[Behemoth]

Originally Posted by nitinbose

True, but based on the posts of most Yeti owners, I'll have to sacrifice ~50K for the tyre upgrades. What is the maximum speed that's been achieved on the Yeti so far by the bhp owners? Is there any way to add GPS to the stock HU (not Caska please)

If you do a tyre swap just out of the showroom, you should get good trade in value for the stock Goodyear tyres, and the swap should not cost you more than 8-10k in total for 4 tyres.

Regards,
Behemoth

[pramods]

Originally Posted by nitinbose

True, but based on the posts of most Yeti owners, I'll have to sacrifice ~50K for the tyre upgrades. What is the maximum speed that's been achieved on the Yeti so far by the bhp owners? Is there any way to add GPS to the stock HU (not Caska please)

No way to add GPS to stock HU, its not compatible and don't have any input channel available for GPS and loading of maps, if you are interested then there is another variant of HU for Skoda called as Columbus(RNS 510) which has GPS and maps integrated(also DVD,video and 30GB hard drive), the GPS also shows up on MID if properly configured, now the problem with Columbus, VW group have not update these devices with India specific Maps so you won't be able to load maps as of now. I tried all along to get more info on the Maps but nowhere I can get any information on the internal and process to load other maps, I believe they don't have this on their radar.
So you have a option to change this OEM HU with other OEM HU which have everything that is needed expect Maps! (The cost of RNS 510 columbus is too high, even with eBay channel it would cost you > 1K USD)

-Pramod

[dkaile]

Originally Posted by nitinbose

True, but based on the posts of most Yeti owners, I'll have to sacrifice ~50K for the tyre upgrades. What is the maximum speed that's been achieved on the Yeti so far by the bhp owners? Is there any way to add GPS to the stock HU (not Caska please)

If you go for tyre upgrade immediately, it should be around 20K differential for any good brand like Bridgestone, Pirelli etc. In 50K you can get a complete new set. The maximum speed claimed by the Skoda UK site - http://www.skoda.co.uk/gbr/newcars/y...s/default.aspx is 175kmph, though anything over 140kmph on our Indian roads is strict NO NO for me. There is no way yet to attach GPS to the stock HU though the local Skoda dealer offered to attach a OE MMI unit made for Skoda at a exorbitant cost (around 40K), though it will just as good as a Caska and never as good as the OE unit.

[nitinbose]

Originally Posted by pramods

No way to add GPS to stock HU, its not compatible and don't have any input channel available for GPS and loading of maps, if you are interested then there is another variant of HU for Skoda called as Columbus(RNS 510) which has GPS and maps integrated(also DVD,video and 30GB hard drive), the GPS also shows up on MID if properly configured, now the problem with Columbus, VW group have not update these devices with India specific Maps so you won't be able to load maps as of now. I tried all along to get more info on the Maps but nowhere I can get any information on the internal and process to load other maps, I believe they don't have this on their radar.
So you have a option to change this OEM HU with other OEM HU which have everything that is needed expect Maps! (The cost of RNS 510 columbus is too high, even with eBay channel it would cost you > 1K USD)

-Pramod

Originally Posted by dkaile

If you go for tyre upgrade immediately, it should be around 20K differential for any good brand like Bridgestone, Pirelli etc. In 50K you can get a complete new set. The maximum speed claimed by the Skoda UK site - Performance ?KODA Auto is 175kmph, though anything over 140kmph on our Indian roads is strict NO NO for me. There is no way yet to attach GPS to the stock HU though the local Skoda dealer offered to attach a OE MMI unit made for Skoda at a exorbitant cost (around 40K), though it will just as good as a Caska and never as good as the OE unit.

Better to spend on some Alpine or Clarion unit instead of 1K on the Skoda HU. What is the size of the speakers used on Yeti doors? I thought the Yeti could easily reach 200kph - I've always wanted a car that can do 200! Just for the fun of it, though I would only drive at this speed for a few minutes Any idea which DSPs to the stock HUs of the Yeti/Fortuner/Caska use? Sound quality largely depends on the DSPs.

Yeti has a short-stroke engine while Fortuner has a long-stroke engine. Would this mean the Yeti would require higher maintenance than a Fortuner if run under the same conditions and kilometers?

[dkaile]

Originally Posted by nitinbose

Better to spend on some Alpine or Clarion unit instead of 1K on the Skoda HU. What is the size of the speakers used on Yeti doors? I thought the Yeti could easily reach 200kph - I've always wanted a car that can do 200! Just for the fun of it, though I would only drive at this speed for a few minutes Any idea which DSPs to the stock HUs of the Yeti/Fortuner/Caska use? Sound quality largely depends on the DSPs.

