[Jangra]

Originally Posted by Praneeth

Ive just gone ahead and bought a Polo TSI

I think polo from quality standpoint of materials is not compromised. I feel it has a better thud, better hard plastics, and the VW trademark of opening / closing all windows from its remote. It’s the Taigun and Kushaq which suffers with localisation

[DRIVE_ADDICT]

When i bought my Figo (1st gen), i had squeaking noise issues on rear seat, from rear door, and also from dashboard. If you go through the 2010 Figo review thread you can see many owners had complaints around the same.
I for one tried all the BKM, Work around and ASC visits, but it all resurfaced after sometime.. Eventually once the car completed a year of ownership, things settled out and all is well from then to now.

What i see/understand is, some of us here has extra love affair on our new vehicles, we enter into our car with razor sharp ears/eyes and want's to ensure all is well.
For those of you, I would suggest all to take it light. Some of the rubbers/plastic pieces will get seasoned up on time and usage and things will eventually settle down. Its worth to go behind and fix things which are very hard to ignore, but try to ignore and adjust small squeaks and noise, and allow it to wear and settle.

i do agree some of the issues discussed here is an annoyance which are hard to ignore but not all.

[TJ02]

Been reading many negative reviews. But after seeing this video it seems Kushaq & Taigun have not been heavily compromised when it comes to build quality.

See the video shared.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LdpNdPfc5xs

[ashlil]

I am reminded of a story of two ladies selling ice-creams which is quite apt for this debacle

There was always a long queue for the ice-cream sold by the first lady. The townfolks had never experienced a Kwality Walls Strawberry Cornetto with nuts, black-currant centre and chocolate base and first lady provided it to them and it sold like hot cakes.

Looking at the long queues, the second lady got ideas and decided to sell made-for-town Haagen-Dazs 2.0 strawberry cones for the same asking price as Cornetto. But, instead of nuts, the second lady provided roasted moong. The strawberry ice-cream was made of sweetened and coloured maida (European designed but milled locally). Chocolate base was roasted atta with artificial flavoring. The wafer cone had many tiny holes which leaked melted ice-cream onto your palm while you are eating it. But, it features Total Smooth Icecream (TSI) technology, which is supposedly great.

Any guesses as to how long the queue was for the second lady's ice-cream?

[rideon74]

Originally Posted by DRIVE_ADDICT

When i bought my Figo (1st gen), i had squeaking noise issues on rear seat, from rear door, and also from dashboard... Eventually once the car completed a year of ownership, things settled out and all is well from then to now...Some of us here has extra love affair on our new vehicles...I would suggest all to take it light.

Some of the rubbers/plastic pieces will get seasoned up on time and usage and things will eventually settle down. Its worth to go behind and fix things which are very hard to ignore, but try to ignore and adjust small squeaks and noise, and allow it to wear and settle.

I do agree some of the issues discussed here is an annoyance which are hard to ignore but not all.

Very minor irritants might be best ignored, but a quick purview of the main issues reported by some Kushaq owners (including myself) till date are hardly trivial - these make the car a terrible experience to drive/own.

While the suggestion is well intended and you did mention that you had tried much to rectify the errors in your car yourself, there is always a risk that many issues may not settle down after year. By then, the interest/pressure on a dealer/the parent company to sort out matters will have waned and that puts one at a disadvantage.

Immediate feedback is effective especially when large numbers of buyers report serious concerns within the early periods of ownership - forcing the companies to to make amends fast or face bad publicity.

Let's take the case of Kushaq specifically as a good example. Since the first deliveries in started (late July 2021):

1. By the mid of September, unless numerous owners hadn't kicked up a fuss on social media channels and bombarded Skoda India with mails on the EPC issue, the existing and future owners would have had to swallow the initial response by the company to 'only fill RON 95 fuel'. What were they thinking before issuing an impractical statement like that? Lord knows. But eventually the fuel pumps were recalled and matters are better now.

2. Then came the hue & cry about the door beadings by around early October or so. My video link posted earlier is just a few seconds of how bad things can get - bearing with such noise over days/months of usage is really like a test of patience. Anyways, Skoda dealers were initially instructed to try quick fixes like silicone lubing and thanks to the complaints by the owners, complete replacements of new versions of the door beadings are being done since mid-November.

