[Guite]

Originally Posted by ajnagpur

I am so impressed with the Fabia & have taken several test drives. I was just about the finalize & saw this thread.

Same here. Took two test drives of the Fabia, even submitted cancellation letter of my Getz booking. And then this thread came along. So withdrew my cancellation of the Getz GLX and took delivery last week.

I had liked the built quality, safety and other features of the Fabia. But since it was to be my first car, probablity of repair work is high (knocking at something, getting hit, improper driving technique, etc.). Prospect of spending LOTS of money later in vehicle upkeep worried me alot. So I changed my mind and reverted back to my initial choice.

[S.H.Shankar]

Originally Posted by Guite

Same here. Took two test drives of the Fabia, even submitted cancellation letter of my Getz booking. And then this thread came along. So withdrew my cancellation of the Getz GLX and took delivery last week.

I had liked the built quality, safety and other features of the Fabia. But since it was to be my first car, probablity of repair work is high (knocking at something, getting hit, improper driving technique, etc.). Prospect of spending LOTS of money later in vehicle upkeep worried me alot. So I changed my mind and reverted back to my initial choice.

We need more of these for manufacturers to sit up and take notice.

(And of-course owners bringing up more such issues in fora so that prospective buyers are warned of impending peril...)

[naikpranav]

Originally Posted by Guite

Same here. Took two test drives of the Fabia, even submitted cancellation letter of my Getz booking. And then this thread came along. So withdrew my cancellation of the Getz GLX and took delivery last week.

I had liked the built quality, safety and other features of the Fabia. But since it was to be my first car, probablity of repair work is high (knocking at something, getting hit, improper driving technique, etc.). Prospect of spending LOTS of money later in vehicle upkeep worried me alot. So I changed my mind and reverted back to my initial choice.

Yes that would make sense, the more expensive the car gets, the more unforgiving it is, and the more unforgiving you get towards yourself if something happens.

I was hit by a truck the other day, he tried to break my L-ORVM hitting it twice, when i was stuck in traffic (he purposely did that because a traffic policeman asked me to move in front of him) but despite the trashing to the mirror, it still stays with just 2 scratches marking where he hit, he tried his best to take it off even getting it entangled in the truck, that reminds me, a small tempo once touched the side mirror of my swift, very lightly, in an accident of misjudgement, and the outer cover fell off and broke to pieces under his rear wheels, if you felt your money was worth the car, put it in once you're more confident. you'll never regret it.

[sidd_city]

went with my friend to replace his front wheel cap for his verna vgt rs3100 for a single wheel cap. Now what do you say about that guys? Ok we know that skoda expensive regarding spares but hyundai since when

[amohit]

Originally Posted by naikpranav

I was hit by a truck the other day, he tried to break my L-ORVM hitting it twice, when i was stuck in traffic (he purposely did that because a traffic policeman asked me to move in front of him) but despite the trashing to the mirror, it still stays with just 2 scratches marking where he hit, he tried his best to take it off even getting it entangled in the truck,

what were u driving...a tank
and what was the cop doing when that truck wala fellow was trying to break your mirror??

Regards,

[naikpranav]

Its Tank-Like build is giving me quite a bit of confidence nowadays, and those large scratches were the paint from the truck, got it off. now all thats left is some war scratches below, you'd be surprised at what this car can take.

[yashrajgupta]

guys! tell me this, with the parts of skoda cars being so expensive doesnt it make sense to buy them for kashmiri gate or someplace like that. i mean offcourse original parts are way ahead in quality but then paying 2300rs for a wheel cap is obscene. why not just buy the cheaper ones.

[subbarp]

Originally Posted by Ym-enjn

One of my friend (with a big family) has Octavia from last few years, then he bought Laura 8 to 10 months back now around 1-2 month back he bought Fabia. Explain?

Going by the sequence, he has lots of spare cars to use, and does not bother about the cost of spares. That probably explains it.

