Team-BHP > Team-BHP Reviews > Test-Drives & Initial Ownership Reports


Reply
  Search this Thread
110,747 views
Old 20th October 2011, 20:11   #16
BHPian
 
acsandeep's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: -
Posts: 133
Thanked: 24 Times
re: Black Lightning: My Skoda Superb 1.8 TSI DSG-UPDATE: DSG box replaced!

Congratulations on getting this awesome car at more awesome price,car with just 14k,1year old and at half price is a steal.Looks like you're quiet enjoying the sunroof,and please post more pics,especially the disco light effect one.
acsandeep is offline   (1) Thanks
Old 20th October 2011, 20:56   #17
Team-BHP Support
 
Akshay1234's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Mumbai
Posts: 10,264
Thanked: 12,302 Times
re: Black Lightning: My Skoda Superb 1.8 TSI DSG-UPDATE: DSG box replaced!

Quote:
Originally Posted by noopster View Post

It's a little disconcerting how many 'little things' Skoda has addressed in this baby- down to the way you unlock the car- twice if I recall correctly. It's a little embarrassing driving this car for the first time and having to be told, press the fob again, etc.
That is configurable through the mutidot display. It can be one press once to unlock all doors, or only the drivers door on the first click and the rest on the next.


Swanand - Buddy congrats on the car. What a brilliant deal, honestly. Its a great all rounder, and the 160bhp is enough (compared to 260 of course) for your weekend drives. DSG is just awesome, but make sure you teach your driver the right habits. I've noticed most DSG failures seem to happen on chauffeur driven cars who may not be driving that well since it is their first a/t.
Akshay1234 is offline   (3) Thanks
Old 21st October 2011, 10:32   #18
Distinguished - BHPian
 
Santoshbhat's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2011
Location: Bangalore
Posts: 2,345
Thanked: 6,849 Times
re: Black Lightning: My Skoda Superb 1.8 TSI DSG-UPDATE: DSG box replaced!

Congratulations on your new acquisition. The Superb is the car to beat in 20L segment. Like most Skodas, the well built Superb would have hardly aged in the one year it had run before you bought the car. THat makes it a very sweet deal indeed.

Make sure you give your chauffeur some very specific instructions w.r.t Do's and Dont's on the DSG gearbox. The 7 speed ones on the Superb are not exactly known for their reliability.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Swanand Inamdar View Post
[*]Audio increases with the speed. (This though, could be a fragment of my imagination. Need to check and confirm).[/list]Negatives:[list]
You are not imagining things . That's called the gala feature, where the audio volume increases with the speed. Don't you have this feature on your Laura as well? The Swing Audio unit in my Laura TSI has this feature.
Santoshbhat is online now   (1) Thanks
Old 21st October 2011, 10:44   #19
Distinguished - BHPian
 
noopster's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Pune
Posts: 9,236
Thanked: 12,901 Times
re: Black Lightning: My Skoda Superb 1.8 TSI DSG-UPDATE: DSG box replaced!

Quote:
Originally Posted by akshay1234 View Post
...make sure you teach your driver the right habits. I've noticed most DSG failures seem to happen on chauffeur driven cars who may not be driving that well since it is their first a/t.
That's an intersting thought. Can an AT be driven badly? How exactly, I mean? There's no clutch to ride or gear to change etc.
noopster is offline  
Old 21st October 2011, 11:00   #20
Team-BHP Support
 
Akshay1234's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Mumbai
Posts: 10,264
Thanked: 12,302 Times
re: Black Lightning: My Skoda Superb 1.8 TSI DSG-UPDATE: DSG box replaced!

Quote:
Originally Posted by noopster View Post
That's an intersting thought. Can an AT be driven badly? How exactly, I mean? There's no clutch to ride or gear to change etc.
There are 2 main things I can think of.

1) Keeping it in D all the time even for long signals. Sometimes the opposite, moving it into P everytime the car is stationary even for 10 seconds. Both lead to excess wear.

