[soul-on-4wheels]

Thanks, fi.robin! Yes, I will convince myself before I take the plunge. The Yeti is way beyond rational financial construct as far as I am concerned; still, the damn thing is such an irresistable piece of machinery. By the way, wanted to check on service/maintenance costs - would love to know the cost that one will incur at the 15000km/1 Year and other milestones. Appreciate all help here - as always!! Cheers!

[samyboy]

Originally Posted by soul-on-4wheels

Thanks, fi.robin! Yes, I will convince myself before I take the plunge. The Yeti is way beyond rational financial construct as far as I am concerned; still, the damn thing is such an irresistable piece of machinery. By the way, wanted to check on service/maintenance costs - would love to know the cost that one will incur at the 15000km/1 Year and other milestones. Appreciate all help here - as always!! Cheers!

We know for 1 year now as folks with Yeti have completed a year.. I have seen the expense in tune of 5-7K as the oil charges ( material ) are passed on to the owner. The labour is I suppose free. Not sure if anybody on this forum has crossed 30K mark with Yeti.

I agree with you, it's an outstanding machine. All the best to you, may our tribe grow.

[soul-on-4wheels]

Friends - today the heat did not matter, nor did the humidity. Neither did the earth feel scalding hot to touch. All because I was on my way to check out the Yeti at the stockyard in Bhiwandi. Reached there around 12 noon and for the next 1 hour examined every inch of the car - atleast to the extent I could. No visible nicks and damages. Just plain dirty - the patient wait, exposed to the elements seems to have taken its toll. Nothing else seemed amiss. I can't wait for it to be mine!

Just 2 queries, though.
1. Now, the VIN indicates it is a 2012 model and the sticker on the bonnet peel cover mentioned the date of assembly as 12-03-2012. Is this too long back to be worried about? I hope not! Simply because am into it and cannot back off!

2. When i switched the engine on, the odo showed 0 kms clocked. Maybe it is stupid asking this, but I hope this is normal? I checked a couple of other cars as well - they all showed 0 on the odo.

Look forward to the answers!!

Cheers!!

[shankar.balan]

Short answers to your queries.
1. No worries at all. Buy it with confidence. It is a 6 month old car (from date of assembly).
2. This is normal. You are lucky that no one has touched it so far. By the time you receive the vehicle, expect to see at least 50-100kms on it - registration, pre-delivery inspection, various other checks and so on which will make it go to the showroom, RTO etc before you get your hands on it.
It is indeed an OUTSTANDING machine and an absolute delight to drive.
Like someone else said just now - may the tribe grow! Better for everyone on account of easier availability of spares and greater experience in servicing.

Originally Posted by soul-on-4wheels

Just 2 queries, though.
1. Now, the VIN indicates it is a 2012 model and the sticker on the bonnet peel cover mentioned the date of assembly as 12-03-2012. Is this too long back to be worried about? I hope not! Simply because am into it and cannot back off!

2. When i switched the engine on, the odo showed 0 kms clocked. Maybe it is stupid asking this, but I hope this is normal? I checked a couple of other cars as well - they all showed 0 on the odo.

Look forward to the answers!!

Cheers!!

[samyboy]

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

Like someone else said just now - may the tribe grow! Better for everyone on account of easier availability of spares and greater experience in servicing.

Shankar, well I said that but on that topic of growing our tribe, I want to point out what I found a bit surprising.

Once in a while on WE highway (Mumbai) I happen to pass by a yet another Yeti. I typically quickly wave at the driver, just a hello. I believe that if you own Yeti, you are an enthusiast and appreciate this fine machinery. Finding another person like you in exact same car is very "special" . It's a simple feeling of a comradery. Till date, I have never been returned hello or a smile.

So do people buy this car - not feel special about it? Or they don't like to smile at strangers who just happens to drive whatever they are driving. Or it does not even strike them why the heck somebody is saying hello to them.

May be my expectation of bonding among Yeti owners is un-reasonable.

