[Hells Bells]

Skoda vRS -

What I like:

• The delicious 2.0 TSI engine mated to the slick DQ 250 wet clutch DSG
• The assurance of a robust 6 speed wet clutch DSG box unlike the infamous 7 speed dry clutch box from Octavia 1.8 TSI
• The classy all black interiors wrapped in Alcantara
• The long list of creature comforts including Android auto, sat nav, sunroof and the works (including launch control). Wicked
• The twin headlight set up! Contrary to the general opinion, I find the set up very good looking
• No compromise on security with ABS, 8 airbags, ECS etc. The website states "ECS incl. ABS, MSR, ASR, EDS, HBA, DSR, RBS, MKB, XDS+". Go figure
• Electrical seat adjustment for both passenger and driver

What I do not like:

• The dodgy Skoda reputation for A.S.S
• The slightly uncomfortable posture for stepping in or stepping out of the car
• The flimsy feel of the cubby pocket door next to the steering feel - stands out amongst the solid build
• The auto braking feature which is enabled by default. I had my first serious scary moment due to this feature and had to do some reading to figure out what exactly had happened!

Penning my first ownership review here on t-bhp and I would very likely keep it simple. See, I do not have a way with words as some of the more blessed FMs though I am known to write some killer emails in office. However, the occasion is better than a missed official deadline so I will spare everyone.

Background:

I have been ardent auto follower for most of my life starting with my engg days by reading Overdrive since its launch issue. Learnt driving on my dad's Premier Padmini and started liking driving when he bought a Santro. After my post grad, I had almost booked a Swift (freshly launched) when I got a bump in finances and chose an Aveo 1.6 post. The Aveo allowed me to appreciate what a good ride quality can be about even as I figured out how not to take fast corners. It served me faithfully but the age caught up with it even as it kept running. GM's horrendous servicing in Bangalore accompanied with their decision to pull out was the last nail in the coffin.

My better half then bought a Micra keeping in mind our desire to do long drives in light of the flailing Aveo. While we have owned an auto Camry in US, the joy of using an auto box in the Bangalore traffic was truly brought out by Micra. Inspite of being a CVT, it works beautifully for city drive and it allowed us to do 2k KM driving holidays with no anxiety.

However, the itch to refresh accompanied with launches like Tiguan, Kodiaq, Octavia etc made me start thinking of a potential new car. My Aveo was getting real long in the tooth and inspite of it holding the sentimental value of being my first car, I was very conscious of the car lacking any safety elements such as airbags, ABS etc. Which meant it was no longer the car of my choice for any highway runs.

The Micra was serving beautifully as a city run about and had served us well for long highway runs. However, I was conscious of its hatch status when it comes to high speed stability.

Core Requirements:

Both my spouse and I were very clear on what minimums we wanted in our next car:

• An autobox
• ABS + Airbags
• Sunroof (allowing us an indulgence against the mundane safety requirements)

Cars I test drove:

With our requirements fairly clear, my budget impulses went all over town. I was always eager to test drive any of the German trio as a result of which, test drove A Class, 3 series, 5 series GT and A4 (1.4L) over 2 years or more. However, I allowed my head to rein in my heart by being practical about what I can afford, not what I can pay. Minus the 3/5 series, the other two were not a patch on it. In particular the A4 as it was technically in the same segment as the 3er. I couldn't fathom why would anyone plonk their hard earned money on the 1.4L engine.

Anyway, we are digressing. The cars which were in my serious shortlist were:

1. Tucson - Loved the feel of the car and it felt very stylish from outside. The interiors were fairly ok but the auto box with diesel engine felt pretty good to drive in the city. The general feeling of lethargy which comes with driving an SUV was there but it was quicker than what it felt like. However, it missed the crucial element of a sunroof which my better half wanted in our next car. However, there was hope in the proposed (and now launched) AWD version that we would get see the goodies. In the hindsight, the sunroof never came!
   
