[B747]

Faster, faster, faster, until the thrill of speed overcomes the fear of death… – Hunter Thompson



Here I broadly group my review into 3 sections, decision making, booking/buying experience and Ownership experience with pics.

Decision making
Time has come to think of replacing my old work horse, a Swift Zxi which is 8+ years old and done 96000+ kms. In 2006 it was one of the best hatchback to own, loaded with features(Zxi), powerful 1.3L engine, fun to drive, expectational styling, decent interiors/space and decent mileage too. She served me the best, in these 8+ years not even a single break down, no major repairs other than clutch replacement at 77K kms, really loved every bit of the car, esp the fun to drive factor. She started showing her age and we decided to change the car.

After deciding on a budget of 18L (OTR) and a diesel, one of the biggest dilemma was whether to consider a SUV or not. Indian car market is flooded with SUVs or so called SUVs. Just a walk around the office/apartment car parking and can see countless dusters, many XUV 500, few Eco sports ,Fortuner, X1 etc.

During a family trip got a chance to drive XUV 500 for almost 600+ kms, loved its features and space, but it was not so much fun to drive like a car, I love taking sharp turns at relatively high speeds, it was not so confident inspiring at sharp turns, compared to other Mahindra vehicles body roll is well controlled, but still it was too much for a car guy like me to get satisfied. In addition it was too bulky for day to day use and we don't need a 7 seater at all (small family). Moreover CAA (chief approval authority) my wife rejected XUV outright saying it is difficult for her to drive.
Duster/Terrano has expectational ride quality and very good handling, but in all other aspects it looks like a downgrade compared to my Swift, no major features, just OK interior quality, not so spacious, not so powerful engine (85bhp one is even less than Swift), poor build quality, massive lag for 110 bhp engine and for me it never made any sense to spend 14L on such a car.
Other SUV/crossovers like X1, Fortuner etc are way out of my budget, so we are back to cars. Shortlisted cars were Elentra, Cruze, Jetta and Octavia, did not consider Fluence at all.

• Elantra:- It is a car loaded with features but no soul. It cannot match the dynamics of an European sedan, not so powerful engine (same as Verna), overdone styling inside out and this is out of our list.
• Cruze :- I love this car, we have one in our extended family. When the turbo kicks a big smile is created, but the moment you take sharp turns the smile on your face will slowly disappear, its dynamics are not so great (mainly due to its heavy weight). It is due for a massive upgrade soon, interior space is limited, plastic quality is just OK, heavy steering (CAA is not happy) and heavy clutch so Cruze is also out.
• Jetta :- Did a TD of old Jetta (before recent facelift) and immediately liked it, superb dynamics and ride comfort, good quality interiors, powerful engine, good list of features and we almost decided that this should be our car. Saw the latest model in the showroom, some more features are added like the much needed climatic control AC. Yes this too is scheduled for a massive upgrade(MQB based) soon, but still we thought of considering Jetta.
• Octavia :- The moment we saw the new Octavia suddenly Jetta looks bit outdated esp the interiors, its front is too similar to Vento. Octy is more spacious, very powerful and more peppy to drive (weighs 105kg less compared to Jetta), very high quality interiors, based on VAGs new MQB platform, loaded with features and extremely extremely easy to drive(CAA liked this the most). After so many sleepless nights, numerous discussions with friends, multiple excel sheets, multiple test drives, various Skoda love & hate stories in TBHP etc we decided that our next car should be this legend.

Skoda..... ?
Skoda......this brand has tons of hate and equal love stories, but almost all agree that their cars are awesome and its the service that create issues and some DSG horror stories. A month after this car was launched a post came up in TBHP which highlighted serious issues in 1.8TSI and I was shocked to see it. Thanks to Skoda and GTO for their follow ups, later it was identified as complete fake. During this time I personally discussed with lot of Laura owners and they are extremely happy with the cars, one guy who has a VRS gave me a 3 hr lecture on Skoda cars and concluded by saying "If you live to drive, then drive a Skoda VRS, nothing else in that price range."
Thanks to bhpian grraja who conducted a poll about Skoda and results were very encouraging. In addition words of GTO about VAG diesel engines were very encouraging and I took a conscious decision to stay away from DSG. With fingers crossed I decided to go with Skoda.