[sagpatel]

Originally Posted by samyboy

Shankar, well I said that but on that topic of growing our tribe, I want to point out what I found a bit surprising.

Once in a while on WE highway (Mumbai) I happen to pass by a yet another Yeti. I typically quickly wave at the driver, just a hello. I believe that if you own Yeti, you are an enthusiast and appreciate this fine machinery. Finding another person like you in exact same car is very "special" . It's a simple feeling of a comradery. Till date, I have never been returned hello or a smile.

So do people buy this car - not feel special about it? Or they don't like to smile at strangers who just happens to drive whatever they are driving. Or it does not even strike them why the heck somebody is saying hello to them.

May be my expectation of bonding among Yeti owners is un-reasonable.

Do u happen to have a silver yeti? I also see them on WE highway but have not noticed anyone waving. I also have a silver one.

[soul-on-4wheels]

Thanks, Shankar, for that reassuring note. Now, like a kiddo waiting for Santa to come and hand me over the goodies, I shall wait for my white Yeti to come home!

Samyboy, am completely with you on the feeling-special and being-part-of-a-tribe bit. To give the recepient of your friendly waves the benefit of doubt, I guess people take time to react under such circumstances! Incidentally, I was in the neighbourhood MHADA market when I saw a gentleman sitting inside a 4x4. I walked up to him, got a first hand feedback on the car (he has gone to Leh in his beast) and parted as friends. Understandably, he was quite smitten by his machine! Felt good!!!

For me, the painful wait begins....

[samyboy]

Originally Posted by sagpatel

Do u happen to have a silver yeti? I also see them on WE highway but have not noticed anyone waving. I also have a silver one.

No. Mato Brown. I also have a a Team BHP - LTD sticker at the back. I start from Borivali. There is another Silver 4 x 4 Yeti close by.. You must have seen that one.

[shankar.balan]

Originally Posted by samyboy

Shankar, well I said that but on that topic of growing our tribe, I want to point out what I found a bit surprising.

May be my expectation of bonding among Yeti owners is un-reasonable.

This brings me to mind of the old days when we may have had amongst the first MM540's around the Nilgiris. All Corporate plantations around us followed suit. At the time it was a novelty and anyway everyone knew each other so there were always exchanges of waves and pleasantries...
Those were simpler times. Time was not as much in short supply as it seems to be these days. Plus the people who owned cars were of a certain stature and background.
This is not quite the case nowadays so your un- acknowledging Yeti owner may quite simply not give a toot, or he could be a mere hireling chauffeur or perhaps even just a bloke who has cash to buy what he wants but who may simply be slightly misanthropic in nature. Who knows?
Personally I would pay it no mind. Indeed, I have even stopped waving at TBHP marked cars because the stickers are freely available to all and sundry and frankly, between you and me, not all of those whose cars carry the stickers, really know the meaning and essence of the great camaraderie of the open road!

[lapsi]

Originally Posted by samyboy

May be my expectation of bonding among Yeti owners is un-reasonable.

Your expectation is absolutely reasonable but times have changed. People are in AC cars, listening to music, maybe on the phone, and generally stressed out about everything, including the traffic. So no wonder they do not notice and wave back on the Western Express Highway.

But now, we are on the information superhighway where people from all over wave at each other and enjoy a camaraderie

Cheers!

[soul-on-4wheels]

Good Morning, friends! I am, in all probability, into my last 5 days of waiting for the Yeti 4x2 to come home!!! And I already have grand designs around her. Hence this post of queries for the Yeti experts. I am planning a longish drive to Bangalore (from Mumbai) on 10th Nov. I would have put about 200-300 kms on the odo by then. Now, my queries:
1. Given the relative newness of the machine, is it advisable on taking up this long journey?
2. In case it is fine to do so, please guide in terms of the allowed DOs and the strict DON'TS that I should be taking care of
3. Last but not the least, do share anything that you feel will be worthwhile as I take up this journey.

Look forward to your replies! Cheers and have a nice day!!

