The costs are very reasonable with only the wheel balancing and alignment especially the cost of weights per wheel being a bit expensive

BHPian Shanksta recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

First Service Experience:

I covered 15000 kms in my Slavia on 28-Feb-2024 in just under 6 months of taking delivery. Managed to get an appointment at Gurudev Škoda this week and dropped the car off for its first service.

Reached the service center at 9AM sharp and was attended to in 10 mins. The service advisor did a quick inspection and generated an estimate for ₹7300 for the parts and wheel balancing and alignment. I did not opt for the service maintenance package while buying the car as I felt it was unnecessary. I had specifically told them not to include any additional unnecessary jobs like AC cleaning, engine coating, etc., Immediately got a system generated message that my car was taken in for service and estimated delivery was 4PM. Went on my way to work at 9:30AM.

Around 3:15PM received a call from my service advisor that the service, wheel balancing and alignment and road test were complete and the car was in washing. He told me I could drop by in 30 minutes to pick up the car. Received another system generated message at 3:45PM that my vehicle’s service was complete and the final bill was ₹6497.

Reached the service center at 4:40PM and was immediately attended to by my SA. He gave me a detailed walk through on the work done and the various parameters of the car. Everything was good, I took the entire bunch of workshop forms they filled and went through everything. The first service for Slavia includes engine oil(4.7 liters), oil filter, pollen filter, sump plug and washer replacement. He even took the time to explain to me the alignment values. Paid the bill and waited for a few minutes for the gate pass to be generated.

The SA then brought the car out and it was spick and span, I was expecting a few grease marks in the interior but everything was spotless. I was extremely happy and left back for my office by 5PM.

Overall an extremely satisfying first time experience with Škoda’s service center. They even gave a nice docket with the invoice taking the feel-good factor a notch above. I was pretty worried on how it would go after reading all the horror stories in the forum but was pleasantly surprised.

Also the costs are very reasonable with only the wheel balancing and alignment especially the cost of weights per wheel being a bit expensive, having said that I think it was worth it as they even corrected the slight off center in the steering which I did not mention while dropping the car.

Received a follow up from the SA the following day enquiring if I was happy with the work done and the driving experience post the service.

Kudos to the team at Gurudev Škoda Guindy, a bunch of prompt and pleasant individuals to interact with.

Even with the labor costs included from the next service a total of 7-8k seems very reasonable to spend on maintenance every 15k kms.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

The only complaint I have with the service center is that they have not provided me a loaner car in the interim

BHPian jjp@chn recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Recently, I took delivery of a 2023 Skoda Kodiaq L&K 2.0 TSI AT (Graphite Grey) on 22nd Dec, 2023. Immediately the next day (23rd Dec), I took the vehicle for a 1600 KMs, 9 days long trip with my family from Chennai to Kanyakumari.

Since it has been over a month of ownership, one may be forgiven in assuming that this thread is an Ownership Review for my car or a Travelogue for my trip. Instead, I am writing to share my experience with Skoda India After Sales Support or its lack thereof.

While I have no complaints with the test drive, booking, registration and delivery experience the real horror started within 10 days of taking delivery and it is turning out to be a never-ending nightmare getting worse over the last 30 days.

Just to provide context, over the last 17 years, apart from the current vehicle, I have owned 2 other vehicles from VW/Skoda (2007 Octavia L&K and 2014 Jetta Highline AT). This is apart from multiple other cars from VW/Skoda in my extended family.

I have listed below the chronology of events to help everyone understand the lack of seriousness from Skoda India in resolving my issue and why I believe my loyalty to the brand apparently has no value. If this is how Skoda treats its customer who is loyal to the brand and has purchased its most premium product, I can only assume the situation of others.

20-Dec-2023: Test drove the vehicle and paid the booking amount of Rs.50,000/-. The sales person from Gurudev Motors, Teynampet was very prompt with all the activities, answering all my queries and I don’t have any reason to complain. Even the car loan process got completed in a day’s time. Did a quick PDI on the vehicle the next day at the yard on the 21st Dec, 2023. The VIN indicated that the vehicle was manufactured in Jun-2023. But I was not overly worried as it was an imported vehicle and there might be some delay in the shipment reaching India and getting allocated to the dealer. However, I need to point out that I got a good deal with year-end discounts.

22-Dec-2023: Registration completed and took delivery of the vehicle in the evening which was largely without any surprises. Had pleasant experience at the dealership, apart from the fact that they still haven’t corrected the spelling mistake in my name in their systems. Also, the CRM promised to call me the next day to get the registration completed on the MySkoda and MySkoda ConnectED apps.

23-Dec-2023: Started early morning for the 700 KMs long drive from Chennai to Kanyakumari. This is a regular route for us which we travel almost 3-4 times every year and all our earlier trips in this route have been in sedans (Skoda Octavia, VW Jetta) or couple of times in a hatchback (Honda Brio) and the whole family had a great time for the entire trip in the new “SUV” as it was due of my kids preference for a 3 row SUV that we bought the Kodiaq. Had a good few days travelling locally in Kanyakumari and we were all excited with the new car and in no time we clocked 980 KMs by the 30th Dec, 2023. The next day we were supposed to travel back to Chennai and we were looking forward to the drive. Meanwhile, when I followed up with the CRM on my registration on the MySkoda and MySkoda ConnectED apps, I was informed they were unable to complete it due to some system upgrade issues at Skoda India end and it would get resolved in 15 days. Since this was not a priority item for me, I was least bothered.

31-Dec-2023: Started my trip from Kanyakumari to Chennai at around 10 AM. Within few mins, realized that the cabin was not getting cooled despite having the AC switched on. While I was familiar with the VW/Skoda Climatronic controls, had a detailed discussion with the sales team for basic troubleshooting to see if I was missing anything and since they were unable to resolve the issue I was asked to bring the vehicle to the service center. That is when we came to the realization that , within 10 days of ownership and driving less than 1000 KMs, the AC had abruptly stopped working. I had to drive for 700 KMs without AC in the heat of the day to reach Chennai before I could take the car to the service center as it was a Sunday and none of the service centers along the route were open.

02-Jan-2024: Brought the car to the service center. It took the service center technicians 4 days to diagnose the issue (defective AC Control switch) and return the vehicle back to me on 05-Jan-2024 with the assurance that the defective part will be replaced on priority under warranty and the ETA for the part delivery will be informed once available.

