would have been a cherry on the top. Nevertheless, it is a great engine with enough torque to satisfy a thrill-seeker.

Ride Quality & Handling

VW has always been known for making well built cars which are solid performers at high speeds. The Vento does not disappoint. The car comes with a good quality ride.

The steering is precise. The new flat bottom steering wheel is a real beauty and adds to the interior aesthetics. 

The suspension is on the softer side and makes rides really smooth. However, when driving the car without any rear passengers, there is a thud sound at high speeds over uneven roads. The only way to avoid this is to go slower over uneven patches.

Also at low speeds, sometimes the car gives jerks when the accelerator is suddenly let off. Probably an issue due to the automatic gearbox downshifting. Again with sufficient driving this can be avoided by adjusting your driving style.

Final Words

Overall the car is a pleasure to drive. But wait... coming to my main point.

The after sales service is not great. Once the car is into the workshop, forget it for the next 5-10 days. Service costs are high and will definitely burn a hole in your pocket if the car is outside the warranty period.

Three months after the car was delivered, there was an engine related issue. Some throttle body part had malfunctioned. The service centre informed us that it is a manufacturing defect and will be covered under warranty. The overall process took 25 days.

The service professionals at VW Thane are courteous, but the spare parts are not easily available. It took almost 20 days for the part to arrive from Chakan manufacturing plant in Pune. Also the particular part costs Rs. 60000/- (Saved by the warranty).

So if this is your only car, be ready to face some annoying service issues and costs. It would make much more sense to go with Maruti Suzuki or Hyundai. 

However, credit needs to be given where due. The car is well engineered. Truly VW - Simple yet elegant.  Probably the best choice in the segment as your second car. As in my case i am simply enjoying the ride. 

Areas of improvement  

After sales service - Costs and Service time.   

Exterior

 Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Some may feel that the design is a bit out dated. But for me its a timelss design that will age slowly than jazzy designs. The paint quality is excellent and once gravel from a truck ahead of me fell on the bonnet. Except for just one spot where there was a slight scratch my whole bonnet had not even one single scratch. Gravel even hit my windscreen and luckily nothing happened.

Interior (Features, Space & Comfort)

 I bought an highline version and hence it has almost all the features that you'll require in a car. However it is not as much as that offered in Honda City or Suzuki Ciaz or Hyundai Verna. Vento's interiors are inviting, symmetric functional and looks premium. However, I like the interiors of Honda City than that of Vento, though the former is a bit asymmetric. Ciaz too has a good interior. However I do not like the interiors of Verna that much. 

From a space perspective, except for the hump in the back seat, which is a deterrent for the third passenger, it is quite spacious. The seats are comfortable for long rides as it is a bit hard. People may intitially feel that they are not as soft as their competitors. But these are the seats that are ergonomic and would say is best in class with good thigh support, good leg room and very good support to the back as well. Rear seats too have adjustable head rests and they can adjust the front seat for better leg room without having to have somebody in front to do that.

AC is adequate and is not as good as the Ford Fiesta or Verna in speed of cooling. Climate control works well and is easy to operate. The rear vents offer very good comfort to the back seat passengers. Windows have a safety feature of not closing if somebody accidently puts their finger in between. Front bottle holders are comfortable for even large bottles. Storages spaces are adequate but can have more cubby holes. Interior plastics have a hard feeling though they are very good and looks like made to last.

NVH (Noise, Vibration and Harshness) are minimal and isolates the passengers from all the hustle bustle outside. Doors can be opened from inside anytime by all passengers unless child lock is activated. Anti-theft alarm makes sure the car is safe. It has an intelligent feature to ensure accidental touchs or pushes on the car are not considered as theft, avoiding that unnecessary false alarms.

From a driver perspective, all the controls are within reach and get a decent road view. However the rear view is a bit limited and has at least couple of blind spots. Lights are adequate and I use the fog lights as well in night for better visibility. Steering is almost precise though a bit hard. Steering has both rake and reach, meaning you can pull it towards you as well as move it up and down. Steering mounted controls work very well. All pedals are placed at the right spots, though there is no dead pedal. Driver seat has height adjust and with a bit of effort one can find the best driving position. The Speedo console and MID are very good and provide a lot of info like distance to empty, current speed/avg speed, current/avg mileage, trip meters, gear indicator (which gear you are currently driving in) with suggestions, outside temperature etc. There is no seat belt warning though.

The in car entertainment has Radio, CD and USB inputs. It is adequate enough for average music lovers. For audiophiles, they have to gave for some third party provider.

Engine Performance, Fuel Economy and Gearbox

 This is where the car excels. It has 105 PS with 250 Nm of torque. Those are very good numbers for this segment. With such amount of torques hill climbing and heavy loads are cake walks. Pick up very good and 2nd gear torque will make you fly from signals ahead of anybody. Its a highway scorcher. Speeds of 150+ is quite a normal thing to do ina  Vento. I have touched speeds upto 170kmph. One gripe is that the engine is a bit noisy, but not as noisy as the Honda City Diesel.

I get a city mileage of 14-16 kmpl depending on traffic and a highway mileage between 19 to 23 depending on the speeds that you touch.

Gearbox is slick and comfortable to use, without any false on incorrect gear slotting. Gear indicator helps to get the right gear in place.

Ride Quality & Handling

 Vento's USP is Ride Quality and Handling. It is surefooted and planted very well on the tarmac even at 170 kph. I made a risky maneuver while overtaking a duster at 160+ speeds, when a 4-way road suddenly merged into a 2-lane road. The car safely moved in the right lane without any body roll or uneasiness to the passengers. I had excellent control in doing this maneuver, which you only have in Vento in this segment.

Final Words

 People who look for a real car and not cosmetic features should look no further. Vento is an obvious choice. Certainly the sibling Rapid is also a good choice, except for Skoda's After Sales Service woes. Vento has the punch in terms of performance, very good ride and handling, pretty decent mileage and all the essential features.

Areas of improvement  

 The car can be kitted well for the competition. NVH levels and Steering can be matched to that of Rapid.