Skoda Laura Ambiente. EDIT : 50,000 kms update on pg. 6

nikhilv12 · 13th February 2009, 01:52

My car has done 2000kms now, and i must say i enjoyed every bit of it!

Have to warn you guys though, be sure that you fill up from a reputed petrol pump. I filled up from a pump on the TVM bypass and the car gave me a very bad mileage and also felt very very sluggish.

Anyways, here are some new pics of the car.

HappyWheels · 13th February 2009, 04:24

Great pictures!

So, you still driving on temp registration. Any specific number being asked for?

nikhilv12 · 13th February 2009, 19:06

Yes buddy, ive booked 7272, but it seems the numbers are moving very slowly!!

nikhilv12 · 19th March 2009, 20:37

Got some stickering work done on my laura today, turned out to be good. what do you guys think?

I will get the grill painted in body colour soon.

vinaydas · 19th March 2009, 20:49

looks mean..!! and yea I love it

white_vdi · 19th March 2009, 21:26

nikhil some pics have tape on the headlamps and some dont. please clarify.
otherwise real neat and cool!

OT : the getz in the 1st pics with a mesh front grill looks very sexy to me.

nikhilv12 · 19th March 2009, 21:29

Thats because the first 2 pics have the eye lids and the others dont.

That is my friends getz crdi.. one awesome car!

Dhruv5431 · 3rd April 2009, 20:45

Good Evening to all the members, my first time as a member out here and really looking forward to become an active Team BHPian soon. Congratulations Nikhil for your Black Beast

I got my Laura Ambiente: Black, last week too. Waited for really long but got a very good deal, good discount and scheme too. Really excited about it. But it's true, keeping it clean is a tough job especially for me coz I have to take it to my factory everyday, no complaints though.

About the modifications:

[1] I am close to your opinions too, 17" rims with 225/45/17 tyres. Checked like a million websites but no progress yet with the wheels. Getting a mixed opinion about the ride quality but I've always wanted 17s for my Laura. Gonna wait till I clock 10K atleast so the rainy season is passed too.

[2] How about the ICE Nikhil? I don't want to change the head unit so I'm gonna get new 2 way components for front and back and a enclosed sub-woofer in the boot(2 subs enclosed). Amplifiers according to the needs, atleast two 4 channels or may be more. This way I don't need to play around with the supplied tray.

[3] And looks, I definitely had the idea of getting the front grill done black too, saw it on Nikhil's car, looks massive.

[4] Performance: Want to get a stage 1 good intake system and free flow exhaust, will drive around for atleast 2 years before upgrading to stage 2.

These are my modification ideas for the car. Without proper knowledge and guidance from all you members, I will not proceed further. I live in Rajkot, Gujarat so I need to go to Mumbai atleast for all of my stuff, nothing to buy or get guided for out here.

Thanks everyone, for making this happen.

Dhruv5431 · 11th April 2009, 18:03

Guys, got a massive confusion. The brochure and also Nikhil's Laura details show that they supply with 205/60/15 tyres but I only realized yesterday that I've got Goodyear Eagle NCT 195/65/15 tyres on mine! Was I fooled or what?

Don't have complaints regarding the performance as for now though.

By the way, I checked an Octavia with 18"s wheels on it at the local dealership workshop, without any suspension work done on it. The car was from some next city so it is obviously used for travelling on high speed a lot, did not get to meet the owner or would have asked for the performance details, don't think would have been of much help anyway. Here's the picture for the same, the suspension looks modified coz the car is on the chassis lifting machine.

Dhruv5431 · 31st May 2009, 11:38

Hey guys, guess there are no updates in here for a while now. Nikhil, hope the ride is smooth and I really hope it's in the same clean condition as it looks here when you bought it. You got the registration number yet?

It's a hell lot of work to keep my car clean as I go to my work place which in in the industrial area everyday and it's getting so dirty and dusty by the minute. I cover it up with the body cover supplied but I'm getting millions of minor scratches too. Even the color we use to paint our products can be slightly seen on my car. The monsoon's arriving soon and I'm worried to keep it clean everyday.

I got the first hit last week too, a biker smashed my driver side shoulder mirror but luckily only the mirror got smashed and not the frame so I got a normal duplicate mirror fixed coz the original company mirror wasn't there in stock at the dealership. Another hit today, got my G-Sport passenger side seat cover torn a little bit too, courtesy, has to be one of my friends wearing some pimped pair of jeans with metal on it, thinking of getting a normal patch work done, may be get a patch glued to it now as my seat covers are all stitched to the seat so they are now not removable.