10-Jan-2024: After multiple follow-ups to confirm parts order over the previous 4 days, I was informed by the Service Advisor that the ETA for the replacement part delivery is 17th Jan, 2024.

17-Jan-2024: On reaching out to the Service Advisor on the day the part was expected to arrive, I was informed that the part has not been delivered and there is no revised ETA. Had multiple calls with the CRM and Service Manager without any updates and despite asking for a loaner/courtesy car to use in the interim until the defective vehicle was fixed, I was not provided with one. Raised a complaint online with Skoda Customer Service regarding the issue with the car. In the meanwhile, the issue with the registration on the MySkoda and MySkoda ConnectED apps was still not resolved.

20-Jan-2024: After several follow-ups with CRM and Service Manager on 18th Jan, 2024, I was provided with a revised ETA of 23rd Jan, 2024 for part delivery. Despite the delay in part delivery, a loaner car was still not provided for the interim nor was any financial compensation offered despite my request.

23-Jan-2024: On follow-up with the CRM on the day of expected part delivery, I was informed that the part was not delivered as per ETA given and the revised ETA for the parts delivery is now 08th Feb, 2024, which is a further delay of 16 days as the part is being shipped from Germany. This update comes after I have been in possession of a defective vehicle 25 days and I am expected to wait for another 16 days without any compensation from Skoda and/or Gurudev Motors either for selling me a defective product or for the multiple delays in getting the issue fixed. This is the 3rd time a revised ETA has been given to me. While the CRM mentioned that they are trying to expedite the part delivery, I have no confidence on whether this commitment will be adhered to given the historical evidence. Also, had a heated discussion with the sales CRM regarding the registration on the MySkoda and MySkoda ConnectED apps and after more than a month they were able to get the registration done for MySkoda ConnectED app. However, the MySkoda app registration is still open.

25-Jan-2024: I was informed that the part has been invoiced in Germany on the 22nd Jan, 2024 and would either reach Pune on 4th Feb, 2024 or Bangalore on 8th Feb, 2024. Meanwhile, the Skoda India parts team was check with other dealers in India if anyone has it in stock to be delivered faster.

27-Jan-2024: Received confirmation that the part is not available with any of the dealers in India as it is supposedly a very rare part to fail and hence is not readily available in stock. Awaiting for the next update!

At this point, I don’t believe the delay in parts delivery is due to the Service center. While the service center might not have anticipated this delay when they initially committed the dates with me, at least I get a sense that they are trying to help. However, I am not getting that comfort feeling with Skoda India Customer Support – they just pass the buck back to the service center and let them face the heat from the customer. Since the part has already been invoiced on 22nd Jan, 2024 at Germany, why should it take more than 2 weeks to reach India. If Skoda really wanted to expedite, they would have shipped it through air and I believe that the delay is because Skoda is unwilling to pay additional for shipment through air and routing these parts for delivery through sea.

The only complaint I have with the service center is that they have not provided me a loaner car in the interim as all their 4 cars are not available citing reasons which include 2 cars totalled due to flood, 1 car met with accident and under repairs and 1 car is already with a customer. As a customer, why should I be worried about the reason for the service center not having a loaner car?

Overall, I don’t see any real interest on Skoda’s side to prioritize the repair of the defective vehicle and I have had to raise the issue multiple times. I see a real lack of customer empathy and I am worried about the below aspects in general with respect to my future ownership.

Product Quality: Given the lacklustre response from Skoda, I have to assume that I been sold a defective vehicle which could not perform as per design for even 10 days or 1000 KMs and replacement parts not readily available leading me to question the overall product quality, even for an imported vehicle despite it being their top of the line product.

Service Assurance: Despite purchasing the top variant of Skoda’s top model in India (presumably worldwide), it is taking Skoda more than 1 month to deliver a defective part order with ETA changing 3 times till now over the last 3 weeks. It is pathetic that Skoda is unable to accurately provide an ETA for the part delivery and is not showing any interest to expedite delivery of the parts, especially given the circumstance relating to a new vehicle which malfunctioned within 10 days and 1000 KMs. Also, given the historical evidence with respect to the changing ETAs, I have no confidence that the revised ETA will be adhered to as well. Should I factor 45 days lead time for any future repairs that requires parts replacements?

Customer Service: I have not received any support from Skoda Customer Service for the complaint that I have raised apart from informing me that the service center will get in touch with me. While I have written to Skoda customer support and included Piyush Arora, Petr Solc, Majed Ali, Petr Janeba and Klaus Zellmer (using email ids which I gathered from internet searches, not sure if they are correct), I am yet to receive any revert from either Skoda India customer support or anyone else in loop from Skoda. Only the service center folks are connected with me and at least respond back to me over phone despite having had multiple heated conversations with them from my end.

Furthermore, even after 1 month, the dealer has not even been able to help me to register in the MySkoda app citing issues with Skoda systems and software making me wonder if this is Skoda’s commitment to its customers in India that is takes more than a month to resolve system issues to even register the details in their systems. Even now, I get the below error when trying to connect.

I know, this is not the ideal start to any car ownership, and the events of the last 30 days have seriously dented my confidence to consider a Skoda/VW vehicle for myself or recommend to family/friends in future. Also, all this back and forth with Skoda India and Gurudev Motors have caused me significant anguish and mental hardship, apart from the financial loss of having to pay EMIs for a defective vehicle which I am unable to use as per design. I can only hope to put this behind me once I am able to get my issue resolved.

Thought of sharing this experience with the larger group for awareness. Also, if anyone has further suggestions on what can be done additionally, I am open to ideas.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

Engine is super-smooth, effortless cruiser on the highway, gear shifts are not felt at all except when shifting from 2 to 1.

BHPian adv.yzr recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Greetings BHPians!

It's been a while since we got our VW Taigun GT Plus 1.5 DSG. Purchased on Dhanteras in November 2023 and replaced our close to 15-year-old Maruti Suzuki SX4. I'll be sharing buying & driving experience in this post for the larger audience.

We had purchased SX4 in early 2009 and 2024 being at the corner meant completion of 15 years and the 10-15 year old rule in Delhi-NCR also meant that we have to take a quick decision regarding it and considered the following options:

• I currently reside in Panchkula and make weekly trips to Gurugram, so thought of considering its registration extended in Panchkula, and keeping it for another 5 years. The reason being, the car was driven only 97k km and was in immaculate condition and we didn't really feel the need to sell it off immediately.
• Keep driving till the end-of-life and get it scrapped and avail incentives being offered.
• Sell it off and buy a new car.

