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-   -   Skoda Kodiaq : Official Review (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/official-new-car-reviews/193738-skoda-kodiaq-official-review-10.html)

Note that the VIN is stamped in the Mlada Boleslav factory. Takes a couple of months for the body panels to be assigned into kits and reach Aurangabad. The kits are then stored until a firm order is placed. This is perhaps another month or two. Add the fact that the dealer might have been offered to take this car off Skoda at a discount and is now lying idle adds more to the time. Effectively the car might be one month old in fully assembled form.

As for MRF tyres, one car on the Kodiaq Spiti trip was shod with these. There were no apparent problems with it. We never drove that car though. MRF tyres are not that bad, I would not write that off. Suggest you take the dealers car for a spin and then this one and see if you detect a major difference. Alternatively, negotiate a fat discount, drive off and into your local tyre wala and get a set of foreign boots.

I checked the tyres on the car. It's called MRF Markus. I could not find out anything about these tyres on the internet including on the MRF website.

My bear has arrived home :) and it feels wonderful

Congratulations on the smashing red bear coming home! It's definitely a great choice and Wish you many miles with it!
While we constantly pit it against the Endeavour and Fortuner, I don't think thats the right fixture for the Kodiaq. I dont think if I enter the market with a big brute like the capable Ford endy in mind as an upgrade, I would ever be convinced to sway to the monocoque sophisticated creature of comfort that the Kodiaq is. They are totally different beasts.
IMHO personally I see it as a 'superb' value proposition against the Germans. And for that particular kind of buyer, who is trying to claw up the brand ladder towards the Big 3, the Skoda does make a convincing case. I'm somewhere in that zone in my head right now.

It would be nice to read an ownership and buying account from your side and would be interesting to see your thought process in helping you with the decision.

Also could you please tell us if you know anything about the 19999 for 84 months plan?

Congratulations Vinay! Red does look good on the Kodiaq! As Vignesh mentioned, I would be interested if you know about the 19999 for 84 months that Skoda is advertising.
I am planning an upgrade from my XUV in the next 6-8 months and might bite the bullet earlier if they have a good offer.
Also, i know this is early but does anyone expect an engine or any upgrades to the kodiaq in the next 12-15 months?

I haven't seen an ownership review from any of the Kodiaq owners. Can someone please post a few lines on your experience? Will certainly help someone like me!

Thanks for the compliments!

The financing offer- it's been worked out on a maximum loan amount of 22 lacs for 7 years. So your upfront contribution will be high. In addition annual anniversary bullet payments are to the tune of approx 2.2 lacs. Interest rate is approx 9.3%

My experience in a few lines is there a few messages ago in this thread. I had attempted to write an initial ownership thread but couldn't get the time to fill in all the details needed.

I have now driven my Kodiaq for 14K Kms. I am mighty pleased with my choice.

The only thing I dislike is the lack of good cooling of the AC. It could be because of the sunroof. But my Ford Ecosport does a far better job. Skoda should have given cooled seats with the Kodiaq.

I wasnt able to learn anything about the 19999 emi plan anywhere on the internet. Got these numbers off Instagram. My calculations put the total payout over 7 years just at 36.14 lacs. Which looks less.This needs to be validated for authenticity.



SKODA KODIAQ EMI 19999 FINANCE SCHEME

That's the list price of the car, you'll be paying road tax, insurance and TCS, in Bangalore that's adding 10 lakhs to the cost. It looks like they are selling it at list price and absorbing the interest cost instead of direct discount.

Monthly EMI needs to be considered for 7 Years - 7 x 11 :)

Total cost over 7 years is over 49L
17L downpayment,
bullet payment for 7 years = 1694000
EMI of 19999 for 11 months * 7 years = 219989*7 = 1539923

Total: 4933923

this seems like the right math but works out to be pretty expensive. i was hoping skoda was offering a zero interest or low interest scheme with this offer. Alas it was too good to be true :(
Anyways, will keep my eyes open for any upcoming offers.

thanks IndusBoy! can you also talk about your experience with the ASS and any niggles/issues you faced apart from the AC. Also how is the Fuel Efficiency?