3. Now it looks it's the turn of the rattles - dashboard centre/left side AC vents/left side door panel - all of which seem to be emanate from certain specific zones (as reported by various owners) and once again, the negative feedback flow has started.

To highlight what I mean, here's a few screenshots from a thread from another public group that I had peeped into before taking stand on my dashboard rattle issue (I'm not a member of this or any such groups of Kushaq btw):








- Mods: please remove if cross-references from this site are not permitted -

If the voices continue to get louder, this newly known manufacturing defect will also be addressed by the company - eventually.

[ridehard]

^ This is good.
I think with more such reports, Zac and team would eventually find a solution and extend it to everyone, like how they fixed the door beading issue.
Though my car isn't affected so far, I'm thinking of sending an email, just to pour some fuel to the fire
Hoping they find some quick action/solution.

[EV NXT]

Originally Posted by DRIVE_ADDICT

What i see/understand is, some of us here has extra love affair on our new vehicles, we enter into our car with razor sharp ears/eyes and want's to ensure all is well.
For those of you, I would suggest all to take it light. Some of the rubbers/plastic pieces will get seasoned up on time and usage and things will eventually settle down. Its worth to go behind and fix things which are very hard to ignore, but try to ignore and adjust small squeaks and noise, and allow it to wear and settle.

i do agree some of the issues discussed here is an annoyance which are hard to ignore but not all.

Well said. Minor squeaks and rattles are best ignored. EPC is a major issue and Skoda is at fault there and needs to resolve it ASAP.

The others are best ignored. Opening dashboards, Centre consoles, A/c vents in the hope of finding something that lead to minor rattles will lead to more stuff getting loose or some other short circuit that will come up later.

Unless there is a clearly identified issue for the rattle, this will be a trial and error routine which will lead to more problems.

[columbus]

My wife drives a Jan 2016 GT Tsi. Done 52k kms. Allow me to tell the ramifications of these changes on VAG car ownership. My experiences in bold itallic to the points raised in this post.

Originally Posted by vgaquarius

• Seat foam: Didn't subside in a 10 year old car but was literally forming a bum-pit in a 1 year old 4k driven demo car
  
  The seat foams are a joke and do not provide any cushioning. Long drives are a PITA.
  
  
• Steering Feedback: Steering Racks Made in Germany Vs Rane Madras. Believe it or not, it's different.
  
  The steering rack from Rane fails every 2 years. First one replaced under warranty. 2nd time VW found a way to reject the extended warranty claim. I got it changed at an FNG. Same Rane part but with half the price.
  
  
• Pathetic suspension: Gas filled Made in Germany Vs Oil filled Made by Gabriel in India
  
  Again 2 years is the life of any Gabriel suspension component in the car. I have had a suspension overhaul once and due for another one.
  
  
• Spongy braking: FS-III callipers Vs TVS Girling
  
  Yeah spongy braking. Such a fast car and zero confidence inspiring brakes.
  
  
• Spare parts quality standards: Factory-fitted Ate Make brake pads still have life left at 1.3 Lakh kilometres of hard braking in the hills
  
  35K is the life we got even after babying the car.
  
  
• Stories of Suspension bearings squeaking within months of purchase: Börsehung Germany to Local Suspension mountings
  
  Again Gabriel components having a life of just 2 years.
  
  
• Squeaks: Well put decade old interior Vs chu-chu on potholes
  
  Oh boy, does my car rattle. Infact named it an RS version. (read Rattle Snake ). Everything creaks from doors to dashboards.
  
  
• Horror Stories of alloy wheel bends: Made in Spain 7 Spoke R15 Alloy Wheels Vs Made in India Portago R16 Alloy Wheels
  
  So far the alloys have held up
  
  
• Prone to dents: The thickness of the sheet metal was reduced by VW. Yes! You read it right! They followed MSIL. Just go to the junkyard and compare a New Polo/Vento's Fender w/o indicator with the Fender having a hole for the indicator
  
  Haven't checked it. But i am sure there will be surprises.
  
  
• Features engulfed: Split rear seat in older versions Vs a bench seat in new one
  
  Nope no split seats in mine. In fact did not knew that it used to come with split seats.
  
  
• Hard plastics everywhere: At least the door armrests were covered in fabric. These guys managed to make it all plastic which is a pain to touch!
  
  Soft touch ...ha ha whats that ?
  
