[Latheesh]

Originally Posted by R_Gowardhan

Is there any city in the country where any model of Rapid sells for ~₹16 Lacs?

Welcome to Bengaluru! I did a quick check online which shows ~ 16.5L OTR price for Monte Carlo AT in Bengaluru.

[thehacker]

I fail to understand the hue and cry about the platform being old in VAG cars. Yes it is old, so? It is still safer than most other cars, it is still a better handler than most others, and it is still a good looker. Yes VW has updated its platforms in the global market, but are we sure that it is because VW is lazy that it is not bringing the updated platforms here?

I also fail to understand the automobile reviewer's obsession with the platform being old whereas on the same hand they completely ignore the very important aspects like build quality and safety. They also overhype their concern of missing creature comforts like keyless entry, sunroof and push button start, but ignore the important ones like auto-dimming IRVM, windows pinch protection etc.

I find Faisal Khan reviews useless and biased. Moreover, he drives dangerously on public roads. But he has all the right to put out his point of view about the Skoda Rapid. And I do find Zac's response arrogant and uncalled for. The reason for me to write all the above was to point out that most of these YouTube reviewers read some stuff online and repeat the rhetoric about the manufacturer and the car model without putting in their own thought which I find annoying.

[kits]

Originally Posted by Turbohead

I'm sorry but you misread it. I said useless features- features that are there for the sake of it and won't make your life any better! Examples include Start stop button, auto headlights and wipers, keyless entry etc which were some of the things mentioned in that tweet

I may be the odd one out, but all the above features you mentioned add lots of value to me. I enjoy them and pay for a higher variant of a car for these features.

[R_Gowardhan]

Originally Posted by Latheesh

Welcome to Bengaluru! I did a quick check online which shows ~ 16.5L OTR price for Monte Carlo AT in Bengaluru.

My apologies. My oversight that I missed noticing that the price list I received had only manual transmission options mentioned.

[Altocumulus]

Maybe it's just me but I felt FK deserved it. When someone is trying to make things better, the public after a long time actually accepting a product and here comes someone, know it all, ridiculing it, indirectly telling people you are fools to buy this product. I am a part of Skoda FB forums, and Zac Hollis is there 'personally' reading every post, replying 'personally' to ones he is tagged and also to ones he is not if he thinks he can add value to it. Forget all that, I had enquired what consists of the Rough Road Package' , he personally mailed me saying he didnt know it himself, and was curious to dig out the information, along with the diagram of the parts and their pictures. Which CEO would do that ? How many of us even know the name of the CEO of our car's company, forget interacting with him ?

Just changing generations and adding features doesn't make it a better product. I personally am an ex owner of a 2002 OHC Vtec, a 2010 City VMT and a 2017 City VMT. Generations have changed, features got added but as products they have deteorated over the generations. The same has happened with Hyundai, Maruti, etc. Which swift is a better product ? 2009 or 2019 ?

VW, Skoda and Fiat even with their older platforms are much better built and a driver's car than the others. They didn't add fancy features but they did work on the ones that matter and brought themselves up to speed. You will get AA/AP, a modern and better engine (even this forum was gaga over turbo petrol JTP twins at cheap prices) , one of the best performance gearboxes in the market (DSG earlier, as well as the new Aisin TC), better brakes, etc . They had some features which either was way before their competitors or their competitors still don't provide. If you can't highlight or understand that and ridicule someone for keyless entry, this is a perfect response. No use wasting time defending you. Every other reviewer are appreciating the engine, the drive, the build, etc and your highlight of the story and tagline is why no keyless entry. What did he expect, flowers, a hug and candle light dinner with Zac Hollis ??

[sramanat]

Frankly the quality of the reviews posted by the vlogger are immaterial. He is the person in this tussle with nothing to lose. The other guy though had everything to lose. If anything he comes across as humane - takes pride in the car his company builds, wears his emotions on his sleeve etc. Just goes to prove that corporate social media accounts can and will fail spectacularly.

[chinmaypillay]

I believe the response was tongue-in-cheek and not an actual refutal to the feedback tweet! Since it has been mentioned he is Irish, I believe it was just an actual response with no intention to hurt or be rude.

If FK was an actual owner, am sure the response would be quite different from Zac (considered rude if not). No personal support or brand loyalty, I just feel being humble and grounded for the right things are required. Here, being humble is not required and it was just a straight answer.

Europeans usually have an answer to the point style and don't think of twisting words or anything. Could be the classic case of right intention interpreted wrong.

[Altocumulus]

Originally Posted by sramanat

Frankly the quality of the reviews posted by the vlogger are immaterial. He is the person in this tussle with nothing to lose. The other guy though had everything to lose. If anything he comes across as humane - takes pride in the car his company builds, wears his emotions on his sleeve etc. Just goes to prove that corporate social media accounts can and will fail spectacularly.

