Skoda Fabia Diesel : First impression & brief test drive

Thad E Ginathom · 1st February 2008, 17:41

Value for money, on day one, is likely to be measured in features, car size and so on.

One or two years later, it is more likely to be measure in how many bits have fallen off or are rattling .

It may well mean having a good car in nice condition for several years longer than the one that seemed better value in the showroom. In terms of cost of ownership, that could make a big difference to the value-for-money equation.

amit27 · 1st February 2008, 18:37

We have a unique concept of VFM , sometime back I read an article about Ferrari in ET supplement CD where he said that one guy wanted to buy a Ferrari and fit CNG on that . People will buy expensive cars but would still want it to have maitenannce and FE of Maruti 800 Point is that lots of grumbling about Skoda relates to that if you want to buy a car worth 9 lac , you should be willing to willing to spend x % of total cost as maitenance .
x is each individuals choice

skmami · 2nd February 2008, 00:22

Quote:

1) this is not robbing. . . i think you have a personal grudge against skoda, and if the car is expensive . . .please do not buy it. According to me the pricing of the Fabia is expensive . . i do believe you, but the point is if i want that quality, that quality finish i have to pay more.

If I have a personal grudge we would not be owning a Skoda car at all. We own Skoda Octavia in India. The thing I am looking for is value for my hard earned money that I am paying to buy anything. Nobody disputes the Skoda has a quality build compared to other cars that exist in India but even with that I still believe it is overpriced by 1 Lakh.

I am willing to pay more for quality but how much more has the limit. The bottom is line am I getting my moneys worth which is what I liked about people discussing here on BHP.

BUSA · 2nd February 2008, 00:40

Guys have you seen the international pricing of the Swift. Check this(Swift pricing) and this(Fabia pricing)

Now tell me why does Skoda have to charge such a premium, when Suzuki doesnot. Infact Skoda's Fabia doesnot even compete with the Swift, due to the puny engines on offer

Skoda has a production capacity of 1L units per annum.

Why pay 9L for such a car, when a bit more will get you the retro and 2007 Car of the Year, the Fiat 500

Strangerintown · 2nd February 2008, 02:44

Quote:

Originally Posted by BUSA

Guys have you seen the international pricing of the Swift. Check this(Swift pricing) and this(Fabia pricing)

Now tell me why does Skoda have to charge such a premium, when Suzuki doesnot. Infact Skoda's Fabia doesnot even compete with the Swift, due to the puny engines on offer

Skoda has a production capacity of 1L units per annum.

Why pay 9L for such a car, when a bit more will get you the retro and 2007 Car of the Year, the Fiat 500

I also found the diesel of the Fabia to be quite noisy with a noticeable clatter intruding in the cabin. When I pointed this out to the sales guy, his response was that it is not more noisy than an Indica Diesel

. I mean are these guys trying to benchmark the engine against a car that costs way less than half

? I'm quite sure that is not the Skoda strategy to draw such parallels with the Indica but they need to train their dealership sales staff better to ensure that the correct marketing message is communicated to the end consumer.

Sush · 2nd February 2008, 02:59

Bottom line is that it's not a VFM car. No person that I know, will be willing to spend that kind of money on this car. How many SRVs do we get to see?
Even the rich people use their money sensibly. I have seen people having a crore in their bank, buying a swift diesel because it's economical.
As others have said, this car is not for the masses. I might be wrong but feel that this car won't be very successful in the market because of it's pricing.

jkdas · 2nd February 2008, 09:09

Saw one last eve when I went to get fogs for my Alto.

1) I thought it was another Swift!. It can be coz it was getting dark. It wasnt big as one would think it would be.

2) It was the Ambiente version.

3) The built quality was good.

4) Stereo looks and did sound good even at high volume.

5) It costs 8.63 OTR. Elegence costs 9.3OTR.

6) I felt it to be louder than the DDiS

7) The stereo has no pre-outs nor rear speaker outs? (can somebody conform this)

8) Atleast the engine bay could haev looked less cluster free.

The funny part is the owner has paid 30 for leathers. The workman ship was so bad that I could see threads sticking out.

He wanted to add a Blau 4 channel amp to the ICE. He also had brought a JBL bass tube to be connected to this amp.

Since the ICE installer at that shop couldnt find pre-amp outs or rear outs he said they cant fit the amp. The shop guy did show a nice Panasonic double-din HU with touch screen and works for 40K(B&W) which I guess matched a car worth that money.

The funny part was that the owner said he will pay 25k for it and also if he get it people will say that its a show-off ! Come-on!!!