2. Superb - I wanted a test drive of the previous Octavia but since they did not have it, I ended up driving Superb. It was a really nice drive though it meant extending my budget till 38L for the top spec. However, it was ruled out as a genuine contender purely due to its size
   
3. Jetta - The car I wanted to buy had it still been around...
   
4. V40 - It was serious contender simply because of the way it looked. I had test driven it when it still came with the older gear box. So while the car should have been fast with close 180 bhp under hood, the gear box was a let down and felt plain lazy. However, a friend of mine recently picked up a pre-worshipped S60 and mentioned that the v40 too has been updated with a faster 7 speed (?) gear box. I had every mind to drive it again but fate had other plans for me.
   
5. Endeavour 3.2 - My drive of Endy was my first drive of a big SUV, if I were to discount my drives in Scorpio and XUV. I was surprised at how easy it felt to drive the behemoth but then I also knew the Bellary road test route was deceiving in how big this SUV is. Between Fortuner and Endy, my vote will always go to Endy simply because it is the better of the lot. People give too much importance to resale even before they start driving their new car. Anyway, we are digressing once again!

I also had a chance to see Tiguan and Passat during their launch more than a year back. I was super excited by them with Passat in particular tugging the strings of my heart. However, there was no visibility to their actual introduction and then came the sticker shock of Tiguan which was a huge downer. With the Passat expected to be in the same range, I decided to wait out for newer launches as I was in no hurry.

[Hells Bells]

The inflection point:

I had always liked the Octavia's and Laura. I still remember a quote I read on t-bhp and if I am not wrong, in the vRS thread of ajmat, where he speaks of the original Octavia being a thing of beauty forever (or to the effect). I couldn't agree more. I have had my share of dreams where I would think of buying the Canary Yellow Laura and mod it to my satisfaction. Yes, plain and simple, I loved this range.

Which is why when I started thinking hard for the next car, I kept the news of Octavia vRS being launched again prominently in my mind. Being who I am, I kept browsing the threads on vRS and checked umpteen times for "will it have the dry clutch 7 speed DSG?". I was reassured multiple times by fellow BHp'ians that no, it won't be. For me, it ain't heart over head come what may!

Then, I got to see RS in flesh on a fateful weekend at TAFE. I went from seeing it to booking it in 3 days without a test drive. As a side note, I doubt anyone got to have a test drive for RS so it was not exactly an adventurous decision only by me. There were all sorts of numbers floating around for annual production of RS which pushed me that extra bit. Now we know (it is a published data) that an original lot of 250 cars were allotted to dealers across India, all of which have been sold out.

RS ticked off all the minimums I wanted and came with another key wishlist of mine - more power

Dealership & Booking Experience

It was a lazy Sunday morning when I was required to drop my better half to her office for an urgent work. It was a perfect excuse to drop into TAFE Skoda on St Marks to check out the vRS. I arrived at the dealership and was greeted by Mr Madhu. As luck would have it, there was a Steel Gray vRS at the dealership awaiting a customer delivery! One look at the car and I knew my days of owning a new car are close.

Madhu confirmed that the original lot size is a small one across India and mentioned "Sir, Skoda hadn't really thought on how many would queue up to buy a >30L petrol car". When I asked for a TD, he was forthcoming in saying there is no TD car yet though one is expected by month end. This was in contrast to the haughty attitude shown by the Vinayaka Motors sales rep who stated that those looking at vRS already know the car and do not need a TD!

I started off by booking Steel Gray as that one was possibly available in September itself. However, once I got the confirmation that I was not allotted one for Sept/Oct delivery, I switched to Red now that I had to wait till Jan 2018. However, kept pestering the TAFE guys on updates and suddenly, I get a call that a Racy Blue is available as another customer had trouble on the payments. Would I be interested? Oh boy, yes! For me, any colour other than the white on RS was good to go. [Update] - I was trying to get one allotted to me via a contact in Aurangabad so I have tinny winny feeling there was no troubled customer for this blue one!

