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Old 8th April 2012, 08:08   #541
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Re: Skoda Rapid : Test Drive & Review

Thank you pillainp! I too thought about that. But, I am worried if I leave the car for washing at some non-Skoda service station they will just try to pull it up and damage the wiper or the bonnet paint. Another problem is that we have a fellow coming at our apartment for car wash every night, who might do the same. Or else I should give the key always to him. But, I know I will have to live with that now. Was just wondering why Skoda did that.
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Old 8th April 2012, 19:17   #542
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Re: Skoda Rapid : Test Drive & Review

It is by design and carried over from its VW counterpart, some say its to aid the aerodynamics by reducing wind drag, I dont know how true it is though. You can lift the wiper up in "Service position" and that's what pillainp has described in his post below. In this position, the wiper will make a half sweep and will come to rest in middile of the wind screen from where you can lift it up. You just need to gently tap the wiper stalk once after switching off the ignition, to make the wiper come to this position. The procedure for this is detailed in your ownership manual.

If you have a clearner who cleans the car everyday, put the wiper in service position at the end of the day, so that he doesnt scratch the bonnet while trying to lift it up.

Quote:
Originally Posted by rajni View Post

Looks more like a design problem to me.
Quote:
Originally Posted by pillainp View Post
An easy solution presented to me by a windshield washer lady at a fuel station I regularly visit:

Activate the wiper so that it makes a half-sweep. This will leave both vertical. Now you can easily lift both the arms to their full extent, and they will stay up by themselves.

Last edited by bala80 : 8th April 2012 at 19:18.
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Old 8th April 2012, 23:08   #543
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Re: Skoda Rapid : Test Drive & Review

Quote:
Originally Posted by adimodi View Post

Got most the other accessories from NAV CAR at Andheri - Seat Covers, Reverse Sensor, Mats, Sun film, Mud Flaps.
Congratulations, wish you a very happy motoring! About the mudflaps, I want them bad for my car too, can you post pictures of the ones you got aftermarket? Each time I enquire about the mud flaps, the showroom claims Skoda doesn't have it as part of their official accessory list for the Rapid yet!
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Old 9th April 2012, 09:36   #544
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Re: Skoda Rapid : Test Drive & Review

Passenger Side Airbag on Elegance obstruction with Dash view display of Reverse Parking Sensors:

Okay, so the first and the only accessory I have installed on my Rapid as of now are the reverse parking sensors (Red Soul). I got this done even before I spent time with the Rapid Owners manual, which I now regret (more worried actually) since I have the Dashboard display unit installed on the car instead of the Rear view mirror system which one should ideally go for on an Elegance!

The reason am worried is because the manual clearly advises NOT to install/store/obstruct the inflation area of the front airbags (picture attached, highlighted area in pink) and the 3.5 inch display unit is sitting just an inch away from the front windshield way back on the dash. The unit itself doesn't have any sharp edges, is made of good quality and is fairly light too.

What do you guys suggest? Should I swap the dash unit for the rear view system? The only reason I didn't opt for the latter was because it dims the visibility during day considerably and on my earlier car, used to vibrate a lot. May not have a choice, really! OR should I just quit worrying and leave the setup as is, stupid thing to do?

BTW, I am also attaching a pic of the Skoda key chain I placed an order for on eBay last week, just got delivered over the weekend!!

Congratulations rajni, she looks a beauty, am assuming you took delivery from TAFE in St Marks road? Doesn't quite look like the Hosur rd showroom/service center from the pics. Nevertheless, wish you a safe and happy motoring!
Attached Thumbnails
Skoda Rapid : Test Drive & Review-image1.jpeg  

Skoda Rapid : Test Drive & Review-image2.jpeg  

Skoda Rapid : Test Drive & Review-image.jpeg  


Last edited by raamki : 9th April 2012 at 09:51. Reason: Typo
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Old 9th April 2012, 11:33   #545
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Re: Skoda Rapid : Test Drive & Review