Tips and suggestions are welcome, please, I'm asking for them! Rims upgrades, delayed the plan till the end of this year.

Hope all is well with the respective rides of the owners who are subscribed to this thread.

nikhilv12 · 2nd June 2009, 15:48

Hello Dhruv, first of all welcome to team-bhp.

My car is running perfectly with absolutely no problems at all. About the cleaning part, my car is pretty clean, no major scratches as yet. And yes, the newer batches of laura come with 195/65r15 Goodyear Eagle NCT.

The best way i have found to keep the car clean is to wax it with 3M liquid wax every 3-4 weeks, and wash the car almost daily, with water and bare hands only and wipe it dry with chamois leather.

I used to wash the car with a car shampoo and a cotton cloth, but the paint started loosing its gloss.

The interiors of the car have become pretty dirty, thanks to the light coloured fabrics! Planning to get Interior cleaning done soon.

Last week the car went in for the 10,000km service, and i must say i was pretty impressed by the service provided by Mrakar skoda, Trivandrum.

While giving it for the service, i had asked them to check for the AC blower, as it was not cooling enough, and also asked them to do wheel alignment and balancing.

I gave the car to the service center at around 11.00 am and they asked me to come back ar 5.00pm. Went to the service center at 5.00pm and they were about to finish with the wheel alignment of the car. The service representative gave the the keys to the car and asked me to check if anything more is to be done. He told me that the oil, oil filter and air filter has been replaced. So got inside the car, and started it, the first thing i noticed is the AC. It was much better! it seems the filter was clogged with small leaves. They just cleaned the filter, and the ac was as good as new.

And now the surprise! The service representative also told me that he noticed some rattling from the rear door, and that it has been taken care of!

I never expected this much detail, after reading all the horror stories about skoda, here in team-bhp.

Total expense - 0/- Rs

( i got a 3yr free maintenance scheme )

So to sum it up, I am totally satisfied with the 1st service of my car, and i hope they keep up.

hillram · 2nd June 2009, 15:53

Laura in balck looks awesome.
How is the ride? alloys could have been better.

nikhilv12 · 2nd June 2009, 18:50

Thanks Hillram.

Yes, even i don't fancy the stock alloys, but i am refraining myself from getting any Taiwanese brand of alloys, as there have been reports of wobbling at higher speeds, with these alloys. If i get alloys for the car, they have to be good European ones, and i have finalised on BBS cv alloys. The only problem is, each alloy costs close to 19000/-Rs.

So i guess i have to wait.

Dhruv5431 · 2nd June 2009, 20:26

Thanks Nikhil. Yeah there are a lot of horror experiences of the Skoda owners out here. You're a lucky guy, with the first service experience, I hope they keep up to it. I haven't got it done yet but will surely share the experience.

Interiors, you've got it right, high maintenance. I've got black G-Sport seat covers so they hide the dust pretty easily. Your cleaning technique is really up to the mark, I clean my car myself too but don't wash it everyday.

Yeah and about the alloys, I'm gonna wait at least till the end of the year to buy them coz I have to save up too.

I've checked a few on the European sites but they're expensive

. But yeah let's hope the wait is worth for both of us. By the way, what size are you looking for your wheels?

Well thanks for the cleaning tips and the tyre information.

2nd June 2009, 20:40

I have owned a Jetta and still own a passat. You have made a very good choice. The reason i say so is Jetta doesnt deserve this price tag plus Laura is a better car based out of passat and there are a lot of similarities between the same. So you definately have made a good choice over Jetta

13th February 2009, 01:52	#61
nikhilv12 BHPian Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: trivandrum Posts: 273 Thanked: 9 Times View My Garage	My car has done 2000kms now, and i must say i enjoyed every bit of it! Have to warn you guys though, be sure that you fill up from a reputed petrol pump. I filled up from a pump on the TVM bypass and the car gave me a very bad mileage and also felt very very sluggish. Anyways, here are some new pics of the car. Attached Thumbnails Last edited by nikhilv12 : 13th February 2009 at 01:59.
	() Thanks

13th February 2009, 04:24	#62
HappyWheels Senior - BHPian Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Bangalore Posts: 4,106 Thanked: 537 Times	Great pictures! So, you still driving on temp registration. Any specific number being asked for?
	() Thanks