The dealership helped me with an exchange of my Aveo (I was happy to get anything for it), created a small "exchange" bonus and also made their own insurance quotation more competitive after I shared HDFC Bank's offer. I got a discount of ~45K on Skoda Insurance with bumber to bumper coverage. The final OTR for me, including the 4 yr maintenance package (of 39,999) will cost me slightly less than 32L in Bangalore.

Some pics during the PDI:

I love the twin headlight set up!


The clean lines are an absolute delight

Took the delivery in first week of October and with timely inputs on the spacers on the front suspension. I have recounted my experience on this one in the thread by Nikhil under the Technical Stuff section.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techni...porting-4.html



The sales cycle was actually pretty nice with good sales support from Madhu from TAFE. He was always available for a quick call and was happy to respond over WhatsApp too. I would rate TAFE as pretty decent in this department.

Exteriors
So how do you go about recognizing a vRS?

The spoiler!


The scuff plates!


The awesome seats!


The panoramic sunroof is not as panoramic as the one in Tiguan but helps provide an airy feel to the cabin.


Interiors

I have never been a huge fan of the sea of beige that dominates our cars in India. For me, an all black interior has a pull which is difficult to explain and the fact that it is less common on Indian roads than a Unicorn, the allure never diminished.

The vRS starts off by ticking a a "Yes" in this category. The all black interiors look so classy when viewed in the RS context with the interplay of the alcantara seats and the sporty red stitching. The fact that it is also very well put together adds in no small measure to the feel good factor.





There is the soft touch plastic all over the dash with carbon fiber based pattern on the gear box dash as well as on doors (with mood lighting embedded).

You may refer to vRS review thread for further insights on the interiors

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/offici...al-review.html

The steering wheel is small (per my experience) and crisp to operate.

It was pretty easy to get a good driving position and the electrical seat adjustments made it easy. I am glad that both, the passenger and the driver seats, are powered. The seats feel very comfortable and I like the fabric touch of Alcantara on the seats. I have leather in my Micra and I do not miss the feel for one moment when I am sitting in vRS.

I do notice it is a low car when I clamber into the car. Maybe my previous cars did not have a low stance and new modern sedans have this low entry posture but I do surely have to, how should I describe it, lower myself into the driver's seat. I doubt an elderly person would find that very appealing. One nice feature would have been if the steering column retracted automatically a bit during entry/exit from the cabin!

Coming from Aveo and Micra, the hash of features and options in vRS are crazy for me and I am yet to get a full sense of all. I had to ask the dealership multiple times before I got my navigation SIM. However, to be honest, having been spoilt by GoogleMaps, the built in SatNav feels very cluttered and less intuitive. However, the maps are pretty updated from the initial looks and it would always help to have SatNav in event of no data connectivity. However, with Android Auto present, all bases are covered! The interface of the HU is very nice with no lag when operating the touch screen.

However, I still do not find using the touch screen intuitive when I am driving and would need to ramp up on using the jog dials better on the steering wheel.

There are not a lot of cubby holes but enough space to put your wallet or the keys out of anyone's eyesight. The manual says this space (pic below - where keys are kept) will amplify your mobile signal via the car antenna if the phone is placed downwards. Plus, if the phone is enabled for Qi charging, it would also for wireless charging. Maybe some can confirm on the wireless charging bit?



Overall, just love the black interiors and the way the cabin comes together. Feels compact and yet spacious than our Micra.

It has dual zone climate control upfront and a manual A/C (not just a blower) for the rear passengers. After one particular airport run where the car was in the airport parking in the sun, the ACC did a good job of cooling the cabin quickly though the fan did get a bit noisy.

Driving feedback

When you switch on the car, the engine rumbles to a start which is a very different feel from the typical C segment petrol sedans. Having driven the Hyundais and Hondas, you barely feel their engines idling while vRS keeps reminding you of the 2L beast under the hood.

The car had all of 19 kms on the odo when I took the delivery. Immediately after the delivery, I had the delightful proposition of driving over to Kudlu gate on Hosur Road to their TAFE service center to get the spacers removed. For all the driving I have done over the years, I was cursing the traffic on why do they need to drive so closely. However, I got used to car's girth quickly though I kept reminding myself it was no Micra so go easy on squeezing into gaps.