2) Causing excess shifting by jerky accelerator movements. Sometimes the drivers are used to driving manual cars where you can be a bit jerky with the accelerator, but in a DSG with its quick shifting nature it will cause the box to keep hunting for gears.

While normal torque converter boxes may be more immune to this problem, DSGs I'm sure are more sensitive.
Akshay1234 is offline   (4) Thanks
Old 21st October 2011, 11:18   #21
Senior - BHPian
 
Swanand Inamdar's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 1,644
Thanked: 586 Times
re: Black Lightning: My Skoda Superb 1.8 TSI DSG-UPDATE: DSG box replaced!

Quote:
Originally Posted by drmohitg View Post
Congratulations! So finally you didn't have to make a tough call. Almost brand new car at half its price is a steal anyday. The car looks great in black. Wish you many happy and most importantly trouble free miles with it.

BTW how is the back seat compared to the Accord?
Mohit, thanks for the lovely wishes. Yes, with such a sweet deal, it was difficult not to go in for this Superb.

I had sat in the back seat of the Accord a few times, and man, that isnt classified to be a seat. The Accord backseat is a sofa on wheels. Make that a lazyboy on wheels. The Superb backseat, though comfortable is a little hard - just like most german cars.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Sugeeta View Post
Beautiful car Swanand. Congratulations.

Seems you are really enjoying the sunroof.
Thanks Sugeeta. I sure am enjoying the sunroof. Rather in my case it becomes the moonroof, 'cause thats the time the car comes home.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Utopian View Post
Congrats for the Superb. How much did you have to cough up for it exactly. Looks in good shape.
The car has done away with one of the two lanes of the road.
Utopian, thanks. The car does take up one lane, when parking. Fortunately its parked inside the building premises at night. By the time the traffic starts building up, the car is already gone. But I know what you mean!
Im not really comfortable disclosing the exact price. Let me put it this way. A brand new 1.8 TSi costs close to 22L OTR Pune. You do the math .

Quote:
Originally Posted by swiftnfurious View Post
That's a freakin awesome car & an equally freakin awesome deal you got ! Excites me & scares me at the same time. 1 year old car with just 14K for half the price ! MAN !!

I would love to see more pics of this beauty. Please do update when you get time. And could I request for a night pic with all the interior lights ON? the ambient lights, console, dash etc? That's something which I love a lot. One of the reasons why I used to fancy the premium cars was not their engines, but their lighting. Though it's all changed now, but still...

Wish you miles of happy & safe motoring.
I know what you mean! It sure is a freaking awesome deal for an equally awesome car. More snaps are in store soon.

Quote:
Originally Posted by noopster View Post
The paddleshifts are OK- but the novelty fades off quick (for me at least).
noop, sames the case with me. Paddle shifts are hardly used. I let it do its thing in the city. On the highway though, Paddle shifts would be amazing. The reason I say "would be" is, I havent taken it to the highway yet.

Quote:
It's a little disconcerting how many 'little things' Skoda has addressed in this baby- down to the way you unlock the car- twice if I recall correctly. It's a little embarrassing driving this car for the first time and having to be told, press the fob again, etc.
Yes, Skoda does have that little nagging feature. It takes a bit of getting used to. Now, with the Laura being home for more than a year, to me it comes naturally. Remember, I did the same thing to your Vento too (or was it Subodh's?).

Quote:
Originally Posted by Speed.Demon View Post
Congrats sir, you finally acquired the black beauty!!

So you decided to follow what your head says after all, .

Man, I must say you really did strike an awesome deal, a 14k run Superb for half price?? Wicked!!
That car definitely deserves better photos, take the weekend off and go snapping!!
Thank you so much. Yes, I did follow the head, heart and all other organs of the body. The deal was simply awesome to let go.

Snaps are in store for sure. This weekend is doubtful as Diwali is around the corner and the LoH needs to shop.