[Sunilrj]

Originally Posted by soul-on-4wheels

Good Morning, friends! I am, in all probability, into my last 5 days of waiting for the Yeti 4x2 to come home!!! And I already have grand designs around her. Hence this post of queries for the Yeti experts. I am planning a longish drive to Bangalore (from Mumbai) on 10th Nov. I would have put about 200-300 kms on the odo by then. Now, my queries:
1. Given the relative newness of the machine, is it advisable on taking up this long journey?
2. In case it is fine to do so, please guide in terms of the allowed DOs and the strict DON'TS that I should be taking care of
3. Last but not the least, do share anything that you feel will be worthwhile as I take up this journey.

Look forward to your replies! Cheers and have a nice day!!

Advance Congratulations on the Buy! now answers to your queries
1. by all means go ahead with the journey
2. Do's and Dont's - Drive at Varying Speeds 60-80-100-120-80-60- Dont do 120-130 kmh at a stretch for long durations till the engine runs in. before you start Check coolant Level, and Set tyre Pressure at 32-34. Vehicles after PDI are seen to have Tyre Pressures upto 46
3. Carry a Camera Along and Just enjoy the Drive and the yeti!

[hrishik]

Hello friends

I booked a Yeti 4x2 Active Cappuccino Beige some 3 weeks back at Autobahn, Prabhadevi, Mumbai. The loan processing and dealer payment should happen sometime in the coming week, but I shall take the delivery only after Diwali due to an impending marriage in the family. I got a discount of INR 1.98 L on the Mumbai on-road price of INR 1727445 plus I exchanged my 2.5 year old diesel Indica Vista Tdi, which had already done close to 43000 kms, for which the dealer offered me INR 2.7 L, which I think has turned out to be a good deal overall.

Our old Vista was entering the zone where the car is not new anymore and regular maintenance costs were on the rise. We were keen to replace the car before we start getting slapped with inflated service bills and long trips to the TASC. My wife was keen on getting the Hyundai Verna Fluidic 1.6 CRDi SX mainly due to the looks, but I was not too keen on it having personally experienced the poor drivability and pathetic suspension of my Father-in-law's previous generation Verna. Nevertheless we had scheduled a test-drive of the Fluidic Verna with HMP Lower Parel, when I saw an advertisement of the Skoda Yeti with a massive 1.98 L discount in Bombay Times. I had always liked the Yeti, which I had first seen on BBC Top Gear - Jeremy Clarkson's famous Yeti number with the helicopter roof-landing and with the discount the Yeti seemed irresistible!

I visited the Skoda India website and registered my name and mobile number with them for a test-drive. To my surprise, I got a callback from a Skoda India
representative within 15 mins of registering on the website. The representative took my address and told me that I would get another call from a Skoda dealer within half an hour and that is exactly what happened! Mr. Deepak Hemnani from Autobahn, Prabhadevi called me and explained the deal available on the Yeti and e-mailed me a brochure. I had a chat with my wife about this on the and showed her the brochure. Although she was not too enthusiastic about buying a boxy compact SUV, especially over the good-looking Fluidic Verna, I managed to talk her into taking a test-drive.

In the meanwhile, Mr. Deepak set me up with their used car evaluator who came to my place a couple of days later and checked out the Indica and gave me a quote of INR 270,000 for the car. The following day an evaluator from Hyundai checked the car and quoted INR 200,000 for the car. Since, I was happier with the Skoda quote (obviously) I scheduled a test-drive of the Yeti first - a decision that later proved to be the Waterloo of the Fluidic Verna!

We visited Autobahn, Prabhadevi at the scheduled time where a Mr. Naresh showed us the vehicle (a 4x2 Active) and explained its features. My wife and me were impressed with the Yeti. The build quality both in and out was exceptional, one could not get around the premium feeling inside the vehicle, plastics are nice and everything seems just so well engineered (I suppose it's fairly easy to impress Tata car owners). The test-drive was equally impressive; the 2.0L TDI, which I was told was the same engine that pushes the Laura, delivers power without fuss, low-end torque is more than sufficient and turbo-lag is minimal. There was zero engine noise inside the cabin while the ride quality itself was excellent - I deliberately took a few potholes at speed and there was no jarring or jumping of any sort. My wife was highly impressed with the Yeti and I was beaming with joy. It seemed that nothing that the Verna did could match the supreme satisfaction that we had in the Yeti.