  
• Sticky switches: Everything in my 2011 Polo felt so reassuring after use. The stalks, power window switches, hazard light switch etc. Just to reiterate the difference, every switch/stalk feels to be sourced from aliexpress
  
  
  Flimsy is the word for the quality of switches.
  
  
• Prone to scratches: Not the paint quality but the PLASTIC LOGO! Any exterior chrome painted part like the lettering or the VW badge didn't fade or develop scratches even after rough use of 10 years but the test drive vehicle had every chrome part fading out
  
  The paint is also prone to scratches. This despite self washing the car with micro fibre and shampoo.
  
  
• ORVMS: Larger ORVMs with great visibility Vs the tiny ones which can be retracted with the switch. Come-on VW. I'm ready to fold the ORVMs with my hands to not compromise on blind spots if You feel that bigger mirrors were expensive
  
  The ORVMS compete with those in commuter bikes. You are always surprised by someone sneaking past.
  
  
• Plastic Quality of bumpers: This is something which I came across while checking out a facelift kit at a VW service centre itself! The finishing of the bumpers in the older versions of Polo, their thickness and weight was much more when compared to the new bumpers.
  
  Haven't checked but i am sure your observation will be correct.
  
  
• Underbody Protection: A full underbody protection Vs an engine guard available extra
  
  Will have to check this.
  
  
• Foam Fillers: Hollow chassis casings in the older Polos like the fenders were completely filled with foam filler pieces as impact and road noise absorbers, however while observing a few newer Polos, they didn't have it. Kanjoosi for a piece of foam.
  
  No Sir, no foam in my car. Again did not knew about this. The road noise does filter in a lot.
  
  

VAG cars have surely stepped down from their quality standards and I can assure you on it.


Yes Sir, I 100% agree with that.




If You wanna have your meal at a fine dining restaurant, any amounts of welcoming gestures, food decor and designs on plates or cuisine presentation won't satisfy you until the food tastes good. Even if that restaurant employs the finest of all chefs, they won't be able to serve You a perfect soup with rotten tomatoes, right?


Once i asked the SA, why your service and spare costs are much more than industry standard. The reply was : Sir, 5 star mein khane ke paise jyada hote hain. I said OK agreed, but if that 5 star serves me pathetic food then i see no reason to eat there and pay a hefty bill !!


Hence, I believe, load as many bells and whistles You want, the product won't win the customer's heart until there is a proper quality management system involved to keep a check on the quality of raw materials. It's seriously a wastage of all the time invested in the research and development of these vehicles with on-spot driving dynamics if they aren't holding up good.


And I haven't started on my experience regarding the service and spare parts availability and warranty claim horror stories. I am sure people would be saying : Bas kar pagle rulayega kya.


Wanting sales volumes with low flung quality standards would make you lose on the hearts of millions of automotive enthusiasts who actually love You as a brand, who actually love you for what You were.

So all those people dreaming of erstwhile VAG quality in Kushaqs and Taiguns, be prepared for surprises.

Drive safe.
Vaibhav

[lemedico]

Originally Posted by Guite

I totally agree that putting a sheet of cloth first and then put the car cover, every day, would be very cumbersome. Might be a good idea to sew the cotton cloth as lining on inside of car cover. Velcro at few locations may also be preferable in case one is finicky about washing the cloth lining.

I'm wondering why hasn't any entrepreneur got the idea to make microfibre lining car covers yet

[Romeo_Mike]

Originally Posted by anto1212

.... Few people said covering it often will result in scratches...

There might be some merit to this remark. But sometimes, like in my case, it just needs to be done. I live on Ghodbunder Rd in Thane, which is a hot bed of construction activity. Which means anything that is not covered, will be sitting under a thick dust cover within just couple of days. I follow these rules to minimize the damage from the car cover -
1. I would only apply the cover if the car is squeaky clean and dry- read it has just been washed and wiped. Yes, that means I would apply the cover if I foresee not using the car for like a week or more. Otherwise, I would just use the trusty Jopasu duster the remove the dust gathered in a day or so.
2. The inner and the outer surface (which gathers the dust) of the cover must never make contact. This can be achieved by taking the cover off with care. I pull the cover from the front and all the way to join the other edge at the back, folding the cover like a chapati and then make subsequent folds.