Quote:
Originally Posted by raamki View Post
About the mudflaps, I want them bad for my car too, can you post pictures of the ones you got aftermarket?
may I suggest using the mud flaps from Vento. I am not sure if it will fit. you might have to do a little research. I see a lot of ventos with mud flaps.
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Old 9th April 2012, 13:08   #546
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Re: Skoda Rapid : Test Drive & Review

Thank you raamki! Yes, it is the St.Marks Road branch of Tafe. Btw, in my opinion, you should go and remove the monitor from the dash at the earliest. It may cause more damage in case of an accident (touchwood it never happens with you) where the airbags comes out. Though it is small and light it can be dangerous at the high velocity at which the airbag comes out. I am not sure if this might work, did you check if the alarm will work without a monitor. I know that there are some parking sensors with just a buzzer, no monitor. Your keychain looks beautiful. I will also go ahead and order one.
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Old 9th April 2012, 13:14   #547
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I got a call from the dealer(Vinayak, Bangalore) this morning stating that the mudflaps have come from the company. I would be getting them fitted this weekend. Please check with your dealers as well.

Quote:
Originally Posted by rajni View Post
Team,

Now I have the Rapid, I was looking for Seat covers, sunfilm and reverse sensors. Tafe told me that they don't have C.Beige colored sensors. I didn't want to go for black ones as I am scared it will spoil the beauty of the rear bumper. Does anyone has managed to get C.Beige colored sensors? if yes- please share details like the shop, price and brand etc. Also, any pointers about the color/texture/material/design for the seat covers and again any reasonable sellers? I heard that 3m's shop is a little higher side on the price. Is there any genuine sellers for the same who quotes less? Thank you folks.
Hey congrats on your new car! I'm sure you will find the rapid exciting to drive! My experience is very similar to yours, upgraded from a Dzire DDIS to a Rapid TDI. And the same color C.beige as well.
On the reverse parking sensors, I bought Autocopxs, but it was not available in beige and I have installed it in black. I came across few other brands, but I had been using autocops in my earlier car and I was quite comfortable with it. Yes, black does look out of place in C.beige, but it is not much of an issue. On sun films, even though 3m is the most popular, I was suggested Sunguard from Saint gobain by one of the accy shops. I have not got it done as yet, but may be this weekend.
Seat covers, again I had enquired for Ovion leather which is about 30k and the PU(ART leather} costs about 12k. I'm yet to enquire on G-sport and Autoform etc. Since you are from bangalore, let me know if you come across anything, we could push for a deal together.

Note From Team-BHP Support-Team: Please use the EDIT function instead of creating back-to-back posts. Thanks.

Last edited by suhaas307 : 10th April 2012 at 01:18. Reason: See note in post :)
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Old 9th April 2012, 16:15   #548
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Re: Skoda Rapid : Test Drive & Review

Quote:
Originally Posted by sumeshmani View Post
may I suggest using the mud flaps from Vento. I am not sure if it will fit. you might have to do a little research. I see a lot of ventos with mud flaps.
Thank you for the suggestion, I hear that the Rapid mudflaps are now available, I'll check with my dealer and in case they don't have it, will look at Vento's as a possible option!

Quote:
Originally Posted by rajni View Post
Thank you raamki! Yes, it is the St.Marks Road branch of Tafe. Btw, in my opinion, you should go and remove the monitor from the dash at the earliest. It may cause more damage in case of an accident (touchwood it never happens with you) where the airbags comes out. Though it is small and light it can be dangerous at the high velocity at which the airbag comes out. I am not sure if this might work, did you check if the alarm will work without a monitor. I know that there are some parking sensors with just a buzzer, no monitor. Your keychain looks beautiful. I will also go ahead and order one.
Yeah, I'll call my Red Soul guy to check what my options are, I may have to swap the entire system out. Was such a basic and stupid mistake on my part, this is our first sedan with Airbags and I should have really taken the time out to read the manual before doing anything! That though brings me to another question.

