[TheBigV]

Originally Posted by vihangm3

Hello people!

We had booked the Slavia 1.5 DSG back in April and were waiting for our delivery.

But just got updated by our SA that there would be price increase from June 1st and above that the 10 inch infotainment is being replaced by an aftermarket Panasonic 8 inch unit.

This is highly disappointing and we are planning to cancel our booking instead of compromising with an after infotainment unit. Anyone else who has got this update from their dealer?

Just curious, in a Car costing more than 20 lakh Rupees, how much money the company will save by such cheap tactics. Is profit of a few thousand rupees more important than goodwill among the customers? Or most of the foreign companies are just taking indian consumer for granted.

[vihangm3]

If it is the global 8 inch unit from the Fabia, here is the link to check out the UI and fluidity of the possible new ICE.

To save you some time Timestamp 9:36.

https://youtu.be/_VoosTdo0_M?t=576

[shibulijack]

Phew! I'm so glad that I didn't go ahead with the booking of Slavia but went for City instead. Personally, Wireless Apple carplay + wireless charger were one of the strong advantages of Slavia over the City (apart from the engines, which for a sedate driver like me who spends 99% of the driving in city traffic is not a big differentiator). Now that it is out of the list, City seems like an absolute no-brainer for us Bangalore techies.

All that said, I feel sad for those who have booked the Slavia and are awaiting delivery. Feature deletions in the middle of car booking are a nightmare (I should know because I almost lost the full-size spare alloys on my City but escaped by a whisker).

[Romeo_Mike]

The reduced size of the HU would probably have no bearing on my purchase decision. A quick check @Skoda Europe shows the below image for the European Fabia -



I don't see physical dials on this HU. Probably we'll have to see one in flesh to be sure.

Well dials or No dials in the HU makes no difference for me as long as they are offering steering mounted controls. What I would have loved though, is if they had adopted the physical dials for the AC controls. Not enough semi conductor shortage may be

Another thing to ponder is the location for the ESP toggle in the new setup. Are they going to hide it under the Home screen menu somewhere? Hope they have some dummies left on the center console around the shifter.

[Dead_Pedal]

While the backlash is justified, I don't see what's wrong with the unit being a Panasonic(a major Japanese tech giant). Many Honda OEM infotainment systems are Panasonic units and are definitely not bad. They're just as good as Alpine, JVC-Kenwood, Pioneer etc. A slightly smaller screen with more physical buttons is anyday better. On the other hand I do hope the semiconductor shortage does make VW-Skoda think about the lame soup bowl like instrument cluster too. Analog dials need to be brought back to replace it!

[vihangm3]

Originally Posted by Romeo_Mike

I don't see physical dials on this HU. Probably we'll have to see one in flesh to be sure.

That is because it the option 9.2 inch display and not the 8 inch one

[GS2K]

Wireless charging is not going to be removed according to this tweet.

[tsi_niks1989]

Originally Posted by shibulijack

Personally, Wireless Apple carplay + wireless charger were one of the strong advantages of Slavia over the City (apart from the engines, which for a sedate driver like me who spends 99% of the driving in city traffic is not a big differentiator). Now that it is out of the list, City seems like an absolute no-brainer for us Bangalore techies.

Wireless Charger is still available. Carplay as well might be, guess you should wait for the entire specifications to be out .

Zac's tweet:

[karanddd]

I am baffled at anyone saying that people ought not care about things like head units if they want solid mechanicals. Every other day on this forum you hear of someone complaining about an injector issue or a gearbox failure, with their cars leaving them stranded on highways or on trips. It appears well established that the AC units in the 1.0 Skoda/VW models do not cool the cabin when it's hot outside (when you need the AC the most). Are engine/gearbox/AC not mechanical components? It's obvious that Japanese and Korean cars are mechanically far more sound. In India Skoda/VW have one primary draw, brand cachet, which they are managing to slowly lose due to such blunders. 10-15 years go, a Skoda car meant a premium product, a cut above Suzuki or Hyundai, so people bought them despite (well-founded) fears about reliability, service etc. That USP is no more. Skoda/VW products do not feel premium and appear as compromised as any other product from any other manufacturer. Now premium means Hyundai or Kia or Jeep, and Mahindra with its new cars close behind, even Tata.

