[abhi1309]

So I had been test driving various cars for months now which included Scorpio, Cruze, Laura, Vento, Verna and many more actually. I had been driving a Fiesta petrol for about 4 and half years and was pretty much done with that size. I wanted something bigger, more practical.

Vento Verna were immediately out simply because of the segment, no point 'upgrading' to them from a Fiesta if you even consider it an upgrade. Scorpio was winning really well, because of the practicality on offer, modification potential and butch feel. It also scored because of the price

Cruze is great, easy to maintain and cheaper to drive. I could not though get myself to like the build quality since I was spoilt by the Fiesta and no GM Daewoo oriental machine would make me happy. I am 'thud' fan as they say. The cabin lacked class, too black though that is not the bad part but I found it to claustrophobic for my tastes. The plastic dashboard and all the control stalks and the feel of the dashboard didnt help either. On top of that, Checy delaers are villagers at best. They are better of selling Mahindra Maxxi cab or something, not a 15lac car.

Deciding on the Laura, I consider it a bold decision and I took it totally by heart because I took the 1.8TSi, blown away by the power and impressive torque, build quality, it was a 'no brainer'. I would have got a diesel cruze for the same price. But then comes the interiors and I must say I am a fan of this VW type dashboard and build quality. When I sat in it I just had to buy it nothing less nothing more. I opened the boot and there it was waiting, the "practicality part" and when the sales guy flattened the rear seats and showed me the flat bed space till the front seats, my eyes were gleaming holy hell, forget the scorpio.

I got the Ambiente variant, sales guys were great and even the Axis bank guys were awesome. He made sure I get the car in 8 days on the ganpati day exact, which happens to be my b'day as well according to the hindi calendar. The ceremony was awesome and so was the whole process of dealing with them. I was basically impressed by the Skoda guys. They did not make me wait for even 5 mins. I came to the showroom for delivery and there they were, all waiting to hand over the keys. It was a great experience and they were like YES for almost everything I asked for.

I have driven the car for about 220kms since 1st Sep when I got it. It showed 20kms on the odo when I took the keys. I am driving it as nicely as possible here are some pics.

I wont say I dont care about the running cost, I do but the car is just too tempting for me to calculate all that. I just love the engine, the overall feel of the car, it's even a little bumpy just like my Fiesta. The TSi had a good discount going on which kind of tilted everything in it's favor instead of the diesel. I get the smoothness and the mad engine from the A4 for not much more money. Driving it in the city, I noticed the seating comfort with that arm rest and high seats. It just cocoons you from all sides and there is a little speaker every where you put your ears. Also I gotta say I ripped the car a bit last night and the acceleration gave me goose bumps, I almost got scared cause I ran out of space before shifting to 3rd. It just pressed me against the seat, it is mind numbing, and gave me a shiver. Never have I sat in a car this powerful, let alone drive it. People ask me why not diesel, I am tired of telling them - please please I dont care 'much' about the running cost. I am a driver, just let me drive and leave the money aside for a while At least till I am 40, 10 more years to go for that. I had opened a thread for you guys to help me chose between the three vehicles Scorpio, Cruze and Laura. GTO deleted it in a day but by then I had booked the car and even updated the thread.

And and and - maybe I'll get the RS bumper and maybe I'll also get some crazy good looking low profile alloys and rubber but that is a long time away. I am going to keep it stock for as long as I control myself. Then as the money allows, I will go ahead with some Borbett kind of stuff. Too lazy to type more than this, any questions, I'll be glad to answer.















My friend who bought my Fiesta, see my signature below. He got the car as it is. I removed nothing hence his subtle smile



And my wicked Fiesta that I gave away..



21st day of driving the car today I have done about 1300 kms in it. Here are a few things that I noticed.

1. Driving it included mostly coming to office in crazy Pune traffic at 10-11am and going back at 7-8pm daily. It also included a trip to Mahabaleshwar on one of the Sundays. I also ripped the car on short stretches showing off the turbo boost to my friends almost daily, mostly because I can't help it, the thrust and power being so addictive. And one of the major selling points of the car. I managed 12.507 kmpl calculated brim to brim in the first tankful.