I've been reading about the speed at which the airbags deploy on internet forums and am even more scared now because I wear spectacles!! With the seat-belts fastened, am assuming in an event of a collision, my face would probably be the first part of my body to come in contact with the inflating airbag! Now, will I be prone to any injuries arising out of the airbag itself, like a punch on my face shattering my glasses or something! Just asking in an attempt to be safer than sorry.
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Old 9th April 2012, 16:34   #549
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Re: Skoda Rapid : Test Drive & Review

Quote:
Originally Posted by raamki View Post
I've been reading about the speed at which the airbags deploy on internet forums and am even more scared now because I wear spectacles!! With the seat-belts fastened, am assuming in an event of a collision, my face would probably be the first part of my body to come in contact with the inflating airbag! Now, will I be prone to any injuries arising out of the airbag itself, like a punch on my face shattering my glasses or something! Just asking in an attempt to be safer than sorry.
Drive in such a way that the airbags won't ever find a reason/chance to get deployed. The driver side airbag is at the chest level, so god forbid, in worst case if it ever gets deployed, it won't cause much harm to your glasses/eyes. Even if it does, won't it be a minor price to pay for saving your life (which is priceless )
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Old 9th April 2012, 21:09   #550
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Re: Skoda Rapid : Test Drive & Review

Quote:
I've been reading about the speed at which the airbags deploy on internet forums and am even more scared now because I wear spectacles!! With the seat-belts fastened, am assuming in an event of a collision, my face would probably be the first part of my body to come in contact with the inflating airbag! Now, will I be prone to any injuries arising out of the airbag itself, like a punch on my face shattering my glasses or something! Just asking in an attempt to be safer than sorry.
I second AutoIndian. There is instruction in the Owner's manual about the safe positioning of driver's seat and steering. I am quoting it from http://skoda-auto.co.in/IND/Worldwid...s%20Manual.pdf

Quote:
Additionally for the driver:
● Adjust the steering wheel such that the distance between the steering wheel and your chest is at least 10 inches (25 cm) ⇒ fig. 23 and the steering wheel can be held with both hands at the outer edge and arms slightly bent.
● The steering wheel must always point in the direction of the chest and not in the direction of the face.
● Adjust the driver’s seat in the forward/back direction such that the pedals can be depressed with slightly bent legs.
● Adjust the height of the driver’s seat such that the top point of the steering wheel can be reached.
● Always keep both feet in the footwell to maintain control over the vehicle at all times.
If you follow the above instructions, I believe, it will minimize the impact on your face when the airbag is deployed. Moreover the purpose of airbag is to protect you from hitting directly on the steering or any other harder areas of the car. So, the cost of hitting the airbag would be obviously much more less than hitting any other part of the car
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Old 9th April 2012, 23:37   #551
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Re: Skoda Rapid : Test Drive & Review

Quote:
Originally Posted by motorworks View Post
Hey congrats on your new car! I'm sure you will find the rapid exciting to drive! My experience is very similar to yours, upgraded from a Dzire DDIS to a Rapid TDI. And the same color C.beige as well.
On the reverse parking sensors, I bought Autocopxs, but it was not available in beige and I have installed it in black. I came across few other brands, but I had been using autocops in my earlier car and I was quite comfortable with it. Yes, black does look out of place in C.beige, but it is not much of an issue. On sun films, even though 3m is the most popular, I was suggested Sunguard from Saint gobain by one of the accy shops. I have not got it done as yet, but may be this weekend.
Seat covers, again I had enquired for Ovion leather which is about 30k and the PU(ART leather} costs about 12k. I'm yet to enquire on G-sport and Autoform etc. Since you are from bangalore, let me know if you come across anything, we could push for a deal together.
Thank you friend! Yes, I just loved the C.Beige color. Regarding the parking sensor "adimodi" has been successful in finding a set of C.Beige color sensors from a Mumbai store. http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/offici...ml#post2738914. He was kind enough to offer me to courier it if I need. I didn't get a chance to search for the same in Bangalore in the weekend. So, planning to do the same in this week and request him for sending one for me if I fail to find one over here. I don't have any idea at this moment about the seat covers. Will visit some auto shops in this week and let you also know if I find something good.
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Old 10th April 2012, 01:30   #552
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Re: Skoda Rapid : Test Drive & Review

Please take a minute to look at the driver airbag deployment. There IS definite impact on the face too & NOT just chest alone.



