[yogesh12]

Originally Posted by Learner

What a lovely car you have bought. In my opinion, there hadn't been any real progress in the power figures of C segment sedans in last 24 years. Salvia and Virtus changed that.


Great to see that Slavia also excels in stoping power. However 10-20 feet does not seem possible. I think it should take atleast 160-180 feet(50-55 meters) to come to halt from 122 kph.

yes can be for sure. I started to think again, and feel, whether it was meter or feet anyways, ill check it again and remove that from my review.

[Guite]

Originally Posted by TurboGuy

I was referring to the stopping distance of 10-20ft you mentioned while driving at 122 kmph. It’s not even 2 car lengths and no car could come to a stop from such speed.

This exact point caught my attention too. There is no chance that a car travelling at 120 kmph will comfortably stop in 10 to 20 feet distance. That's the length of a typical living room.
A quick online search shows high performance cars like Aston Martin, Audi RS7, Ford Mustang, etc stop from 60 mph (96 kmph) to 0 in 100 feet. With that kind of deceleration people will be thrown forward, straining against their seatbelt. The stopping distance will be more for 120 kmph to 0.

[aniket13]

Congratulations on owning this beaut! Looks absolutely stunning - if possible do provide a rough range for the PPF cost.

Originally Posted by yogesh12

Infamous AC Issue

Well, It's TRUE! Slavia does have AC Issues. In my test ride, I didn't notice a thing. But in my car, I started Noticing the issue once I am in a Highly Exposed Area (Direct Sunlight). Auto Mode - Doesn't Work for sure. It takes time to cool the cabin and the chill goes in just 3-5 seconds if you open the door. All other cars retained at least 70% cooling effect. I had to set the Temp to 18, Blower to 3 Speed, and then it chills in 15-20 Mins. So, I can't give anything more than 4/10 for this. But as Zac Hollis acknowledged it and confirmed that their team is working to fix this, I will wait for the update and then change my rating here.

This is such a deal-and-heart breaker, especially for someone in the market looking to upgrade, but finds the mighty Octavia out of range. As it is VAGs are marred by reliability issues, you now have a fresh reason to scare away from the brand further. 15-20 mins to cool down a car is extremely impractical, especially when temps rise above 30 (pretty common in India). What puzzles me the most is that we've got very mixed reviews on the AC performance - is this really a manufacturing defect? Or specific to a certain lot? This might also further damage the product's resale value.

[Floyd de Souza]

I have recently driven the Compass, Taigun and Virtus and find the auto ac performance more or less the same in all 3. In fact I found the Virtus slightly better which would probably have been due to the space being less for the air to circulate. My Ecosport and Baleno acs are definitely better.

[Air Cav]

I really did not understand as to what you are trying to say regarding the braking distance but nonetheless what you have tried to demonstrate in the video is not a very safe thing to do on a main town road and is best avoided.

[yogesh12]

Originally Posted by Floyd de Souza

I have recently driven the Compass, Taigun and Virtus and find the auto ac performance more or less the same in all 3. In fact I found the Virtus slightly better which would probably have been due to the space being less for the air to circulate. My Ecosport and Baleno acs are definitely better.

True, Even I10 is way better than this.

Originally Posted by aniket13

Congratulations on owning this beaut! Looks absolutely stunning - if possible do provide a rough range for the PPF cost.

This is such a deal-and-heart breaker, especially for someone in the market looking to upgrade, but finds the mighty Octavia out of range. As it is VAGs are marred by reliability issues, you now have a fresh reason to scare away from the brand further. 15-20 mins to cool down a car is extremely impractical, especially when temps rise above 30 (pretty common in India). What puzzles me the most is that we've got very mixed reviews on the AC performance - is this really a manufacturing defect? Or specific to a certain lot? This might also further damage the product's resale value.

This is just my thoughts:

I feel they have diverted the power from AC to Engine for better performance. They do tweaks in ECM for more power to AC.

Or their AC's are defaulty as in the Test drive, I didnt feel a thing about AC.