After many deliberations and discussions, we opted for 3rd option and then began the search for a new car. The budget was approx 25 lakhs, however, we also thought that we should restrict it to 15 and with the remaining budget replace our 7 year old Baleno diesel next year. So the budget remained in the bracket of 15-25 lakhs and hence the following cars were considered:

Cars considered:

• Tata Nexon: Had booked the pre-facelift XZ+S(D) given the massive discounts. was falling well below the budget and was good enough for highway drives.
• MG Hector: Fell within the budget and was being offered huge discounts on Diesel variant.
• Toyota Innova Crysta: Trust in the brand made us consider it but dropped due to waiting period.
• Tata Harrier/ Safari: Pre-facelift models were being offered at huge discount and were falling well within the budget.
• Honda Elevate: New car but didn't feel good spending 20 lakhs on it.

We were not willing to buy Maruti, Kia or Hyundai primarily because we were looking for a strongly built car and hence the case. We didn't even consider VW/ Skoda due to past experiences of near & dear ones who suggested that we shouldn't buy it owing to high maintenance.

We went ahead with Nexon and finalised the delivery date etc. on the condition that we will do PDI first and then release the payment. However, on the day of PDI, on reaching the showroom, the sales executive informed that he is on his way and will take an hour to reach, that's when we went to VW since we had to pass that 1 hour and the rest is history.

We looked at both Taigun & Virtus and Taigun GT appealed us more. Took a test drive of GT DSG and TC and found that DSG is leaps and bound ahead of TC and finalised the same. They gave a huge discount and better resale value of our SX4. However, family members were still apprehensive of the brand and after multiple visits to the showroom, test drives, they were convinced to go for Taigun but said that we should go for 1.0 Tsi TC due to 2 lakh cheap and better reliability. But I wasn't convinced and persuaded them to go for GT+ DSG since we drive mostly on highways and it will be a much better option in comparison to TC.

Finalised on the colour, which was pre-decided that we'll be going for Lava Blue, since it was a relatively new addition to the colour palette. The sales executive informed that he has 1 car in stock and when we went to stockyard to check, we got to know that it has been sold and was there till yesterday. We decided that we should wait and look for other options or go ahead with Nexon. However, in the evening we were informed that GT+ DSG LB is in transit and is the updated model with ES+Subwoofer and it fortified our decision to get the car as early as possible.

Did the PDI, loan formalities etc. and finalised the date of delivery i.e. 10.11.23 (Dhanteras) and finally got it home.

My Perspective after Purchase and 8k km of driving:

• Engine & Gearbox: Engine is super-smooth, effortless cruiser on the highway, gear shifts are not felt at all except when shifting from 2 to 1. Power on tap given the fact that I haven't driven a car with so much power & torque. Excellent confidence on highways, I consider it as a perfect replacement for our beloved SX4.
• Ride Quality & Comfort: Superb ride quality, I don't think any suspension noise creeps in as reported by other members or maybe I am liking the car way too much. Seats are good and best for 4 people. I did a 3k trip in December to Kanpur, Lucknow, Prayagraj, Varanasi, Khajuraho. Drove back non-stop from Lucknow to Chandigarh and I didn't feel tired or exhausted at all, such is the comfort I am experiencing.
• Fuel Efficiency: On highways I get 20-21 kmpl on cruising speeds of 90-100 which gets reduced to 18-19 kmpl on highway speeds of 110-120. In moderate city traffic, as observed in Panchkula-Chandigarh, I am getting 14-15 kmpl which gets reduced to 12-13 with instant acceleration/ heavy foot. Eco mode works efficiently and the switch from 2 cylinder mode to 4 & vice-versa is smooth and doesn't feel if it is running on 2 cyl. On my UP-MP trip, I got 18 kmpl overall.
• Niggles & Issues: Squeaking noise from driver side door. On undulating roads, the gearbox shifts to 1st gear and doesn't upshift even on manual input/ paddle shifter. Rest appears fine to me.
• Sound System: Feels good, sound quality is impressive, expecting improvements after coding.
• NVH: Smooth & Refined, can't hear the engine but get loud at higher revs. Car came with CEAT tyres, I have found them to be good.
• Service Experience: Average, I felt that VW Service center personnel are not that agile/ active as compared to MASS where they quickly attend to you and your vehicle, I am expecting a change in my perception.
• Overall Ownership Experience: Fantastic.
• Upgrades Planned: Fog Lamps, VCDS Tweaks, Bonnet Insulation (if available)

Accessories purchased from VW:

• Window shades: rear, side window
• Door visors
• Car Mats (fabric)
• Car Cover
• Trumpet Horn
• Luggage Net

Will keep you posted with new developments, experiences.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

Got both headlights changed under warranty. The right side DRL was fading out and looked yellow.

BHPian Atharva14 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

24.5K Kms update on my Taigun:

Update 1:

The clutch master cylinder was changed at 23k Kms. The clutch pedal used to sink in at almost very light pressure and get stuck. Parts were ordered in a week and was replaced. Since it is a hydraulic clutch, it uses the same oil from the brake oil reservoir, which requires the bleeding process to be done again. Drove for 1.5K kms after that and the clutch is just fine.

Update 2:

On my third driver-side window motor now. The first one part no. XY-a changed within 10 days of delivery.( April 2022). The second time, part no. XY-b changed to add the missing autofold orvm in my topline variant. (May 2022)

The third time, part no. XY-c changed recently because the window just stopped rolling down out of nowhere. According to the SVC, this motor is the latest one developed and is less prone to failure. Let's see how much time this motor holds up to. Post motor change, the window roll up down has slowed down considerably, compared to the other window. Software updated to the latest version for the auto up/down as well.

Update 3:

Got the puddle lights (logo projection) installed from the service center as well.

A new accessory and costs 3K for a pair. Attached Detailed video of the installation.

Got JK Tyre treel tpms installed from a tyre shop. Cost 3k for installation, tyre alignment, and balancing.

Update 4:

Got both headlights changed under warranty. The right side DRL was fading out and looked yellow. The left one had no issue but SvC went ahead and claimed both headlights under warranty. Installation requires bumper removal to unscrew the headlights. Got the new ones installed and the beams aligned properly at the svc.

Update 5:

VCDS Tweaks:

• Digital tachometer
• Fogs on with high beam and passing.
• Brake light on as hazard light while boot/bonnet open.