Last edited by Swanand Inamdar : 21st October 2011 at 11:20.
Swanand Inamdar is offline  
Old 21st October 2011, 11:35   #22
BHPian
 
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: Pune
Posts: 179
Thanked: 156 Times
re: Black Lightning: My Skoda Superb 1.8 TSI DSG-UPDATE: DSG box replaced!

Hi Swanand,
Congratulations on the black beauty. You really got a good deal for a car loaded with features and space. Hope to catch a glimpse during one of our Pune meets. Happy Mile Crunching !
heman_369 is offline  
Old 21st October 2011, 12:37   #23
Senior - BHPian
 
Swanand Inamdar's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 1,644
Thanked: 586 Times
re: Black Lightning: My Skoda Superb 1.8 TSI DSG-UPDATE: DSG box replaced!

Quote:
Originally Posted by akshay1234 View Post
That is configurable through the mutidot display. It can be one press once to unlock all doors, or only the drivers door on the first click and the rest on the next.
That is possible with little tweeking. But, honestly, Ive gotten used to lockng/unlocking the car now. Thanks to the Laura.


Quote:
Swanand - Buddy congrats on the car. What a brilliant deal, honestly. Its a great all rounder, and the 160bhp is enough (compared to 260 of course) for your weekend drives. DSG is just awesome,.
I know exactly what you mean - 160BHP is just enough. 260 horses is a different ballgame alltogether. Hey, you know what - the next time you drive to Lonavla in the 320, PM me. We could have a meeting of sorts with the beasts!

Quote:
but make sure you teach your driver the right habits. I've noticed most DSG failures seem to happen on chauffeur driven cars who may not be driving that well since it is their first a/t.
Thanks. Thats a great tip there. Fortunately, this guy is used to A/T's. The previous car he used to drive was also an AT DSG. So, this guy is pretty knowledgeable.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Santoshbhat View Post
Congratulations on your new acquisition. The Superb is the car to beat in 20L segment. Like most Skodas, the well built Superb would have hardly aged in the one year it had run before you bought the car. THat makes it a very sweet deal indeed. .
Yup, while driving, its hard to notice that the car is a year old. It still drives as good as new.

Quote:
Make sure you give your chauffeur some very specific instructions w.r.t Do's and Dont's on the DSG gearbox. The 7 speed ones on the Superb are not exactly known for their reliability. .
Answered above.

Quote:
You are not imagining things . That's called the gala feature, where the audio volume increases with the speed. Don't you have this feature on your Laura as well? The Swing Audio unit in my Laura TSI has this feature.
Actually, it is there on the Laura as well. Even then, I thought I was imagining things . Now that you've clarified, I can be at peace that my mind is not imagining things.

Quote:
Originally Posted by heman_369 View Post
Hi Swanand,
Congratulations on the black beauty. You really got a good deal for a car loaded with features and space. Hope to catch a glimpse during one of our Pune meets. Happy Mile Crunching !
Thanks Heman. Actually, the car was there for the breakfast meet we had recently at Vaishali. But yes, I shall try and get it on other meets too.
Swanand Inamdar is offline  
Old 23rd October 2011, 07:43   #24
Team-BHP Support
 
vb-saan's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: S'pore/Thrissur
Posts: 7,249
Thanked: 12,318 Times
re: Black Lightning: My Skoda Superb 1.8 TSI DSG-UPDATE: DSG box replaced!

Congratulations Swanand! That’s an excellent deal you got there, and the car looks brand new. And I guess black manages to hide the bulk of the Superb. Great choice
vb-saan is offline   (1) Thanks
Old 23rd October 2011, 08:51   #25
BHPian
 
GunMo's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: Chennai
Posts: 115
Thanked: 44 Times

Quote:
Originally Posted by Swanand Inamdar
[*]Audio increases with the speed. (This though, could be a fragment of my imagination. Need to check and confirm).
I remember this feature in my A4 in late 90s (in US). You can even set the level of increase. This feature might be now shared across it's VW and Skoda cousins.


