[shankar.balan]

Quoting myself in order to add a couple of snaps. One can clearly see the damage where the shut line has opened up. No damage to the paint though which leads me to believe this must have been some biker fellow who banged the side while either reversing or coming forward and indeed if one looks closely one can see rubber tyre scuff marks on the area.

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

One more problem. My Drivers side door bottom appears slightly damaged and the shut line is no longer as flush as the left side one. I cannot imagine how this can have happened unless it was when that fool in the Michelin tyre shop raised it up without using the hoist and it fell back to the ground quite hard.
There is no paint damage etc but clearly the muck is getting into the underbody protecton cover on account of that having been slightly broken by that mishap narrated above.
Now what worries me is the door.
I guess I shall have to get it tinkered and knocked back into shape by going to the workshop. Heaven alone knows how much this is going to cost!

[hrishik]

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

One more problem. My Drivers side door bottom appears slightly damaged and the shut line is no longer as flush as the left side one. I cannot imagine how this can have happened unless it was when that fool in the Michelin tyre shop raised it up without using the hoist and it fell back to the ground quite hard. There is no paint damage etc but clearly the muck is getting into the underbody protecton cover on account of that having been slightly broken by that mishap narrated above. Now what worries me is the door. I guess I shall have to get it tinkered and knocked back into shape by going to the workshop. Heaven alone knows how much this is going to cost!

Shankar, do not rush to get the dent repaired. Only God knows how much time shall pass before the next one in this country of moronic drivers. Forgive, ignore and forget at every dent and repeat this till you absolutely can't take it anymore and then forgive, ignore and forget some more before you claim insurance and lose that precious NCB. Last month, my little snowman received a small dent right at the bottom of the LHS rear door thanks to an auto-rickshaw who misjudged his line while trying to squeeze between the Yeti and a truck. Far from accepting his error he tried to threaten me by getting all aggressive. I was in the fast lane in traffic and so I could not stop the car and return his aggression. Thankfully, the dent is right behind that small piece of vinyl on the door corner so the paint is not scratched.

[shankar.balan]

Originally Posted by hrishik

Shankar, do not rush to get the dent repaired. Only God knows how much time shall pass before the next one in this country of moronic drivers. Forgive, ignore and forget at every dent and repeat this till you absolutely can't take it anymore and then forgive, ignore and forget some more before you claim insurance and lose that precious NCB. Last month, my little snowman received a small dent right at the bottom of the LHS rear door thanks to an auto-rickshaw who misjudged his line while trying to squeeze between the Yeti and a truck. Far from accepting his error he tried to threaten me by getting all aggressive. I was in the fast lane in traffic and so I could not stop the car and return his aggression. Thankfully, the dent is right behind that small piece of vinyl on the door corner so the paint is not scratched.

Thanks mate. But I hate driving about now that I know the dent is there. Will check on options before deciding though...

[Bull535]

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

Agambhandari: Yes I bought my Yeti which was manufactured in May or June 2011 at a substantial price off in Dec 2011. Prevailing discounts around then ranged anywhere between 1.5 to 2 odd lacs.

Akshay: good luck with the new BigFoot. Its the best vehicle around at this price point so you will not regret it.

Hi Mr. Balan, i am pursuing an Ambition 4x2 in Delhi. Got the dealer to squeeze 1L discount on 2013 model. However same trim 2012 model is available with 1.5L discount. It was delivered to the dealer in March 2013.

Should it make good sense to pick 2012 model? I will keeping it for 5 yrs.

Manas.

[shankar.balan]

Originally Posted by Bull535

Hi Mr. Balan, i am pursuing an Ambition 4x2 in Delhi. Got the dealer to squeeze 1L discount on 2013 model. However same trim 2012 model is available with 1.5L discount. It was delivered to the dealer in March 2013.

Should it make good sense to pick 2012 model? I will keeping it for 5 yrs.

Manas.

Makes excellent sense to buy the 2012 model and take the bigger discount. It really does not matter if the car is six months or eight months older because that is compensated by the bigger inventory clearance inducing discount.

I did much the same thing. I bought a six or seven month old vehicle at the tail end of the calendar year and scooped up a bigger discount in the bargain.

Go ahead! Enjoy! The Ambition 4x2 is a very good vehicle. Light clutch compared to the 4x4 and very peppy engine indeed. And regardless of what anyone may say, the Yeti is amongst the best vehicles in the marketplace today...

Please insist upon the Skoda Shield Extended Warranty and when you do your Insurance, please buy the Zero Depreciation Policy. These are worthwhile additional investments to protect your vehicle the way it should be done against the marauding idiots who use the roads in India....

Please also resist the temptation to fiddle with the vehicle's OEM equipment especially the Electronics by changing the Head Unit and other such fiddlies. I would also say do not do any kind of tyre upsize beyond the permissible limits. The above suggestions are made so that you don't get into a situation of voiding your warranties.

[Bull535]

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

Makes excellent sense to buy the 2012 model and take the bigger discount.
========The above suggestions are made so that you don't get into a situation of voiding your warranties.

Hi Sir, really appreciate your advice. Test drove the Yeti twice. I really loved the punch, road control and overall practicality. Only one thing still bothers me: Is the backseat comfort good on longer drives? I found the seats to be bit bench like with not enough comfort which you would expect from a car in this segment (maybe im expecting too much).

I have paid the booking amount. Your feedback will help me back my bucks.

Manas.

[milu2fast]

Hie, I got an offer of 1L off on 2013 model elegance from kochi showroom (otr 2158000 includiong skoda shield) ,anybody think I can get a better deal??

