My New Black Volkswagen Vento Highline Diesel

[smooth rider]

i belong to the 30th batch of cmc. you would never regrett your decision to go for the vento. i have clocked 19k+ kms till date. still enjoying her immensely.never felt tired durin my trip to rajasthan. when i had gone to register my car, there was a black vento that had come for registration. it looked stunning. i didn't go for black because i had a black indica previously.

 

[premc44]

I must start with an apology for not having uploaded the pictures of the car so far. I promise it will be done this week. But more than photos (there are already many photos of black Vento in this forum) you will be interested to know my initial experience with the car.

I have done about 1500 Kms in four weeks, except for 500 Kms, most of the running has been inside the city limits of Calicut and the overall mileage was about 16 Kms. On the highways, I used to clock in something near 20K/L. May be I am driving it better, as I have got used to it, the drive feels much smoother now. Except for the initial diesel clatter, it is quite smooth, especially with a warmed up engine on a highway. Gear shifts are quite good and the AC works fine. I have not used any sun control films yet. The turbo surge in 3rd and 4th gear makes one more confident while overtaking and if you are in a reasonable speed, this is possible even without shifting the gear from 5th. I find the driving positin quite comfortable and I have kept the seat at maximum possible height. The steering adjustment for reach and height also help a good deal to get to a good driving position. The ride is quite comfortable, even my backseat passengers are kept happy. The addition of a USB port to the upgraded music system is useful in the absence of a CD changer. Overall, I think I am quite happy with the car and the reassuring soft thud of the closing doors remind you of the build quality. Having said that, the gaps between panels looks too wide, if you compare with the same feature in the Jetta.

A black car needs a lot of looking after, more so, if you are concerned about the good looks. I use a Jopasu duster morning and evening to dust the car and believe me, it is a useful item to have. I find the need to wash the car only once a week. I use Sonax car shampoo to wash the car , use only microfiber cloth to apply the suds and after rinsing the car well, use another microfiber towel to dry the car. This was helped to minimise the swirls or spider webs on the car finish. After thorough drying, I use a Mother's showtime detailing spray to give the car the newly polished wet look. This is also useful on days, when you don't wash the car. Clean it with the Jopasu duster and use the detailing spray. I have also bought the Mothers California Gold Cornuba pure wax. Used it once and plan to use it once in 6 or 8 weeks. Colin spray and old newspaper will do the works for the windows.
I have filled the tyres with nitrogen the day after I got the car, and checked the pressure after a month, there was a drop of 1 or 2 psi in all the tyres. I think this is one advantage of using nitrogen. Whether it improves the ride is disputed and is often subjective. I have been using only nitrogen in the tyres for the last three years and I am quite happy with that decision.
See you again with the promised pictures of the car.

 

[ToughGuy]

Welcome to TAI premc44, congrats for your purchase of black German beauty nice choice love to see pics.

 

[smooth rider]

dear premcc did you buy the jopasu duster from calicut? if so from where ? i too would like to get one.

 

[ToughGuy]

dear premcc did you buy the jopasu duster from calicut? if so from where ? i too would like to get one.

if you can't find this in your local market, you can purchase Jopasu duster online readily available on few eCommerce portals.

 

[singh890]

Welcome to TAI premc44 and congratulations for the new ride.

 

[premc44]

dear premcc did you buy the jopasu duster from calicut? if so from where ? i too would like to get one.

I got it from ebay india online. You can search in the car accessories section. The seller's name was "jopasucarcare". They also sell microfiber towels, even though the quality is not as good as the ones you get from abroad, but still they are good and serve the purpose.

 

[premc44]