[audioholic]

Originally Posted by yogesh12

I feel they have diverted the power from AC to Engine for better performance. They do tweaks in ECM for more power to AC.

Originally Posted by aniket13

What puzzles me the most is that we've got very mixed reviews on the AC performance - is this really a manufacturing defect?

The AC issue isnt a manufacturing defect. It is basically an engineering issue. The compressor capacity is sufficient above 1500RPM and cools the cabin within no time. However below that, it isnt pumping enough gas to chill the air inside the cabin. During testing, the car would have seen different terrain and to cover distance, the choice of roads would be mainly highways or non congested areas. Hence this issue would not have come to light.

However in urban traffic or dense traffic, the engine is tuned to shift early and generally stays at low RPMs for FE. In addition to this the start stop is too aggressive. This is hardly creating enough gas pressure from the compressor which has caused the AC issue. In the 1.0 this problem is amplified because the compressor also cuts out at low engine speeds to prevent load on the engine and improve low end response.

If I use manual mode in my DSG and keep the engine above 1500 RPM, the AC becomes a chiller. However, in D mode the transmission shifts very early and always keeps the engine RPM low. This issue will be resolved soon with a higher capacity compressor so that even at low engine speeds the compressor will create sufficient refrigerant pressure. After that the AC issues would be laid to rest.

[yogesh12]

Originally Posted by audioholic

The AC issue isnt a manufacturing defect. It is basically an engineering issue. The compressor capacity is sufficient above 1500RPM and cools the cabin within no time. However below that, it isnt pumping enough gas to chill the air inside the cabin. During testing, the car would have seen different terrain and to cover distance, the choice of roads would be mainly highways or non congested areas. Hence this issue would not have come to light.

However in urban traffic or dense traffic, the engine is tuned to shift early and generally stays at low RPMs for FE. In addition to this the start stop is too aggressive. This is hardly creating enough gas pressure from the compressor which has caused the AC issue. In the 1.0 this problem is amplified because the compressor also cuts out at low engine speeds to prevent load on the engine and improve low end response.

If I use manual mode in my DSG and keep the engine above 1500 RPM, the AC becomes a chiller. However, in D mode the transmission shifts very early and always keeps the engine RPM low. This issue will be resolved soon with a higher capacity compressor so that even at low engine speeds the compressor will create sufficient refrigerant pressure. After that the AC issues would be laid to rest.

So it means, car needs higher capacity compressor right? I believe its hardware and Skoda is never gonna do a recall to change it? Am I Right bro?

[audioholic]

Originally Posted by yogesh12

So it means, car needs higher capacity compressor right? I believe its hardware and Skoda is never gonna do a recall to change it? Am I Right bro?

Yes most probably we can expect a new compressor of higher capacity. But thats a huge recall since it will cover more than 20k cars and might take sometime before it gets executed. Otherwise things like software changes might not provide the required improvement. So there is going to be something done in the next few weeks.

[aniket13]

Originally Posted by audioholic

The AC issue isnt a manufacturing defect. It is basically an engineering issue. The compressor capacity is sufficient above 1500RPM and cools the cabin within no time. However below that, it isnt pumping enough gas to chill the air inside the cabin. During testing, the car would have seen different terrain and to cover distance, the choice of roads would be mainly highways or non congested areas. Hence this issue would not have come to light.

However in urban traffic or dense traffic, the engine is tuned to shift early and generally stays at low RPMs for FE. In addition to this the start stop is too aggressive. This is hardly creating enough gas pressure from the compressor which has caused the AC issue. In the 1.0 this problem is amplified because the compressor also cuts out at low engine speeds to prevent load on the engine and improve low end response.

If I use manual mode in my DSG and keep the engine above 1500 RPM, the AC becomes a chiller. However, in D mode the transmission shifts very early and always keeps the engine RPM low. This issue will be resolved soon with a higher capacity compressor so that even at low engine speeds the compressor will create sufficient refrigerant pressure. After that the AC issues would be laid to rest.