At the end of the day, he left and people started giggling about the car and the guy who bought a flattened/modded Swift!

jkdas · 2nd February 2008, 10:18

Now some videos. Keep the speakers on to hear how the engine sounds.

YouTube - Fabia 1.4 Diesel.

YouTube - Fabia 1.4

Now check this

YouTube - Kia Rio Crdi 110hp 2006 vs Skoda Fabia 101 hp

gkrishk · 2nd February 2008, 12:06

[quote=BUSA;678960]Yes, it is!

More then GC is the design on the underbody and how the suspension is set up, the Octy hardly scrapes any speed breakers due to its design, wheras cars with better GC do.

This must be why-
my Siena 1.6 with a GC of 140 mm used to bottom out on rough surfaces but the Octavia 1.9 doesn't do so. Both vehicles have underbody protection (sump guard in the Fiat).

Steeroid · 2nd February 2008, 13:09

Quote:

Originally Posted by raul

Hi Guys, I just saw a white Fabia up close today and I can shamelessly say I have jumped camp. Forget 9 lakhs this I would gladly pay 10 plus for this beauty if not more.

For those who say it looks like the swift if not smaller its clearly time to schedule an appointment with the opto. How can you miss the skoda badge upfront, are you blind or what, that alone is worth eternal bragging rights like in the ad. Hotel doormen and neighborhood busybodies will be looking at you with renewed interest and appreciation of your refined tastes.

Start the thing and others could be mistaken for feeling there is an Indica around but guess what, the SX4 like climate control and superior European build will ensure you are totally immune from the racket.

People on this thread are unable to grasp the premiumness of this marvel, they keep on crapping on the thread asking exactly what makes this car premium. Well hello! let me spell it out S.K.O.D.A.

So you have lived in Europe and know the Skoda brand is as exciting as a loaf of bread, not exactly someting to flaunt around, is a value buy like the swift, a good solid practical car, and are thus confused, nee flabbergasted about the 3 lakh premium you have to pay for it here and this Ferrari like Skoda brand image I want to bestow on it for no particular reason. Well tough, I value exclusivity and at that price I will be one of the few driving this car, the car doesn't matter the exclusivity does, get it. No? I have 9 lakhs to blow and you don't.

Sarcasm alert

Pure poetry

!

ownerofazkaban · 2nd February 2008, 13:15

1/2 hr ago, while coming from south end, saw this black fabia going towards NR colony from vidyapeetha as I passed it in opp direction, it's engine sounded like a truck. So loud and it's along the slope when you take right turn towards nr colony.

jkdas · 2nd February 2008, 13:35

Quote:

Originally Posted by ownerofazkaban

1/2 hr ago, while coming from south end, saw this black fabia going towards NR colony from vidyapeetha as I passed it in opp direction, it's engine sounded like a truck. So loud and it's along the slope when you take right turn towards nr colony.

well come on, you dont need to over exaggerrate it !

We also had/have louder engines from Hyundai and sort too.

rrnsss · 2nd February 2008, 14:25

raul> excellent post

Skoda's value praposition is the exclusivity that it offers. Thats it.

So there is no point trying to justify the cost viz-a-viz the quality. What ever marginal increase in quality is not praportional to the increase in cost. I do not begrudge the skoda engine because it is a 3 cylinder one or the noise, but because it has very low power.

Mpower · 2nd February 2008, 20:12

Quote:

Originally Posted by ownerofazkaban

1/2 hr ago, while coming from south end, saw this black fabia going towards NR colony from vidyapeetha as I passed it in opp direction, it's engine sounded like a truck. So loud and it's along the slope when you take right turn towards nr colony.

In many of the new diesels, the sound level is lower inside the cabin than outside because of the insulation strategy used.

androdev · 2nd February 2008, 20:37

i try not to honk at pedestrians on busy market streets, a loud diesel helps ;-)

a loud diesel also forces manufacturers to make the cabin better insulated from outside noise.

on highway cruise, engine noise is pretty musical for some people.

i am not glorifying the noise, but it not such an intrusion.