Update 6:

Added 60w auxiliary lights. Comes in 3 different modes and a separate switch to control it. The throw is good. Gave it power through the ignition fuse. Foglights have 100 W LEDs from Durvient.com

Other than that, wrapped the front chrome part of the bumper and alloy wheels in gloss black, according to my taste. Quick DIY.

 As of now, no highway trips. Overall efficiency stands at 11.5kmpl for Mumbai's Peak traffic time.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

We did consider the Slavia for a little while, for the seemingly better value proposition a sedan offers.

BHPian Romeo_Mike recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

I drive a Kushaq 1.5 MT, which I bought in March last year.

That said, I probably would have bought the Taigun 1.5MT if I was in the market now. The Taigun had a decisive lead during our hunt as far as looks were concerned. We prefered it's bold front end to the subtle design of the Kushaq; we liked the interiors better as well. If only VW were selling the 1.5 TSI + MT combo when we were hunting! Things I would do to avoid the DSG woes . Oh, and that meant the Virtus was out too.

We did consider the Slavia for a little while, for the seemingly better value proposition a sedan offers. These things were the deal breakers for us though:

• We could not digest some aspects of how the car looked. Like the unusually big gap in the wheel arches due to the high stance/ground clearance. This was especially important since I prefer to keep the mechanicals of a car bone stock. The rear also looked too 'fat' from some angles.
• Rear passengers were certainly not happy in the slavia. The high shoulder line made everyone feel like they are in a tank!

So why did we buy the Kushaq and not one of the competitors you ask?

TLDR:

• I wanted the best engine I could afford i.e. under 20L for myself. period.
• Then Home ministry asked 'what do you want for us?'. The answer was the safest one in our budget. That sealed the deal!

Might as well add the Verdict after 9 month of ownership here:

It has been an absolute delight so far. Thankfully we did not face any of the usual niggles reported for VAG 2.0 cars like EPC error or window glass winding motor failure etc. So keeping the fingers crossed.

Pros:

• Reasonably good interior space for avg sized adults. I am 5'10" and my father, who's 5'9", has ample leg space when seated behind me.
• Confidence inspiring high speed ride. I confess, I preferred the Taigun in this respect. The Kushaq shoots for a more balanced approach in this repect I feel.
• Bootspace is enough to house luggage for 5 people for a 3-5 day trip. Good enough for us.
• Ventilated seats have been a savior during the hot and humid Mumbai summer.
• With all the reasonable points out of the way, the car has phenomenal smiles/km quotient. That motor is just a beast and I am loving every moment of driving it!

Cons (well, more like nitpicking for me but could matter to some):

• Not a fan of the AC touch controls. With the MT, its very easy to unintentionally alter ac settings.
• The window winding motors are noisy as hell and mimic the sound of a cat being strangled! But hey, no failures yet, so I have learned to live with.
• The engine's noisy for a 4-Cylinder petrol too. But I like the noise it makes when revved so no complaints.
• The tires are a oddball size and not many upgrade options are available from reputed brands. The stock MRFs have a bassy drone that creeps into the cabin and gets irritating at times. Believe it or not, I like to drive without any music when I'm alone in the car. No complaints in the grip department though.
• Fuel economy figures in the city are not for the faint hearted, especially if you are enjoying that motor! I mostly get around 7 kmpl. On the highways it goes upto around 14 kmpl. For reference, I was averaging 10kmpl from my Alto K10. So safe to say the issue is between the seat and the steering wheel.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

Cylinder deactivation works like a charm and I get an overall average of around 14-15 kmpl on mixed cycle.

BHPian Peterf recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Hey everyone,

After driving my Dhanno for nearly 6000 kms would like to share experience with my fellow forum members as well as prospective buyers.

I own a Skoda Slavia Ambition 1.5 DSG model. Bought it last year in September and have used it for 6000kms in both city and highways, in plains and on mountains. The experience has mostly been great, and I would like to categories it broadly in three categories. Things that are great, Things that I can overlook and then things that I just hate.

Great:

• The Engine and gearbox: This engine pumps out 150 bhp and 250 NM of torque and coupled with the extremely fast shifting DSG is plenty of fun on our roads. Overtaking traffic is easy and it is very quick to downshift even in D mode. S mode makes it hold the gears that much longer and is great fun of mountains and dual carriageways where in no time you are overtaking every thing on the road. Very few cars this side of 20 lakhs can give similar satisfaction. All this performance are not at a cost of refinement and the car definitely has got a personality. Sophisticated, charming but arrogant if need arises.
• Exterior Looks: Now I know looks can be subjective but Slavia has clean, strong European lines which will look good even 10 years down the line. It looks good in every color but my personal favorite are red and white.
• Safety: This is a 5 star GNCAP rated car with a strong body shell and you feel cocooned inside it. It is very difficult to pen down this feeling but it is a characteristic that I have only felt in FORD,VAG, TATA cars. Even the body panels are quite strong. Had an autorickshaw hit it sideways at large speed but it took it quite well.
• Paint Quality: I had taken an independent PDI and the guy told me that my car had the best paint quality among the 7 cars he had inspected that week.
• Ride Quality: Very composed ride although a bit stiff is composed over multiple kind of roads. Gives confidence on high speeds and enthusiastic driving.
• Rear Seat leg room: Being a sedan this has ample leg room and is a great four seater for long drives.
• Cavernous Boot: This boot can swallow a lot of luggage and then some more.
• Ground Clearance: You can tackle nearly everything that the Indian roads throw at you. Just great.
• Warning Chimes: Subtle, non intrusive just the way I like it. Convey the information without being jarring.
• Fuel Efficiency : Cylinder deactivation works like a charm and I get an overall average of around 14-15 kmpl on mixed cycle. With this level of performance this is just great.

