[.anshuman]

Originally Posted by asr245

Then I guess one can assume that he/she already has the Laura VRS. After all the changes are cosmetic in nature (besides suspension tweaks I guess). Nothing much for enthusiasts to get thrilled about.

It's the same Octavia 1.8TPi vs Octavia RS and Fiesta 1.6 vs Fiesta 1.6S thing.

Buy a stock Laura TSi, add aftermarket suspension kit + better rubber and you have a better driver's car than the factory RS(if the engine is same). Keep rest of the money for other mods.

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by .anshuman

The current 1.8 TSi 160hp engine has enough grunt to flaunt a VRS badge(2.0 TSi would be even better). What the Laura TSi needs is a better equipped variant with more equipment and stiffly tuned suspension to match the sporting pretensions of the 160hp TSi engine.

Completely agree. The 1.8TSi have enough meat to have the RS badge on. The 2.0TSi with 200+ bhp would have been great, but that may really impact the price tag (same engine which does the duty in Golf GTi).

I hope they don’t cut down on the equipment list for India bound RS. And yes, possibly the 6-speed DSG.

On a separate note, I noticed that UK version of RS has the same heart of Passat – 2.0 CR 170bhp / 350nm

Note: Thanks for merging the thread.

[rana_kirti]

I have always wondered with one thought...

Why don't all car manufacturers have one Flagship high performance version of their their cars available for sale here in our country ?

Ok, they can do volumes and make their profit with higher numbers on the regular versions but what is the problem of having a Tuned Up performance version ?

Ok they might only sell 1 unit a month but would it really make a difference to the car manufacturer who are selling thousands of the regular models ?

[vb-saan]

Now thinking through the latest omissions from Skoda on the Laura 1.8 TSi Ambiente – will this be a ploy from them to give more space to the upcoming RS?

I have a feeling that they will finally end up with just 2 variants of the 1.8 TSi - the Classic and the RS.

[Akshay1234]

With the price of petrols so high, I hope they launch the diesel RS with 170bhp and a DSG. I think it will have the same equipment level as an L&K but with the sporty stuff.

The way I see it, at least in the near future high performance diesels make much more sense than a petrol. And this is coming from an owner of a 240bhp Honda

[dharmana]

Now this is a big disappointment for me, I was eagerly waiting for this vehicle to be launched. In the UK it has got 200BHp with a turbocharger. Even in the delhi motor show it was displayed with the 200BHP engine. But now it seems that they are going to launch it with the present laura 1.8ltr 160 bhp engine. Only modifications will be handling, suspension etc and cosmetic to make it look sporty and i am damn sure it will cost more than the Laura pertrol 1.8 tsi. When are we Indians going to get a 200bhp sportscar which is priced in the 15-20 lakhs range? Now kizashi seems a better option as its got more bhp than the laura rs. Surely kizashi is going to smoke laura.

Note from Support: Threads merged. Please search prior to opening new threads.

[octane1002]

That's really disappointing indeed.If its going to be only mods like suspension tweaks/bumpers/skirtings/upholstery/sunroof/17" wheels/spoiler/foglamps/xenons without the engine "upgrade", Im guessing price is going to be upped by a minimum of 2.5-3 lakhs being a Skoda, which is going to put it around 17 lakhs ex-showroom bang in Kizashi territory.

What's your source of this information though?Have Skoda India made an official announcement yet?

[ACM]

Originally Posted by dharmana

But now it seems that they are going to launch it with the present laura 1.8ltr 160 bhp engine. Only modifications will be handling, suspension etc and cosmetic to make it look sporty and i am damn sure it will cost more than the Laura pertrol 1.8 tsi. When are we Indians going to get a 200bhp sportscar which is priced in the 15-20 lakhs range? Now kizashi seems a better option as its got more bhp than the laura rs. Surely kizashi is going to smoke laura.

Nope.

The present Laura 1.8TSi itself is already faster than the Kizashi. Add DSG and a better handling suspension it is the Laura all the way vs the kizashi even with the present 15" rims for the TSi which I am sure will be atleast 16" if not 17" in the RS.

If just bhp made for a fast car then the cruz too would have been a drivers delight comparatively. The Laura is infact obviously faster than the Superb 1.8 TSi as well due to the lighter weight.

[GTO]

Honestly, as long as they do a vRS, namely a stiffer suspension and add some goodies, I will be extremely happy. The Octavia vRS also ran the same engine as the regular 1.8 TPi, but it was one heck of a driving machine. I don't expect the Laura RS to have the same "driving on the edge" feeling as the Octavia, nor that beautiful steering, yet it will be one of the best driver cars in the market. The current Laura 1.8's soft OEM suspension is a huge let-down in an otherwise nice driving experience. Plus, it's stripped of even the most basic features as its sold today.

It's still going to be a market dud, and one that addresses a very niche segment. Few people are buying Laura petrols today, and the sales will only suffer more as petrol continues to get expensive.

Originally Posted by dharmana

Now kizashi seems a better option as its got more bhp than the laura rs. Surely kizashi is going to smoke laura.

Even if Skoda puts a 2 lakh rupee premium on the RS version, the Kizashi will be priced much higher. For one, there is a 5.xx lakh difference in the ex-showroom of either car's base variants today. Second, the Kizashi is a CBU and hence, it's RTO / road taxes are more.