2. I can't help but talk about the engine being shared with the Audi A4 1.8T to anyone who talks about the car specially when they ask "why petrol".

3. In the 21 days of ownership I am almost disgusted by people asking me why did you buy petrol at this time of diesel and all. Earlier I used to attempt telling them about it not making sense since my workplace is 14kms one way so Petrol makes more sense etc. ANd I also get the 160BHP TSi motor blah blah. I don't care anymore, I refuse to answer/respond to people who ask me this question anymore. It's too much of a hassle explaining what this car is, and hell if you don't know what this car is, you don't deserve to even know me, let alone expect an answer to your question from me.

4. Coming back to the car, it comes with the Skoda Swing Audio which is integrated with the car in the sense that you get the reverse sensor display on the small low resolution LCD it has and the temperature control as well on it which is the same that comes on the MID in betwwen the dials. 4 speakers and 4 tweeters, the music is just awesome, the bass is great and you get a good equalizer for all three bass mid-range and treble and can vary the amounts by a very large margin for people who want an extreme 'V' in there equalizer while listening to music.

5. The headrest is sooooo comfortable, I put my head to it in a traffic jam (the one in front of Shoppers Stop, Wakdewadi) daily and my right ear can hear super clear radio mirchi or anything else from the tweeter from the right rear door. It sounds magical and seems like the car is pampering you when I just stretch myself a bit and relax in between a jam, almost pushing the speaker to where my ear automatically as if it can automatically sense my tiredness. I hope you get what I am saying.

6. Seat height adjust is awesome because it is extreme on both levels. Goes too up and too down. I had raised it to the maximum when I got my car the first day and my legs used to foul with the lowered steering. I have a thing for high seat and lowered steering love the position but now I have lowered the seat a bit so I can get in at least because Steering not extremely lowered is a no no for me. Just can't look at it being high up there looking like a Indicab. So yes, steering height adjust is also extreme and reach as well. I prefer the steering pushed inside completely.

7. Lot of pedal space below for your feet though the dead pedal is kinda useless for city. Also it's big and you can rest your foot completely on it. That's a plus. Everything is just big about this car.

8. Clutch is soft but not as soft as my Fiesta that was softer at 72K Kms. Lot of travel in the clutch, I like that. I like a long travelling clutch than the short travel ones like one in Santro and even Figo.

9. Display in the Swing audio system is archaic while reversing. Rest of the audio display is fantastic though. Aux Port is in the Arm Rest which can be cooled with the A/C. The Glove box is not cooled though. I miss my Fiesta Pioneer DVD head unit where I could out a DVD full of 4.5gigs of MP3's and keep listening. This one does just MP3 CD's. 700mb is nothing to write home about in storage terms in 2011.

10. No USB, wish it had though it might have a connector/adapter to do that somehow. Sourcing it almost impossible unless you are born and brought up somewhere in Europe.

11. Driving position is great and can suit a variety of people, I mean there is a lot of possibilities to adjust to anyone's preference. I can see the typical Skoda bulge on the hood and it feels great to be able to look at the hood of a car that you are driving. I feel like I am driving a 750Li which is what this car means to me.

12. Projector lamps or whatever you call it are present. They headlights are just great and I have never felt the need to put the high beam. NO complaints here.

13. 15inch alloys come standard they have a certain level of quality. ALl these OEM alloys have. Even if they look mediocre in aggressiveness etc, they are a notch above the aftermarket ones in the quality and the quality of design. 195 Goodyear's came standard.

14. The ride was super bumpy when I drove out the car from the showroom. It was almost thrashing around the bumps and even small pebbles. I filled nitrogen at 32 psi. Smooth and comfortable now. Not sure if it is the Nitrogen though because the air pressure might just be more than the recommended 32 when I took delivery of the car.

15. While driving to Mahabaleshwar, I realized why there is a variant of this car in Europe called the Scout. This car feels solid and at many places I just took it off road without thinking twice. It's to string and dismisses large irregularities with ease. Feels strong, really strong. My Fiesta was no less but this is a different level altogether.

16. The MID shows trip time, mileage, average l/100km of the trip/day, trip distance, outside temp, real time mileage, real time speed etc. All handy good information. The needles are lit irrespective of the lights being on.