1.4/1.8 TSI or 2L TDI ?
My usage pattern is as follows. Daily office drive is all together just 8 kms, but I do frequent long drives from Bangalore to Trivandrum & Kottayam (760+ kms one side). Summing up it comes to 2K+ kms/month. Initially I did a test drive of 1.4 TSI and liked the car, it is very refined, but turbo lag is very noticeable. Next did TD of 2L TDI and was blown away with its massive torque, it shoots like an arrow. Turbo lag is very minimal and torque band is wide (500 rpm more than Jetta). For a common man it has to be more torque rather than more power(bhp), more power is for people who frequently redline. In addition words of GTO about VAG diesel engines being more reliable was always in my mind so decided to go with 2L TDI.
Variant selection was another challenge, Elegance trim is loaded with features that can even put cars from upper segment to shame, but decided to stay away due to budget restrictions (TDI Elegance is ~24L OTR Bangalore) and DSG horror. For me driving an AT is like eating ladoo after putting a plastic cover in the tongue, pleasure of driving is half gone, yes it supports manual shifts but lots of DSG horror stories was another reason to stay away. DSG with paddle shifts is a different story, but Skoda is not offering paddle shifts.
Skoda should launch Elegance trim with MT, it will reduce the cost, no DSG nightmares and lots of driving enthusiasts prefer MT.

Booking/Buying experience
In Bangalore we have two Skoda dealers, Vinayak and Tafe access. Initially did a TD with Vinayak, but they did not bother to do any followup, so went to Tafe Access and they looked more professional, did regular followup and was ready to transfer my 50% NCB to new car (other dealer outright said no to NCB transfer, I did not bother to ask why).
Shortlisted colors were white , race blue and black. Finally decided white as whole family liked it (my choice was race blue). Car got delivered on the promised date & time and did a PDI as per TBHP guidelines. Overall I am very satisfied with the sales team of Tafe Access, hope it will be same with service guys.

Ownership experience
Did 7200+ kms in 3 months (hope now it is clear why it has to be a TDI and not TSI) and during these kilometers I drove her on all most all type of conditions like bad roads, no roads, heavy rain, winding roads of Theni-kottayam, long NH drives, heavy traffic of Bangalore etc etc and hence now I am in a better position to write a review.


What I like the most

• Very powerful engine with wide torque band together with less mass = absolute nirvana while driving.
• Superb dynamics and excellent ride comfort. It holds to the road like a leech. Enjoyed every bit of drive through the winding roads of Theni-kottayam route.
• Extremely easy to drive, will never feel the size of the car while driving.
• Multi function steering is great to hold, it is light at low speeds and weighs up as needle climbs up.
• Top notch high quality soft touch plastic interiors with faux wood finish and high quality chrome gives premium feel.
• Superb audio system (8 speakers) with touch screen. Almost all features can be controlled from this software interface which is easy and intuitive. Tons of driving data like avg speed, fuel consumption, time taken, DTE, AC fuel consumption, oil temp, coolant temp etc.
• Extremely spacious interiors, thanks to MQB platform. Octys wheel base is 110mm longer than Laura which translates to massive rear space.
• Powerful brakes loaded with tons of features like ABS, EBD, HBA, MKB, prefill all these along with ASR, ESP, EDL makes driving safe and fun.
• Extremely fuel efficient considering the size of the car and powerful engine. Best I got is 19.2kmpl(NH) and worst is around 12.8kmpl(Blr city) both with 100% AC.
• Superb ergonomics, all switches and dials are easy to reach. Dials are crisp and clear, can control the brightness too.
• Precise and smooth 6 speed gear box. The gearbox ratios are perfectly matched to the engine and offer an ideal balance of driveability, performance and fuel-economy.
• Dual zone AC is absolutely brilliant, rear AC vents makes rear passenger happy.
• Auto dimming OVRMS are extremely useful during night drives.
• Good NVH levels, extremely silent at low rpms.
• Long service intervals of 15K kms, and if Skoda service cost calculator has to be believed it is relatively light on the pocket.
• Boarding spot lamps are very useful at nights.
• Turning radius which is lesser than Rapid.
• All windows has one touch up and down with pinch protection. Also all windows can be opened/closed from remote, another very useful feature if we forget to close windows after locking the car.
• Stunning alloys.
• Super massive black hole (boot) can sallow anything.