Yeti has a short-stroke engine while Fortuner has a long-stroke engine. Would this mean the Yeti would require higher maintenance than a Fortuner if run under the same conditions and kilometers?

Usually saloons have claimed 200kmph top speeds like the Laura/Superb claim 205kmph top speed. Due to higher center of gravity of the SUVish vehicles, their top speeds are lower. A Toyota will always be cheaper to maintain in the long run and will also be more reliable. A Skoda will give you a premium car feel. The service interval of the Skodas is longer at 15K and the overall cost of service would be around 2 times more than the Toyota. The Yeti has a clutch which needs adjusting to and stalls easily. I would advice against Stock HU upgrade as it includes features from reverse sensor display and climatic AC controls. Even the 1 crore Landcruisers and S Class'es miss out on dedicated GPS in India, so you can learn to live without it.

[nitinbose]

Originally Posted by dkaile

Usually saloons have claimed 200kmph top speeds like the Laura/Superb claim 205kmph top speed. Due to higher center of gravity of the SUVish vehicles, their top speeds are lower. A Toyota will always be cheaper to maintain in the long run and will also be more reliable. A Skoda will give you a premium car feel. The service interval of the Skodas is longer at 15K and the overall cost of service would be around 2 times more than the Toyota. The Yeti has a clutch which needs adjusting to and stalls easily. I would advice against Stock HU upgrade as it includes features from reverse sensor display and climatic AC controls. Even the 1 crore Landcruisers and S Class'es miss out on dedicated GPS in India, so you can learn to live without it.

I am now used to the Yeti clutch after multiple TDs. Why would the Skoda service be 2X the Toyota? Would there be frequent replacements required as a part of regular maintenance? I believe the cost of parts have significantly come down as they're started assembling in India and most dealers stock them readily.

[dkaile]

Originally Posted by nitinbose

Why would the Skoda service be 2X the Toyota?

The A S S of Skoda is the one sore point of ownership. It has still to learn a lot from Toyota et al. Replacement parts of Skoda are VERY costly compared to Toyota e.g. a clutch assembly of Corolla would be around 6K compared to around 40K for the Laura. So be mentally prepared for that. That has to be justified by the initial cost of ownership and take as much discounts as possible on purchase of the Skoda and factor that in as to when a major parts needs to be changed. You won't get any/minimal discounts on the Toyota's. I factored this in when I purchased my Superb which I got at a landed cost of 18.4 lacs and was just around 2~2.5L more than a top end Corolla. So the money I saved initially, I am mentally prepared to spend on parts, if and when the need arises.

[pramods]

Originally Posted by nitinbose

I am now used to the Yeti clutch after multiple TDs. Why would the Skoda service be 2X the Toyota? Would there be frequent replacements required as a part of regular maintenance? I believe the cost of parts have significantly come down as they're started assembling in India and most dealers stock them readily.

I am not sure if there is any frequent replacement required on Skoda, I have not heard of any failure in Yeti/Laura apart from AC[I know few good mechanic who work on Skoda and VW in Nagpur], the claimed speed of Yeti is >190 kmph and I have taken it in range of 180 once[speedo indicated], this is not to be done on busy street/highway, I did it on the outer ring road that is yet to be opened in Nagpur. Yeti can do claimed 190 provided you have the road and other conditions in your favor including wind and all. The Yeti internal speed sensor(CAN bus) is close/equal to the GPS speed, to get more detail have a look at my Yeti thread, I have enabled that in current Bolero HU and can see the actual speed when ever I want, the speedo error is intentional and it read optimistically. Yeti is not a slower car by any standard its can do speed in access of 170+ but Is it safe on our road?

-Pramod

[nitinbose]

In short the former (Toyota) takes all the money in advance while the latter (Skoda) continues taking from you in installments even after the same. So in the long run both would equate!

[dkaile]

Originally Posted by nitinbose

In short the former (Toyota) takes all the money in advance while the latter (Skoda) continues taking from you in installments even after the same. So in the long run both would equate!

If you intend to keep your Skoda for more than 7~8 years then that 'might' hold true. For shorter ownership period the Skoda will trump the Toyota. Take 2+2 years extended warranty, so for a ownership period of say 5 years, you will just love the Skoda.