17. If I drive back home and switch off the car and remove the key, the headlight go off automatically. All lights do. I can just walk off without switching off anything else in the car. Just that next day when I start the car, headlight will come on automatically.

18. When I park the car after driven 14kms back from work in a lot of traffic, the radiator fans remain on for a few minutes after parking the car and locking it.

19. Plenty of in cabin lights, lot of them and very bright inside. Beige cloth upholstery getting dirty already, need to get Leather/leatherite immediately. Cloth has a liking towards dirt.

20. No rubber mats, only cloth mats below. So I am using rear rubber mats from my wives Figo. Too scared to get the carpet dirty, it is just so clean and beautiful. Car smells great inside by the way.

21. Wash wipe is awesome and it has those heavy duty wiper units in front, thick rubbered. The spray is typical Skoda spray or should I say VW spray.

22. Almost every part that you can read on, under the hood or in the boot has VW AG written on them, even on the brake pads, horn, lights and radiator.

23. No fog lamps, they are only on the diesel Ambiente, not Petrol.

24. Has all 4 discs. Braking is just a little push of the tip of your shoe and it stops quick. Acceleration too is the same push though it's the opposite effect

25. I got the ABS feedback once i braked hard on my way back from Mahabaleshwar. The car begs to be revved on the highway.

26. Not even once, even once did I ever feel driving anywhere any lack of power in my car, First time in my life. No underpoweredness at all. Any speed, any place, any job. Power on tap as much as I want. She'll give me as much as I want, all she is going to ask me is to slot her in the right gear. That's it. Bring it on is what it says to me all the time I sit and drive it.

27. I love the car, she is the most most prized possession of mine. I love it more than my home or anyone else for that matter (I am not a father yet, so this might change once I do). Perfectly made car is all I can say.

28. Tankful is about 64ltrs which costs me about 4500 bucks approximately to fill it up with Speed or Power. Generally should last me about 20 days or a bit more.

Photo's coming in a day or two. Though it is a stock Laura, looks a little better than those stock ones because I removed the ugly oversized mudflaps there at the dealership itself. I hate mudflaps and I don't believe in them. I want to fold down the seats, put my bike inside and go cycling somewhere this weekend. Not sure if it will ever happen, but if it does, I'll not forget to take a picture. These fitness things are easier said than done.

I'll now answer the questions asked above. Coming up.


















MID between the dials is off now.
















More points:

29. Every little place/slot to put keys, papers etc is carpeted or soft cushioned, every box including the one for the sun glares. So things don't make noise when driving.

30. The red lights inside the doors that light up when the doors open are fantastic. They look classy and impressive in the night and give sufficient illumination to the people getting ready to sit inside the car or getting out.

31. The rear armrest can be pulled down completely and the boot can be accessed from the slot. Gives ample space to put in decent sized bags sitting in the rear seat.

32. The Minute Maid that I put in the chilled arm rest box while driving to Mahabaleshwar was not really chilled during the drive. It was cool, not chilled like in the fridge. I expected the latter.

[Santoshbhat]

Let me be the first one to congratulate you on your new machine. It is one helluva car.

Oops! do I see missing fog lamps? I hope you got extra discounts for the missing fogs. I hope you know about the not so real "fog lamps discontinued" story.

Drive safe. Keep safe distance between you and the vehicle in front. This car needs that cushion in front when it decides to gallop.

[ghodlur]

@abhi1309,

Congratulations on the Laura Ambiente. The colour looks so royal on the beast. So you moved from one beast to another. How was the transition?

Waiting for some more droolworthy pics of the exterior as well as the interior. Happy mile crunching and drive safely.

VW made a good start in the sales section going by your experience but if they could prove in the after sales dept too then you have hit the bulls eye.

[bluevolt]

Congratulations on owning the beast - Skoda Laura.

Please do keep the thread updated with A.S.S experiences.

Wishing you happy and safe driving!

[Vasuki]

Congrats. Have been seeing quite lot Laura 1.8 TSi reviews. Skoda might be doing something right to sell this petrol version during these times. Drive safe and enjoy.

