Re: Skoda Karoq : Ownership Review 1 MONTH and 1000 KMS UPDATE
It was a very slow climb to 1000 kms due to the pandemic since we tried to avoid getting out most of the time. The Karoq was taken out in most instances, while the other cars were mostly in the hibernation mode. The super quality interior is undoubtedly whats impressing everyone !
The registration process was done in the third week of June. We had booked a registration number of our choice and once the number was allotted, we had to take the car for inspection at the RTO facility. It was very surprising to see very less number of vehicles that came for registration than usual. Normally we used to wait in long queues of cars, but this time, there was no queue, we went there, the RTO inspector just came, checked the VIN and asked us to go. Everything was over in under a minute. It was very evident that the pandemic has affected the auto industry really badly.
We got the HSRP too earlier than expected from the dealer and got it fitted from outside. - Picking the car in the Magic Black shade was indeed a good decision. It look striking in every pose and every time we park the car and walk away, a second look was accompanied.
- Another good decision was to get the Ceramic Coating done. It is very evident when I wash both the black cars the Ecosport and Karoq together. The Ecosport has no ceramic coating done on it. The Karoq takes just half the time taken to wash the Ecosport. Especially the initial jet of water removes most of the mud and dirt, also the drying process is much easier.
- The all weather mats that come as part of the ‘Essential Pack’ is of superior quality. Perfect fit and very easy to clean as well.
- One of my biggest gripes in the beginning was the gearbox being a bit slow to respond. But after few weeks of use the gearbox has become very smooth and quick to respond. Almost as fast as the DQ250 in my vRS. Initially there was a slight rubber band effect while shifting at higher rpms. But now I can feel a very big change in the way the gear shifts. Even few of my friends who drove the car noticed the same.
- The car is just a breeze on smooth roads and minor broken roads. The suspension does a great job in soaking minor undulations. The same undulations which are felt in my Ecosport and vRS are surprisingly not felt in the Karoq.
- There is a hint of road noise in the cabin. The engine is super silent, but the road noise creeps in. I think it is from the tyres and gets annoying at times. Normally I do not listen to radio or music while driving, but because of the road noise, I switch on the radio to cover up the road noise.
- The handling and grip level is too good. There is no body roll at all and the car just grips so well when driven hard in corners.
- The car is very easy to drive. The compact dimensions and huge glass area ensures that visibility all around is very good.
- The interiors is what makes the entire experience so special. A friend of mine who owns an Audi Q3 can’t believe this car costs 15 lakhs less and still the interiors and fit and finish is much better than his Q3. Every person who gets in the cabin seems to be flabbergasted by the feeling of luxury in this compact SUV.
- The Fuel efficiency figures also has been improving. City mileage is floating around 8-10 kmpl and the best we got during a 150 km highway drive was 17 kmpl. Also one thing that we noticed while coasting around 80kmph in the highway was a message in the MID Screen saying “ 2 Cylinders in the Engine has been deactivated for better efficiency”. Nothing was felt in the cabin and the switching was super silent. Had it not been for the message shown in the MID we wouldn’t even have noticed this.
- Skoda says the first service needs to be done only at 1 year or 15,000kms. But we thought of doing an oil change in the coming week since doing an oil change after the first 1000 km has been a habit we have been following for all our cars.
Other good features we like are
1. Driver seat + ORVMs with memory function - A great feature when there are multiple people driving the car at home !
2. Auto hold feature for both incline and decline too
3. Tons of storage spaces everywhere ! There is space for everything you bring along
4. The stock LED headlights impresses us during every night drive. Things we wish was included in the car
1. Powered tail gate- Every time we close the boot we wish the car had this feature.
2. A bigger glovebox- The glovebox is surprisingly small, even though it has a cooling feature you cannot keep anything bigger than one small 200ml juice carton and few packets of chocolates.
I see many people comparing the Karoq with Seltos and the new Creta. One thing I can surely say is the Karoq is way superior to those cars and definitely sits a higher segment than them. Only similarity being the overall dimensions.
Hoping that the current pandemic leaves the planet soon and we get to cover more happy miles in the Karoq.
Last edited by Mr.Perera : 6th July 2020 at 21:38.
Reason: typo
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