My first interaction with the start-stop feature was when I realized the steering wheel was frozen while waiting at a traffic signal! Before I could panic, I realized the engine too is off and I saw the symbol for auto start-stop ON. A quick dab to the accelerator brought back the engine and my heart to life. However, I switched it off at times just to see how it feels at idling.

Quite a few vRS owners believe the auto start-stop is too aggressive and to an extent, I would agree with them. I seems to have a mind of its own and it may not initially kick in in start-go traffic as it is figuring out if the driving is transient or it is truly a long jam. After some time, it would start kicking in even if you stop for a fraction of a second. Since you are either ways crawling, it does not pose any particular risk though it is disconcerting if you are not expecting it.

Overall, I think I can live with the feature now that I know how it would behave once it kicks in. Let me do my bit for the environment while sitting in a vRS.

Coming back to the drive to service center - I was really tentative while driving over to the service center as I could really feel the suspension to be hard (and not just firm) courtesy the spacers. When I was still awaiting the delivery of the car, I had read the comments on how firm the suspension is. However, I had no clue to what firm means and now, while driving with spacers, I could feel for the owners who had driven with the spacers and signed off on this firmness to be the default!

The steering is pretty decent for high traffic condition though feels a bit light for what is an affordable sports car. I remember the Mini Cooper Sport S steering from a test drive and it felt hard as a rock. However, I have found the car easy to manoeuvre in tight spaces in peak traffic.

Highway drive
On the highway, the car feels planted and gives the assuring feel to take the next corner at a higher speed. The DSG takes a moment to register if the pedal is floored suddenly and I have found the gear box to be a trifle slow in the first couple of seconds when floored hard. However, once the gear box catches up (which is not very long), the acceleration is brisk but not brutal from a "feel" point of view. On open highways, the car gets to 80s-90s very quickly and often the car does not feel as fast as the speedometer.

The in-gear acceleration is great, not withstanding the initial hesitation, and there is a lot of confidence in over taking manoeuvre. The car does shrink in size in terms of feel to allow you sharp manoeuvre though not recommending dangerous overtaking.

The brakes are super on this car and I realized how good the bite of the car's brakes is when I switched back to my Micra after a couple of days. I suddenly realized I was not braking hard enough in Micra as the dab of Micra did not have the same effect as vRS I do not know if the 1.8 TSI has the same bite but the 2L has the bite to go along with the bark!

As I have gradually got used to the brakes, I have adjusted the driving style to allow for sharp braking as well as keep an eye out for riders/drivers who may rear end me.

On the highways, the brakes do not leave you high and dry & shed speeds very quickly. The braking is linear but crisp so no surprises though thankfully, I haven't felt the need to brake suddenly yet.

Ride
The car definitely has the road imperfections trickling in but from a driver's point of view, I find the ride to be fairly good. With the firm suspension, one does not get tossed around which has its own share of comfort. When I driving with my wife home for the first time in the car, she mentioned that the car feels more comfortable than Micra which is a fairly choppy hatch. Considering the feedback was voluntarily than me asking for it, I presume the difference was marked for her.

There has been a lot of questions around the car being too firm for daily drive and I can emphatically say that it makes for a good daily driver. It may not be a Hyundai in terms of a soft suspension but it is no way close to be a deal breaker.

On the highways, the higher speeds lead to a better ride but I do believe the undulations on the road will still filter in so it is very relative to what you drove earlier than vRS. As compared to Micra or Aveo, I find the firmness of the suspension to be more beneficial than the choppy but soft rides of the previous cars. It feels less unsettled and more assured, particularly when the highways have dips from elevations. In a Micra, I used to almost feel that I am about to take off whenever I will hit such dips at even 70 kmph. With vRS, I approach these dips easily at higher speeds and it stills feels absolutely planted.

The steering is pretty much point and shoot with enough confidence to point the car in a direction and stepping on the metal.