Quote:
Originally Posted by raamki View Post
...Now, will I be prone to any injuries arising out of the airbag itself, like a punch on my face shattering my glasses or something! Just asking in an attempt to be safer than sorry.
Valid question! I suggest you go for lightweight lenses & frames in the first place. I guess we have now something called "resilens" which are un-breakable or something. Else find those which don't make sharp edges when broken.

Quote:
Originally Posted by rajni View Post
...If you follow the above instructions, I believe, it will minimize the impact on your face when the airbag is deployed...
If you look at the video shown above, you will understand the facial impact is NOT minimal.

Quote:
Originally Posted by AutoIndian View Post
Drive in such a way that the airbags won't ever find a reason/chance to get deployed.
I assume it was a light humor; accidents can happen without one's mistake as well.

Quote:
Originally Posted by AutoIndian View Post
The driver side airbag is at the chest level, so god forbid, in worst case if it ever gets deployed, it won't cause much harm to your glasses/eyes.
One look at the above video and you should be able to understand the level of facial coverage the bag gives!
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Old 10th April 2012, 14:06   #553
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Re: Skoda Rapid : Test Drive & Review

@swiftnfurious: Thanks dude, I'll see what I can do about my spectacles! I think my lenses are plastic and not glass! I've been watching quite a bit of safety videos around airbags and airbag deployments to kind of better educate myself on do's and dont's for the worst case scenario.

Update on the cosmetic damages (exterior & interior) from my earlier post on the previous page:

I have left my vehicle at the service center this morning for them to replace the RHS mirror and remove the scratch from the front bumper (exterior cosmetic damage from delivery day). Hopefully, I get the car in the evening and don't have to leave it overnight. About the cosmetic damages on the interior, they want to take pictures of the damaged outer plastic ring around the music system and the instrument cluster plastic that came with a ton of scratches, I really have no clue how these parts got onto my car in the first place, talk about them being obsessed with Quality since 1895!! So, they claim these parts will be replaced in warranty as they were defective at factory but as a process they need to send pictures of the parts to Skoda (am guessing the factory?) and have them send replacements for the same which would take time.

Although there was a showroom person I was constantly in touch with to get my issues resolved, I think am beginning to get a feel of the famous Skoda after sales service already. From my experience so far, there seems to be absolutely no sense of urgency in trying to get my issues sorted (since am a new customer), huge gap in communication between both the TAFE Showroom and Service Centers. I had to call the showroom back and forth to get them to send the Service Center an email about my car so they can begin work on it!! This after me waiting for a week to take my car into the Service Center in the first place!

Fingers crossed for a better service experience, am going to shoot an email to Skoda to share my experience thus far as well.
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Old 11th April 2012, 15:44   #554
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Re: Skoda Rapid : Test Drive & Review

The rapid's spare wheel well seems to be usually deep. I park in the basement and as I take the car down the steep incline, I notice that the wheel well if the part that gets scraped. In general the GC of the car is decent. I have never managed to scrap it on any of Bangalores infamous speed breakers. Also when reversing on to an incline, the spare wheel well seems to touch the incline first before the rear wheels. My friend who owns a vento does face this issue.
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Old 11th April 2012, 16:24   #555
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Re: Skoda Rapid : Test Drive & Review

Some Pictures of my Rapid TDI Ambition C.Beige.
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Skoda Rapid : Test Drive & Review-img_0444.jpg  

Skoda Rapid : Test Drive & Review-img_0450.jpg  

Skoda Rapid : Test Drive & Review-img_0451.jpg  

Skoda Rapid : Test Drive & Review-img_0453.jpg  

Skoda Rapid : Test Drive & Review-img_0454.jpg  

Skoda Rapid : Test Drive & Review-img_0455.jpg  

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