What I dislike

• Tall floor hump at rear.
• No KESSY (Extremely useful feature, how can Skoda miss this on a premium car?).
• No navigation.( Not so important in this smartphone era)
• Wiper speed not enough for our rains, auto speed has its own mind.
• Rear looks similar to Rapid.
• Bit noisy rear suspension.
• Not much feedback from steering.
• No inbuilt USB(it supports SD card), has to buy expensive media cable.
• CD player. (Who in this world is using CDs)
• Goodyear NCT tyres.
• Only 2 airbags in the mid variant (Elegance gets 6), it should have been at least 4. (I strongly believe that safety features should be standard across variants)
• No LED DRL in mid variant, it gets a halogen one which looks like the headlight is on.

Initial Impression
As I mentioned above, did 7200+ kms in 3 months and during this period I drove it over various conditions like road/bad road/no road etc.

Engine/Gearbox
Powerful engine (Model:- EA 288) with wide torque band (1750-3000) together with less weight means this car shoots like an arrow. 0-100 is 9.3secs (claim by company is 8.4), in-gear accelerations are also pretty good and turbo lag is very minimal. Mileage is very good considering the power & torque. In Bangalore city worst I got was 12.5kmpl and best was 14.5kmpl, in NH best was 19.7 and worst was 16.6 with high speed driving (avg speed was 98km/hr),all this with 100% AC. Mileage varies a lot depending on how heavy the right foot is.
Gear box is super slick and clutch is light both of these makes driving very comfortable, I never felt tired even after long NH drive for about 10+ hours, same is the case even in heavy traffic.
Want more details about the EA series of engines, please refer the attached pdf. VolkswagenEA_Engines.pdf

Steering
Surgical precision or swiss precision are the best words to describe its steering. It is light at low speeds which makes parking very easy and weighs up as and when speedo climbs up. Suspension setup and wheels provide enormous grips, high speed turns are absolute nirvana, ESP kicks in if it detects you crossing the limits and stabilizes the car. Driving experience could have been better if the steering could offer some more feedback. Enjoyed every cm of drive through the winding roads of Theni to Kottayam on a Sunday early morning. Winding roads ? Have a look at the pic below.


Handling/Ride comfort
Amazing, superb, awesome... I am running out of words to describe its handling capabilities. Even on sharp turns or hard braking it never looses its composure, and the precise steering makes taking turns a nirvana. Enjoyed every bit of driving through winding roads of Theni-Kottayam route. Ride is a bit stiff but it absorbs all potholes, rear suspension is bit noisy esp when rear seat is empty. Car is very stable even at high speeds, you need to look at the speedometer to realize the speeds, still you may doubt the speedo. This car is definitely going to set new benchmarks in ride and handling in the D1 segment.
This car weighs 50kg less compared to Laura (70kg less compared to Laura AT), 105kg less compared to Jetta and whopping 197kg less compared to Cruze, now it has to be noted that trimming the weight has serious handling benefits (one reason why sports car are light) as "weight transfer" effects will be less. More info on this can be found here. http://www.turnfast.com/tech_handlin...ling_weightxfr


GC
155mm GC could be the lowest in the category but the stiff suspension and less front overhang compensates it well. With 4 people onboard and luggage in the boot I have gone across various types of road (some places no road at all) and it never scrapped anywhere, with 5 ppl and luggage once it touched a hump, but upon verification it looks like the back mudflap was the culprit. Not to forget the fact that this is the first car to offer under-body protections as standard, no protruding cables, no protruding suspension parts and even the exhaust/silencer is inside the under-body protection.

Brakes/Safety
Powerful engine needs even more powerful brakes to tame the horses, and all 4 disk brakes with tons of features makes driving safe. Prefill is a very useful technology in which if we suddenly release the accelerator pedal car will arm the brakes and keep it ready for sudden braking, difference is clearly noticeable. ESP,ASR,EDL all makes driving even more safe. I tried hard acceleration on wet roads, muddy roads, one side on mud and other on tar and in all these conditions ASR/ESP light comes on and stabilizes the car. As per ACI test drive 80-0 happens in an impressive 2.4 secs for TDI. Euro NCAP rating is an impressive 5, which speaks enough about its safety aspects. Details about NCAP rating can be found in the attached pdf. SkodaOctaviaNCAP_datasheet.pdf
Video of NCAP testing Octavia is here

