So, as I am just a few more kilometers away from crossing 3K on the new Rapid Diesel thought I would share a few feedbacks about the car. Whilst some of these points are shared already by other users I am listing all my findings that comes to mind.
1. The real performance of the car starts from about 100 Kmph on fifth gear. There's an exciting sound from the engine at this point and the car just starts accelerating like a cheetah. From 100 you reach 120 in no time and you can feel the vehicle still moving forward impatiently. I could test only upto 145 as I had my friend and both our families including kids inside the car. The comfort level inside the car was never affected even at this speed.
2. The brakes work just perfect. Even with the hard shoes (apollo) it was always responding well. Never felt the ABS working yet though probably because of the new tires and heavy body (which is a good thing). In my old Swift I could engage it intentionally by driving tires at one side into water on the basement floor of my apartment. It used to work at low speeds also. May be the Swift being lighter tended to skid fast.
3. Rapid's steering wheel was something I loved at the very first sight. Although there's no controls mounted on it I like the 4-spoke Steering. It definitely is lighter than Swift's steering. But, it seems to becoming harder with the speed. Not sure if it is a feature as in Swift or I am feeling so. Anyways, unlike in Santro etc I am able to keep the car well within control at all speeds with the lighter steering wheel (Santro owners pardon me)
4. I am still getting used to the rear shock absorbers. When there's no one in the back seats it makes a huge thud sound while going over sharp humps. But, it can be avoided by lowering the speed a little more than you expect it should be. For smaller (scientific) speed breakers and uneven roads it just works perfect and you can even run over them without reducing the speed significantly.
5. Although I initially felt the old Skoda horns missing in Rapid I started liking the new ones quickly. It definitely is not that bad as the mono ones coming with many other cars.
6. About the fuel efficiency, it is pretty economic in long drives. Before crossing 1K kilometers I was able to get 21.3 kmpl once while keeping the speed between 60-80 and without too much of braking. In the very recent drive to Kerala it was 17.3 where I was mostly driving between 110-140 kmph. However, the fuel efficiency drastically goes down within the city limits. In my daily drive to the office the car gives me only 8-10 kmpl. With my petrol Swift it was 13.x and 9-10.x respectively at highways and city. Not sure why Rapid is showing a huge difference in kmpl from city to highway. May be the heavy body counts for that.
7. I read someone saying the AC doesn't cool fast. But, my experience is the reverse. I found it cooling real fast mostly. The climate control simply rocks during long journeys. The fan speed increases or decreases gracefully which I liked very much.
8. I can't say the windscreen is small, but at the angle it is installed it gives a comparatively narrower view. I find very less space to plug my GPS navigator on it without hindering the view. Having said that, I do not face any problem with visibility unless the windscreen holder for the GPS is fitted.
9. Although the upper side of the dashboard is dark I get some reflection on the windscreen. My polaroids just do the magic here -
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/shifti...ml#post2758198
10. I had raised a concern earlier in this thread about the right viper blade not able to be lifted for windscreen cleaning. And, I got the answer after switching off the Ignition press the wiper stalk down once. Both the wiper blades will come to the service position where you can lift them easily without hitting the bonnet lid. After cleaning when you switch on ignition press the wiper stalk down once again and the wipers will be back to the idle position.
11. After switching the ORVM inside the cabin to the night mode you will have to adjust it again for appropriate view and vice versa. Not sure if it has something to do with my sitting posture. It used to work perfect in the Swift.
12. The black fiber part between the front and rear windows gets scratched very fast. The car cleaner guy at my apartment was able to make some minor scratches (can be viewed at a close look) during his cleaning efforts. I have asked him to stop his service at immediate effect anyways. But, yes - be careful about that.
13. The default speakers from Skoda that come with Elegance are good for nothing. It creates the bass well but no treble and mid ranges. After swapping out all 4 door speakers with component speakers from JBL infinity when I played the same tracks a lot of new instruments became audible! I am very happy with the performance of my new speakers. I bought the speakers from Automate car accessories shop at Kochi but got it fixed at the St.Antony's Skoda Service station as I was afraid I would lose the electric warranty by getting it fixed at the accessory shop.