13th February 2009, 19:06	#63
nikhilv12 BHPian Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: trivandrum Posts: 273 Thanked: 9 Times View My Garage	Yes buddy, ive booked 7272, but it seems the numbers are moving very slowly!! Last edited by nikhilv12 : 13th February 2009 at 19:13.
	() Thanks

19th March 2009, 20:37	#64
nikhilv12 BHPian Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: trivandrum Posts: 273 Thanked: 9 Times View My Garage	Got some stickering work done on my laura today, turned out to be good. what do you guys think? I will get the grill painted in body colour soon. Attached Thumbnails
	() Thanks

19th March 2009, 20:49	#65
vinaydas Senior - BHPian Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Bengaluru Posts: 1,399 Thanked: 148 Times	looks mean..!! and yea I love it
	() Thanks

19th March 2009, 21:26	#66
white_vdi BHPian Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: new delhi Posts: 857 Thanked: 38 Times View My Garage	nikhil some pics have tape on the headlamps and some dont. please clarify. otherwise real neat and cool! OT : the getz in the 1st pics with a mesh front grill looks very sexy to me.
	() Thanks

19th March 2009, 21:29	#67
nikhilv12 BHPian Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: trivandrum Posts: 273 Thanked: 9 Times View My Garage	Thats because the first 2 pics have the eye lids and the others dont. That is my friends getz crdi.. one awesome car!
	() Thanks

3rd April 2009, 20:45	#68
Dhruv5431 Newbie Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Rajkot Posts: 7 Thanked: 0 Times	Laura Ambiente Mods Good Evening to all the members, my first time as a member out here and really looking forward to become an active Team BHPian soon. Congratulations Nikhil for your Black Beast I got my Laura Ambiente: Black, last week too. Waited for really long but got a very good deal, good discount and scheme too. Really excited about it. But it's true, keeping it clean is a tough job especially for me coz I have to take it to my factory everyday, no complaints though. About the modifications: [1] I am close to your opinions too, 17" rims with 225/45/17 tyres. Checked like a million websites but no progress yet with the wheels. Getting a mixed opinion about the ride quality but I've always wanted 17s for my Laura. Gonna wait till I clock 10K atleast so the rainy season is passed too. [2] How about the ICE Nikhil? I don't want to change the head unit so I'm gonna get new 2 way components for front and back and a enclosed sub-woofer in the boot(2 subs enclosed). Amplifiers according to the needs, atleast two 4 channels or may be more. This way I don't need to play around with the supplied tray. [3] And looks, I definitely had the idea of getting the front grill done black too, saw it on Nikhil's car, looks massive. [4] Performance: Want to get a stage 1 good intake system and free flow exhaust, will drive around for atleast 2 years before upgrading to stage 2. These are my modification ideas for the car. Without proper knowledge and guidance from all you members, I will not proceed further. I live in Rajkot, Gujarat so I need to go to Mumbai atleast for all of my stuff, nothing to buy or get guided for out here. Thanks everyone, for making this happen.
	() Thanks

11th April 2009, 18:03	#69
Dhruv5431 Newbie Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Rajkot Posts: 7 Thanked: 0 Times	Wheels Guys, got a massive confusion. The brochure and also Nikhil's Laura details show that they supply with 205/60/15 tyres but I only realized yesterday that I've got Goodyear Eagle NCT 195/65/15 tyres on mine! Was I fooled or what? Don't have complaints regarding the performance as for now though. By the way, I checked an Octavia with 18"s wheels on it at the local dealership workshop, without any suspension work done on it. The car was from some next city so it is obviously used for travelling on high speed a lot, did not get to meet the owner or would have asked for the performance details, don't think would have been of much help anyway. Here's the picture for the same, the suspension looks modified coz the car is on the chassis lifting machine. Attached Thumbnails
	() Thanks

31st May 2009, 11:38	#70
Dhruv5431 Newbie Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Rajkot Posts: 7 Thanked: 0 Times	Hey guys, guess there are no updates in here for a while now. Nikhil, hope the ride is smooth and I really hope it's in the same clean condition as it looks here when you bought it. You got the registration number yet? It's a hell lot of work to keep my car clean as I go to my work place which in in the industrial area everyday and it's getting so dirty and dusty by the minute. I cover it up with the body cover supplied but I'm getting millions of minor scratches too. Even the color we use to paint our products can be slightly seen on my car. The monsoon's arriving soon and I'm worried to keep it clean everyday. I got the first hit last week too, a biker smashed my driver side shoulder mirror but luckily only the mirror got smashed and not the frame so I got a normal duplicate mirror fixed coz the original company mirror wasn't there in stock at the dealership. Another hit today, got my G-Sport passenger side seat cover torn a little bit too, courtesy, has to be one of my friends wearing some pimped pair of jeans with metal on it, thinking of getting a normal patch work done, may be get a patch glued to it now as my seat covers are all stitched to the seat so they are now not removable. Tips and suggestions are welcome, please, I'm asking for them! Rims upgrades, delayed the plan till the end of this year. Hope all is well with the respective rides of the owners who are subscribed to this thread.
	() Thanks

