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-   -   Skoda Laura TSi Classic launched at Rs.12.25Lakh (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/indian-car-scene/95167-skoda-laura-tsi-classic-launched-rs-12-25lakh-4.html)

I am still not sure if this is a good move or not. OK, agreed, they have gotten rid of the bells and whistles and given the bare minimum, which in itself is a killer, because of the engine. 160 BHP is it? Wow, thats a stonker.

However time and again, what comes to my mind is, why would Skoda do that now, specially when the Octi replacement is only a few quarters away. That car itself would be in the same price range. NO? Wouldnt they be eating into their own sales?

The engine is indeed a stonker! I have yet to see a TSI on the roads though, have only seen pics on TBHP so far. Sad that our diesel mentality has resulted in this car being shunned by buyers! :/

The Octy replacement is going to be based on the Vento, and will be priced lower. Its a C segment sedan so its not going to be priced anywhere close to the Laura

Unfortunately this is not true. The deisel Ambiente gets to retain the fog lamps. Only the petrol version is stripped of them.

I am saddened by this step motherly treatment for the petrol version. Just because there are huge discounts on the TSI and sales is low, Skoda cannot just start removing bare essentials like fog lamps from the ambiente version when they have launched the classic version just for that purpose.

The dealership's response to this is "fog lamps not necessary Sir!" I wonder what they have to say about the presence of fog lamps in other variants.. "only for style"?

yeah i agree with you, well the value for money factor is going down now for the 1.8tsi ambient :)

cheers..

Its a very sad move by Skoda. The perception on brochures and previous models indicate a fog lamp. When one sees a good discount, its with the basic faith that features of a set model will not change. Skoda is changing these rules. Truly disappointing and misleading.

I will second that. I am a new owner of a Skoda 1.8 Tsi Ambiente. Bought the car on 21st April '11. At the time of TDing the car, the TD vehicle had all the bells & whistles as stated on the website & on the spec sheet. These features were also pointed out to me when I TD'd the vehicle.
On the day of delivery [TAFE Access], I was informed by the sales staff that "Your vehicle does not come with Fog Lights sir".
Obviously being pi$$ed off, I asked for the CRM and was told that these features were "deleted". Called up Skoda Aurangabad office & was given the same story by the sales manager & was told to ask the dealer for additional discount!

No answer on why the same features continue to be listed on the website & on the spec sheets. Was rewarded by some mumbling by the CRM berating the sales guy for not having told me about "deleted" features.

Was finally not given any additional discount (full payment already released you see).

End result: Spoiled an otherwise happy day of taking ownership of an absolute stonker of a car. I have since bought fog lights & am now figuring out a way to connect them without having to change the whole wiring harness/loom.

Oh and rain sensing wiper feature has also been "deleted".

i guess they had to this to cut cost & price it close to civic range? the earleir tsi owners got much more value for money for sure :)

cheers..

Congrats!!! What color and OTR??? Dont fret over that 10K enjoy the car, will ya?

Maybe the Classic was more VFM... buy it and upgrade to 16" wheels.

Cappuccino Beige. Upgraded to 17" Skoda alloys + Michelin PS3 225/45/17

Took delivery of Laura TSI Ambiente in candy white color this week. I could not find a worthy replacement for my beloved Cedia in any other car. Hence settled for the Laura TSI. I know, the TSI is way ahead in power when compared to the Cedia, but the Cedia is more raw and fun-to-drive when compared to the TSI which I find is more refined and Gentleman-like but can blow your mind off with that insane acceleration :) Nevertheless, the TSI is my new ride and i am happy again!

Booked it on 30th April and took delivery on May 11th from Vinayak Motors, Bangalore. Here are some average quality pics from my mobile.

During PDI at the service station, before registration. Got a March 2011 car:



Just after delivery. Clicked at the petrol station.



I don't have much to say on the car as we all know, it has a beauty of an engine and is well built. However, as we are discussing in the past few threads, there are a lot of features missing in this years version of Ambiente.

1. No front Fog Lamps
2. No rain sensing wipers
3. No auto Dimming rear view mirror (not sure if the earlier versions had it)
4. No cooled glove box (although there is cooled storage for the center armrest)

Upgraded to 17inch alloys as the 15inch ones dont do justice to this car.




Look what difference 17 inch alloys can make as compared to ones in the pre-delivery pics above


Skoda has silenty "Deleted" a lot of features that were standard on the earlier versions. I guess they want to make up for the discounts they are offering by making the new owners spend for getting those missing features. Plus the dealers are not highlighting the fact that these missing features in petrol variant are indeed standard on the diesel ambiente variant. The manuals and brochures are common for all variants of Laura, highlighting only the major differences. Hence we don't get to know exactly what is available or missing in each variant of the same Ambiente trim plus now we have the TSI classic with even more features missing.

Can always be retrofitted

No big deal, never worked properly

Only L&K has it if i am correct

Dont thik it ever came with it

Auto Dimming Mirror and Cooled Glovebox were standard in Ambiente some months ago.

Congrats, and wish you a lot of fun and fond memories with the TSI! When you get a chance, do put up a comparo between the TSI and the Cedia (tech specs aside).

All 4 features are still listed on the Laura website as standard equipment for the Ambiente trim.
This is very, very wrong on Skoda's part. An Ambiente is an Ambiente, regardless of the fuel type. And what's worse is they are misleading buyers with incorrect data on brochures and the website. These little bits add up to one's decision making process, and to find out at the time of delivery that the decision was based on false information would be very disappointing indeed. If they have to cut costs, they should scrap the Classic and rename the petrol Ambiente (with a lesser equipment list than its diesel sibling) to Classic or Rider or something.

These look great! Did you get them switched at the dealer itself? What were the costs involved? Any problems with warranty for changing standard equipment? And what tyres did you opt for?

Fog lamps cost an extra 10K as mentioned by the dealer. However, he also mentioned that the whole wiring harness has to be changed to include the switch for the front fog lamps which would cost extra. I sensed that neither the dealer nor the service guy I spoke to, were keen on doing this. Not sure why when the same Ambiente diesel version has this setup already.

Currently they do not have stock of the fog lamps at the service center. They mentioned that some other TSI owner has also ordered for fog lamps and they are waiting for the stock to arrive. I will check back in a few days time.

Yes they were. During delivery, I was told that the Auto Dimming mirror was no more a standard feature. However, they confirmed that the cooled glovebox and cooled center armrest storage was still a feature. Now i realise that the cooling switch in the glove box is removed and blocked with a plastic cover. I am hoping I can get the switch for this although I cant think of a reason why I would want cooling in the glovebox. However, if there is a feature I would definitely want it.

Surely I will try come up with the comparison report after I spend some decent time on the road with this new car.

I got the alloys changed at the dealership itself. The stock 15" alloys had goodyear NCT tyres and I got the upgrade to 17" alloys with Michellin PP2 with 225/45/R17 profile. The 5th wheel gets a standard steel rim with the tyre upgrade. I am yet to receive the upgrade for the spare wheel as they have no stock of 17" steel rims. I may get a 5th alloy instead. Waiting to hear from the dealer.

I dont think there is any issue with warranty as Laura comes with 15, 16 or 17" specs for the alloys. I paid 65K for the alloy and tyre upgrade.