[.anshuman]

Originally Posted by dharmana

Now this is a big disappointment for me, I was eagerly waiting for this vehicle to be launched. In the UK it has got 200BHp with a turbocharger. Even in the delhi motor show it was displayed with the 200BHP engine. But now it seems that they are going to launch it with the present laura 1.8ltr 160 bhp engine. Only modifications will be handling, suspension etc and cosmetic to make it look sporty and i am damn sure it will cost more than the Laura pertrol 1.8 tsi. When are we Indians going to get a 200bhp sportscar which is priced in the 15-20 lakhs range? Now kizashi seems a better option as its got more bhp than the laura rs. Surely kizashi is going to smoke laura.

See post#14 of this thread. Drive both the cars and all the doubts about 1.8 Tsi being slow will surely vanish. Paper specs are not always the best reference for actual fun to drive factor on the road. BTW I have driven both these cars and i really do not have any doubts regarding Tsi being a more entertaining car in current guise, with stiffer set suspension it would be even better.

[rahul016]

Guys i checked out the facebook page of Skoda India and they have responded to a query about the launch of Laura RS.
It states:
"The launch of Laura RS is planned in the third quarter of the calendar year 2011. We will keep you posted on further details closer to the launch".

[R.P.M]

If Skoda does launch the RS version before September and its with the 2.0 TSi motor and DSG along with all the interior exterior goodies I will definitely be exchanging my 2 month old 1.8Tsi ambient for it.

But if it has the same motor id rather get a remap, stiffer suspension and better rubber over a period of time.

[dharmana]

Originally Posted by ACM

Nope.

The present Laura 1.8TSi itself is already faster than the Kizashi.
If just bhp made for a fast car then the cruz too would have been a drivers delight comparatively. The Laura is infact obviously faster than the Superb 1.8 TSi as well due to the lighter weight.

How can you say Laura 1.8TSi is faster than Kizashi. If we are talking about acceleration and not top end speed its the power to weight ratio that counts.

Laura power to weight ratio: 160/1360 = 118 bhp per tonne
Kizashi power to weight ratio: 178/1460 = 122 bhp per tonne

gear ratios, engine cc, torque are secondary when it comes to acceleration. Its true Cruze has good bhp i.e., 150 but its kerb weight is close to 1500 kg so power to weight ratio is only a 100 which probably explains why it is not as fast as it is supposed to be.
I have seen a lot of online calculators which calculate the 0-60mph, 0-100mph times and they only take into account bhp and kerb weight. So i think power to weight ratio is the determining factor in deciding which car is faster... please correct me if i am wrong

How will an engine remap help to increase the power. I think that the 2.0ltr Octavia RS UK version generates the additional 40 bhp over the 160 bhp because of the turbo. Its ironical that Skoda has decided to remove the turbo and dish us out the stock 160 bhp Laura engine for the RS. Maybe they did it to increase fuel efficiency and reduce costs, but how much extra will a turbo cost? 1-2 lakhs? If someone is buying a RS they would buy it for the power and i don't think they will mind spending an additional 1-2 lakhs for the turbo and they won't definitely mind losing out 1-2 kms on the mileage for an extra 40 turbo charged horses

[anandpadhye]

Originally Posted by dharmana

Its ironical that Skoda has decided to remove the turbo and dish us out the stock 160 bhp Laura engine for the RS. Maybe they did it to increase fuel efficiency and reduce costs, but how much extra will a turbo cost? 1-2 lakhs?

Laura TSI already has a turbo.
Octavia TPi also had a turbo.

Skoda has been selling turbo petrols for a long time in India.

[Akshay1234]

Originally Posted by dharmana

How can you say Laura 1.8TSi is faster than Kizashi. If we are talking about acceleration and not top end speed its the power to weight ratio that counts.

Laura power to weight ratio: 160/1360 = 118 bhp per tonne
Kizashi power to weight ratio: 178/1460 = 122 bhp per tonne

gear ratios, engine cc, torque are secondary when it comes to acceleration. Its true Cruze has good bhp i.e., 150 but its kerb weight is close to 1500 kg so power to weight ratio is only a 100 which probably explains why it is not as fast as it is supposed to be.

How will an engine remap help to increase the power. I think that the 2.0ltr Octavia RS UK version generates the additional 40 bhp over the 160 bhp because of the turbo. Its ironical that Skoda has decided to remove the turbo and dish us out the stock 160 bhp Laura engine for the RS. Maybe they did it to increase fuel efficiency and reduce costs, but how much extra will a turbo cost? 1-2 lakhs? If someone is buying a RS they would buy it for the power and i don't think they will mind spending an additional 1-2 lakhs for the turbo and they won't definitely mind losing out 1-2 kms on the mileage for an extra 40 turbo charged horses

What are you talking? The T in 1.8 TSI stands for turbo. The 2.0t in the RS in the UK is a completely different engine. Still this engine is not slow at all, and will beat a Kizashi. There is no primary or secondary factor in acceleration. Its all the factors you mentioned above combined which will give good acceleration. Each is as important as the other, so you can't base acceleration on one factor alone.

And the Cruze is reasonably quick. How fast is it supposed to be? Mobike08 will be here soon to continue this.