2nd June 2009, 15:48	#71
nikhilv12 BHPian Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: trivandrum Posts: 273 Thanked: 9 Times View My Garage	Hello Dhruv, first of all welcome to team-bhp. My car is running perfectly with absolutely no problems at all. About the cleaning part, my car is pretty clean, no major scratches as yet. And yes, the newer batches of laura come with 195/65r15 Goodyear Eagle NCT. The best way i have found to keep the car clean is to wax it with 3M liquid wax every 3-4 weeks, and wash the car almost daily, with water and bare hands only and wipe it dry with chamois leather. I used to wash the car with a car shampoo and a cotton cloth, but the paint started loosing its gloss. The interiors of the car have become pretty dirty, thanks to the light coloured fabrics! Planning to get Interior cleaning done soon. Last week the car went in for the 10,000km service, and i must say i was pretty impressed by the service provided by Mrakar skoda, Trivandrum. While giving it for the service, i had asked them to check for the AC blower, as it was not cooling enough, and also asked them to do wheel alignment and balancing. I gave the car to the service center at around 11.00 am and they asked me to come back ar 5.00pm. Went to the service center at 5.00pm and they were about to finish with the wheel alignment of the car. The service representative gave the the keys to the car and asked me to check if anything more is to be done. He told me that the oil, oil filter and air filter has been replaced. So got inside the car, and started it, the first thing i noticed is the AC. It was much better! it seems the filter was clogged with small leaves. They just cleaned the filter, and the ac was as good as new. And now the surprise! The service representative also told me that he noticed some rattling from the rear door, and that it has been taken care of! I never expected this much detail, after reading all the horror stories about skoda, here in team-bhp. Total expense - 0/- Rs ( i got a 3yr free maintenance scheme ) So to sum it up, I am totally satisfied with the 1st service of my car, and i hope they keep up. Last edited by nikhilv12 : 2nd June 2009 at 15:52.
	() Thanks

2nd June 2009, 15:53	#72
hillram Senior - BHPian Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Hyderabad Posts: 2,942 Thanked: 1,326 Times View My Garage	Laura in balck looks awesome. How is the ride? alloys could have been better.
	() Thanks

2nd June 2009, 18:50	#73
nikhilv12 BHPian Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: trivandrum Posts: 273 Thanked: 9 Times View My Garage	Thanks Hillram. Yes, even i don't fancy the stock alloys, but i am refraining myself from getting any Taiwanese brand of alloys, as there have been reports of wobbling at higher speeds, with these alloys. If i get alloys for the car, they have to be good European ones, and i have finalised on BBS cv alloys. The only problem is, each alloy costs close to 19000/-Rs. So i guess i have to wait.
	() Thanks

2nd June 2009, 20:26	#74
Dhruv5431 Newbie Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Rajkot Posts: 7 Thanked: 0 Times	Thanks Nikhil. Yeah there are a lot of horror experiences of the Skoda owners out here. You're a lucky guy, with the first service experience, I hope they keep up to it. I haven't got it done yet but will surely share the experience. Interiors, you've got it right, high maintenance. I've got black G-Sport seat covers so they hide the dust pretty easily. Your cleaning technique is really up to the mark, I clean my car myself too but don't wash it everyday. Yeah and about the alloys, I'm gonna wait at least till the end of the year to buy them coz I have to save up too. I've checked a few on the European sites but they're expensive. But yeah let's hope the wait is worth for both of us. By the way, what size are you looking for your wheels? Well thanks for the cleaning tips and the tyre information.
	() Thanks

2nd June 2009, 20:40	#75
D-Man Posts: n/a	I have owned a Jetta and still own a passat. You have made a very good choice. The reason i say so is Jetta doesnt deserve this price tag plus Laura is a better car based out of passat and there are a lot of similarities between the same. So you definately have made a good choice over Jetta
	() Thanks