[shankar.balan]

Im barging in here with a few points:
I won't say when or where, because I am a responsible driver and I wont tell you exactly how fast, but I taken my Yeti for short bursts significantly past the 1.5 mark on the speedo. Read what you will from that.
The Yeti feels absolutely planted and handles briiliantly at 120-140 absolutely no worries. all the safety kit and electronic gizmos like ASR, TCS, EBD and all the rest of the acronyms kick in beautifully just when you need them and look after you like your own private guardian angel. The speed sensitive power steering has very good feedback and keeps you involved and informed at all times! The 4wd kicks in just when you want it, on steep inclines and bad roads. Hill hold and all the rest of it are great things to have. It is an extremely safe and very clever car indeed. Nothing comes close to it at that price point.
Yes it is a front wheel drive car under normal use. It sends the Power and Juice as required, where required and when required to whichever wheel (s) have the max traction, so as to prevent slippery scenarios on loose gravel, loose stone chippings and/ or slushy situations.
Its Haldex Clutch system is lovely. It can pretty much go most places because it is compact and has short overhangs and decent GC.
It is a perfect urban crawler with significant aoppetite for adventure. You can take it off the beaten track but you cannot go swamp riding or rock crawling in it - at least, I will not subject my Yeti to all that sort of thing.
Unless you live on a farm snd have to ferry 6 to 7 people on a very regular basis or are forced to traverse really bad, inhospitable terrain daily, the Yeti is more than sufficient. The Fortuner is un necessarily large and is almost bus-like in comparison. Way too much overkill for the city. Yes, it may be a better off roader, but how much time do any of us really spend off the road? Is it a good enough compromise to make, given the horrible traffic and parking scenarios in our urban sprawl of 2012? For me, it certainly was not size and pure off road ability that I wanted and may I say that I do a fair bit of hill area visits and am not shy to get onto grassy or other sorts of tracks. In other words While I may not do as much as some others, I do a fair bit of off road and no road which is why these last tem years or so, I have preferred an SUV or Jeepish thing to a car.
The general cost of spares and servicing arent that bad as I am told. The one year or 15k kms service is likely to cost about 10 k including all oil changes and blah blah. Add the fact that one will get one's tyres aligned and balanced every 5k kms and factor another 1200 bucks a pop for that and you have the princely sum of about 14k on maintenance per annum. I dont mind such a figure because I was spending about 18k easily on my Scorpio per annum, all things considered.
The Yeti's stock goodyear excellence tyres are good road going tyres, made of a soft compound. They cannot be expected to handle the kind of bad roads we have in India, particularly because the potholes and lateral trenches that we see daily, have very sharp edges and can easily cut the tyres. Hence, it is a good idea to consider changing the tyres to something slightly tougher at the outset itself, or else, like Behemoth or me, you will end up using the oem tyres till their life is done and then consider a change. However, do not upsize the tyres because it is quite possible to void your suspension warranty if you do.
I have an Elegance and believe me, the quality of sound in that car with is 8 speakers and excellent acoustics has to be heard to be believed. It is wonderful. I dont think it is required to make any changes in the stock setup. Moreover as Behemoth said, the Skoda warranties will get affected if you fiddle with the electricals.
6 months or so, ago,as many of you know, I was under the same stress and facing the same dilemma. I considered and evaluated all the following at various times: Captiva, Fortuner, X Trail, top spec Scorpio, the XUV and several others.
Even in the used market I looked at stuff like the old Chevy Forester,Tucson, Fortuner, Nissan X Trail, the Pajero, the Endy etc. none of the above came close to the Yeti in terms of what I wanted from a car based on my particular needs. Only cars like the international Subaru Forester, Outback, XC60, LR Freelander, RAV4, Qashqai, Juke, Escape, the VW Tiguan and now the Audi Q3 even come close. Unfortunately for us these are either too outpriced for me OR simply unavailable here in India.
Overall, my Yeti Elegance is absolutely the perfect vehicle, given my need and want state. The only thing it fails is my lateral golf bag test. Yet, being as avid a golfer as I am, I have made the compromise and chosen the Yeti because in everything else it simly leaves the competition far far behind.
As I ve said earlier I will consider the Q3 or XC60 as the next upgrade whenever it happens but till then, the Yeti it is!
If your need, want state is similar to mine, then without hesitation go and get a Yeti. You wont regret it.
If you re worried about them taking care of you, contact Hemanth of Vinayak Skoda Blr and he will see you right. Mention my name if you want to.