Tyres
This has to be the hottest topic in the vRS group(s). When the vRS was tested with journos, it sported (pun intended) the Michelin PS4. However, the stock tyres are Hankooks which are a couple of notches below PS4, so say the experts!

However, let me say so that since I haven't really pushed the car yet, I cannot say if there is a material difference at "current" level of driving. Have no doubt - the moment you start pushing the car beyond 140, the PS4s will definitely give you the grip that the Hankooks lack. However, I am sticking with the stock tyres till I truly start exploring the limits of these tyres.

My sole highway run had me thinking of the tyres the most whenever I accelerated. It was probably a placebo effect than actually feedback from tyres but I was consciously pulling back at around 150 kmph. However, considering my current comfort zone is 110-120, the tyres do their part with no issues. There was no twitchy rear or loss of grip whenever I slowed down. The Hankooks are also noisy when was more pronounced during the highway drive and I have heard the PS4s trump them in this regard too.

Maybe I will wait for the annual bonus before switching over to PS4s!

The car also comes with a space saver and the boot set up is nice & clean.


The space saver specs


Ground clearance
Which brings me the next topic - ground clearance. The trip to the service center required me to climb up a small ramp on Hosur road to get onto the service road and I was thinking - hmm, would this be the first place where the rough road package will show its value? As it turns out, it climbed onto the small but sharply inclined ramp with no fuss. Further up, the road to the service center has a really nasty turn which passes over a drain covered with stone slabs and the ground just gives away after the slabs. It cleared the whole thing without a single graze! I had tears in my eyes when I thought of how my Aveo would have grazed its entire length or even the Micra would have kissed the ground on its way at this juncture. Suddenly, my belief in the ground clearance of RS went up multiple notches!

Kitna deti hai
vRS bhi chahiye and mileage bhi chahiye - you can't have the cake and eat it too baba. Check out the typical fuel efficiency images below! For me, my low annual mileage means I can afford to disregard the obscene kmpl I keep seeing. I have had the pleasure of seeing 2.5 kmpl too in absolute crawling traffic as well as 13 kmpl on my highway run which included some jams at our toll booths. I prefer looking at this metric with the background of overall BhP to keep wits together.


How it all comes together
Post my drives in RS, I truly understand what a crashy ride means ... as that is what Micra has. RS drives very well with the right amount of firmness without getting uncomfortable. I also understood what cornering on rails means ... as neither Aveo nor Micra had it. I took turns in RS where I used to get cold stares from my better half for trying to show off in Micra. While my dearest could not be there for delivery, I doubt I will get the same cold stares in RS at those turns. It turns beautifully. Just beautiful.

With the running period over, the joy of pushing a car without crapping in the pants is truly there in vRS. The power and the mechanicals to support the power is truly there for appreciation when you get the right set of roads to drive this car. I also now have, suddenly, achieved a higher state of presence by allowing rashly driven cars to overtake me simply by knowing that if I need, I can leave them behind in my rear view mirrors. It is surprising how the assurance of power gets you to start thinking.

In my view, this can be your daily ride or it can never be your daily ride based on what you expect out of the car. If you want a car which gets you to your destination without making you feel the drive or if you don't prefer to shell out more than 3k for a tankful, this is not your car. This car has a firmer suspension and does not enjoy rush hour crawling traffic. Period.




However, it is not a pain to drive in the rush hour traffic and once you are confident of the corners of the car, the aim and accelerate mode for quick overtaking maneuvers are super fun. I have been able to outrun the crawling tempo guys seamlessly where my Micra used to make me feel the act of overtaking by being very deliberate. vRS - it does it without making a fuss.

Which Petrol to use
Another topic of interest to vRS users is the petrol which should be used. The manual and fuel cap very clearly states minimum of 95 RON. Now, pretty much all of the petrol in India and in most of the bunks is 91 RON. Even all of the vPower or Power or Speed or any other branding is still only 91 RON. However, multiple vRS owners, including yours truly, have run the car on the standard 91 RON petrol with no perceived problems. There are multiple schools of thought on any long term damages but there are cars closing out on 15K on odo who have happily used the standard petrol.