I agree. It's a big gamble which Zac took. But also think of it this way. You or me saying this to FK, he wouldn't have cared. Zac saying this, he will notice it, will have an impact and will think twice before saying something like this . Every reviewer did point out the shortcomings of the Rapid, not anyone else got this response. The issue was just pointing only the shortcomings, no positives when there are a lot of significant ones. Criticism is not the issue, it needs to be balanced and as an automobile journalist as he considers himself, he has the responsibility and duty to do that. If he gets cars and invites for Media Drives, he is not just vlogger, he is part automotive journalism fraternity. Till just 2 days back most of us here were bashing the admins why don't they report the crash ratings for reviews, they are biased, etc, and that the whole picture should be there, else people who rely on the reviews of this forum are misguided. So it's the same thing here. Zac giving him that reply, will hopefully tickle his brains.

[motorotor]

I do not think Zac has really thought through his responses to this tweet and from what I've seen even earlier tweets. Feels like a knee-jerk tweet really. I am sure folks from PR called him up to let him know this is NOT the done thing.

[kovilkalai]

Anyone else think that today's 16L is 14L from two years ago and 12L from 5 years ago? I have relatives who complain about paying 2K for a maid because "10 years ago, it was only 500. These people are ripping us off".

I think Zac Hollis said what is usually unsaid (if you don't like it, don't buy it). We do tend to put customers on a bit of a pedestal. It is abundantly clear that Maruti and Hyundai don't care as much about customers' safety as a VW or a Tata, but somehow they sell a lot of cars. Why not just acknowledge that it is VW/Skoda's choice to be whoever they want to be and get on with it. Complaints about service quality are more on point than this.

I wonder why a customer should take offence to Zac Hollis' comment. He isn't asking customers to get lost. So where is the beef?

[Malluspec]

Even though missing in latest tech and flashy features skoda/vw group have not compromised on body structure and safety even by a bit even on their cheapest offerings , and hence the price .
Another point i would like to make is the quality of the features offered . For example Seat height adjust. The range of Seat height adjust in hyundai maybe around 3 inches while the range of seat height adjust in a rapid would atleast be 4X of that of a hyundai . This applies to all the features provided. Many features offered in hyundai / suzuki is just an eyewash while these europeans mean it literally!

[ganesc]

Originally Posted by thehacker

I fail to understand the hue and cry about the platform being old in VAG cars. Yes it is old, so? It is still safer than most other cars, it is still a better handler than most others, and it is still a good looker.

I also fail to understand the automobile reviewer's obsession with the platform being old whereas on the same hand they completely ignore the very important aspects like build quality and safety. They also overhype their concern of missing creature comforts like keyless entry, sunroof and push button start, but ignore the important ones like auto-dimming IRVM, windows pinch protection etc.

Totally agree with you. No wonder some manufacturers do a minor change and call it an all-new platform with some fancy name. Even with a decade-old platform, VW/Skoda still makes one of the safer cars. Know more than a few who replaced their accident damaged Vento with nothing but another Vento/Rapid/Jetta.

I find Faisal Khan reviews useless and biased. Moreover, he drives dangerously on public roads.

Glad that I am not alone. Add to that, the way he abused every new car and then a humble Padmini, Pajero, etc, simply no respect for other's property or others on road.
Having said that, I too agree that Zac's response could have been a bit more diplomatic.

[foxworkz]

Wow, the number of people who didn't hesitate to call Faisal Khan names and criticize his work is alarming!

Why all the unwarranted jibes at FK? This thread ISN'T to review him in his professional or personal capacity. The purview of this thread is that one particular post by him and we should strictly discuss/comment on that. Let's not make this thread into a youtube comment section please.

We can all agree FK raised valid points about the features (or lack of) in the car. Whether all of us find such features useful or not is irrelevant. Fact of the matter, such amenities are available in other cars today at this price point and he's merely stating that an upgrade is due, which may be in the interest of his followers.


Zac Hollis's response is arrogant and it needs to be recognized as so. It should not be masqueraded as some fancy 'European straightforwardness'. Being straightforward would have meant saying 'it is what it is'. But what Zac said was "Buy something else then." Two completely different things.


And I call BS to the point that Zac may have been having one of those days. It was not a LIVE event or a press meet where he snapped or lost it; he typed it. Calling it a knee-jerk reaction is a stretch.

All this "bravado talk" might make for good Twitter drama, but will not inspire confidence in those who are considering a Skoda in India.

[amoghchaphalkar]

Why is Team-BHP opining on his response by calling it “poor”? The thread title is fine but the language on the homepage is not in good taste. There seems to be a divided opinion on the issue. Let that reflect in the title. Something like “Controversial response from Skoda Boss” or “Response from Skoda Boss - Hit or Miss?” would make more sense.

[thehacker]

Originally Posted by foxworkz

We can all agree FK raised valid points about the features (or lack of) in the car. Whether all of us find such features useful or not is irrelevant. Fact of the matter, such amenities are available in other cars today at this price point and he's merely stating that an upgrade is due, which may be in the interest of his followers.

Most of us here agrees on the Zac's response being arrogant and Zac himself has acknowledged and apologized for that.

But why everyone is criticizing Faisal Khan is mostly because of his tweet (we may have different opinions on his video reviews, personally I do not like them). Pointing out missing features is fine but he is declaring that the current Rapid is non-worthy of existence because the platform is old (as if that is so very bad) and misses on features like keyless entry and start stop button. Yes it misses out on those features, but it scores superbly on other very critical aspects. It was an irresponsible comment to make on FK's part, specially when he has so many people looking at him as an automobile expert.