[RS_DEL]

Originally Posted by noopster

RS_DEL, can't argue with a thing you said but it's a documented fact that most Vento owners on the forums (self included) had an indifferent pre-sales experience from VW but went ahead and bought the car anyway. Of course Skoda has a much more mature setup than the parents company and that should not be an excuse.

A corporation which treats you the customer like the proverbial waste material when you want to give them money, add to their profits, is a strict NO NO for me. More so with a capital intensive purchase such as a vehicle where you are going to be dependent on the manufacturer for a long long while.

Your remark about pre-purchase experience with VW is fine as the post purchase experience has not been bad. Fact is you took the call to buy based on product reviews/reputation and ignored the potential risk of a bad experience in case you ended up wit a lemon.

Think for yourself how you would have felt, if you had been unfortunate enough to end up with a lemon and the pre-purchase experience you had was carried forward to the post purchase interaction with the company.

[Rameshdude]

Hello all, and Nitin,sorry
I TD outlander today. Very comfortable and smooth suv. Nice ,but a petrol ! They are offering me one Lakh cash discount .the OTR comes to about 21 L. What is the opinion of the forum with regard to this vehicle? What about it's maintance? Thanks in advance

[nilanjanray]

Nitin,

80% city driving = don't go for the Fortuner. The Grand Vitara, Outlander, X-Trail (if you can stretch the budget) etc. are comfortable to drive in the city, and the last two are more luxurious. I wouldn't go for the Yeti because of reliability/*** issues, but that is just me.

[gautamkhadse]

I have been noticing the fortuners around the city (pune ) for quiet some time now and the one thing that draws instant attention is the HUUGE TYRES . And I have observed something with all these fortuners that I have seen for the past few weeks . Maybe one of the fortuner owners can confirm this . I have been noticing the tyre wear pattern on all these fortuners and found that the innner part of the tyres was more worn out than the outer part (inner rim , outer rim ) . Hope I used the right terminology . Can someone confirm this . Maybe you guys will start noticing now . And most of these fortuners are driven by drivers and thats why we dont see many complaints (maybe ) .

C an someone confirm if this thing about the tyre wear pattern is true or not or is it something common with the SUVs .

IMHO , my boss owns a second hand vitara and I feel its very very practical for city use , too bad it doesnt sell as much although its a suzuki .

[Raosaheb Desai]

Nitin,
Take TD of X Trail auto before finalizing.If you already have shortlisted T Forte and Yeti, then Fortuner is obvious choice.
Yeti is a confused vehicle between hatch and crossover and doesn't justify the price.
T Forte is bit big for city use and also placement of clutch demands athletic left leg.
For reliability and peaceful ownership, Toyota has no competition.

[nitinbose]

Hello Everyone!

I took the test drive of both the Yeti and the Fortuner:

SKODA YETI: What I liked:

Good engine pulling power with the punch which is like by most users
Easy maneuverability
Rich interiors with lots of electronics based features such as touch screen based audio system, park assist, auto fog lamps, rain sensors, MID etc.
Good Body build quality
Seats adjustable in many ways with lumbar support
Fuel Economy
Skoda shield and Skoda Drive assurance. Skoda shield offers a total of 4 years of warranty for the vehicle while drive assurance is annual renewable bumper-to-bumper coverage. You may claim twice a year for any damages/repairs.

I took the test drive from Marathahalli, along the elevated tool way and back to BTM layout and to Bannerghata Road.

Skoda Yeti: What I did not like:

The engine performance is offered by tremendously increasing the RPM, which means its got to do more work than the fortuner engine, to offer the 'performance' It even idles at a higher rpm. The higher torque is fed to the transmission system, which does seem to have a modified gear ratio to the fortuner, so as to offer the 'perfornamce'. The braking is very sharp. The vehicle jolts to a stop when you simply touch the brakes, at almost any speeds. I would say all these leads to a far higher wear and tear, reducing the life of the engine, transmission & braking systems. No wonder why Skoda vehicle seems to suffer from major issues with engines/gear boxes in the 3-5 years time span. The specs also seem to reflect the maximum torque availability at a higher rpm than a fortuner engine. The yeti has a 2 liter engine while the fortuner has a 3 liter engine.

There are too many electronics such that one has to be very careful when installing some other accessories as some thing can easily malfunction/damaged. The stock audio system cannot be replaced with one of your choice because its coupled with the park assist display and climate control display.

Ergonomy also seems poor, the climate control and MID require some eye strain and time for you to look 'off road' to read them. This time may be sufficient for you to go 'off course'

The air conditioner seems less effective, though there are independent controls for the driver and co-passenger. The adjustment is via a rotary dial with the temperature written on it, but in small font, difficult to read while driving.

Skoda spare parts are still imported, which is why the availability is low and a long wait, and these are ordered according to the requirement. Vinayak Skoda does seem to try and offer their best, though themselves faced with challenges such as the above.