Could be Better:

• Handling: Although it is quite predictable, I wish if the steering had more response. It just does not convey the confidence which lets say a ford would do.
• Turbo Lag: There is turbo lag at slow city speeds. You need to go above certain rpm for it to pick pace. Although if you press the accelerator hard the gearbox drops down gear and pushes you forward, but in general you can feel this lag in normal driving.
• The interior plastic quality: Although I am fine with the design, the plastic texture and quality leave a lot to be desired.
• The Horn: It is quite meek and in NCR traffic no one takes it seriously.
• DSG shifting: The gearbox gets confused a lot of times especially in low speed rides. Sometimes shifts eagerly to D2/D3 even in slowest of speeds and then sometimes just keeps lugging on in D1. I tried to make out a pattern but it is quite random. Best way to preserve and drive smoothly is to use the manual mode in slow moving traffic.
• Seats: The seats should have been better. The front ones are still fine but the rear ones just lack the width and comfort for more than 2 people. Even in front I am never fully comfortable. It is personal as I am a bit more chubby than required
• The speakers and infotainment system: Mine is the 8 inch one and to be honest it serves it purpose but seeing that I nearly spent more than 18 lakhs on this, they definitely should have been better. Not for audiophiles.
• Brakes: Now to be honest the braking is great. however it is more like a start stop system in my car. Either nothing happens or the damn thing stops like it hit a wall. Still have not got used to it.
• The door locking mechanism: I feel it is just too easy to open by just pulling the lever twice. Could have kept a separate button or something. Can be dangerous with kids, so keep the child lock on.
• Controls on the wrong side: Come on Skoda, weren't these supposed to be India specific cars.

• Now coming to the things I just hate:

• Air conditioner: Stay away if you are used to chilled environments in your car. It needs to be put at very low temperatures to make it bearable. Especially in Delhi NCR and this I am saying when I got my car in September.
• Start Stop System: I just hate it. If someone can suggest how this can be turned off completely I would be very grateful.
• Rattles: This thing rattles. Never thought I would say this about a Skoda. But if you get irritated with slightest sounds stay away from the car. We have some bad roads which may have exaggerated the experience but still my 12 year old Ford rattles less than this.
• Headlights: Now I may be a bit harsh on them but they just do not inspire confidence on highways. I need to always keep the fog lamps on to have some intensity in the beam. Need to do some upgrade.
• Rear Camera: Pathetic excuse for a rear camera. Skoda you should fire the executive who thinks that a VGA quality camera is good for this price and segment.

As you can see the car is not without its fault. However I am satisfied with my purchase. Its engine , gearbox and drive combo compensate majority of its short coming. Cars are always an emotional purchase and I always prefer cars that have personalities. I love my Dhanno and driving this thing on highway makes me forget life's tension. Waiting for the summers to see if this feeling change.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

Euro cars like the Kodiaq I felt are mostly designed with a focus on drive comfort, internal dimensions, giving more space inside giving a roomy feeling

BHPian kurups recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Skoda Kodiaq (MY23 Vehicle) – My expectations from the car, competition analysis, accessories, niggles.

Its been 8 months driving the Skoda Kodiaq and hence thought to share my decision making process to select the Kodiaq among other similarly capable or priced cars and my driving experience covering 6000+ Kms on the bear. The inspiration to write has obviously been the numerous auto enthusiast in this TeamBHP forum who have already shared their views on the vehicle which has somewhat helped me shape up my opinions as well. So a big thank you to all of them and I feel few of my thoughts mentioned below might also be useful to someone.

• Requirements that I sought in the car

• Competition Analyzed before selecting the Kodiaq – Fortuner/Jeep Meridian/X1/GLA/Q3 and few others
• Why I chose the Kodiaq and buying experience from Raja Skoda, Bangalore
• Accessories added and maintenance items bought
• Niggles with the Kodiaq

Requirements that I sought in the car:

The quest for the perfect ride began with a desire for a powerful petrol SUV, a good-looking car, a monocoque chassis which would be good to be used within city and on highways and the flexibility of a 7-seater. These became the four fundamental requirements. A search which started with a budget of 20-30 Lakhs pre-covid, somehow ended up with the Kodiaq in 2023. Have driven the Hyundai Santro – dad used it mostly since 2006, a Tata Indigo CS that I drove since 2008 and a Nissan Micra – wife’s’ car - driven since 2017. Once the Indigo CS was sold and Micra came home, we decided to drive it for few years before choosing a car for me to replace the Indigo CS. Ours is basically a family of 4 - me, spouse and 2 kids. Occasionally parents/brother with his family/cousins join in. Of course, travelling in two cars has been the norm when we go out as a family, but a 7-seater for occasional travel would be more spacious for people / extra luggage when required or otherwise use it as a 5 seater was the whole thought process.

Competition Analyzed before selecting Kodiaq – Fortuner/X1/GLA/Q3/Jeep Meridian:

During the covid days the need of a car drastically reduced with work from home setting in and outstation trips reduced to almost nil and hence the requirement of a new car just died down. The Micra itself clocked lesser kms and served the purpose in those days mainly restricted to city drives. By the end of 2021, the evaluation kickstarted again. Kodiaq was re-launched in India in Jan 2022 and it immediately caught the attention – first for the simple reason that I felt it was designed to look great from all angles and it did meet rest of my requirements as well.

Then the obvious question before deciding to get it, was that if I am spending on a Kodiaq, why not have a serious thought on the 3 German badged cars in that price range (X1, GLA or the Q3). Thought over it for over a long period. The 7-seaters from these brands were more than a crore and clearly out of sight & budget. The closest that came under the radar was Mercs GLB 7-seater which was launched in the US at an awesome price, but post covid as all prices went up, by the time it got launched in India, it was launched on road in Bangalore at 75+. Removing GLB from the radar, went ahead evaluating the Fortuner, Jeep Meridian, X1, GLA, Q3 and the Kodiaq.

The Fortuner from a road presence perspective scores great and had a good high seating position giving great visibility and commanding position, but it looked really bland from inside. The infotainment systems looked pre-historic from what we see today. Its time Toyota spends some time and energy on this. The ladder frame chassis, upon which the Fortuner is constructed, prioritizes off-road capabilities, a feature that may be relevant to may be 5% of a vehicle's overall usage life. Felt a lot of body roll on winding roads (An Innova’s ride quality felt better). The Fortuner lacked the sophistication found in the Kodiaq, both in terms of interior and exterior aspects. Despite its rugged and robust road presence, the Fortuner fell short when compared with the Kodiaq, whose charm overshadowed the Fortuner's tough exterior aesthetics, especially up close. Beauty, however, is subjective and personal preferences may vary and since the macho butch looks weren’t on my priority list, added to the fact that the Fortuner's interiors appeared outdated and lacking in updates along with the ladder frame construction deterred my interest on this vehicle.

X1/Q3/GLA - A comparison with the 3 badged cars in the same price range – these were not 7 seaters, but still costs almost similar, if not more. The truth is also that none of the top end variants of these German entry level cars comes under 50 lakhs, neither did the top end variants of these cars had features as the Kodiaq L&K had. In summary I felt shopping for less space & lesser features at a higher price and only for an aspirational badge value associated with these models.