1st February 2008, 17:41	#226
Thad E Ginathom Distinguished - BHPian Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Chennai Posts: 11,005 Thanked: 26,447 Times	Value for money, on day one, is likely to be measured in features, car size and so on. One or two years later, it is more likely to be measure in how many bits have fallen off or are rattling . It may well mean having a good car in nice condition for several years longer than the one that seemed better value in the showroom. In terms of cost of ownership, that could make a big difference to the value-for-money equation.
	() Thanks

1st February 2008, 18:37	#227
amit27 BHPian Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Guragaon Posts: 173 Thanked: 0 Times	We have a unique concept of VFM , sometime back I read an article about Ferrari in ET supplement CD where he said that one guy wanted to buy a Ferrari and fit CNG on that . People will buy expensive cars but would still want it to have maitenannce and FE of Maruti 800 Point is that lots of grumbling about Skoda relates to that if you want to buy a car worth 9 lac , you should be willing to willing to spend x % of total cost as maitenance . x is each individuals choice
	() Thanks

2nd February 2008, 00:40	#229
BUSA Senior - BHPian Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Bombay Posts: 5,130 Thanked: 20 Times View My Garage	Guys have you seen the international pricing of the Swift. Check this(Swift pricing) and this(Fabia pricing) Now tell me why does Skoda have to charge such a premium, when Suzuki doesnot. Infact Skoda's Fabia doesnot even compete with the Swift, due to the puny engines on offer Skoda has a production capacity of 1L units per annum. Why pay 9L for such a car, when a bit more will get you the retro and 2007 Car of the Year, the Fiat 500 Last edited by BUSA : 2nd February 2008 at 00:58.
	() Thanks

2nd February 2008, 02:59	#231
Sush BHPian Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Noida, New York Posts: 308 Thanked: 2 Times	Bottom line is that it's not a VFM car. No person that I know, will be willing to spend that kind of money on this car. How many SRVs do we get to see? Even the rich people use their money sensibly. I have seen people having a crore in their bank, buying a swift diesel because it's economical. As others have said, this car is not for the masses. I might be wrong but feel that this car won't be very successful in the market because of it's pricing.
	() Thanks

2nd February 2008, 09:09	#232
jkdas Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Thiruvananthapu Posts: 9,687 Thanked: 1,492 Times View My Garage	Saw one last eve when I went to get fogs for my Alto. 1) I thought it was another Swift!. It can be coz it was getting dark. It wasnt big as one would think it would be. 2) It was the Ambiente version. 3) The built quality was good. 4) Stereo looks and did sound good even at high volume. 5) It costs 8.63 OTR. Elegence costs 9.3OTR. 6) I felt it to be louder than the DDiS 7) The stereo has no pre-outs nor rear speaker outs? (can somebody conform this) 8) Atleast the engine bay could haev looked less cluster free. The funny part is the owner has paid 30 for leathers. The workman ship was so bad that I could see threads sticking out. He wanted to add a Blau 4 channel amp to the ICE. He also had brought a JBL bass tube to be connected to this amp. Since the ICE installer at that shop couldnt find pre-amp outs or rear outs he said they cant fit the amp. The shop guy did show a nice Panasonic double-din HU with touch screen and works for 40K(B&W) which I guess matched a car worth that money. The funny part was that the owner said he will pay 25k for it and also if he get it people will say that its a show-off ! Come-on!!! At the end of the day, he left and people started giggling about the car and the guy who bought a flattened/modded Swift! Last edited by jkdas : 2nd February 2008 at 09:10.
	() Thanks

2nd February 2008, 12:06	#234
gkrishk BHPian Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Trivandrum Posts: 146 Thanked: 56 Times	[quote=BUSA;678960]Yes, it is! More then GC is the design on the underbody and how the suspension is set up, the Octy hardly scrapes any speed breakers due to its design, wheras cars with better GC do. This must be why- my Siena 1.6 with a GC of 140 mm used to bottom out on rough surfaces but the Octavia 1.9 doesn't do so. Both vehicles have underbody protection (sump guard in the Fiat).
	() Thanks

2nd February 2008, 13:15	#236
ownerofazkaban BHPian Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: BLR Posts: 456 Thanked: 80 Times View My Garage	observation 1/2 hr ago, while coming from south end, saw this black fabia going towards NR colony from vidyapeetha as I passed it in opp direction, it's engine sounded like a truck. So loud and it's along the slope when you take right turn towards nr colony.
	() Thanks

2nd February 2008, 14:25	#238
rrnsss BHPian Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Chennai Posts: 397 Thanked: 346 Times	raul> excellent post Skoda's value praposition is the exclusivity that it offers. Thats it. So there is no point trying to justify the cost viz-a-viz the quality. What ever marginal increase in quality is not praportional to the increase in cost. I do not begrudge the skoda engine because it is a 3 cylinder one or the noise, but because it has very low power.
	() Thanks

2nd February 2008, 20:37	#240
androdev Distinguished - BHPian Join Date: May 2007 Location: bangalore Posts: 3,100 Thanked: 22,363 Times	i try not to honk at pedestrians on busy market streets, a loud diesel helps ;-) a loud diesel also forces manufacturers to make the cabin better insulated from outside noise. on highway cruise, engine noise is pretty musical for some people. i am not glorifying the noise, but it not such an intrusion.
	() Thanks