[stanjohn123]

Great Review guys. But with this pricing I don't think the Rapid will steal much sales away from the Vento. VW is still > than Skoda(Snob value wise). The price difference is very small comparatively.

[Vid6639]

Originally Posted by architect

@Vidyut / Samurai: As an enthusiast, which one would you like to buy: Rapid or Vento?

Well I would go for the Rapid. 2 reasons. 1 is better suspension and NVH than Vento and second price. Brand image does not affect me that much as both brands are equally high in rankings. VW is just perceived to have a higher brand image with the pricing.

I know Skoda has very scary after sales but I don't think VW is any better. It's relatively younger so complaints are lesser for VW.

Both companies share the same parts and belong to the same parent company. Whatever issues you will get in Vento you will get in Rapid. VW will handle the same way as Skoda. Unfortunately for Skoda they had horrible dealers which has ruined their reputation and they went about fixing their image all wrong. VW also has it's fair share of issues. Both are nowhere near Toyota in after sales.

Originally Posted by sumeshmani

Thanks Vid6639 and Samurai for an instant detailed review. I have couple of queries
1. I don't see parking sensors listed in the brochure. No mention of them in the review too. Is it available as an accessory?
2. Has Skoda after sales service been improving over the past couple of years?

Parking sensors are not available and it's mentioned in the review in 3 places as well as the opening post!

Originally Posted by srishiva

Dont know if the differences seen in ride and handling vs Vento are just perceived ones. If Skoda says its the same then how can it differ?
Are the tyres different which is making a difference?

Well it would have been perceived if Skoda had told us there is a change and we were looking out for a change. We went into the drive with a mindset that the car is exactly the same as the Vento but were in total disbelief after driving it as there was a very noticeable change. Moreover it was not just us 2 that felt so. Every single reviewer noticed a change.

Originally Posted by stanjohn123

Great Review guys. But with this pricing I don't think the Rapid will steal much sales away from the Vento. VW is still > than Skoda(Snob value wise). The price difference is very small comparatively.

I do not think so. If that were the case, the Laura wouldn't outsell the Jetta and the Superb wouldn't outsell the Passat. Both brands carry a premium image and I do not think that is a deciding factor.

[mail2vm]

A very detailed review samurai.
I'm not a big fan of skoda, but looks like the Rapid will test the pulse of mid size segment buyers due its price tag & additional features.

It will give a run for Maruti & other same grade manufacturers, but again like what everyone says, the A.S.S is a major concern with skoda.

According to me, below are the "Not so good/missing" features in Rapid
- SD Card is an outdated technology.
- No EBD
- No Steering wheel controls
- Same interiors of vento (Almost)

[kumarsiddhi]

Hi All,

So let's compare the top end of Rapid to top end of Vento for the difference of around 60K.

Rapid is missing the steering mounted controls, the ICE unit is different (can someone put the comparison between the two), rear parking sensors with a sort of display in the HU, somebody mentioned the upholstry is also a notch down, anything else?

If I consider all of this probably the Vento will seem cheaper or more value for money, wouldn't it?

However, the plus in Rapid seems to be better NVH levels and suspension

Am I missing something here

[Hayek]

Great review. Though I am surprised they didn't give the parking sensors or steering mounted controls on the Elegance version - those are very useful features for someone who intends to self drive. Frankly, it was the superior parking sensors (with a display of parking distances on the ICE), and the steering mounted controls that led me to choose the Superb over the Accord while buying my car.

Doubt anyone in India really cares about the brand difference between VW and Skoda - after all people who buy Superb diesels pay as much as people buying a 3 series CE, and the Superb handily outsells the Passat in a segment that would arguably be more brand conscious. I looked at the Passat before buying my Superb, and the VW dealership experience was clearly not superior to Skoda. And as I have mentioned in my Superb review, and on other threads, I have so far not seen anything that makes me dissatisfied with Skoda's service.

The Rapid therefore will be a part of my consideration set when I replace my Getz - a diesel automatic would have been a clincher but in the absence of that, I think the steering mounts controls on the City might swing it in favour of Honda this time. (subject to my personally testing both vehicles, and there being no major price increase post the City refresh).

Samurai / Vidyut, what would you pick between the City V automatic and the Rapid Elegance Automatic?

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by stanjohn123

VW is still > than Skoda(Snob value wise). The price difference is very small comparatively.

Originally Posted by Vid6639

Brand image does not affect me that much as both brands are equally high in rankings. VW is just perceived to have a higher brand image with the pricing.

Completely agree with Vid’s point. Its just that VAG is trying to position VW brand a bit more premium with its pricing strategy. Quality-wise I don’t think there is much to separate. These brands are essentially the people brand in their respective country of origin.

Originally Posted by Vid6639

Both companies share the same parts and belong to the same parent company. Whatever issues you will get in Vento you will get in Rapid. VW will handle the same way as Skoda.