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=uayRqZIJyOs

Space/MQB platform
Thanks to MQB platform, space is in abundance. 110mm longer wheelbase compared to Laura has generated huge space in the rear. Even if the driver is 6ft tall, there is sufficient space at rear and the boot is like a black hole it can sallow anything that we throw inside. Rear space could have been even better if the tall floor hump was not there. Details about MQB platform and its benefits can be found here. http://www.topgear.com/uk/photos/mqb...ined-2014-3-21

Interiors/Build quality
High quality soft plastic, faux wood on doors, high quality chrome, dual zone AC, superb audio system all looks premium and provides ultimate comfort. Eight speaker audio system is top notch with clear sound and bass, it could have been better if the sub-woofer which is available in European model is also included. Touch screen system is easy to use and very intuitive, it has a proximity sensor like mobile phones, menus get activated when we bring the hand close to it. Bluetooth connectivity is flawless and sync well, it displays the profile pictures of the contacts also. Almost all features of the car can be enabled/disabled or customized from this touch screen interface.
Dual zone AC is brilliant and cools well(no more hot/cold wars between wife), rear AC vents makes rear passengers comfortable, however the person siting in the middle will have fun/tough time as AC vents will come directly between his legs. It has 3 AC profiles (light, medium, strong) but I did not find much difference and always keeps it at strong.
As I mentioned above Skoda trimmed lot of weight, now does that mean inferior build? Answer is absolutely NO, its fit and finish is top notch. Weight reduction is due to high tensile steel and MQB platform. I know it is too early to comment but as of now it rides like a tank, absolutely no rattling at all(even on rough roads).

Styling & Design
Very subjective topic.... Like most European cars it is simple and elegant, no overdone styling like Hyundai cars. Butterfly grille, new logo on the bonnet, stunning headlights, super fog lamps etc makes the front of the car a head turner, but from the back it is too similar to Rapid, however the C shaped tail lights are simply brilliant (esp at night).


Issues
As of now the only issue I am facing is a tick-tick noise when the driver side OVRM is open/closed, heard that same issue is reported by many.

Car care/Modifications
After a proper wash and using a clay bar to remove some dirt, I protect her with Collinite 845 wax, applied collinite 2 times during this 3 months of ownership and interior is cleaned using a wet MF cloth, a bit of soap solution is used if foot marks are present, esp at the back side of front seats. Experts please advise, is this sufficient to protect her exterior/interior?
Modifications :- Don't want to do anything which voids the warranty, but want to try petes tuning box, enquired with them and they are in the process of testing one for the new Octy. Air filter change is also planned, looking for a good one.

Overall I am extremely satisfied with the car. It has set new benchmarks in D1 segment in terms of performance, ride & handling, space and premium feel.
Truly the legend is back !!!

[B747]

Some pics for viewing pleasure





Good mileage of 16.6kmpl even after high speed drive & 100% AC (avg speed is 98km/hr)


Superb mileage of 19.2kmpl (with 100% AC) after light foot driving on a moderate traffic road. Will definitely get above 20 on a empty road.


My initial color choice was race blue, but after seeing the below pic decided to go with white (family choice was white). Pic courtesy caricos.com

[abhinav.gupta88]

Looks like my ownership thread gave motivation to the owners of the Legend to post their love stories.

Congrats on the beauty. Wish you many amazing and joyful miles.

One thing I'm sure everyone would like to know. Considering the fact that you run the car on roads not perfectly meant for cars, what is the state of the rattles?

Also , I would suggest using a SD card for the music instead of the USB. It sits in the dash board plus does not hamper the stock look by any means, also no need of the Media Connector.


Do Keep us posted on the service which I think should be heading your way sooner than many of us out here.

[Chethan B G]

Congrats B747!

Any update on idle RPM?

Drive safe!

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the Initial Ownership Section. Thanks for sharing!

[shashank.nk]

Congrats on the new ride! I wish you a pleasant ownership experience with your car.

I loved how the car looked when I first saw it in flesh sometime in december. It was elegance with panoramic roof and those killer headlamps. Looked stunning to say the least. Its shocking that Skoda omitted LED DRL's in such an expensive car!