However, I have started using 99 RON petrol since we have it available in Bangalore. I can definitely say that the higher octane rating makes the engine run smoother and dare I say, give a slightly better mileage! But I now have the assurance of being able to use a normal RON petrol on highways and not be inhibited by lack of 95 RON petrol. That is a welcome insight for me as an owner.

Overall, I can safely comment that I am thrilled with what I have bought and with my fingers crossed on Skoda experience, looking forward to many more miles.

[Hells Bells]

Parting pics of the car!













Looking forward to adding my experiences to this thread.

[GTO]

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

[Pferdestarke]

Congrats on your latest acquisition!

The Octy RS looks swell in this Race Blue Metallic shade.

I suggest you to swap the stock Hankooks for Michelin PS4 to get the best out of the beast.

Happy mile munching mate!

[ROG_AK]

Congratulations on the beautiful car! It should keep a smile on your face for years to come . Do take it to the track one day and explore its full potential.

[sai_ace]

Congratulations on what is a spectacular car! Wishing you many incredible miles!

PS: That parking lot looks familiar - Manyata?

Cheers!

[Hells Bells]

Originally Posted by sai_ace

Congratulations on what is a spectacular car! Wishing you many incredible miles!

PS: That parking lot looks familiar - Manyata?

Cheers!

Naah, of the same type though. It is Prestige Shantiniketan aka PSN

[vantheman5211]

Congratulations on this spectacular machine. The choice is subjective, but I think this is the best color on the Octavia.

Wishing you plenty of happy miles in this beast.

[Hells Bells]

Originally Posted by Pferdestarke

Congrats on your latest acquisition!

The Octy RS looks swell in this Race Blue Metallic shade.

I suggest you to swap the stock Hankooks for Michelin PS4 to get the best out of the beast.

Happy mile munching mate!

I am thinking of those very seriously. There is the issue of poor resale of the Hankooks which makes me think of if I am there yet to push the tyres to their limits. On the other hand, I am not too keen to figure out the tipping point on a drive when I am least expecting it. Decision needs to be made in early 2018.

[RajeevMD]

You Mr. Hells Bells have got one hell of an amazing car. Love the blue shade. IMO it goes well with the car than the red. Shouldn’t lie, your car is indeed “neighbor’s envy” material. Wishing you smiles and safe miles with this car.

[ayankm]

Congratulations on the amazing new acquisition. Wishing you thousands of miles of safe driving and pleasure.
I think I might have seen your car in Koramangala Forum Mall one weekend.

Originally Posted by Hells Bells

vRS bhi chahiye and mileage bhi chahiye - you can't have the cake and eat it too baba.

Very well said

Originally Posted by Hells Bells

However, I have started using 99 RON petrol since we have it available in Bangalore.

May I ask which petrol pump is selling 99 RON Petrol. Just being curious.

[Hells Bells]

99 RON is available at the HP petrol pump on old airport road - close to NAL signal

[sahibrain]

Originally Posted by Hells Bells

Overall, I can safely comment that I am thrilled with what I have bought and with my fingers crossed on Skoda experience, looking forward to many more miles.

This is what truly matters. I call it the "thrill factor", which gets us petrol-heads through the nerve-cracking wild swings in kmpl metric!

Originally Posted by Hells Bells

It turns beautifully. Just beautiful.

I am sure a lot of beautiful heads would also have turned once you pass them by in the Blue Beauty !!

Originally Posted by Hells Bells

I also now have, suddenly, achieved a higher state of presence by allowing rashly driven cars to overtake me simply by knowing that if I need, I can leave them behind in my rear view mirrors. It is surprising how the assurance of power gets you to start thinking.

Wow, what you have achieved my friend is True Nirvana!

[Durango Dude]

Beautifully penned and what a jump from the Aveo/Micra to a Skoda Octy vRS! Rated a well deserved 5 stars. You've addressed almost all the queries that may arise in the mind of someone who get's this car. Keep us posted and happy motoring.