Reader Rahul Sawarmale spotted a possible
BSVI-compliant VW Vento TSI test mule last week. Its exterior and interior
looked the same as that of the current model. While Latin American markets have
received a successor to the VW Vento - the VW Virtus, in India, the
eight-year-old sedan will march on with a second facelift until a
market-specific replacement arrives around 2022. With the second facelift, the
sedan will receive a BSVI-compliant 1.0-litre TSI petrol turbocharged
three-cylinder petrol engine.
The 1.0-litre TSI engine will replace the 1.2-litre
TSI turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine. Volkswagen India imports the old
engine, but it will manufacture the new engine for bringing the cost down. The
same engine will power the Skoda Rapid, which is also set to receive a facelift
to remain relevant in the market until a successor arrives.
The 1.0-litre TSI engine will power the MQB A0
platform-based Hyundai Creta rivaling SUVs from Volkswagen and Skoda brands as
well. Skoda’s premium B-SUV is officially confirmed to arrive in 2020, while
Volkswagen’s offering will follow in 2021.
Volkswagen may offer the existing 1.5-litre TDI
diesel engine in the facelifted Vento, but it won’t continue this engine beyond
March 2020, as the mandatory BSVI upgrade is exhorbitantly expensive. The
1.6-litre MPI naturally aspirated four-cylinder petrol engine could also leave
the market once the more stringent emission norms become effective in April
2020.
Volkswagen could launch the facelifted Vento in the
second half of this year, maybe around the festive season. It hasn't given a
specific timeline for the second minor change, though. Next year, the
competition in the segment will likely become more fierce with the arrival of
the next-gen Honda City and the thorougly reworked Hyundai Verna.