Can you let us into your mind about why chose this over the competition? Im in a similar scenario and would like a peek clap:

Yet to experience the ASS, perhaps in the next month or so I will go for my first service. Then I can update you.

I haven't faced any issues as such.

Got a couple of warning messages. The first was for low washer liquid, I topped it up with my Ford washing liquid pouch that I had at home.

The second was for low engine oil, which I had to do some research on. Topped up with a liter of oil and it went away, I mentioned this in my post here (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/offic...ml#post4454761)

Cars considered/ignored:

Endeavour: Loved the new Endeavour, the 3.2 is powerful and has all the gadgets. But it has IMHO badly designed interiors. A car that is bigger from the outside has such paucity of seating inside! unbelievable. It is tight inside and big outside. My preference is the exact opposite. And the sun/moon roof is also like a small addition, especially compared to the Kodiaq.

Fortuner: Loved the new Fortuner. More modern looks. The interiors with its wood inserts had almost a retro look (not in a good way though). And the small windscreen with a high dashboard is not to my liking. Plus, the ride was still bumpy.

Hexa: We test drove the Hexa and liked it. For a Tata product, it is really nice. None of us disliked it. We did seriously consider buying one, breaking one of my older axioms - never buy a new Tata or Mahindra product till it is in the second iteration of the product life cycle - no recalls and initial customers are treated as guinea pigs and they will launch a V2 with the fixes!

Innova: Did not consider the Innova. We absolutely hate the Innova. It just screams cab/taxi.

The big Germans + JLR
Did not seriously consider any of the luxury German brands. I think they signal things that is not really who I am, so did not want to waste my money. However, I did test drive the GLS. Liked the car over all, but am not ready to plonk ~90L for a car, common, who do I think I am! Considered the Discovery Sport and did a test drive (in the US), liked the car - However in India Land Rover does not inspire confidence from a reliability point of view. Plus, the trims I like were in my opinion pushing the costs upwards. Also as this will be our primary ride for long drives, I couldn’t take a risk of buying an expensive luxury car that is unreliable.

Our requirements: Mostly 4 adults on board, but a few long trips a year with 6 adults + a child on board. So, needed a 5+2 option. Plus have an option of going off road. It had to be a SUV. And did I mention Sun Roof. Wifey wanted a sun roof, so that got added to our must haves. I still think it is an underserved segment of the market in India. Is Hyundai listening - get us the LWB Santa Fe (https://www.hyundaiusa.com/santa-fe/comparison.aspx)

Fast forward 2018. Beginning of this year someone mentioned Skoda Kodiaq. And I was like, “Skoda with it's bad service reputations and finicky electronics”. Yup, the same one. Was not really interested.

Then one day saw the official review of the Kodiaq up and read through the whole thing on one sitting. And could not help but admire the gushing review, almost read like a couple of fanboys writing up on their favourite brand/toy. A little research unearthed that there is a small minority in India that swears by Skoda.

Plus, I guess age caught up with me to the surprise of a few of my fellow SUV owners who accused me of softening up. While I loved sitting high up I had begun to crave for a decent ride and some creature comforts.

Skoda Kodiaq:

Read the TBHP review, registered my interest on the Skoda site, got a call in one day. In Bangalore there is only one test drive car, so had to wait for a week. Took a test drive and decided to buy the car.

The whole car felt just right. To give you an analogy it felt like moving from a Blackberry to an apple iPhone. An upgrade from my old Endy. The third row is tight, I would rate it similar to the new Endeavour, but given the low height of the Kodiaq it is not that painful to get in.

Went with the nearest dealership, in my case TAFE Access. I was satisfied with the whole sales process. Very professional. They agreed to all my normal asks - my own insurance, PDI. No discounts though (remember this was Jan'18)

There was the usual car sales man talk of heavy demand, long waiting periods and an imminent price rise. I smiled and went ahead with my booking without compromising on the colour choice – Black. The car was delivered in 2 weeks.