Hello, Guys. I must start with an apology on two counts. First, I have not been active for the last seven or eight months in this forum,for some reason or other. There was a trip abroad, some work at home and other professional matters. Secondly, I have not uploaded any photos of the car, even though it was promised. Anyway, there are so many photos of black Ventos in these forums. Nevertheless, I will do it soon
More than the photos, I am sure people will be interested in getting to know my experience and here it goes.
It is almost nine months since I got the car and the odometer says nearly 8000 Kms. I seem to like the car more and more and the driving experience becomes addictive. There were a couple of trips from Calicut to Ernakulam, a longer trip to Bangalore and lastly, trip to Ooty. There were no teething problems in the initial period and I feel, overall smoothness has improved and the gear shifts are delightful. On the uphill drive to Ooty, the car was absolutely fantastic and the 250 Nm torque came in very handy and the engine was never short of breath. With four people and their luggage, the overall FE was over 17 Km/L. On other trips, I used to get over 18 Km/L. Till now, I have had to top up the engine oil once, may be less than 100 ml.
Looking after a black car, though demanding, is quite rewarding. I wash the car with Sonax shampoo once a week, though during the rainy season, it was more frequent. The use of a microfiber mitt and towels have helped to keep the swirls to a minimum. On other days, Jopasu duster comes in handy, followed by a Quick detailer spray and wipe down.
There have been some criticisms about the music system on board, I find it quite good with excellent stereo separation, provided you adjust the bass and the fader controls properly. Similar criticisms were raised about the stock Apollo Accelere tyres and some have changed these tyres soon after taking delivery. So far, they have not caused any problems. They are filled with Nitrogen, pressures are checked once in 2-3 weeks and I did an alignment check once at 5000Kms
I have used Mothers California Gold cleaner wax once and it is quite easy to apply. For small scratches, where the paint is not deeply scratched, I have found Meguiare's ultimate compound useful, following it up with either the cleaner wax or Mothers Carnuba wax. Of course, this takes time. Recently, I have got hold of Meguiare's ultimate quikwax, which is polymer based, but have not used it yet. It has excellent reviews.
Overall, I am very happy about my decision to go for a Vento.

 

[premc44]

Got the 1st service done at Calicut last week, with the odometer showing 12,300. I was asked to keep the car for a day there, as there were two or three software updates. I told them not to do the alignment and wheel balancing. Oil, fuel, dust and pollen and air filters were changed and altogether the bill came to 9600 Rs. I politely refused their surface treatment, as my paint condition was quite okay with minimal swirls in the body. Anyway, I have acquired a Kestrel DA orbital polisher and the Lake county polishing pads, though I am yet to use it.

The car felt little smoother during my trip to Kumarakom the next day after service, the FE also was hovering about 19-20Km/L, I have done the alignment and tyre rotation today. Overall, the last one year was happy motoring without any trouble.

I have started using Optimum No Rinse to clean the car and use water wash, may be once in two weeks, that too if it is really needed. ONR is really great, apart from cleaning the car, it imparts a sheen to the paint, esp in a black car like mine. This, along with the use of good MF towels definitely helps reduce swirls in the paint work.

The next weekend, I plan to use clay bar on my car, followed by swirl removal using Meguiare's UC, and then a cleaner wax. I hope, the DA polisher will be of help. Will keep you updated. Meanwhile, enjoy your drive

 

[Gurrala74]

Congrats Mr.Prem for your Vento Black !! It looks to be a very good time with your Vento with good performance and comfort. But even after completing 12000+km, there are no pics of your ride, this is not acceptable Sir. so please take some time and post some pics soon

 

[smooth rider]

dear premcc44 long time no news. you seem to be beautifying your vento every day and keeping her hidden from all of us fearing a black eye from us.

 

[premc44]

Here are some photos of my Black Vento Highline , sorry for not posting so far, it is just over one year that I got the car, better late than never!
The photos were taken a day after a minor detailing, You can see the Meguiares tyre shine at work and also the 3D Kagu mats.
I am going to get leather seats done next week from Karlssons at Bangalore , so the next set of photos will be after that.

 

[premc44]

Had leather seats( not covers) fitted in my Vento from Karlsson, Bangalore. They use 1.5 mm Scandinavian leather. The cloth upholstery is ripped off and leather is stitched over the seats. My Vento, being black, I chose light beige colour. I am attaching some photos. The last photo will give you an idea about the texture of the leather. You get some extra padding at the lumbar area and the thigh support area and it makes things more comfortable.

 

[anshuman8]

Had leather seats( not covers) fitted in my Vento from Karlsson, Bangalore. They use 1.5 mm Scandinavian leather. The cloth upholstery is ripped off and leather is stitched over the seats. My Vento, being black, I chose light beige colour. I am attaching some photos. The last photo will give you an idea about the texture of the leather. You get some extra padding at the lumbar area and the thigh support area and it makes things more comfortable.

Wonderful and neat finish
Do they provide seat covers also? What was the total cost of doing your seats in Karlsson ?

Cheers,
Anshuman

 

[Gurrala74]

@Prem

The car seats(new) look really great !! how much did they cost you ??

Do they come with some extra cushion and it has the rear seat hand rest I hope

Any special maintenance is required for cleaning them