Originally Posted by lemedico

I'm wondering why hasn't any entrepreneur got the idea to make microfibre lining car covers yet

Not an expert in the field, but my two cents –

There might some challenges in joining the fabric layer to the outer waterproof layer. Plain sewing might not be a suitable solution as the sew holes would let some water in, which I imagine, would kind of defeat the purpose. Sticking dissimilar material together with adhesives and exposing them to the elements (like in case of a car cover) does not seem like a good idea either.

P.S. - Mods please feel free to remove/relocate this post at your discretion if it seems too OT to the thread.

[Sricar]

Hi Friends,
My membership was approved recently by the admin.Though I was not a member,I have been going through Team BHP for a long time now.Learned a lot and the process continues.TBHP is a treasure trove for all petrol heads and I really envy the amount of knowledge on display here.So I take a bow to all the members for their invaluable contributions.

Now coming to the purpose of this post, I need some advice for my next car, planned for the second half of this year.I am with a Hyundai car now.Owned only two cars so far. A Santro and presently a Grand i10. I have always admired the cars by Škoda.And when Kushaq made its appearance I loved the way it looked.IMHO it has a no nonsense outer design with no ugly edges.Since both cars I have driven so far were manuals,I wanted to go for an automatic.But the Kushaq AT is over my budget.At the least I can buy the Ambtion MT.

I have always thought the cars coming from VB stable are solidly built and commanding a premium only because of their uncompromising quality.But the number of complaints regarding Kushaq I am seeing on the net has forced me to rethink.

I wanted to go for Honda City but found the ingress and egress a pain.My wife was in the back seat during the TD and after getting out she said a big no to sedans.That put paid to my aspirations for the upcoming Slavia too I guess.
We liked Astor and Venue after the TD.

Is it worth going for the Kushaq ignoring all the niggles and rattles? I am a sedate driver and enjoy my driving with some music.I drive mostly in Chennai and occasionally we take a long a drive.Mostly the car is only for two of us.But when my children come to India the car will be in full use.

Thanks in advance.

[Venkatesh]

Zac Hollis has stated that Kushaq Style variant will be available only with 6 airbags in 2022.

[TJ02]

Originally Posted by Sricar

Hi Friends,

I have always thought the cars coming from VB stable are solidly built and commanding a premium only because of their uncompromising quality.But the number of complaints regarding Kushaq I am seeing on the net has forced me to rethink.

Is it worth going for the Kushaq ignoring all the niggles and rattles? I am a sedate driver and enjoy my driving with some music.I drive mostly in Chennai and occasionally we take a long a drive.Mostly the car is only for two of us.But when my children come to India the car will be in full use.

Thanks in advance.

I think you can go ahead with Kushaq if you like it based on my experience. Some issues with a new product will definitely come up. I even own a polo gt and have experience with VAG cars, I would say the quality is not such a big let down as some comments have really shown here. The drive, handling of Kushaq is no match with any other car in the segment. Overtime, these small niggles like door beading noise etc will get sorted out. If you like the car go ahead and book. Skoda service has also improved over the years and if you are an enthusiast there is not better car in this segment. At least here the management is listening and taking corrective actions.

[VinsWagen]

Originally Posted by Sricar

Hi Friends,

Is it worth going for the Kushaq ignoring all the niggles and rattles? I am a sedate driver and enjoy my driving with some music.I drive mostly in Chennai and occasionally we take a long a drive.Mostly the car is only for two of us.But when my children come to India the car will be in full use.

Thanks in advance.

In my opinion, if you like VAG cars, then Skoda Kushaq is indeed a good choice for your preferences. The niggles and rattles are not dealbreakers. Generally, Skoda cars age very well on fit and finish components. But good to keep away from the DSG version if you plan to keep the car for more than 60k km or 3 years. 1.0 with Torque converter would be the safest version to go for if you need an automatic.

[thanixravindran]

Originally Posted by Sricar

Hi Friends,

Now coming to the purpose of this post, I need some advice for my next car, planned for the second half of this year.
=======
Thanks in advance.

Hi - I am also from Chennai and recently underwent the same dilemma when looking to replace my i10 which is a no non-sense car. My needs are similar and I ended up buying a Skoda Kushaq Ambition MT though it was not the first choice. You can read my initial ownership review for details. It is true that there are quite a number of complaints on Kushaq but took a risk and went ahead and retained my i10 as back up. Myself and family are enjoying the car in the short runs we have till now. If you need to know any details, please connect and happy to help.