Anyway, here are some other observations:- The X1 looked good from an exterior design perspective and was fun to drive, but comfort wise Kodiaq wins any day as the X1 I found was tuned to be on the stiffer side. It felt a bit outdated and lacked the features that BMW offers on its X3/X5. The drive with all these 3 cars were peppy and not much to complain, they were quick on the road and maneuvering felt great – courtesy the almost similar torque figures and the smaller size of the car compared to other full size SUVs. The BMW X1 back then was at the end of its life and was the final release for its generation. The latest X1 as we speak has now come with only 150bhp. Among the 3 German cars, the BMW X1 looks appealing to the eyes.

GLA looked very premium from inside, again a very peppy driving machine, but the exterior dimensions and a glorified hatch back look with just the logo to feel proud about, didn’t enthuse me to take that aspirational plunge.

Q3 drives a bit better among all the three but didn't find the premium it demands worth for that few moments in time when I would really feel that difference in drive and didn't feel going for a 5 seater vehicle paying a premium compared to the plushness, space & DCC offered by Skoda's premium 7 seater. The Kodiaq practically has 2nd row space similar to a Q7, much more than the space in a Q5, leave alone the comparison with Q3. No wireless android auto on Audis, I felt was a big disappointment.

The 3 German entry level cars are basically the respective company’s entry level products, lacks equipment comparatively and feels overpriced to what they offer. I did not pursue the Jeep Meridian much as it was available only in the diesel variant. The Jeep’s Compass to me was well built & looked much better in its proportions and was a nimble sporty vehicle, the Meridian felt like a stretched out Compass with the exact same engine spec as the Compass. Wished Meridian was given a bit more curves than the boxy feeling that it has today.

If 7-seater was not a requirement, the Tiguan was an extremely good choice. Outside of India, there is not much difference in the Tiguan pricing and these German cars. For some reason, the Indian variants of X1/GLA/Q3 post covid have been crazily overprized compared to a Tiguan. A Tiguan has more internal space and is plush inside and is comparable to some of these German cars, having similar engine & gearbox specs.

Why I chose the Kodiaq and buying experience from Raja Skoda, Bangalore:

Now, coming to the Kodiaq. Air Suspension is not a feature that the Kodiaq has, but if you don’t want to spend on a BMW 7 series, Audi Q7 or a Mercedes GLE, and still want to get close to an air suspension drive quality then the best possible option is to get a Kodiaq at half the price and experience a glide-like feeling in its comfort mode.

This was January 2022 when the test drive was requested and Raja Skoda team at Bangalore readily came up for the test drive in just one call. Had told them that I will have to drive it on some long stretches and I need to evaluate all possible driving conditions, seating positions and will test out every other nuance of the Kodiaq. The sales team got approvals for an extended test drive.

The Euro cars like the Kodiaq I felt are mostly designed with a focus on drive comfort, internal dimensions, giving more space inside giving a roomy feeling and not focused much on the yesteryear American external butch and macho looks. The monocoque chassis of the Kodiaq gave a feeling of a sturdy well-built machine, was able to contain the body roll on curvy roads, giving excellent drive comfort as I took it for a spin. The (DCC) Dynamic Chassis Control - basically adaptive suspensions, and the drive modes – sports/comfort etc – really made a difference on the road. I initially had a feeling that this would be more of a software gimmick and felt that I may not be able to see much difference on the road. But unlike my belief, a shift from the comfort mode to sports mode for example hardened the steering movements and the car was quicker to accelerate. I feel this must have been the default mode of the Kodiaq. The comfort mode on the other hand, cushioned the drive on the Bangalore potholes like a charm. A three-zone climate control – separate adjustable temperatures for the driver seat, the co-passenger and the rear seat passengers, features like ventilated - heated & cooled seats and hands-free parking adds to the feature list of the Kodiaq. There were too many features to evaluate or understand in a test drive.

The questionable aspect of this 7-seater were the rear seats. Me, my wife could get on the rear seat, and we drove with each of us sitting in the 3rd row for more than 20-30 minutes and to be frank I did not have any great concerns to point out. Just to give some reference - I am for example 5 ft 9 and around 75 kgs. Getting in/coming out of the 3rd row - you might need to be a bit flexible – that’s one negative I felt, but this is across the industry with no cars having thought of any genius idea to overcome this entry/exit to the 3rd row seating. I had come across many reviews of the Kodiaq where the 3rd row seating was repeatedly called out as “only for kids”. This, I feel is purely subjective on who is reviewing or trying to sit at the rear seat. In my case, the plan was to put kids who were 11 and 6 back then to the 3rd rows. But then when I and my wife tried sitting, it was not bad and can’t be classified as only for kids. For those who are still in a deciding phase, I would recommend that you try this out and make people sit & experience it while driving and then take a call. A frank suggestion for someone similar in a body frame as mine - it’s good to go. More on the 3rd row with our recent trip on the Kodiaq– Bangalore to Goa with two families – the 4x4 taking 4 adults + 4 Kids - detailed in the next post below.

The internal quality of leather, choice of colors, soft plastics, space for water bottles, mobile wireless charging, adaptive suspensions, adequate luggage space 270 liters (or call it 320 liters with some modifications) with all three row up, 12 way adjustable seating adjustments, sliding 2nd rows, ability to fold both 3rd row and 2nd row parallel to the ground creating 2000+ liters space with optimal use of chrome gives the interiors a pretty luxurious feeling. Pen holder, parking slip holder, cup holder in the rear seat, the nap package, sufficient hooks inside the cabin and in the boot, 2nd row rear seatbelt holders – to avoid unnecessary sound while its dangling free, well though through 3rd row seat belt holders, power sources in all three rows, external door protectors in MY23 model and so many more simple & clever additions in the Kodiaq makes it a feel good vehicle.

So compared to the other vehicles test driven the Kodiaq was coming out as a clear winner ticking the basic requirements – 7-seater, Petrol SUV with monocoque chassis and it drove well in the city and the drive quality where I tried – the Hebbal-Bangalore Airport Road was just awesome. It definitely looked like a proper SUV with a sedan like driving comfort. Overall, to get these features that are present in the Kodiaq, I feel one will have to pay atleast 10-15 lakhs extra to get a comparable car.

The back of the mind requirement of a 7-seater, being less keen to have ownership of one of the 3 badged German cars and looking for value and more practicality finally ended up with me siding with the Kodiaq.