The only lingering doubt about the Yeti that I had was the Skoda after-sales issue, having read scores of unpleasant stories about their after-sales service.
I wrote a frank e-mail to Mr. Naresh, explaining the apprehensions that I had along with links to relevant Team-Bhp threads. He redirected the e-mail to his senior Mr. Nikhil who assured me that I would receive the best possible service and they would even introduce me to their workshop managers who will take personal care of the vehicle when it goes for service. I felt this was a nice gesture. I must also note that throughout our interaction with Autobahn we have been treated very well, everyone involved has been courteous and extra nice to us, all queries have been promptly and satisfactorily resolved. To add to this they serve excellent freshly brewed coffee and I must have downed litres on my numerous visits to the showroom.

So, I asked my wife if she still wanted to take a test-drive of the Verna and the answer was a resounding NO and in the end we booked the Yeti without checking out any other car, which is significant since we had a fairly wide choice of vehicles within our budget - a testimony to the brilliance of the Yeti. Hence, although we know that maintaining the Yeti is going to cost us much more than, say, a Toyota or a Hyundai, and unless we actually go through the ownership experience for a couple of years we won't know whether Skoda after-sales has been a hit or a miss with us, we have our fingers crossed and are eagerly waiting to welcome the Yeti into our household.

[Sunilrj]

Originally Posted by hrishik

Hello friends

Advance Congrats on your purchase!!

The only lingering doubt about the Yeti that I had was the Skoda after-sales issue, having read scores of unpleasant stories about their after-sales service.

Hence, although we know that maintaining the Yeti is going to cost us much more than, say, a Toyota or a Hyundai, and unless we actually go through the ownership experience for a couple of years we won't know whether Skoda after-sales has been a hit or a miss with us, we have our fingers crossed and are eagerly waiting to welcome the Yeti into our household.

Just dont have any apprehensions regarding A.S.S. . We are Here (like the Vodafone ad 'Happy to help') quite a few of us have direct contact with the SAIPL team and after Mr. Sudhir Rao has taken over things have changed quite a lot.

yeti is a fine Vehicle and you shouldnt be having issues for atleast 4 years. In case you come across any niggles just message any one of us and we will escalate it to the SAIPl team who will resolve it for you to your satisfaction. Having had a Skoda for 3 Months now, i find a sea change in the SAIPL / Skoda A.S.S. attitude from the date i had Purchased the yeti and today!

[shankar.balan]

Originally Posted by Sunilrj

Just dont have any apprehensions regarding A.S.S. . We are Here (like the Vodafone ad 'Happy to help') quite a few of us have direct contact with the SAIPL team and after Mr. Sudhir Rao has taken over things have changed quite a lot.

!

My Yeti front right side brake caliper was making a horrid noise when driving on uneven surfaces. On the main highways and good roads there was no noise at all.. We thought it was the caliper bolts that had gotten worn out.

I went to Vinayak Service in KR Puram this morning and got it checked. Turned out to be that the bake caliper clip had fallen off somewhere and hence this metallic noise.
They replaced it and it is perfect as before!

While there I also had the vehicle fluids checked. Turned out that the vehicle has drunk about 700 ml of engine oil over this last 11200 odd kms. They topped it up since Im off on a long trip day after tomorrow.
I paid a bill of Rs 1915/- for the clip, oil and labour and all taxes. Not too bad really since I was thinking it was a bigger problem than it was in the end!

Once I return I may have done about 12500 kms and intend to give the vehicle in for its first ever service where all the ils etc will be changed and the vehicle thoroughly checked up. Am happy overall with they way they are looking after me so far.