[iTNerd]

Took a test drive of Yeti elegance today. I must admit it is unlike any other SUV I had test driven - from Grand Vitara to Outlander. The 2.0 diesel engine packs a punch and is rev happy similar to i-VTEC. The seating position, steering feedback and handling is spot on. And I love the gear shift - it is so smooth. And lot of torque - the MID often suggests to slot to 6th gear . I drove it on the Greater Noida expressway and easily pulls to 130-140. I am sure, it should be able to do 170-180 without losing much juice. Overtaking is much fun, with very less body roll. And the steering is direct, but it is not as precise as that of the Civic. The interior - well, the quality is way beyond GV and fortuner, a bit better then Outlander. Anyway, I am already sold on to this car or SUV, whatever you call it. It is the perfect 'oil burner' no-nonsense, go anywhere (not offroad) platform. even with my Civic, I have covered much of India from North to South and vice versa and with this yeti, I see many trips from west to east India, northeast, himlayas etc... Anyway, I can only extract 2 lacs discount (max) from the dealer for a 2010 elegance model. The dealer is offering 4 years Skoda Shield/extended warranty free. Total on road comes to 18.35 lacs.. I am bargaining hard for upto 2.5 lacs, pitching one dealer to another to sweeten the deal. at 17.85 or 18 lacs, how is the deal?

[Behemoth]

Originally Posted by iTNerd

Took a test drive of Yeti elegance today. I must admit it is unlike any other SUV I had test driven - from Grand Vitara to Outlander. The 2.0 diesel engine packs a punch and is rev happy similar to i-VTEC. The seating position, steering feedback and handling is spot on. And I love the gear shift - it is so smooth. And lot of torque - the MID often suggests to slot to 6th gear . I drove it on the Greater Noida expressway and easily pulls to 130-140. I am sure, it should be able to do 170-180 without losing much juice. Overtaking is much fun, with very less body roll. And the steering is direct, but it is not as precise as that of the Civic. The interior - well, the quality is way beyond GV and fortuner, a bit better then Outlander. Anyway, I am already sold on to this car or SUV, whatever you call it. It is the perfect 'oil burner' no-nonsense, go anywhere (not offroad) platform. even with my Civic, I have covered much of India from North to South and vice versa and with this yeti, I see many trips from west to east India, northeast, himlayas etc... Anyway, I can only extract 2 lacs discount (max) from the dealer for a 2010 elegance model. The dealer is offering 4 years Skoda Shield/extended warranty free. Total on road comes to 18.35 lacs.. I am bargaining hard for upto 2.5 lacs, pitching one dealer to another to sweeten the deal. at 17.85 or 18 lacs, how is the deal?

Hi ItNerd,

Well since you have a Civic currently and are considering a Yeti, my older thread may be of some help to you:
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...km-driven.html

We have now sold the Civic and replaced it with a Laura Diesel..!

I have always regarded the Fortuner very highly in terms of its capabilities, but frankly it offers a lot more offroad capabilities than any normal city dweller can hope to utilize. But for people who are into hard core offroading and very frequent farm use/ rocky adventure trails, it is a great and reliable choice.
When I was making the buying decision for my Yeti, we had also gone to book the Fortuner before that with Cheque in hand, but the long delivery period (6 months at that time), high handed approach of the dealership, the plain jane interiors and the vibrations in the gear shift and vehicle made us back out and we went with a Yeti instead. Also, you will actually be surprised that inside the Fortuner, there is less headroom in the Fortuner than the Yeti - IIRC, Pramod had also measured this during one of his trips.

Regards,
Behemoth

[nitinbose]

Originally Posted by iTNerd

Anyway, I can only extract 2 lacs discount (max) from the dealer for a 2010 elegance model. The dealer is offering 4 years Skoda Shield/extended warranty free. Total on road comes to 18.35 lacs.. I am bargaining hard for upto 2.5 lacs, pitching one dealer to another to sweeten the deal. at 17.85 or 18 lacs, how is the deal?

A 2010 model? I'm quite surprised that a car has been in stock for two years without being sold. Or What is Skoda trying to do by clearing the stocks by offering huge discounts? I'm sure a facelift is due or they're discontinuing this model atleast in India.

Any take on how many Yeti's would have been sold in India so far?

[scopriobharath]

Originally Posted by nitinbose

A 2010 model? I'm quite surprised that a car has been in stock for two years without being sold. Or What is Skoda trying to do by clearing the stocks by offering huge discounts? I'm sure a facelift is due or they're discontinuing this model atleast in India.

Any take on how many Yeti's would have been sold in India so far?

Yetis sell very few in india. People prefer the road presence and Macho looks of an SUV. Scorpio provides more road-presence than a Yeti for 50% of yeti's money.