[tsk1979]

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2006/20060724/ldh1.htm#10

Is the Skoda quality slipping?
Skoda owners, esp Laura owners are on a dharna in Ludhiana protesting against the poor quality. They are demanding that their cars which have shown problems from day one be replaced and they be given problem free cars.

So is this the dawn of the new proactive consumer? If only this thing starts happening all those dealerships who take their customer for a ride

[Rtech]

Mr Varinderjit Singh from Doraha, who purchased a Skoda Laura only around a month ago, said: “I went in for this model as I was told that it included air bags that opened up in case of accident to provide safety. However, my car was hit by a truck and the air bags did not open. I asked the company about it and I was told that the truck did not hit me from the correct angle. I have spent around Rs 17 lakh on the car and I want the company to take it back now.”

ummm....this gives you a clue as to the people participating in this "dharna".

[Steeroid]

Consumers, most of them industrialists, said they would continue with their protest till a concrete action was taken in the direction.

Another consumer, Mr Sandeep Jain, an industrialist from Ludhiana, said ever since he purchased this car some six months ago, he had been facing problems which the company failed to correct. “The car would stop without any indication lesser fuel and despite remaining with the company for quite a long period, they were unable to correct the fault. I was asked by the company to carry extra fuel with me,” he alleged.

ummmm ? I think not. A Skoda customer has to put down at least Rs.13 lakhs (minimum commitment) - if they then need to do a dharna, there must be something to it - no smoke without fire and all that.

[Joz]

When I saw the title, I thought it was something which is happening in Kerala.

I am amused that a group of industrialist who can afford Skoda's come together to stage a dharna over the quality of their cars. Sounds wierd to me. Looks like they are nitpicking as they are miffed by dealer/ dealer service.

[rangaraj]

Originally Posted by Rtech

ummm....this gives you a clue as to the people participating in this "dharna".

No excuse for the airbag not opening up!!!! We need to then have a warning that unless there is a head-on collision, the airbags will not engage.. What about the side airbags? It was not that the laura has only two (assuming that this was a laura - having spent 17L )

[DRC]

I asked the company about it and I was told that the truck did not hit me from the correct angle.

My few questions to Skoda..

What is the correct angle for hitting a Skoda?

Is this documented in the user manual? If not why not?

Are truck driveres trained to hit only in the specified angle if they decide to hit?

[nitrous]

We need to then have a warning that unless there is a head-on collision, the airbags will not engage..

I've seen a head-on collision where a BMW's airbags didn't work.
These intelligent sensors work on the principles of Inertia.They pretty well know if the airbags need to be deployed.

[himanshugoswami]

First Honda, then Ford and now Skoda! And to think that Fiat dealers have a bad rep!

[veyron1]

Perhaps the OVERALL quality of the dealerships are seeing a decline; taking the consumer for a royal ride seems to be the norm nowadays, manufacturer/brand no bar. We have seen poor experiences of TATA, Ford, Skoda, GM, and even Maruti owners, right here on this forum. It does not seem to be the manufacturer's fault in total. The dealerships are to be equally blamed. It is the dealers who mirror the face and image of the manufacturers; They make or break the brand.

Car and bike sales have been increasing in geometric progression, and component quality and after-sales customer satisfaction, are witnessing an unprecedented decline. I guess ALL manufacturers are going the MBIL way- quantity, not quality.

Expensive spares, poor after-sales, rude behaviour, blah blah... I have serious doubts as to whether Skoda inflated Laura's sales figures to appreciate the brand equity/value (as is the case with most of them).

Whatever be the case, it's high time Car/Bike manufacturers and Insurance companies paid their dues. Nobody expects 100% honesty, but a certain level of loyalty and VFM should be adhered to. When the customers don't mind paying more, the services should be of high quality as well.

[dhall_gagan]

Very... strange to get bad quality probs in such a well established car.. which rose to fame only because of its robustness and quality....

Guys don't you think there might be a technical snag in the whole lot manufactured together...

Otherwise... going on a Dharna, is a much hyped act act...
But, We can't comment on the People going on Dharna... as only the one who suffers knows the degree of suffering...

But, overall its good that people are coming out in full steam to take out such biggies...

This might give a small jolt to other companies as well..

Gagan

[Rtech]

Originally Posted by rangaraj

No excuse for the airbag not opening up!!!! We need to then have a warning that unless there is a head-on collision, the airbags will not engage.. What about the side airbags? It was not that the laura has only two (assuming that this was a laura - having spent 17L )

Originally Posted by DRC

What is the correct angle for hitting a Skoda?

Is this documented in the user manual? If not why not?

Are truck driveres trained to hit only in the specified angle if they decide to hit?

You need to study up on the operating principles of airbags. Its not like in the movies where the bag will pop out even if a car backs into it! Nitrous has given a brief, basic idea in his post.

Veyron, I totally agree with your post. Its high time action is taken against dealers who seem to be getting from bad to worse. I don't know what a possible solution could be though. Any idea's people?

[GTO]

Upon seeing the experiences that most mumbai skoda owners have had, I would give the benefit of doubt to these protesters. Its a known fact of how terrible Skoda service generally is, and how expensive it is to maintain their cars in the authorised service centers.

Some owners take it...some go to independent garages.....and some stage a dharna!

GTO

[captainsokhi]

I'm having a Octavia from 2 years and getting it serviced from Krishna Autos, Jalandhar. But there has been no big problem to me. Service also is quite good. I didn't have any problem that coudn't be solved by the Service people.

Mr. Varinderjit Singh have said that airbags did't open on a collision, for that i'll go with Rtech's point that you need to study the opertaing principles of airbags.

As said by Mr. Varinder Dutta, that the company said that you should not drive in waterlogged area. That is the only problem i've had in my car. I don't know if happened due to driver's fault or something else. What happened was, the driver drove the car through a waterlogged area and came home without any problem. The next morning the car didn't start. So, we took it to the service center and they said that water have entered the clutch system and pressure plates and clutch plates needs to be replaced. That was a huge bill of about 35K.
After a few months, i drove through a waterlogged area and the car was not running well. I got it checked and they said that water has entered into Air Filter and only that was need to be replaced. Nothing else happened, and water was up till the front Grill touching the Skoda Emblem in the front.
So, i think that it depends upon your driving experience.

And as Rtech said that the point of Airbags gives you the clue about the people participating in the dharna.

[s.prashanth]

when will people learn , we are paying 18l for a notchback,which is actually a lot lesser abroad, dealers who are naxalites in disguise, look at the indian made cars or achange, Maruti, hyundai , honda,

[veyron1]

@Captainsokhi: Err...are you saying that your Skoda waded through water that was inching upto the waistline, and nothing happened except for a damaged air filter? You were lucky. Many others weren't. Most of the cars that were submerged in the Mumbai deluge were "sunk" in 2 feet of water. Blown head gaskets, waterlogged exhausts, broken poppet stems, shorted electricals. Just some of the problems seen from cars submerged in 2 feet of water.

Waterlogging is an aspect not covered under warranty by any manufacturer, since it is dependent upon driving conditions- not manufacturing quality.

The agitation here, seems to have been caused due to dealer attitude. Perhaps the customers wouldn't have got so angry, if the dealers had treated their cases with some degree of importance.