[B747]

Originally Posted by abhinav.gupta88

Looks like my ownership thread gave motivation to the owners of the Legend to post their love stories.
One thing I'm sure everyone would like to know. Considering the fact that you run the car on roads not perfectly meant for cars, what is the state of the rattles?
Also , I would suggest using a SD card for the music instead of the USB. It sits in the dash board plus does not hamper the stock look by any means, also no need of the Media Connector.
Do Keep us posted on the service which I think should be heading your way sooner than many of us out here.

Yes, your ownership thread motivated me.
As of now absolutely no rattling noise, only issue I facing is a tick tick sound when the driver side OVRM is open/closed.
Yes I am using SD card, thanks for the suggestion.
Going for 1st free checkup this Thursday, will update once done.

Originally Posted by Chethan B G

Congrats B747!
Any update on idle RPM?
Drive safe!

Your explanation looks very logical, so after that I never bothered about it. Anyways I am going for the 1st free checkup this Thursday, will check with service guys and update.

Originally Posted by shashank.nk

Looked stunning to say the least. Its shocking that Skoda omitted LED DRL's in such an expensive car!

It has LED DRL only on the top variant, in other variants it is halogen based. For me the shocking omission was KESSY, a very useful feature that now comes even in 5L cars (i10 grand has), but the moment you start driving you will forget all these minor irritants, driving is absolute nirvana.

[ALSUDA]

Well come to Skoda family & congrats on your new addition. It's beautiful car as you have explained. If it all I feel like to upgrade from my Rapid it would be Octavia

[TRANSAM]

Congratulations on a great choice of car, its such an amazing car to drive the 2.0 dsl. Have they started on the extended warranty? they were too do so, do let the guys at TAFE know you would interested its a must have option, IMO.

[shashank.nk]

Originally Posted by B747

It has LED DRL only on the top variant, in other variants it is halogen based. For me the shocking omission was KESSY, a very useful feature that now comes even in 5L cars (i10 grand has), but the moment you start driving you will forget all these minor irritants, driving is absolute nirvana.

I feel Skoda should have given all variants LED DRL's,may be they'll do it later with a facelift. I think you could also try and swap the halogen's to LED. Unfortunately Keyless entry is something missing both on Jetta and Octavia. I don't know why they skip it,but like you said all is forgotten when you get behind the wheel

[B747]

Originally Posted by ALSUDA

Well come to Skoda family & congrats on your new addition. It's beautiful car as you have explained. If it all I feel like to upgrade from my Rapid it would be Octavia

Thanks for the welcome note. In your case how is the service experience with Skoda?

Originally Posted by TRANSAM

Congratulations on a great choice of car, its such an amazing car to drive the 2.0 dsl. Have they started on the extended warranty? they were too do so, do let the guys at TAFE know you would interested its a must have option, IMO.

As of now absolutely no info about extended warranty, yes I will be definitely going for it once launched.

Originally Posted by shashank.nk

I feel Skoda should have given all variants LED DRL's,may be they'll do it later with a facelift. I think you could also try and swap the halogen's to LED. Unfortunately Keyless entry is something missing both on Jetta and Octavia. I don't know why they skip it,but like you said all is forgotten when you get behind the wheel

Agree, not much of a cost saving from this. Get behind the wheel and you will not even bother about all these features.

[B747]

Saw the below pics in ide autoworks website, looks stunning. Any idea how much it costs and how durable those wraps are?

[rahulsharma2008]

Congratulations mate! Octavia indeed is the hallmark of what a D1 segment sedan should be. Can you provide the on-road cost of the car and did you get any special deals for the insurance or loan amount?

[ALSUDA]

Hi B747, I bought mine from Tafe Hosur Rd branch. So far service experience is very good. Mine is about 1yr+ old. Had been there first during some free summer camp check up & then 6 months general check up & 1st year service & in between for oil check up when I planned to go on a long high way journey. They were very good all these times. (touch wood) so far no single complaint from my Rapid. Driven about 8k thru' highway/ghats/bad roads etc..so far no complaints at all. I love every time I take her on highway. My city usage is very less.

[sivadas]

Originally Posted by B747

Saw the below pics in ide autoworks website, looks stunning. Any idea how much it costs and how durable those wraps are?

You may want to check with Pete's detailing shop by contacting Mr. Shibin (9741422226). Refer the below link for more details.
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techni...x-petes-2.html
I have recently done the smartwax treatment for my Laura TSI, quite impressed with the job.
Shibin is mostly having wrap options also. He is quite knowledgeable on Skoda/VW cars.