[gendarmee]

Originally Posted by GTO

Correct. But in this case, the clutch + flywheel replacement seems to be a uniform bill adjustment across all Mumbai Skoda workshops. Considering that its not required, have they collaborated a joint milking session?

Seems like it!
Capitalizing on non technical guys!
I don't know much about skoda, how does 20K for a brake servicing sound for the same vehicle?

[Thad E Ginathom]

As it started off with hubcaps...

Better just hope this never happens to you!

(Links to a BBC News pic; link may not be valid for ever)

[yaser_cyclist]

OMG that is a lot of money especially for a little piece of plastic that actually serves no mechanical purpose.

Have always admired the Skodas for their looks and performance even though the Fabia isn't that much of a head turner. But didn't knew of this side of its maintenance costs.

Somebody just said 80K for a clutch work? I think one can get a used Omni for that price and a family of 8-10 can go out and have fun in it. Forget about exclusivity and stuff. Imagine if there was a omni in every house, probably every house would need just one car and there would be so much less traffic on the roads, less pollution and much cheaper spares. Wouldn't that be much better for the nation and the entire world to have more people travelling in less number of cars in the long run rather than have one person travelling in one car for exclusivity?

One of my friend has an indica and the first time he went for a service at the dealer, a couple of those little wheel caps were replaced at the rate of 60-70 bucks per peice. They seem to crack every other time the wheel is tightened etc. He got after market things for less than half the price and they lasted as much as the original ones. That is the way it works here in india and every manufacturer should keep this in mind.

[MadRash]

Hi guys:

When we talk about high maintenance cost of a car, we should explain all the +ve’s and –ve’s of the car. Many people listed the –ve’s (that’s what they think). As a satisfied Fabia owner I will share my opinion here.

Few facts about the service:
1. Service interval for the diesel car - 10000 KMs
2. First service? This is my question to a guy in the showroom. He said "Come after a YEAR sir". I wasn’t able to believe it but after 2 months & 3000 KMs I drive it with confidence. Tell me how many cars in India will give you this confidence?

I strongly believe that the cost of spares is high because there is NO COST CUTTING.

To give a background about myself, when I decided to buy a car, I waited for more than 6 months for Fabia. When it was launched I dropped my plan due to its price. After some time I booked a Swift dZire. Learning about the poor build and waiting time, I canceled my booking and went back and bought a Fabia TDI.

Now I'm really happy and fully satisfied with this "World's most beautiful looking (non)Battle RAM".


Even before I bought it, I know about the costly spare parts. But as of now they are being imported and are shared between Skodas, VWs and Audis. Open the bonnet and look at the engine bay, you see most of the spares have these three brands. Just one proof of "no cost cutting". I hope the prices will come down once they start their production here in India.


Regarding this particular wheel cap issue, the Fabia wheel cap is a real good one. Unlike the after-market caps, it is not closing the air vents and designed for the wheel. This wheel cap lock is also a good design. In bolting-up designs the washers in the wheel cap will break if you tight the wheel nut. It will also affect the wheel alignment some times.
The Fabia's wheel cap will not come out that easily. I hope in saraf_suman's case it would have hit some stone or the edge of some pothole.

Originally Posted by yaser_cyclist

I think one can get a used Omni for that price and a family of 8-10 can go out and have fun in it. Forget about exclusivity and stuff. Imagine if there was a omni in every house, probably every house would need just one car and there would be so much less traffic on the roads, less pollution and much cheaper spares. Wouldn't that be much better for the nation and the entire world to have more people travelling in less number of cars in the long run rather than have one person travelling in one car for exclusivity?

yaser_cyclist: How will the Omnis help reduce the traffic? To achieve it, we need good public transport and public should use it. Otherwise the only way I know how Onmi reduce traffic is mentioned by many T-Bhpians in the 'Accidents in India' Thread.

Originally Posted by Games Goblin

Wow that is the most BS post I have come across in a long time. Even though a Swift might rattle here and there, you can drive it happily knowing that you get good service for one of cheapest price - 5 lakh swift petrol/diesel is actually more powerful and enjoyable to drive than Fabia - which is woefully underpowered and costs 8+lakh (u can get a Fiesta Diesel or better yet an SX4 for that much and still have some change left)

Games Goblin:
What is "good service?" The one in which they are not able to eliminate the rattle sound?

