[arunphilip]

Great review of a great car. Here's wishing you many happy, safe and niggle-free miles with it. Beautiful colour, very stealthy looking.

I had to laugh at the comparison between the Toyota and Dravid, and you'd have annoyed many if you hadn't added the differentiation!

I'm curious - the first two pictures of your City have different plates on the front and the rear. What gives?

[krishnadevjs]

Originally Posted by arunphilip

I had to laugh at the comparison between the Toyota and Dravid, and you'd have annoyed many if you hadn't added the differentiation!

I'm curious - the first two pictures of your City have different plates on the front and the rear. What gives?

Thanks! Had to walk a thin line there with the Dravid-Kohli comparison.
When I bought the City, I was based out of Pondicherry, but 2 years ago, I moved to Mumbai. Hence, PY plates first and then MH. Good observation skills!

[derek]

Hi Krishna, where the heck is the wlan setting? Can't seem to find it.

[mrinmoy_s]

A review directly from the heart of a car that tickles the deepest core of an enthusiast's heart! The colour looks amazing mate.

However, given the fact that you did consider the A3 and the CLA, I am assuming you did have a budget of >30L. Why not the RS then? Along with 230 horses, you could have got the peace of mind of a wet clutch DSG!

Anyway, the grin that even this 1.8 TSI gives every time you floor the pedal, is worth the slight apprehension to live with.

Originally Posted by krishnadevjs

Background
c. 1.6L Petrol engine with 7 Speed DSG

You meant the 1.2L TSI right? I don't think the 1.6L MPI comes with the DSG.

[krishnadevjs]

Originally Posted by derek

Hi Krishna, where the heck is the wlan setting? Can't seem to find it.

Hi Derek, go to Media -> Settings ->WLAN.

Originally Posted by mrinmoy_s

A review directly from the heart of a car that tickles the deepest core of an enthusiast's heart! The colour looks amazing mate.

However, given the fact that you did consider the A3 and the CLA, I am assuming you did have a budget of >30L. Why not the RS then? Along with 230 horses, you could have got the peace of mind of a wet clutch DSG!

Thanks mrinmoy_s! I did think long and hard about the RS, but I have a very sedate, comfort oriented driving pattern. As such, I didn't feel I'd be able to do justice to the beast that is the vRS. Hence, chose the L&K.

The DQ200 reliability concern was definitely on my mind, but the 4 year warranty and maintenance package from Skoda, coupled with the understanding that issues have been substantially reduced post the switch to synthetic transmission oil helped with the decision to stick with it. As you said, the grin is worth the apprehension.

Originally Posted by mrinmoy_s

You meant the 1.2L TSI right? I don't think the 1.6L MPI comes with the DSG.

Yes. The 1.2L. My bad!

[7heaven]

Hi Krishna, Congratulations on your new Octavia! Just last week I had been to the Gurudev motors showroom to just check on the cars as I had some time to kill while passing by.

Saw the Rapid and Octavia and was told the waiting period for the later petrol model was 2 months plus and diesel 1month plus. Was thinking if you had waited for another month or so you could have gotten a 2018 model albeit with some price increase

But you had already waited from September, so no point in waiting further. Would like to know if the seats are ventilated or not. At this price point that would have given a real comfortable driving experience.

Really love the sturdiness of the Skoda, have been driving Fabia since 2008. Wishing you a Happy and Safe driving in the years to come.

[krishnadevjs]

Originally Posted by 7heaven

Hi Krishna, Congratulations on your new Octavia!
Saw the Rapid and Octavia and was told the waiting period for the later petrol model was 2 months plus and diesel 1month plus. Was thinking if you had waited for another month or so you could have gotten a 2018 model albeit with some price increase

Thanks 7heaven. I'm not convinced by the 2 month lead time mentioned by Gurudev. Even I was told 6 weeks when I had booked.
Someone I know had booked the same car, by early September, in Chennai. He's about to get his car just next week.

No, the seats aren't ventilated. Would've been nice if they were, though - especially in Indian summers.

[Karvel]

Congrats on your new Octy, Krishnadev. Excellent car to drive and keeps you cocooned. Quartz Grey is a wonderful choice and enhances the vehicle presence even more. Yes, the 4 yr warranty and 4 year service package played a significant role in my decision as well, when i picked up a Style Plus TDI last year. All the best for a wonderful ownership experience, keep driving.

[krishnadevjs]

3 months later, the Octy is now at 3200km, an average of a 1000km a month. It has been an absolute dream to drive, in all these 3 months. There's not a single moment when I'm not thankful that I had the will power to stick with Skoda through all the delivery delays.

Till now, I've not handed over the car to the car wash boys, as they totally ruin the paint job - not planning to give either, in the future. The cleaning routine involves a Jopasu dusting every alternate day and a car wash using a 2L spray gun bottle and 2 super absorbent 3M towels the other day.
This routine has avoided swirls to a major extent, while at the same time giving me some exercise.