After all the test drives in Jan 2022, by the time I decided to go for the Kodiaq (Feb end, 2022), even the test drive vehicles were sold out by all Skoda dealers in Bangalore, much so that they stopped taking bookings across India. Had to wait for another 6 months for Skoda India for re-introducing the Kodiaq and in August 2022 booked the Kodiaq L&K lava blue as soon as it was made available to book. A long wait time and come March 2023, the dealer shared the VIN details, payment done and took delivery of this beauty in April 2023, a MY23 vehicle and come December 2023, ended up clocking 6000+Kms.

Accessories that I ended up adding and the maintenance items bought:

A Dashcam – 70mai A800S with a 128GB SD giving almost 12-14 Hrs of recording.

Ceramic Coating – Ceramic/PPF confusion ended with Ceramic. Before taking the deliver, got WURTH ceramic coating done from the Skoda Service Center itself with a contract with Skoda that they will do a touchup treatment every 6 months for the next 3 years. This to me now looks like a good decision as the car is swanky shiny at most times and its easy to dust off as it accumulates lesser dust.

Jopasu Duster – This duster with waxed microfiber lining + the ceramic coating has ensured the car is kept neat and shining throughout. This duster does not involve to & fro rubbing as the duster picks up dust as we slide it once over the body. Bought a duster rejuvenator from Amazon after 6 months of using this duster and the now its back in action.

3M CR70 film on the windshield, all window glasses & the 3M CR90 for the sunroof – Had taken the Kodiaq for a drive in the summer of April month and felt that a heat protective film would be a good addition and having done the CR70 coating on my Nissan Micra, I felt a remarkable change with reduction of heat on hot sunny days. This addition has made a sea change in the Kodiaq as well, keeping the AC Temp nominal, especially with 7 members in the car, its better to get this done for AC to be effectively till the last rows. Its advisable to switch ON the internal circulation for the AC to be effective in the Kodiaq as the by-default setting is it to be kept OFF. 3M Koramangala guys were courteous enough and give a free PPF covering for the side view mirrors, the door handles and the B & C pillars.

Kagu 3D Mats – This has been a life saver compared to the mats that came default with the Kodiaq. It’s pretty easy to clean and maintain. Did not take the rubber mats that was offered by Skoda as accessories. Kagu 3D mats were not available online but could find a dealer in Chennai who delivered the Mats at Bangalore. Some pics of the mat:

Some pics with Kagu 3D Mats laid in the Kodiaq:

Cleaning and Maintenance Accessories:

The Wruth Plastic & Rubber care spray is extremely useful to maintain the black color of the rubber parts especially the front rubber & plastic parts and the rear hexagonal plastic mesh type structure. The spray ensures the liquid enters the places where its difficult to maintain manually.

Added up a fire extinguisher and a car shampoo to be used with a Water Jet spray machine to clean up the car occasionally, 3M Tyre dresser and 3M Dashboard dresser and a Leather cleaning solution from ShineXPro to keep the light color leather seats intact.

Found a Storage Bag on Amazon that takes up all of maintenance items and fits it exactly in the rear left of the Kodiaqs boot such that the grey boot cover can be opened without disturbing the storage bag. Pic below:

A wireless and sleek designed vacuum cleaner from ShineXPro, that lasts almost 25-30 minutes on full charge with a suction power of 5500 Pa to 7000 Pa. That’s sufficient suction power and the wireless nature enables it to be brought home for re-charging or using for household suction requirements too. This neatly tucks into its carry bag and the unit stays in the left side of the boot bottom, adjacent to the spare wheel.

A Tyre inflator from TUSA and a puncture kit combo takes the extreme left side of the boot.

A car dustbin that goes into the 2nd row door bottle holder space, separate Microfiber cloth – for exterior, interiors and the alloys, a palm size Duster to push out dust that gets settled into some of the crevices of the Kodiaq which can’t be accessed otherwise is useful at times.

Tissue Papers cum Card Holder, Sun Glasses Holder & an Air Pressure Gauge – Got a neat tissue paper box & a sunglasses holder that gets clipped behind the visor mirror base as shown below. Added a Stanley Air Pressure Gauge and had an interesting observation. When I fill the tyres with my TUSA tyre Inflator and cross check that with the Stanley gauge it exactly matches the PSI reading. Any time I fill air from Petrol Pumps, the Stanley Gauge always gives a lesser value, shaking my confidence on these Petrol Pump Air pressure values.

Added a Tyre stone remover bought from Amazon recently with a DIY pouch for it and this pouch gets tucked into the front left door – umbrella holder and the faux leather pouch ensures no unnecessary bouncing sounds while the vehicle is on the move.

From practicality to aesthetics, these additions have become an integral part of the Kodiaq's narrative.

Niggles with the Kodiaq:

No love story is without its quirks, and the Kodiaq has a few:

• “Hi Laura” command – found it of not much use. If anyone has got some useful stuff done with her, please share.
• The maps provided by Skoda does not having traffic updates in India, making it redundant and it all comes back to google maps. Hence a facility should have been provided to show google maps view in the screen behind the steering, not only on the central touchscreen.
• Nets provided with the Kodiaq – In the seven-seater mode, am just trying to see how to make use of these nets. If someone has found a real use, please do share.
• The wireless charging space for mobiles must have been a tad bigger.
• Along with the 12V socket provided, the two USB – C Ports in the front is useful, but once you put any type of cable or a USB C to A convertor, the glossy lid covering the wireless charging space cannot be closed. This could have been designed better to accommodate the use of USB ports and a closeable cover.
• A USB port on the internal rear-view mirror is available in Euro specs Kodiaq and is given a miss in India. A must have for powering the dashcams, else it leads to routing the dashcam cables all the way from the top where the Dashcam is fitted to the USB ports at the bottom.
• An additional rear AC vent in the 3rd row could have helped.
• Do we have any regulations regarding the vehicle headlight power - lumens restrictions or so in India? On a completely dark roads (say with no streetlights) or incoming vehicles, the headlights of the Kodiaq seem lighting the road extremely well – no doubt on this. But when you have vehicles coming from the opposite directions, call it the glare or whatever you wanna call it, the path ahead somehow doesn’t seem getting lit well. I have seen forum members citing Kodiaq’s headlights as one of the best. Not sure if I am expecting too much about the path visibility or some regulations are keeping this light power lesser to my liking or is it time to change my glasses .
• A bit more space and thigh support on the 3rd row would have added better comfort.
• Once or twice the windshield wipers jarred making some noise and it became fine after that without any intervention. Never experienced those disturbing noises again.