"enjoyable to drive than Fabia?" Thats a story no one will believe.

There are people who like to have a rattle as a freebie with their car and there are some who want to have quality build & safety as features of their car. So it’s up to the buyer.

I think the rattle sound is a safety feature of Marutis. It will make sure that the driver is always awake. This way they are trying to avoid accidents.

Originally Posted by Games Goblin

Maybe the wheel caps flew off because it was German Engineered and it was the best car available in India... And I know everyone in this forum is happy to sell their arms and kidneys to buy spare parts -- because "they are imported from germany"

Games Goblin: Don't agree with you. In fact Fabia owners are safest and will not loose their arms and kidneys in case of accidents. NOTE: It’s the safest hatch and safer than many sedans.

Originally Posted by Games Goblin

IT DOES NOT GRAB ATTENTION. Trust me -- I walked past a Silver one the other day and I only glanced at it because the owner put on some seriously blingy chrome alloy wheels. On road it does not stand out and it looks ugly with the skinny tyres

Games Goblin: OK OK I agree with you here. I strongly believe that you looked only at the alloys. But hey you don’t have to cover up anything. Even your envy.

Originally Posted by Games Goblin

And Skoda copied heavily from the Swift to design the new Fabia. Come on, it only takes a three year old to point out the similarities -- blacked A&B pillars, the sloping window line and tons more..... Its a german swift (or Ceczh), but much less attractive. My Grandparent actually asked me if the Fabia was an "updated" Swift

Games Goblin: Please don’t spread wrong info. Everyone knows that Fabia & Swift are the imitations of the great Mini. Swift was built with cost cutting and profit making in mind. And Fabia was built with quality & safety (including the pedestrians) in mind.

Regards
Mahesh S

[naikpranav]

Great points mahesh !

Would like to add a few more of my own:

the tires aren't skinny, they are 185s, in which car do you get that size stock ? there is no car under 10 L.

how will more omni's reduce pollution ? have you even seen the emission of the skoda's ? it makes everything else look real dirty !

[ghostrider]

Originally Posted by AirWind

Price to pay for exclusivity :-(

Exclusivity? You're kidding, right? Since when did a Skoda Fabia become an exclusive car??

Originally Posted by GTO

The Octavia gave them relative volumes. Somehow, I still didn't see spare prices going down. Clutch job for 80,000? Flywheel replaced as a standard practice? You betcha.

Good grief. 80,000 bucks for a clutch replacement? What's the clutch plate made of? Gold?

Originally Posted by mura

My friend got a quote for 80k for the fuel tank.
What is the point in saying i get good milage with my TDi Octavia and then getting a bill for 80 - 90k after 50,000km. Poof all your savings gone.

Good point. Most people dont look at total cost of ownership when it comes to a car. They just find out what the sticker price and FE are, and they're convinced.

Originally Posted by MadRash

"enjoyable to drive than Fabia?" Thats a story no one will believe.

I'm sorry, but that's a pretty pompous statement. I certainly believe it. I TD'd both the diesel Fabia and the diesel Swift a couple of months ago, and I have to say the Swift was more fun to drive. The Skoda felt a little more planted and well built, but the Swift handled better and made me smile when I drove it. The Skoda didn't.
The Skoda is a nice car, no denying that. I think the point people were trying to make here is that parts are overpriced. Your claim that they're all high-performance quality parts may apply to integral mechanical and electrical components, but that logic can't possibly apply to a wheel cover that probably cost all of 50 bucks to fabricate, transport, and stock.

Regardless of whether its Skoda charging 2300 bucks or Hyundai charging 3100, those sums are just plain ludicrous. That's the point most people were making. I hope you can see that.

[uneet]

Got the assembly (manual) replaced for the Left rear view mirror. It costed Rs. 2943/-. Thankfuly it was under warranty!