[shankar.balan]

Originally Posted by Bull535

Hi Sir, really appreciate your advice. Test drove the Yeti twice. I really loved the punch, road control and overall practicality. Only one thing still bothers me: Is the backseat comfort good on longer drives? I found the seats to be bit bench like with not enough comfort which you would expect from a car in this segment (maybe im expecting too much).

I have paid the booking amount. Your feedback will help me back my bucks.

Manas.

Mate. I m sorry I just saw this query.
Yes the Yeti's rear seat is ok for say a Bangalore- Mysore trip for someone like my Dad who is 6 feet tall. Manly since the seats recline and can be moved back a bit.
With the centre arm rest the rear is comfortable if not super spacious.

Ideally it is meant for 2 adults and 2 kiddies plus luggage. Or 2 adults and plenty of luggage.
4 medium sized Adults can sit in comfort for perhaps three hour to four hour journeys max. Longer than that will entail frequent stops, breaks and so on to stretch their legs.
For tall people a three to four hour run max, can be borne with.
But all said and done it is one heck of a car!

[Bull535]

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

My Yeti front right side brake caliper was making a horrid noise when driving on uneven surfaces. On the main highways and good roads there was no noise at all.. We thought it was the caliper bolts that had gotten worn out.

Hi Mr. Balan, picked up Ambition 4x2 last week Strange clunk/donk sound from rear end while i apply brakes in Delhi's bumper traffic. Skoda service categorizes this as normal..suggesting the suspension coil moves up/down ( But I find this strange..). Its a feel of the brake disk slipping inside the caliper or some heavy bi-directional movement.

Also, strange clattering sound from driver side pillar/windscreen.

Wondering if some Yeti users have faced it, and what resolution was suggested by Skoda.

Cheers!
Manas

[shankar.balan]

The only way is to have it ramped and checked thoroughly.
I know that the suspension does make a noise when one hits those sharply inclined speed breakers which let you down the other side with a thud because they are not banked properly, but that is the normal sound of the suspension's articulation and not worthy of worry.
I ve been seeing other Yetis being driven around in Bangalore in a significantly 'rougher' manner than I can ever drive and they seem to be in perfect condition.
I like my Yeti and tend to 'baby' it a lot, compared to the way I used to drive my Scorpio.
Having said that, my friend who bought my Scorpio, has been really rough using it on terrible estate roads and farm tracks and potholed highways, for two years now and tells me that it is really showing and behaving its age now in terms of creaky bones, clunky noises and the usual rheumatic issues...

[shankar.balan]

Guess what popped in my email box today...

[Demonhead]

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

Guess what popped in my email box today...



Attachment 1134507

Thanks Shankar for sharing! I haven't been active for a long time - my 4x4 ambiente yeti is almost hitting 2 years with just about 28k kms. I have had 2 great years without a single niggle with Rs 9000/- being my only 15k scheduled service bill. She has been an able partner to many parts of the country, terrible conditions, with two scruffy dogs and dealt with bangalore's insanity very well so far (touch wood!)

Only now i have an issue, created by me, wherein i seem to have lost a key within my apartment block :( I'm going paranoid with some security gaurd finding it and biding his time!! Anyway i noticed your update on 24x7 assistance mentioning lost/ replacement key support. So i called them up on the toll free number to try my luck and was brought back down to earth - only accident or emergency assistance provided. You lose a key you deal with the service center.. Called the helpline at hosur who quoted 10k Rs and a 15 day wait after i get the car in to their premises :( I am waiting a couple more days to hope i somehow find the key but feel i'm just destined to shell out 10k to sleep well at night.. Online surfing indicates this is a regular qoute and i'm concerned enough not to chase any local fix to this problem.. I do have the zero dep cover through bajaj allianz for the 2nd year running (35k premium FYI) and i dont think they cover key loss? Any other suggestions or experiences?

[shankar.balan]

Here is a very interesting thing which I have only now discovered.
This last year I observed a slight discolouration caused by the driver side wiper chafing against the bonnet edge. This is shown in the attached pics of my Yeti.
I thought until now that it was mounted wrongly.
I now understand that I have been handling it wrongly at the time of raising the wipers to gain access to wipe the windscreen.

Please view below:
(Copied and pasted from owner's manual) :–
One cannot fold out the wiper arms in the rest position from the windscreen.
Service position for changing/ cleaning wiper blades- Refer owner's manual- Page no: 57
1. Close the bonnet.
2. Switch the ignition on and then again off.
3. Then press the windscreen wiper lever in the position within 10 seconds – the wiper arms move into the service position.

[Gannu_1]

That's the same procedure we do for the Polo and Vento to get the wipers into the service mode. The front passenger side wiper could be lifted without issues but not the driver side one. It would chafe against the bonnet.

Do all the VAG cars have this system in place?

[shankar.balan]

My vehicle is back from its second service.

I got the all the standard things done and the oils etc changed as per the recommended grade(a).
Also got the Pollen filter and the engine air filter changed.
Since the wiper blades were aged and beginning to expire we got them also changed.
Else it was all the standard stuff that needed to be done.
The bill was a good bit. Around 16000/- including all taxes etc.
The insurance is also coming up now for renewal and including zero dep and engine protector, gearbox protector etc the premium is 32 odd thousand.
The vehicle was picked up by the. Instal guys and dropped back while I was travelling Monday and Tuesday.
All well so far and it feels very nice indeed to drive after it's second service.
I realize I am hardly doing 9000-10000kms per annum and at this rate I am going to simply follow the time-led service pattern rather than the odometer- led pattern.
Also, at this rate I hope I shall be able to enjoy this vehicle for a reasonably long time into the future.
Cheers.