Quote:
Originally Posted by Swanand Inamdar
[*]Spare tyre is a normal non alloy wheel. Come on, cost cutting to this level? How much more would it cost you to give all alloys?
Does the tyre also look skinny, then it's not cost cutting but an engineering(?!) feature. An attempt to save boot space and unladen weight. (you may have to take the spare wheel out to see the width fully)!
GunMo is offline   (1) Thanks
Old 23rd October 2011, 09:59   #26
Distinguished - BHPian
 
ninjatalli's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: Bangalore
Posts: 3,786
Thanked: 15,374 Times
re: Black Lightning: My Skoda Superb 1.8 TSI DSG-UPDATE: DSG box replaced!

Finally the thread's up! You did take your time, didn't ya!

Those reclining seats are bloody awesome. And only today morning I was telling my friend that the Vento needed a sun-roof - I can understand the feeling you must be getting when driving in rains!

Btw, a few Qs from my end!

Q1. Any chance of your father taking a holiday (read: So that we can see the beast at DLF?)

Q2. Black Lightening! Seriously @mikon is gonna be after you for copyright issues (first Black Mamba, now Black Lightening, what next - Black Thunder? )

Q2. Too many weekends have passed by, and you have one pic for us! Where are the pics?

Q3. Where are the pics? (X1000 times) (If this goes on, I might just land up with my camera at your place to do the honors! )

Last edited by ninjatalli : 23rd October 2011 at 10:01.
ninjatalli is offline   (1) Thanks
Old 23rd October 2011, 13:14   #27
Distinguished - BHPian
 
Hayek's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: Bombay
Posts: 1,899
Thanked: 15,287 Times

Congrats and join the Superb club. Hope 50% depreciation in a year is not standard. Will not join the clamour for pictures since I have been too lazy to post more than a few in my thread. Do keep us posted on the oil guzzling habits, if any, of your car. Agree with you on the paddle shifts - the car shifts perfectly even in D mode.
Hayek is offline   (1) Thanks
Old 24th October 2011, 10:56   #28
Senior - BHPian
 
Swanand Inamdar's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 1,644
Thanked: 586 Times
re: Black Lightning: My Skoda Superb 1.8 TSI DSG-UPDATE: DSG box replaced!

Quote:
Originally Posted by vb-san View Post
Congratulations Swanand! That’s an excellent deal you got there, and the car looks brand new. And I guess black manages to hide the bulk of the Superb. Great choice
Thanks VB! Yes, black does manage to hide the bulk. But you know what? Black, if not cleant is the worse looking color on a car. Just today morning, while leaving for office, I did realise that the regular cleaning guy is on holiday due to Diwali. Man, the car looks dirty or what! Thankfully, the driver we have shares the same passion as I do. As soon as he came in the morning, took a bucket and cloth and made sure that the Black remains shining like before!

Quote:
Originally Posted by GunMo View Post
Does the tyre also look skinny, then it's not cost cutting but an engineering(?!) feature. An attempt to save boot space and unladen weight. (you may have to take the spare wheel out to see the width fully)!
Rightly said. I need to remove the tyre to check that! Needless to say, I havent done that yet. But now that you've said, I shall check that in the evening.

Quote:
Originally Posted by ninjatalli View Post
Finally the thread's up! You did take your time, didn't ya!
Those reclining seats are bloody awesome. And only today morning I was telling my friend that the Vento needed a sun-roof - I can understand the feeling you must be getting when driving in rains!
Thanks Ninja. Well, you know how lazy we are, dont you! Yes the recliners are awesome. I shall take your word for it, as I havent yet sat in the backseat, lol! But the sunroof is amazing.


Quote:
Q1. Any chance of your father taking a holiday (read: So that we can see the beast at DLF?)
I suppose not! Dont want to get it to DLF for obvious reasons. If my manager sees me driving to office in a Superb - well.. there goes my appraisals for this year .

Quote:
Q2. Black Lightening! Seriously @mikon is gonna be after you for copyright issues (first Black Mamba, now Black Lightening, what next - Black Thunder?)
Thanks be to noop. It was he who christened it! It was his idea to name the car Black Lightening.

