[Tats07]

Let me add to the pricing speculation for the TSI models (all prices ex-showroom):

1. Laura 1.8 TSI (160 PS) Ambition MT (when it was sold) - 14.xx Lakhs
2. Jetta 1.4 TSI (122 PS) Comfortline MT - 15.00 Lakhs

Now VW being positioned as more premium by the group, I'm trying to understand where the trims would fit in:

1. Octavia 1.4 TSI (assuming 140 PS) 'highest trim' MT - 14.xx Lakhs? Since it has to be priced lower than existing Jetta? It will undo the Jetta TSI ( whatever little they have now) sales completely, but would VW mind? I somehow feel the 140 PS will not be given, it will be a 122 PS one at 14.xx. VW can make us happy though with a 140 PS version highest trim MT at 13.xx.

2. Octavia 1.8 TSI highest trim MT (if at all a manual is sold) - 15.xx? Priced little more than a Jetta Comfortline TSI since it has a bigger TSI block with more horses? Maintains the so called premium strategy. Or should it be 16.00?

3. Octavia 1.8 TSI DSG - 17.xx? 18.00?

If we throw in the existing Laura TDI sold for a brief time on the side, then the complexity increases for the diesel Octavia pricing and pricing in general.

Almost all of the options are expensive. The previous generation 1.8 TSI owners are the luckiest of the lot, and they are the ones who should be smiling when they think of the discounts they got for their fantastic machine and paid on road prices of 13.xx or 14.xx. We will never get 1.8 TSI at that price, maybe not even in the used car market since TSIs are hardly sold by owners.

OT: Can they at least give us poor souls a Vento 1.4 TSI or a Rapid 1.4 TSI rated at 122 PS and sold at 13.xx on road?

[imp!]

Originally Posted by Tats07

1. Octavia 1.4 TSI (assuming 140 PS) 'highest trim' MT - 14.xx Lakhs? Since it has to be priced lower than existing Jetta? It will undo the Jetta TSI ( whatever little they have now) sales completely, but would VW mind? I somehow feel the 140 PS will not be given, it will be a 122 PS one at 14.xx. VW can make us happy though with a 140 PS version highest trim MT at 13.xx.

Going by the current engine tunes for diesels, the Laura engine tune is identical to Jetta only for the DSG models. The manual gets about 30 HP decrease. I expect the same to happen with the next generation of Octavia as well. Don't be surprised to see lower state of tuning in the Skodas.

Originally Posted by Tats07

2. Octavia 1.8 TSI highest trim MT (if at all a manual is sold) - 15.xx? Priced little more than a Jetta Comfortline TSI since it has a bigger TSI block with more horses? Maintains the so called premium strategy. Or should it be 16.00?

This is the onion, the TSI engine has become a legend in India, the slick shifting 6 speed manual gear box all the more so. Honestly, I just don't see them not offering manual as an option given the cult following this car has among Indian enthusiasts. But, then again who the heck knows? As of now there is only a DSG on tap. It will also be priced on par or slightly lower than the Jetta if the current strategy is being adhered to (making a reasonable allowance for cost of the gearbox).

Originally Posted by Tats07

3. Octavia 1.8 TSI DSG - 17.xx? 18.00?

Almost all of the options are expensive. The previous generation 1.8 TSI owners are the luckiest of the lot, and they are the ones who should be smiling when they think of the discounts they got for their fantastic machine and paid on road prices of 13.xx or 14.xx. We will never get 1.8 TSI at that price, maybe not even in the used car market since TSIs are hardly sold by owners.

1) Expensive or not, the car is superior to anything the Japs, Koreans, or Americans can throw at it. It also offers better value than the Jetta. VAG have maintained that the car will offer better value than the current Laura. This could mean that either the existing prices will be maintained, or there will be a very marginal price hike to combat the falling rupee. Either way, going by the fact that an Altis Diesel top end comes to 19.XX lacs on road in Bangalore, ANY of the Octavias will be better value. A price drop will be mind boggling and not something we should expect. If it happens well and good. If not then you are still getting value for money.

2) Not all Laura owners got the discount. The massive discounts started a year or so after the facelifts perhaps right before the VRS was launched. One doesn't see too many on the used markets since the ones that are in enthusiast hands will stay in their hands, probably until they can't run any more. The chauffeur driven company crowd that opts for the petrol for refinement reasons, will either not sell due to poor resale value, or the cars have been destroyed by the drivers (have seen umpteen examples floating around Bombay); perhaps those of us who own the car in its MT avatar should be thankful for as long as the car survives and pray in the meantime that VAG decide to continue with the MT's; even though the Punto Abarth looks promising and ought to be a much more involved drivers experience, it is not as versatile as an Octavia VRS as an everyday car. If the 1.8 TSIs come in Manual versions, then base models could very well start at 16 lacs. We'll just have to wait and watch

Originally Posted by Tats07

OT: Can they at least give us poor souls a Vento 1.4 TSI or a Rapid 1.4 TSI rated at 122 PS and sold at 13.xx on road?

