Volkswagen Vento TSI long term review first report

However, there’s little to complain about with the mechanicals. Yes, like in the Polo GT, there are a few quirks to the engine and gearbox, but it’s all stuff you get used to in no time. The gearbox stutters a bit when setting off from a standstill and auto downshifts under braking elicit a mechanical judder that can be a little disconcerting. The brakes themselves feel a touch wooden and lack bite, but unless you’re going flat out, this isn’t a problem at all.

Speaking of going flat out, I really managed to wring out the 1.2 TSI engine this past week, thanks to a photo shoot with two other turbo-petrol cars. Of course, they weren’t your run-of-the-mill family cars — one being AMG’s monstrous new ML 63, and the other the Vento’s distant, distant relative, four times removed, the Porsche Cayenne Turbo. It’s while trying to keep up with these two overpowered behemoths that I learnt that the best way to get the most out of the Vento’s engine and gearbox is not to punch your foot down, but instead to feed it in gently till the gearbox gets through the short first few gears, and then floor it. Get it right and this can be a rather quick mid-size sedan.

So, over two months and 8000km, our long-term Vento TSI has picked up a few idiosyncrasies, though to be fair, a lot of people have asked a lot of it in that time, and it has always delivered. I’m going to hold on to it for a little while, and hopefully get to experience its more practical side, rather than just hop from one photo shoot to the next. Though what a fun week that was!

Gavin D’souza

Odometer 8,700km

Price Rs 11.77 lakh (on-road, Mumbai)

Test economy 13.1kpl

Maintenance costs None

Faults Windscreen fogs up frequently