[Swanand Inamdar]

Congratulations on the Laura. TSi is a beast to drive. Try not to use all the horses before the run in .

Do I see missing fogs? Is this the Classic or the Ambiente? Does it have the hand rest and auto dimming IRVM? Do check that. If not, get back to the dealer, unless you've got a good discount on the lack of these features.

How was the dealer experiance? Going by the pics I assume its Europa Auto.

Do update more pics, interiors et al. Down the line, a comparo between the TSi and the Fiesta would be a good read.

Drive Safe. Enjoy the beast to the fullest!

[mayankjha1806]

Congratulations, on a wonderful car. Any reasons to choose white?

Too many Lauras now on T-BHP, i am sure Skoda must be doing something right otherwise its difficult to explain the raining Lauras.

Do post some interior pics, and your experiences.

PS: Forgot to ask How much was the discount?

[alabjarus]

Congrats Abhi on your new buy. Wish you many miles of exhilarating (yet safe) driving..!

[AdrenalinJunkie]

Congrats Abhi on this stonker of a machine!!!
Also please share the OTR cost along with the break-ups and discounts as provided by the dealer.

[abhi1309]

I'll be updating the thread with more and proper pics of the car interiors, exteriors. Other info will follow, mostly by this saturday.

[abhi1309]

Originally Posted by mayankjha1806

Congratulations, on a wonderful car. Any reasons to choose white?

Too many Lauras now on T-BHP, i am sure Skoda must be doing something right otherwise its difficult to explain the raining Lauras.

Do post some interior pics, and your experiences.

PS: Forgot to ask How much was the discount?

Discount was about 1.40 Lacs total. Just put the snaps. White was the color of choice because there was no choice at all. Black, Beige, Silver and White were only colors on offer. White was obvious then for me. Experiences posted and interiors pics as well

Originally Posted by Swanand Inamdar

Congratulations on the Laura. TSi is a beast to drive. Try not to use all the horses before the run in .

Do I see missing fogs? Is this the Classic or the Ambiente? Does it have the hand rest and auto dimming IRVM? Do check that. If not, get back to the dealer, unless you've got a good discount on the lack of these features.

How was the dealer experiance? Going by the pics I assume its Europa Auto.

Do update more pics, interiors et al. Down the line, a comparo between the TSi and the Fiesta would be a good read.

Drive Safe. Enjoy the beast to the fullest!

Swanand, it is Europa, dealership experience was great. The fogs he said are not available in Petrol Ambiente, only on the diesel one. Doesn't have the auto dim IRVM though the ORVM's are heated alright. I am so tired of the paper work and other usual hassles in life, I don't really want to pick another one over the fogs with the dealer. Fiesta Laura comparo sure why not.

Originally Posted by Santoshbhat

Let me be the first one to congratulate you on your new machine. It is one helluva car.

Oops! do I see missing fog lamps? I hope you got extra discounts for the missing fogs. I hope you know about the not so real "fog lamps discontinued" story.

Drive safe. Keep safe distance between you and the vehicle in front. This car needs that cushion in front when it decides to gallop.

Thanks, awesome brakes though.

[abhi1309]

Originally Posted by AdrenalinJunkie

Congrats Abhi on this stonker of a machine!!!
Also please share the OTR cost along with the break-ups and discounts as provided by the dealer.

I paid 13.63 lacs on road.

Loan at 11.11%
There was about 1Lac discount on this TSI and about 25K on TDI.
I got some 20K more off by haggling and I got another 20K off as corporate discount.
Also I have a property outside PMC limits on my name. So I could get the Octroi waived off which was about 66k.

SO total I paid was 13.63 lacs OTR which seemed to be a pretty nice deal for the car that this is.

[abhi1309]

Just got the perfect fitting 3D mats last night. I had serious issues trying to not make people sit in my car , I gave in and spent Rs 3700, snaps coming tomorrow morning.

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line, back to the Initial ownerships forum. Thanks for sharing!

[Vik0728]

abhi1309 congrats on your latest acquisition. Looks the Stunner it is in White!!

I know you have said this a zillion times in your post and probably do it daily, but just for the record -

"Hell with the Running Cost, when you can Run like that" !!