The fortuner on the other hand has a 3 liter engine and realizes the maximum torque at a lower rpm and there seems a lesser strain on the engines while accelerating. While accelerating the Yeti, I hear the engines roar and raise a lot, clearly indicating strain.

The fortuner interiors do have lesser features than the Yeti, but more ergonomic.

There is a 35K cash discount for the Yeti.

So based on my observations, I would still prefer the Fortuner!

[suman]

Hmmm, interesting observations on the Yeti. I would have liked to see the Pros & Cons of the Fortuner too

Originally Posted by nitinbose

I would say all these leads to a far higher wear and tear, reducing the life of the engine, transmission & braking systems. No wonder why Skoda vehicle seems to suffer from major issues with engines/gear boxes in the 3-5 years time span.

I wonder if the higher rpm on idle is some kind of a "tweak" that Skoda have done based on the number of complaints about the Yeti stalling during the initial take offs.

Also, not sure if higher revs at idle & sharp braking would necessarily lead to quicker degeneration of components.

Originally Posted by nitinbose

There are too many electronics such that one has to be very careful when installing some other accessories as some thing can easily malfunction/damaged.

If the car is as fully loaded as I hear, what other electronic accessories would one need?

Originally Posted by nitinbose

The stock audio system cannot be replaced with one of your choice because its coupled with the park assist display and climate control display.

IIRC, one of our members, Pramods, has done a fair bit of "workaround" & installed additional stuff, maybe you should read his ownership thread & PM him for specifics.

[nitinbose]

@Suman: The higher rpm is a method to realize the mentioned torque and power using a lower capacity engine, such as a 2L or 1.5L engine and to display the 'performance' of a racing-like vehicle.

One might need to replace the HU or speakers or there are plenty of accessories out there, the list is never ending and can never satisfy some tastes.

There may be workarounds to replacing the audio system using some additional electronics/adaptors, however I was informed it voids Skoda warranty.

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by nitinbose

Hello Everyone!

I took the test drive of both the Yeti and the Fortuner:

So based on my observations, I would still prefer the Fortuner!

That was a pretty detailed driving impression of the Yeti. Thanks.
I feel there is a bit of nitpicking in the negatives. All modern Euro cars are packed with tech, and so is the case with Yeti. That’s not really a negative IMO. The stock audio system in the Yeti is rated pretty high, and
I am sure there are folks who did updates / add-ons to the audio system in a Skoda.
And this is the first time I hearing a negative comment for good brakes

You mentioned that you did the Fortuner TD. Can you list the likes & dislikes as well?

[suman]

Originally Posted by nitinbose

@Suman: The higher rpm is a method to realize the mentioned torque and power using a lower capacity engine, such as a 2L or 1.5L engine and to display the 'performance' of a racing-like vehicle.

Perhaps....but not necessarily at the risk of faster wear & tear of components. The current Scorpios & Safaris also come with lower displacement engines when compared to the earlier ones (2.2 vs 2.6 & 2.2 vs 3), haven't heard any complaints pertaining to the engines so far.

[imp!]

Originally Posted by nitinbose

Hello Everyone!


Skoda Yeti: What I did not like:

The engine performance is offered by tremendously increasing the RPM, which means its got to do more work than the fortuner engine, to offer the 'performance' It even idles at a higher rpm. The higher torque is fed to the transmission system, which does seem to have a modified gear ratio to the fortuner, so as to offer the 'perfornamce'. The braking is very sharp. The vehicle jolts to a stop when you simply touch the brakes, at almost any speeds. I would say all these leads to a far higher wear and tear, reducing the life of the engine, transmission & braking systems. No wonder why Skoda vehicle seems to suffer from major issues with engines/gear boxes in the 3-5 years time span. The specs also seem to reflect the maximum torque availability at a higher rpm than a fortuner engine. The yeti has a 2 liter engine while the fortuner has a 3 liter engine.

I am not too sure about this. The Yeti engine has a superior tranny and a higher boost turbo and stiffer suspension, this is primarily what gives the Yeti or for that matter the Octavia I, II ; Superb etc their performance. A lot of the engine wear and tear can be avoided if one knows how to maintain the car well. It will require more maintenance than a Fortuner, but then, the cost difference more than makes up for it. I haven't heard of any major gear box issues. Clutch wearing out sure, but manual gear box problems ? I have a vested interest in this, If possible can you please highlight this point a bit further?

Originally Posted by nitinbose

Hello Everyone!
There are too many electronics such that one has to be very careful when installing some other accessories as some thing can easily malfunction/damaged. The stock audio system cannot be replaced with one of your choice because its coupled with the park assist display and climate control display.