Quote:
Q2. Too many weekends have passed by, and you have one pic for us! Where are the pics?

Q3. Where are the pics? (X1000 times) (If this goes on, I might just land up with my camera at your place to do the honors!)
Well, why dont I take that offer up and invite you to do the honors . I'm serious! You know how bad I am with the camera.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Hayek View Post
Congrats and join the Superb club. Hope 50% depreciation in a year is not standard. Will not join the clamour for pictures since I have been too lazy to post more than a few in my thread. Do keep us posted on the oil guzzling habits, if any, of your car. Agree with you on the paddle shifts - the car shifts perfectly even in D mode.
Thanks Hayek. Well, the depreciation would or may not be true in this case. The guy who wanted to sell it, didnt really care to negotiate. He wanted to upgrade to another much thunderous vehicle. So, no negotiations and no bargaining.
About the oil guzzling, I did happen to speak to him on that. He comfirmed that in the first 10k, the car did consume oil. But then, gradually it did reduce. I guess its pretty normal for Superb's.

Last edited by Swanand Inamdar : 24th October 2011 at 10:57.
Swanand Inamdar is offline  
Old 24th October 2011, 11:23   #29
Senior - BHPian
 
ajay_satpute's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: Pune
Posts: 1,955
Thanked: 1,704 Times
re: Black Lightning: My Skoda Superb 1.8 TSI DSG-UPDATE: DSG box replaced!

Congrats bro!

Somehow missed this thread completely. Sorry. So you dipped your hands in petrol, haan.

There are very few cars in the world who are what their name says they are. Skoda couldn't have got any better name for this car. In all aspects, this car is just superb. No offense to Skoda TDI owners, but I think the Skodas with TSI engine are much more FTD cars than the TDI cars. I have driven Laura TSI in both MT (about 50 KMs) and AT form and also the Laura TDI L&K AT(about 30 KMs). I think the instant burst of torque on the TSI is missing in the TDI. TDI surely has some turbo lag. TSI engines are the best petrol engines, besides the TJET.

And what are you doing man. Enough of shopping now. Put some high resolution pics of the beauty. It deserves far better exposure.

Wishing you and your dad all the best with the Superb!

Cheers!
ajay_satpute is offline  
Old 24th October 2011, 14:12   #30
Senior - BHPian
 
Swanand Inamdar's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 1,644
Thanked: 586 Times
re: Black Lightning: My Skoda Superb 1.8 TSI DSG-UPDATE: DSG box replaced!

Quote:
Originally Posted by ajay_satpute View Post
Congrats bro!

Somehow missed this thread completely. Sorry. So you dipped your hands in petrol, haan.
Yes! And what a way to do it, right!

Quote:
There are very few cars in the world who are what their name says they are. Skoda couldn't have got any better name for this car. In all aspects, this car is just superb. No offense to Skoda TDI owners, but I think the Skodas with TSI engine are much more FTD cars than the TDI cars. I have driven Laura TSI in both MT (about 50 KMs) and AT form and also the Laura TDI L&K AT(about 30 KMs). I think the instant burst of torque on the TSI is missing in the TDI. TDI surely has some turbo lag. TSI engines are the best petrol engines, besides the TJET.
I know exactly what you mean. Having had both the engines in the garage, I can relate to that very well. The initial surge of the TSi is simply astounding. At the same time, the mid range turbo that the TDi provides is equally great. Sadly, the initial turbo lag takes away the joy.

Quote:
And what are you doing man. Enough of shopping now. Put some high resolution pics of the beauty. It deserves far better exposure.

Wishing you and your dad all the best with the Superb!

Cheers!
Thanks Ajay. Well, since there are a couple of holidays around the corner, I shall do exactly that. Head to some nice spot and click some good pics. Or at least I shall try to click some good pics!
Swanand Inamdar is offline  
Reply

Most Viewed
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search

Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Team-BHP.com
Proudly powered by E2E Networks