Highly doubt they'd do this at-least for 3-4 years. Maybe on the next generation of Rapid or Vento, in the meantime, a 1.2 TSI with DSG maybe on the cards. Unfortunately pricing is an issue as it will be borderline base Octavia territory.

The Indian market needs to evolve where prices between top of the line and base models across segments start converging based on Engines and options. This will allow the manufacturers to offer all their European offerings in India and will certainly change our markets for the better. A single, rich, young college student would happily sped 12 lacs on a Polo 1.4TSI with manual transmission rather than drive a Vento/Rapid TDI

We have a long ways to got before we start getting solid engine options.

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

Ideally, Laura should be replaced by the new Octavia. But India being India, cheaper versions of the Laura will still be on sale.

Well, it is actually a replacement. This talk of selling side-by-side is more a marketing move. They want to exhaust the existing Laura CKD kits. From what I have gathered, they have been preparing for this from the beginning of the year. To start with, they stopped producing MT variants of Laura TDI by end 2012. And for the 2013 TDI AT models and TSI, they added on a lot of standard kit to make the Ambition and Elegance trim attractive (for e.g.; 16” alloys, touch screen audio with Bluetooth etc. in the Ambition variant). Effectively, they were distributing the L&K features into lower variants to make it more attractive for the buyers, without giving hefty discounts.

Once the Laura CKD kits are done, it will vanish from the market, and lower variants of the Octavia should start coming in.

[StarScream]

Originally Posted by ACM

If it was unveiled today why is the price not announced as yet? The looks were already known as it is released worldwide. So what exactly did they unveil today? This seems to be like the new gimmick that companies have caught on.

It's quite simple really. The idea seems to be to tell fence-sitters to hold on and wait for the new car till they get their production fine-tuned. I think that from a VFM, features, service and warranty standpoint the Elantra will be very hard to beat. The Korean may have a lighter build quality but better after-sales makes up for that.

It doesn't seem like initially Skoda is going to attempt to address the Elantra's price point since the Octavia will co-exist with the Laura. I think they will just about undercut the Jetta by offering more kit/better engine at a starting price close to the Trendline.

[volkman10]

Skoda Confirms Laura To Be Phased Out.

http://www.motorbeam.com/cars/skoda-...1LdooE92TuE.99

[Contrapunto]

Originally Posted by maverick145

I am with you on this. I had already seen the pictures and read most of the stuff about the car before hand. I was eagerly waiting for the price. There is nothing that is news to me.

After the success of the EcoSport, the success of its "hype curve" and its less than efficient effort on matching production to demand, every car manufacturer worth its salt has decided to use the same playbook. I hate to be cynical, but I am expecting similar result viz. a flurry of bookings even without test drives, long delivery times, dealers taking customers for granted, taking them for a ride or trying to push unnecessary accessories.

Interestingly, till last week, there was no news of the extended warranty on the 7DSG in Polo GT TSI and no assurance if it will be ever available. And its still selling. Wonder what "hints" it will give Skoda - now that its coming with the DQ 200 7 DSG in both petrol and diesel.

I would be watching with interest for sure-

[ACM]

Originally Posted by volkman10

[left]Skoda Confirms Laura To Be Phased Out.

Well if Skoda indeed does this it will probably be a good Idea. As that will indeed imply reasonable pricing. With the Laura present there indeed is no scope for both to coexist. The one way out though would have been to keep a base spec diesel Laura 2.0 TDI available for some while. Who knows they still might just do it and call it the Laura Classic .

[Santoshbhat]

The Octavia has always been a good looking car and this latest version seems to follow that trend. Understated elegance.

As an existing Laura owner, a few points of observation from my side

• The car has a raised suspension much like the Laura, which is part of the rough road package

• Organ type accelerator pedal replaced by a suspended one. The organ type one in the Laura is great actually and is really comfortable and imparts a rich feel. Why take a backward step? How much are they saving there? Can't understand the logic here.

• The interiors seem to be a bit of a beige overdose. Though the Laura too has beige interiors, it has a generous amount of black and silver highlighting that imparts a more balanced look.

• The Bolero screen looks too small on the huge slot provided for it. The European models get a bigger screen.

• Lousy Goodyear NCTs from the Laura continue despite much better tyres available in the market. The NCTs are probably nearly a decade old tyres .

• Rear AC vents do not protrude as much as in the Laura. In conjunction with the extended wheel base, the rear seat will be a lot more spacious and comfortable than the Laura.

• Battery cover missing. Laura gets a hard plastic case in which the battery is housed.

With great engines, great gear boxes, tight suspensions and a modern chassis the drive quality will be its high point. Pricing will be the key for its success. If they can manage to sell it at similar prices levels as the current Laura (sans discounts) it will be a compelling buy for someone looking at this segment. But Skoda needs to do something about its after sales service reputation.

Any word on the suspension set up? If the TDI loses the multilink setup, that would be a major disappointment. As with most car brands, the petrol models are generally priced lower. The 1.8 TSi in Europe gets the multilink, whereas the TDI does not. With lower pricing for the 1.8 TSI in India don't know whether the same suspension choice will be continued for the Indian models.