[punto_]

Originally Posted by GS2K

Wireless charging is not going to be removed according to this tweet.

By the looks of this, it’s best we wait till there’s official information with some pictures.

Škoda/VW should have provided clear communication to make sure there’s no unnecessary misinformation!

[REN]

Originally Posted by tsi_niks1989

Carplay as well might be, guess you should wait for the entire specifications to be out .

Originally Posted by punto_

Škoda/VW should have provided clear communication to make sure there’s no unnecessary misinformation!

The 8-inch unit will lose wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. It will also be not compatible with the Skoda Play app as the original 10-inch Skoda Play unit is from Visteon and the incoming 8-inch one, as discussed earlier in this thread, is from Panasonic.

The news has been confirmed by Skoda through an official statement (Source). Interesting to note that Kushaq Monte Carlo will continue with the Visteon unit. No news from Volkswagen yet.

I had booked a Slavia Style 1.5 DSG in March and I'm seriously considering cancelling it. While I don't mind the reduction in screen real estate, wireless Apple CarPlay was at the very top of my list of must-haves for my next car. I use wired CarPlay daily on our Seltos and find it incredibly cumbersome to use. While the mechanical package of 1.5 TSI + DSG still remains sweet, I simply can't come to terms with this downgrade.

[Mumbaiker]

Originally Posted by tsi_niks1989

Wireless Charger is still available. Carplay as well might be, guess you should wait for the entire specifications to be out .

Zac's tweet:

Baffling. The car was launched amidst the semiconductor shortage. I am really surprised they didn't think about the screen earlier. Looks like something must have gone wrong with their production that they are replacing it with the 8 inch screen.

[IREV]

Originally Posted by karanddd

I am baffled at anyone saying that people ought not care about things like head units if they want solid mechanicals. Every other day on this forum you hear of someone complaining about an injector issue or a gearbox failure, with their cars leaving them stranded on highways or on trips. It appears well established that the AC units in the 1.0 Skoda/VW models do not cool the cabin when it's hot outside (when you need the AC the most). Are engine/gearbox/AC not mechanical components? It's obvious that Japanese and Korean cars are mechanically far more sound. In India Skoda/VW have one primary draw, brand cachet, which they are managing to slowly lose due to such blunders. 10-15 years go, a Skoda car meant a premium product, a cut above Suzuki or Hyundai, so people bought them despite (well-founded) fears about reliability, service etc. That USP is no more. Skoda/VW products do not feel premium and appear as compromised as any other product from any other manufacturer. Now premium means Hyundai or Kia or Jeep, and Mahindra with its new cars close behind, even Tata.

While the MQB-AO IN based cars are definitely compromised but the CKDs and CBUs, they aren't compromised. CKD VAG cars like the Kodiaq, Tiguan and the Superb are superior to the Tuscon, Compass anyday. So according to you, almost all Japanese and Korean cars superior to Skoda and VW cars then?

[UsualSuspect]

Originally Posted by karanddd

I am baffled at anyone saying that people ought not care about things like head units if they want solid mechanicals. Every other day on this forum you hear of someone complaining about an injector issue or a gearbox failure, with their cars leaving them stranded on highways or on trips.

Now premium means Hyundai or Kia or Jeep, and Mahindra with its new cars close behind, even Tata.

I think there is nothing wrong in members expressing their thoughts constructively in this forum and 'cars' do belong in a category which often tugs the heart more than the mind (or even wallet!)

To your point specifically, you will also see it well established in this forum by many members that Hyundai and Kia cars are 'glorified tin cans' with very poor safety ratings. So I am not sure of those brands being universally deemed as premium or inferior to other equally established brands. Let us not be baffled by other opinions as these are things which are relative to personal preferences

[SSD2122]

https://www.motorbeam.com/skoda-slav...-been-removed/

It also mentions a price rise of Rs.50k. This is double whammy for folks who would have booked the variants and if price protection is not available.

Honda also deleted some features and now this. I wonder if this is due to issue in demand - supply or semi-conductor shortage??

What on earth would make both Skoda and Honda make such moves which am sure leaves a bad taste in consumer mindset. That too in recent products like Slavia.