A couple of minor hassles I noticed however is as below:

1. The creaking sounds from door beadings, which have been reported by many Octavia owners is there in my Octy as well. Quite frankly, it's irritating and out of place in an otherwise brilliant car. But nothing that an application of Gummipfledge cannot resolve. Got my bottle off Amazon through their Global Buying option. Post application, the ride is again pristine, with not a single creak.

2. There is no boot opening function from within the car. You have to unlock the doors, and the person outside has to open the boot from outside. This is especially challenging in malls and airports, where the security people seldom know where the boot open switch is. More often than not, you need to come out and open the boot. Wish there was a boot release button inside the cabin.

3. Brake dust keeps showing up on the front alloys even after very short drives (to the tune of 4-5km). Cleaning it on a regular basis is a pain, thanks to the 10 spoke alloy wheels. Confused whether this is actually supposed to happen. Thinking of showing it to a Skoda service centre sometime soon.

I am planning a drive from Mumbai to Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram, in the 4th week of April. Planning to do the 1800km one-way drive over 2 days, with a stopover in Tumkur.

Since I'd be on the highway and the Octy would be prone to stone chips & other highway risks, I got her treated with a UNC-R Ceramic Coating at MaxShine, Thane.
I've had a good previous experience with Mangesh from MaxShine, when I got the ceramic coating done for my City. So, I really didn't consider any other detailer for the Octy.

Besides, UNC-R from Max Protect, UK is one of the better ceramic coatings available in the market. It gives good protection against swirls, stone chips and other light scratches. The water repelling property too is apparently better than other available products.

The superior product and the care with which Mangesh and his team approach the job, have made an already good looking car even more brilliant.

Attaching some photos post UNC-R coating:

The car was kept covered with a plastic cover for 2 days, during the curing process.


Better than the showroom finish


While I've always loved the Quartz Grey colour, I feel that the ceramic coating has added to the glaze and sheen of the paint, and brought out a completely new and better shade.


There is an overall smooth finish to the car, even better than when it was delivered. Forget beading effect - water just slides off the surface.


The glasses, rims and all paint portions have been coated with UNC-R.


Mangesh, poses with his latest pampered beauty.


More updates from the road trip soon...

[Karvel]

Originally Posted by krishnadevjs

..

Till now, I've not handed over the car to the car wash boys, as they totally ruin the paint job - not planning to give either, in the future. The cleaning routine involves a Jopasu dusting every alternate day and a car wash using a 2L spray gun bottle and 2 super absorbent 3M towels the other day.
This routine has avoided swirls to a major extent, while at the same time giving me some exercise.

...

Hi Krishnadev, Ceramic coating has brought out the beauty of the colour even more and will surely make heads turnaround.

On the cleaning part, alternate day car wash will not be required. Swipe with Jopasu duster and may be wash only once in a week, is what i follow. I had done the Onyxaa 9H coating and following the above weekly or fortnightly wash process.

[krishnadevjs]

Originally Posted by Karvel

On the cleaning part, alternate day car wash will not be required. Swipe with Jopasu duster and may be wash only once in a week, is what i follow. I had done the Onyxaa 9H coating and following the above weekly or fortnightly wash process.

Hi Karvel, unfortunately, I stay in a colony where there are no covered parking slots. There are also a lot of trees over here, resulting in the inevitable carpet bombing by pigeons, crows and other winged creatures.

To keep the paint free from spots and blemishes, I have to clear these bird droppings soon. Hence, the alternate day car wash.

[itwasntme]

Originally Posted by krishnadevjs

3. Brake dust keeps showing up on the front alloys even after very short drives (to the tune of 4-5km). Cleaning it on a regular basis is a pain, thanks to the 10 spoke alloy wheels. Confused whether this is actually supposed to happen. Thinking of showing it to a Skoda service centre sometime soon.

The brake dust is a lot I admit and really gets into the wheel nut areas making them a mess to clean. However, I noticed that the dust reduces as the pad beds down and again increases as it gets thinner and thinner. I am now in the latter phase and very messy right now.

[lancer_rit]

Originally Posted by itwasntme

The brake dust is a lot I admit and really gets into the wheel nut areas making them a mess to clean. However, I noticed that the dust reduces as the pad beds down and again increases as it gets thinner and thinner. I am now in the latter phase and very messy right now.

I see a lot of brake dust on my Superb's front wheels top. If you wipe a portion, it seems dazzling bright next to what seems like 'boot polish' applied areas :-(

[qAnand]

Thanks for the detailed review. I test drove the L&K TSI variant today. I felt the tyre noise a bit annoying. It's more evident if you stop the AC and audio. Any advice to replace the tyre? I guess the factory fitted tyre is from Goodyear.

[krishnadevjs]

Michelins are known to reduce tyre noise significantly. But you compromise on tyre life and cost. Tyre noise isn't something that worries me too much now. It's the door beading noise that's unbearable. Have to apply gummipfledge without fail every week to control that.