[azeemhafiz]

The car as noted by many in this forum is a nice looker. The understated - Jettaish lines are nice, a few months ago I looked at the Jetta and made a remark about the A4ish lines. Its all in the family.

I'm really thrilled to hear that they will continue the 1.8 Tsi engine in the new Octavia, I hope they don't make any last minute changes to this decision.

Originally Posted by akshay1234

Now seeing that the TSI makes 180bhp I think its high time I remap my vRS to 200bhp, so that it doesn't become a poser in front of the Normal Octy TSI

Akshay - When you get the car remapped please, please go in for the Downpipe with Stage 2 map. Its just brilliant. I know you love exhaust notes and this will definitely not disappoint.

[shankar.balan]

Originally Posted by StarScream

It's quite simple really. The idea seems to be to tell fence-sitters to hold on and wait for the new car till they get their production fine-tuned. I think that from a VFM, features, service and warranty standpoint the Elantra will be very hard to beat. The Korean may have a lighter build quality but better after-sales makes up for that.

It doesn't seem like initially Skoda is going to attempt to address the Elantra's price point since the Octavia will co-exist with the Laura. I think they will just about undercut the Jetta by offering more kit/better engine at a starting price close to the Trendline.

I really do not think that anyone who has planned on going the Euro vehicle route would be able to side step in favour of a Korean box, however good the said Korean box may be.

[lancer_rit]

The Columbus unit with GPS would have been great instead of the Bolero! No messy holders for separate GPS devices, phones etc ...

While OD and some others mentioned MT and DSG AT options for 1.8TSI, Autocar seems to stick to only DSG for 1.8 TSI! Not sure which version is correct ? I do hope the MT option for 1.8TSI exists!

@parrys, great report. Do you have some info on the transmission options ?

[dkaile]

First Look Video from the launch by Shapur Kotwal

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=48_PyXMTsWM

[Hayek]

Very interesting car. I certainly hope it does well - for whatever reason, all buyers in the D1 and D2 segments seem to want are SUVs even if they are far worse to drive and less well equipped than passenger cars in the same segments. The fact that an outdated flop product like the Rexton outsells most D2 cars is incredible. And if the Octavia is not a hit, one can't blame manufacturers if they skip d1/d2 car launches in India (a la Honda with the new Civic)

[StarScream]

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

I really do not think that anyone who has planned on going the Euro vehicle route would be able to side step in favour of a Korean box, however good the said Korean box may be.

I would humbly disagree. Take my example. I'm in the market to replace my 8 1/2-year old Honda City, which has given me supreme reliability and supreme fuel efficiency. I started out looking for a larger car and fixed on the Innova (in keeping with the supreme reliability theme) although at the back of my mind I just couldn't reconcile with owning a minivan because I like sedans. There was one other issue with the Innova, at 16 lakhs, on road for the VX in U.P., it is hugely overpriced. Both me and my wife couldn't see ourselves dropping that kind of money for it, although we completely understand its utility.

So we started looking around at what else is available in that price range. I test drove the Altis diesel and it totally underwhelmed me. I saw your Yeti ownership experience and called Skoda, they never showed up. I called VW for the Jetta, they never showed up (I was actually pleased they didn't show after reading Ajmat's experience). I test drove the Fluence, liked it, sought a discount, they never called back. I even drove the B-class and hated the harsh ride. I called Hyundai for the Elantra, two dealers showed up, offered discounts and test drives. Took one (petrol AT), awaiting another (diesel MT). Wife loved the way the car looks, although my initial impression with the light steering and light build was that its like buying a Korean appliance. But it ticks all the boxes - good space, great features, good price, deep discount, max safety, good after-sales, long warranty as standard. So in keeping with my initial idea of supreme reliability for a long period - I can't think of another product that fits the bill.

And I know my Germans. In my immediate family there is a BMW 520D and an Audi Q3. I understand what their USP is. But, in my opinion, driving pleasure is just one part of the ownership experience. Being happy and satisfied with the ownership is an entirely different thing. And sadly in India, the two don't go hand in hand.

I'll wait for the Octavia - I quite like the way it looks (always have) - but realistically I just don't see myself buying a Skoda.

[Omtoatom]

So as Skoda has dubbed it during their press unveiling, "the legend returns". India, get ready to welcome the Octavia...again!

Overall I have to say - a fabulous looking car. What a gorgeous all-new front grille! The third gen Octavia seems well kitted too. Fabulous to see the 1.8 TSI retained under the hood and now up-tuned to 177 PS. That gem of an engine was dying a slow death in India. God knows, it deserved better. However the only grouse (if at all) is the very Rapid-like looking rear. A slight put-off there but otherwise the Czechs have pretty much nailed it. Now get the pricing right folks.

Eager to see the Octavia 1.4 TSI take on the Jetta TSI whenever that mill eventually makes it's way into the Skoda iconic notchback. Meanwhile enjoy the spotlight Skoda