Makes a lot of sense, but has confused me further. If this is an engineering fault - shouldn't all Slavia owners be facing this issue? If this is engine specific - why aren't all 1.0 models facing this issue? That is my biggest apprehension - manufacturing or engineering defects are pretty consistent (for a particular variant, lot, etc), but with Slavia it is quite random. Many 1.0 owners are happy with the AC - corroborating to your response, these might be driven extensively on highways/in cooler regions.

Do we have an official word from Skoda confirming it is indeed a compressor issue? Because if they do go ahead with a recall - would all cars get the new compressor, regardless of the engine capacity? As I mentioned earlier, these things would have major repercussions once the Slavias enter the used car market.

[audioholic]

Originally Posted by aniket13

Makes a lot of sense, but has confused me further. If this is an engineering fault - shouldn't all Slavia owners be facing this issue? If this is engine specific - why aren't all 1.0 models facing this issue? That is my biggest apprehension - manufacturing or engineering defects are pretty consistent (for a particular variant, lot, etc), but with Slavia it is quite random. Many 1.0 owners are happy with the AC - corroborating to your response, these might be driven extensively on highways/in cooler regions. .

It depends on what engine speeds the car gets to do. Like I said earlier, if driven sedately the engine upshifts as soon as we reach 2K RPM and this will keep the engine below 1500RPM. In bumper to bumper traffic especially in the automatic cars, engine speed will hardly cross 1K RPM. So as long as I drive in mixed traffic and on highway the AC works well in my car.

I read about the compressor in one of Zac Hollis' tweet and he says this is the highest priority now. I am not sure about the repercussions in the used car market. Basically this would be rolled out to everyone as a standard protocol and cant be offered to those who only complain. Thats not how things work in a company especially when the fault is already acknowledged.

[supermax]

Originally Posted by Learner

What a lovely car you have bought. In my opinion, there hadn't been any real progress in the power figures of C segment sedans in last 24 years. Salvia and Virtus changed that.


Great to see that Slavia also excels in stoping power. However 10-20 feet does not seem possible. I think it should take atleast 160-180 feet(50-55 meters) to come to halt from 122 kph.

In Sweden, we spend a lot of time studying about braking distances and reaction times, as this is something we get in the theory test. We also have a special session where we practice hard acceleration and emergency braking, in both wet and dry conditions, the purpose of which is to show us how large the stopping distances can be. There is a simple formula that can be used to calculate minimum braking distances, in the most perfect of conditions. That formula is this:
Divide the speed by 10 (or take away a zero), then multiply by itself (square the speed after dividing by 10), and multiply that number by 0.4.
Using this above formula, the stopping distance from 120 km/h is calculated as 12x12x0.4=57.6 meters (187 feet), which falls perfectly within the 50-55 meter range you have mentioned. I have never done 120 to 0 tests, but I have as a matter of fact actually done a 70 to 0 braking, pressing the brake down HARD, the kind of braking we'd never dream of doing, with our parents in the back seat. When I did the hard braking, the tug on the seatbelt was really hard and both extremely uncomfortable and scary. A stop from 120 would be extremely violent. There's simply no way the OP has done a full-on emergency style braking. The theoretical stopping distance in perfect conditions is 19.6 meters for 70 to 0, and what I actually achieved on a Renault Zoe with ABS on, and pretty new summer tires, was 25 meters, which itself is 82 feet. What must have seemed like 10-20 feet for the OP must have been reality something like 250 feet, because real-world braking performance is never so close to to the theoretical numbers, and because he'd not really have done an optimal full emergency style braking, with his mother in the back seat. What this shows us is that we really lack awareness on how long it takes for a car to actually stop. If more people knew how far a car really rolls before coming to a full stop, they would think many more times before overspeeding.

[yogesh12]

Originally Posted by supermax

In Sweden, we spend a lot of time studying about braking distances and reaction times, as this is something we get in the theory test. We also have a special session where we practice hard acceleration and emergency braking, in both wet and dry conditions, the purpose of which is to show us how large the stopping distances can be.

Yea That's true. By Sitting inside, its quite hard to estimate the full distance. And I totally agree with you. I got the thread updated as well.