These are some of the poetic imperfections that I wished the Kodiaq had refined which is otherwise a finely crafted vehicle. Wish it continues adding character to the saga and enable all of us cover miles and miles.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

The mechatronic repair did not last too well and I was facing issues with the car on and off after 15k kms of the repair.

BHPian Viraat13 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Hello Bhpians,

I haven't been able to update the thread lately, however I've done 20000km since the last post.

More than a few things to report since then.

In terms of maintenance, I faced a major cut in the new Continentals. Thankfully, their warranty procedure is fairly smooth, so I got a replacement tyre in a few days at 65% discount (basis the tread wear).

One of the rear wheel bearings had failed, replaced this with an OEM unit.

I didn't take any photos, but I also put in a new multiclutch (preventive) as it had started to fail and did give faults a couple of times while on longish drives in the city. The mechatronic repair did not last too well and I was facing issues with the car on and off after 15k kms of the repair. I considered using this as an excuse to replace the car, but I couldn't think of a logical replacement, and it's always cheaper to repair your current car than replace it. I got this done at VW, and the new mechatronic was around 86K.

As is usual of late, I did several trips on the highway. Some seriously dense fog at 6am near Agra in early December. This is around 6:30am.

Despite its flaws, I still like how the Polo looks. It has really aged well. Might consider changing to the new bumpers/grilles at some point to make it look fresh again.

The Polo was at 90k on 19th May, 100k on 30th Aug, and 110k on 7th Jan

20000km in 230 odd days, probably a record for me.

I'd also shifted operations to a new garage in the second half of last year, so it really has been busy.

Here is the car inside said garage. OEM oil filter, air filter, and AC filter. Fuchs 5w40 fully synthetic engine oil - my preferred brand of late.

Spark plugs need to be replaced, and so does the fuel filter. Should get around to it in a few days when I get fresh stock.

Looking forward to the next 10k kms, as the car is unlikely to need maintenance money.

However, that should take me 6 months or so as I'm planning to use my Skoda a bit more instead.

Wish you all many happy miles.

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In future I am even contemplating to get an oil change at 7.5K kms & regular service at 15K difference.

BHPian SilverSmoke recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Got Avalanche's second service done at 24K KMs.

Got a new lease of life - engine got hyper smooth & very responsive. I highly recommend don't wait for 15K KMs for an oil change - get it done by 10K KMs - strictly. We just keep slushing the engine in high viscosity oil past 10K KMs - don't know why Skoda has recommended that at 15K KMs.

In future I am even contemplating to get an oil change at 7.5K KMs & regular service at 15K difference.

Here comes out the old, dark & restricting oil:

That goes the fresh, clean & transparent dose of engine's blood - difference is clearly evident.

The grade of oil used. 5.7 litres of it

That's the DSG transmission underneath - with black cover over mechatronic unit in front.

Cabin air filter. Dont know if its HEPA or not:

The choked side, thanks to rising air pollution:

Remaining brake pads - guess they will be good for another 25K KMs. If they are to be replaced with disc - they will set you back by ₹75K:

The fluid that was poured into wiper washer compartment. Can't understand what's written - used Google translate, turned out to be - Summer Mix for Washer:

Just a minor issue cropped after software update this service - ORVMs now don't dip down while shifting to reverse - hoping for it to get corrected soon.

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The suspension has no damping at all. It crashes into even the smallest of the undulations with loud knocking and rattling noises

BHPian novice recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

It appears engine misfires/jerks seem lot more common on 2.0 TSI than I thought. I always felt my 1.8 TSI Superb ran super smooth on HP petrol. In fact, it runs better on HP regular petrol compared to even IOC's XP95. With XP95, it is always a hit or miss and there is clear difference in engine power and smoothness between refills but unlike the Kodiaq it doesn't completely fail to run.

I feel there is something in IOC fuels, especially the XP95, that these VW engines don't like. I don't think it is down to individual bunks.

Interestingly, I had driven the Kodiaq through TN a lot (~12k of total 18k on the odo) and filled XP95 from any highway bunk that I could find but never faced misfire issues. Engine issues come up only when I fill XP95 from my neighborhood bunks in Bangalore.

My hypothesis, excessive moisture content in XP95 being sold in Bangalore. It may sound stupid, but I am wondering if TN being a dry state and Bangalore being a wet place has anything to do with it? Or may be the refinery or distribution channels that deliver to Bangalore city are to be blamed?

Apart from Engine related issues, my car has two other critical issues.

Excessively Hard Suspension - The suspension has no damping at all. It crashes into even the smallest of the undulations with loud knocking and rattling noises from suspension. Alloy wheels develop wobbling as they get out of shape due to suspension not offering any damping. The ride is harsh, bumpy and unsettled with lot of body roll. My car is on it's third set of allyos. I have 12 Kodiaq L&K alloys with me and 10 out of 12 have developed wobbling. The same has been checked and confirmed by Madhus. What's worse, some of the alloys from Skoda have wobbling right out of the box. But Tafe has refused to acknowledge the problem and denied warranty even for the alloys that were faulty. Skoda ships alloys in a thin and flimsy carton box with no protection. I have driven few other Kodiaqs of the same age and they all run absolutely fine. Only my car has these issues. I drive the car with utmost care, real slow on bad stretches, humps and potholes.

Abnormal Noise and vibration from Drivetrain/Steering - I drove to Kodaikanal recently. While climbing uphill, there was very loud humming noise and vibrations from the drivetrain/steering every time the steering was turned more than half lock on either side. The humming noise was audible to everyone inside the cabin even with windows rolled up, AC running and Music playing. This continued from the base of the hill till we reached the hill top. I never experienced this problem on plain roads. Complained to both Tafe and PPS but haven't got any explanation so far. This I believe is some undiagnosed problem waiting to explode.

Have written a mail to Skoda listing out all the issues. Awaiting their response.

I am not even going to talk about interiors bits breaking off.

I reported the misfire issue to Skoda and they got in touch with the service center and I was asked to leave to car with service today. Car was parked for about a week after the last misfire incident. I crank engine this morning and start driving but there is no hint of any misfire.

Called up service technician who was in touch with me and explained the situation. He requested me to continue to use the car and bring it to him when the issue occurs again.

It isn’t a random misfire once in a while. I would be okay with it if that’s the case. Here it goes from one extreme to another. It misfired so badly that it shook the whole car.

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