I think, of all the global manufacturers, VAG have the maximum amount of parts sharing – an example shown in the review itself, with a picture of Audi part. I remember seeing an ownership review (not sure if it was a Laura or a Superb) with the open OVRM assembly carrying Audi logo.

[Th!ru]

Has anyone been able to do a TD of the car from the dealers, in chennai they still don't have a Test car yet. What about other cities?

[ajitmoses]

Originally Posted by Th!ru

Has anyone been able to do a TD of the car from the dealers, in chennai they still don't have a Test car yet. What about other cities?

I had only test driven the Vento but I booked the Rapid based on T BHP review.

[zulfi hansi]

Originally Posted by Hayek

Samurai / Vidyut, what would you pick between the City V automatic and the Rapid Elegance Automatic?

I would pick the city any day. Anyone who buys a auto box its always for the city use and not for the highway. Honda petrol engines are miles ahead in refinement and FE, cost of ownership is almost half, resale good too. A little compromise is the ride quality (tolerable in city use) but otherwise there are way more advantages in favour of City. IMHO the real competition will be when Skoda / VW will launch 1.4 TSI engine in Rapid / Vento, then the game will be on fair ground until then city is undisputed in this segment when it comes to petrol engine, auto box or not.

At the same time when it comes to diesel engine, its the VW brands that excel all the way, more so when the diesel engine weight is higher and their built quality and suspension is way ahead of the japs or Koreans.

[nikhil.kumbhar]

Great review guys.

Rapid seems to be good option when we look at its features. But when you start comparing with other available options, Rapid hardly makes any difference in this segment. All these features will be there in VW Vento, or Verna or City.

I think Skoda should focus more on premium segment where it can give tough competition to Honda Accord, VW Passat etc. Superb is superbly doing well. And we all appreciate Skoda's beauty-with-brain approach here. Rapid will have to struggle initially. Even look wise, other competitors are doing well.

Any thoughts on Skoda's B n entry level C segment plans? Should they focus on these 2 segments?

[Madan Gopal]

Great review.
I think Volkswagen as a group will emerge as the clear winner.
By sharing the same platform with different badges in the group & providing different variants and value they can easily capture a sizeable chunk of Indian car market.
After all their maufacturing facilities are also being used optimally with Fabia & Rapid being rolled out from VW's Chakan plant.
But they will be able to make a dent into Hyundai & Maruti's market share only if they give attention to their ***.

[karanraheja]

Originally Posted by nikhil.kumbhar

Rapid seems to be good option when we look at its features. But when you start comparing with other available options, Rapid hardly makes any difference in this segment. All these features will be there in VW Vento, or Verna or City.

What has got going on Rapid's way is the Ambition variant and AT Petrol even in the middle version ( apart from slightly better NVH and suspension ). I feel max nos. of sales of Rapid will be of the Ambition variant .I do not think the Rapid will struggle to sell off the shelves . IMO its priced well and looks like a promising product. The only grouse would be the A.S.S.

In the looks dept. the Linea, City and the Verna might win. But when one wants a car with good handling and powerful diesel the options are Vento & Rapid.

[bala80]

Checked the car at a local skoda dealer in chennai for one of my colleagues. Following are some observations (I own a vento)

- Looks much better in flesh than in the pictures. Noticable gap between the front bumper and the radiator grille.
- Excellent build quality and fit and finish - very similar to the vento
- Black carpet flooring compared to the stupid beige of vento which gets soiled within minutes of you driving your new car.
- Dashboard colour is brown against the greyish brown of the vento. Looks pretty OK. Why couldn't they give a classic black/beige combo is beyond me!!!
- To me the seat material looked pretty alright and quite equivalent in quality of the VW's.
- Repeaters over the front fender are different in design compared to the one on the vento.

TD vehicle will arrive in a week's time and delivery timeline is 4 weeks at the moment. 25k is the booking amount. The pre-sales experience was much better compared to VW chennai. Hopefully skoda addresses the issues with the after sales too.

If I were in the market for a c-segment sedan today, this car will be a very strong contender. I dont think steering controls and a different HU justifies the 60k premium for the vento over rapid.

[ajitmoses]

Originally Posted by bala80

Checked the car at a local skoda dealer in chennai for one of my colleagues. Following are some observations (I own a vento)
.
.
.
If I were in the market for a c-segment sedan today, this car will be a very strong contender. I dont think steering controls and a different HU justifies the 60k premium for the vento over rapid.

Can you please tell me which dealer you had visited? I had to pay 50k as booking amount and I was told 15 days for delivery. This was at Gurudev Motors.

[notorious_m]

i checked the rapid out today

looks very good in flesh with the big grill and the large fog lights

the interiors are of pretty good material and the shiny black accents around the ac vents compliment the dark interiors very well.

The only grouse is that the ambition diesel which is a nice overall package for the price its offered at does not include the music system, not even a basic setup
Also if one does buy the ambition and fit it with an aftermarket system will it affect the warranty ?which is very important in Skodas case