The stock audio happens to be one of the best in the country, but, if you do want to change it, it is possible to by importing a harness that doesn't require splitting of wires. I wanted to put in a touch screen into my Laura but decided against it as I love the simplicity of my dash. As for too many electronics, you are paying what is essentially entry level 5-series/A6/XF/E-class money in the rest of the world for what is a middle class X-over or 7 seater SUV. Do you want the most bare bones car you can buy?

Originally Posted by nitinbose

Ergonomy also seems poor, the climate control and MID require some eye strain and time for you to look 'off road' to read them. This time may be sufficient for you to go 'off course'

I hope this is just a case of getting used to the car, if not, then it is a sad state of affairs.

Originally Posted by nitinbose

The air conditioner seems less effective, though there are independent controls for the driver and co-passenger. The adjustment is via a rotary dial with the temperature written on it, but in small font, difficult to read while driving.

You are bang on the onion here, the Air Con in the Superb, Laura, Yeti just simply isn't strong enough for Indian conditions, however in the Laura, a good set of tints (v-kool/huperoptik) does wonders. I don't really read the temperature, generally you will find a comfortable temerature that works and just leave it there. With just you in the car most of the time, it shouldn't be as much of an issue. It only becomes a pain in the rear seat.

Originally Posted by nitinbose

Skoda spare parts are still imported, which is why the availability is low and a long wait, and these are ordered according to the requirement. Vinayak Skoda does seem to try and offer their best, though themselves faced with challenges such as the above.

Very true, Waiting periods are generally between 2 days and 3 weeks depending on the type of part.

Originally Posted by nitinbose

The fortuner on the other hand has a 3 liter engine and realizes the maximum torque at a lower rpm and there seems a lesser strain on the engines while accelerating. While accelerating the Yeti, I hear the engines roar and raise a lot, clearly indicating strain.

The fortuner interiors do have lesser features than the Yeti, but more ergonomic.

There is a 35K cash discount for the Yeti.

So based on my observations, I would still prefer the Fortuner!

I have driven both, numbers aside there are things to like and dislike about each engine. I prefer the transmission and gearing of the Yeti, to me it is more fun to drive than the Fortuner.

My take on the cars:

Please Note: I mean no disrespect to either of these car owners what so ever.

Fortuner is extremely overpriced in Bangalore, however, it remain the only decent family SUV in the sub 50 lakh bracket, perhaps only the Q7 is better to move people around. I would buy this car only if I absolutely needed its seven seats, otherwise to me it is a pointless SUV at its price point.

Yeti comes in with an overly inflated price tag. I can't for the life of me figure out why it costs more than a Laura. Perhaps it is just a matter of perception in the consumers minds. SUV --> Bigger, better, more expensive. I wouldn't buy the yeti period, The Laura CRDI (if you want a diesel) is far better value for money.

If you want to talk to me about my Skoda experience, I'd be happy to do so. Good luck with your decision !

[Akshay1234]

Originally Posted by imp!

Yeti comes in with an overly inflated price tag. I can't for the life of me figure out why it costs more than a Laura. Perhaps it is just a matter of perception in the consumers minds. SUV --> Bigger, better, more expensive. I wouldn't buy the yeti period, The Laura CRDI (if you want a diesel) is far better value for money.

Simply because of the 4wd + Haldex clutch, touchscreen audio system, steering mounted controls. There may be a couple of more features, but its less than the Laura L&K with almost the same features.

[zipperone]

Originally Posted by gautamkhadse

I have been noticing the fortuners around the city (pune ) for quiet some time now and the one thing that draws instant attention is the HUUGE TYRES . And I have observed something with all these fortuners that I have seen for the past few weeks . Maybe one of the fortuner owners can confirm this . I have been noticing the tyre wear pattern on all these fortuners and found that the innner part of the tyres was more worn out than the outer part (inner rim , outer rim ) . Hope I used the right terminology . Can someone confirm this . Maybe you guys will start noticing now . And most of these fortuners are driven by drivers and thats why we dont see many complaints (maybe ) .

C an someone confirm if this thing about the tyre wear pattern is true or not or is it something common with the SUVs .
.

Not really , that also depends on your wheel alignment and tyre pressure which I would recommend to get checked at regular intervals.

[dkaile]

Really to be spending 19 Lacs of your hard earned money on a so called SUV marginally bigger than a Wagon-R is beyond my comprehension. Luxurious it may be, and practical for the city too, but the Yeti is grossly overpriced for its size. There are a lot more good options out there which would save you a lot of moolah.

[tsk1979]

Originally Posted by dkaile

Really to be spending 19 Lacs of your hard earned money on a so called SUV marginally bigger than a Wagon-R is beyond my comprehension. Luxurious it may be, and practical for the city too, but the Yeti is grossly overpriced for its size. There are a lot more good options out there which would save you a lot of moolah.

So basically you are saying that the cost of the vehicle should be as per size?
In that case if a bolero costs more than a BMW M3, it is reasonable?