[robimahanta]

Originally Posted by n.devdath

Hi Robi, how are the roads in and around Guwahati that you drive your car on? Have you faced any GC issues till date with a full load of passengers and luggage and otherwise?
How many services have you been through so far and what has been the experience and costs with the details of the parts/fluids changed?

Devnath, I am currently driving the car in Bangalore/Salem and havent faced any GC issues. Once during a trip to Coorg with 5 passengers and luggage it scraped a couple of bumps on the Mysore highway but the whole underbody is shielded by a cover, hence no issues whatsoever.

In and around Guwahati, I have driven around 5k kms and didnt face any GC issues. The roads ar narrow but the surface is pretty decent all over Guwahati.

I ve done only one service till date (second service is due soon). It cost me around 7K including labour/air filter/oil filter/engine oil.

[ajmat]

I do beleive I was following you from the airport upto MG road. You would have seen a black RS lurking around you

[robimahanta]

The 2yr/23000km update

Fortunately, no issues till date. Two regular free services done. I got the horns changed for free during the second service as I felt the sound quality had degraded and the warranty was getting over soon. Each service was around INR 7500 with oil/air filter/oil filter/ac filter/wash.

Upgraded the stock HU to a CASKA unit for Laura

Pros:

Blends nicely with the interiors
DVD/Bluetooth/iPod/Reverse Cam with OEM sensors/MapmyIndia Navi
GPS (MMI) is pretty good with the latest maps
Screen clarity is awesome
USB/SD card options, pretty basic but were sorely missed in the stock HU

Cons:

Sometimes a bit sluggish to respond esp when playing from SD cards
The graphical interface is a bit tacky rather than classy
Price

Some images (srry for the poor quality pics, too lazy to get the camera out so shot with phone)

Crossed the 23K mark in 2yrs


The CASKA unit


The tacky equalizer (thank god for the option to dim/turn off the display)


MMI Navigation works like a charm


Reserve Cam view in near darkness (the oem sensors work perfectly with the system and show the obstruction behind in meters). Moreover the camera sits inconspicuously above the regn plate, so no ugly holes in the bumper

[vinj14]

Originally Posted by robimahanta

I ve got white LED's (Spec : 1141/1156 12V LED) which are pretty cheap. I got them installed at the dealership and hence I believe there wont be any warranty issues. PM me for further details.

Hey, this is interesting. How did manage to get the led drl's without getting an error in the instrument cluster? I've tried three 27 SMD LED BA15s 1156 382 bulbs and none were error free.

The only way AFAIK is to decrease the brightness to 6%, and thats totally useless in the broad daylight as its hardly visible!

Would love to know how you managed to get these led drls to work error free.

[robimahanta]

Originally Posted by vinj14

Hey, this is interesting. How did manage to get the led drl's without getting an error in the instrument cluster? I've tried three 27 SMD LED BA15s 1156 382 bulbs and none were error free.

The only way AFAIK is to decrease the brightness to 6%, and thats totally useless in the broad daylight as its hardly visible!

Would love to know how you managed to get these led drls to work error free.

Well there is a "open circuit" DRL error in VCDS but the agency said its not an issue and is common with LED's. The only problem is you will not be knowing if any other lights are malfunctioning though. But I know how to change the DRL's and always carry the original bulbs in the car. I have been driving like this for over 7000kms till now..no probs whatsoever.

[motomaverick]

Originally Posted by robimahanta

12500km update
Just got the car back from a wash..its awesome as ever
Got a few upgrades over the last year:

Full grain Napa leather (black with contrast stitch)
Boot lip spoiler
!

Where and how did you get hold of the boot lip spoiler? even i am searching for one.

[robimahanta]

Originally Posted by motomaverick

Where and how did you get hold of the boot lip spoiler? even i am searching for one.

Got it from the Skoda dealership in Salem,TN

[vinj14]

Originally Posted by robimahanta

Well there is a "open circuit" DRL error in VCDS but the agency said its not an issue and is common with LED's. The only problem is you will not be knowing if any other lights are malfunctioning though. But I know how to change the DRL's and always carry the original bulbs in the car. I have been driving like this for over 7000kms till now..no probs whatsoever.

Oh ok. But dont you get the light error on your instrument cluster when you switch the ignition on without turning the engine on?

[razor4077]

How about some pics of the upgraded interiors? Nothing like black leather interiors

[robimahanta]

The 25000KM Upgrade

Decided to finally go in for a performance upgrade for the car. After a long chat with Peter (from Pete's Automotive), I got the following things done to the car:

Suspension : Bilstein B6 sport shock absorbers

Brakes : Tarox G88 Rotors with pads

ECU remap : Custom Code Stage I remap
(approx 200bhp power and 300Nm torque)

Exhaust : Milltek Sport Cat back

And a few other small accessories which I ll update soon with decent pictures.


Regarding costs kindly PM

Initial impressions: The stock car was pretty decent but this upgrade has taken it to different level altogether. The mid-range is outrageous and the throttle response is much crisper. But the good thing is that it still behaves like a stock car when driven sedately.
Coming to the suspension, its probably the best part of the upgrade. The handling dynamics have improved considerably and its not as stiff as I thought it would be. The ride height is still the same as I am using the stock springs. The brakes need some time to set in so I will post an update soon after driving around a little.
The exhaust note is just an icing on the cake. Its not at all racer boy like but has a distinct sporty note.
Guess the car finally deserves the VRS moniker

Some pictures:

Removing the stock shocks and brakes


Bilstein B6 with Tarox rotor and pads


Milltek sport cat back exhaust


A sample audio of the exhaust note

Skoda 1.8 TSi with Milltek Sport Cat Back - YouTube

The Custom Code ECU remap



Regarding costs kindly PM

[robimahanta]

Drive by

Skoda 1.8 TSi with Stage 1 remap and Milltek Cat Back drive by - YouTube

Pardon the shaky out of focus video.

[robimahanta]

Originally Posted by vinj14

Would love to know how you managed to get these led drls to work error free.

Got rid of the DRL LED error completely by fitting some sort of a resistance to the circuit. The guys at Pete's are very thorough when it comes to skoda cars.
The thing encircled is what they added to the DRL circuit to make it error free


Coming back to the smaller accessories,

ECS small antenna


VRS pedal set


Muth Signal/spot mirrors Takes care of the blind spot issue in Laura
Wide Angle Signal® Mirror » Invented by Muth: Perfected by Muth


Detailing with SmartWax
Smartwax - An Evolution In Car Care
The interiors really seem fresh now esp the leather


OWS performance Engine oil with a routine service
OWS :: OWS Performance Engine Oils


Powerflex lower arm bushes
Powerflex

Then got a few things activated through the VCDS

Automatic lock/unlock
Single press unlock of all four doors
Cornering lights
Mileage in km/l instead of l/100km (thanks to akshay1234 for this)

Overall, it feels like a different car altogether

[lancer_rit]

Cool updates /mods on the TSI. Congrats !

If you don't mind, how much did the Caska HU cost ?

[robimahanta]

Originally Posted by lancer_rit

Cool updates /mods on the TSI. Congrats !

If you don't mind, how much did the Caska HU cost ?

Its costs around 40-45K

[razor4077]

Wicked car gets more wicked! Great updates. Pete's is expensive, but they know their Skodas for sure. Enjoy!