[navin]

Took a yellow RS out for about 45 min from prabhadevi to worli sea face last friday. when i got to WSF it was pouring so i was careful. got used the controls. by the time i took the U at the end of arraey milk dairy i was pepped but the rain was still coming in sheets. still without even trying i did 0-80 in about 5-6 secs. I figured it was apssig shower so decided to wait it out. when the shower passed and visibility impored i decided to spin it's wheels once again.

The car was still a bit sluggish. No whiplash acceleration but it was reasonabley fast. definitely a lot faster than the 1.9 or 2.0 or even the corolla. good road handling. as a package it might be the best car in it's class and that includes the 4 cyl accord.

against the car:
rear leg room
rear visibilty (the rear spoiler does just that - spoils the rear view)

for the car:
ride, handling, pep.

Now the road had dried a bit so I decided to run some times. Using the Chrono on my watch. 0-100 in about 8-9 secs and i was not even redlining the thing. Nice. What I liked was the car had a power band that starts a lot lower. It was quite slient during the enttire 0-100-0 process. no brake squeal. ABS if it kicked in did so that i did not even notice. in short this is one well behaved car. if you want excitement dont buy it; get a Vtec or GTX or EVO or something like that but if you want to go fast effortlessly (not crazy fast) this car is maybe even better behaved than the Accord.

Unfortunately the silver has a 4-6 week wait.



The following review is by GTO








I believe that a great start leads to a great day....and knew it was going to be a great start as I had a screaming yellow Skoda Octavia Turbo RS waiting in my office parking lot.

The car looks stunning from all angles. Head on, its got a really aggressive looking front bumper and air dam. The Xenon headlights look blown and I especially liked the rich RS logo on the radiator grille. The utility of the headlamp washer may be limited but it certainly adds character and gives this RS the fully loaded look it rightly deserves. I dont think too much of the spoiler (nor the one on my Vtec) but I guess that for sporty variants...its a given add-on accessory. Its the Octavias mature character that further resists the spoiler. The Octavia RS Turbo will looks its part in yellow and red only. I have seen black RS' and they didnt shout "sporty" like the one I test drove. *


The alloys are to die for. Yes, they are better than anything offered previously as OE on an Indian car. A 16" size with 205mm Bridgestone rubber does wonders to the overall aggressive look. Look at it from the rear and the wheel/tyre combo gives it a fat & sporty stance. That and the meaty exhaust tip

Step inside and the familiar Octavia layout greets you. But in a richer form. I love sunroofs and its an absolute pleasure feeling the wind in your hair and the sky above. Plus, you can always tip the ash off your cigarette through the sunroof (Most convenient ash tray in the world). The leather on the seats is horrible in look and feel - Surely nowhere close to the Stanleys that most showrooms and aftermarket backups offer. In fact, this leather felt more like a regular rexine mix. The rest of the interior is typically Octavia under-stated and reeking of quality, though I feel the fit and finish has dipped just a little bit compared to earlier Octavias that I have driven.

Apparently the rear seat back has been angled a further 6 degrees lower to improve back seat comfort, but I didnt find it any more comfortable than regular Octavias. Its still not that comfortable at the back in terms of space and seating position, but with most of us petrolheads staying put in the drivers seat revving the 150BHP engine to 6500 rpm - who cares about the backseat?

This car is loaded with all the goodies - ABS, Airbags, rain-sensing wipers, parking sensors, xenon headlights, MP3 player with 8 speakers (surprising good quality), cruise control, sunroof, headlight washers....And what we must understand is that most of these features may look good in an initial testdrive. But they show their true worth only in daily use. Utility from the parking sensors will always shine, while you will appreciate the headlight washers on teh highway. The sunroof is great for those mid-night drives...extras are always more than welcome.

Plonking yourself in the drivers seat and shutting that vault like door shut has a tremendous feel good factor. Height adjustments on the seat alongwith steering rake and reach adjustment get you that perfect driving position. Start the 1.8L turbo and you know its not a regular Octavia. Revv it and you know that its a special car. I headed straight to the worli seaface (empty in the mornings) and hit 6500 rpm on the tacho. Boy, this car is F-A-S-T. And then the inevitable happened - The check engine light came on!!! All kinds of weird thoughts ($$$$$$) shot through my mind (Rush, dont ever take a non-run in engine to the redline) as I pulled over to the left. Got out and popped open the hood. All seemed fine till I saw the smiling sales guy - "Sir, the check engine light is on cos we have disconnected the odometer. We are going to deliver the car this evening to a dude from Juhu you see" So much for dealer ethics.

Getting back to the drive, I see a black Opel Vectra being driven quite enthusiasticly by a young chap. He already has 4 - 5 car lengths of a lead on me and I pull up right next to him as if he was standing still. I bring my car exactly to his speed, right next to him...then downshift and floor it. The poor Vectra probably didnt know what hit it...The mid-range of this car is stupendously powerful. You can downshift to 3rd at well over a 100+ kph and the sheer and instant velocity has to be experienced to be believed. The engine revvs up to 6500 rpm so effortlessly and even at that point, its not running out of breath. The sound is music to any petrolheads ears yet the power delivery is incredibly refined right up to the redline. This is truly a drivers car. I normally take a couple of kilometers before getting familiar with a car but the Octavia with its spot-on driving position and streamlined power delivery makes for an immediate level of comfort.

The handling is sheer beauty and the Octavia was taking the corners of the worli seaface at 140km/h like a train on rails. Seriously. There was no understeer. No tyres squealing. No drama. Flat, plain and simple. Though the steering is not communicative enough and you really dont get to know what the tyres are talking, its within the mature character of this car. Its a cruiser not a boy racer.

The braking is as impressive as the power delivery from that turbo - Pump the brakes and the ABS with disc brakes all around make the RS decelerate in an extremely stable and confident manner.

Driveability in the city and its bumper to bumper traffic is great, there is just no turbo-lag. Even with the most minimal of throttle inputs, it rolls right off the line and you can cruise around the city in 3rd gear all day. The ride quality however is not that cosy at really low speeds. The 16 incher wheels and the lower profile tyres seem to have taken their toll and you can feel road irregularities coming in to the cabin at crawling speeds. I asked him if the tyre pressure was set right, and the two of them replied in the affirmative.

Unlike previously launched sporty variants...the Octavia RS not only looks evil, but is fast from the word go. It turns heads like no other (especially the yellow) and the power on tap is enough to make you ferry your mom around town whenever asked. But at 14.6 lacs, I feel its a lac overpriced. As has been previously discussed, this is bang into the Accord territory. And that car is from the D segment - a much higher class.

For the person looking for outright power, European build quality, striking looks and all the goodies thrown in....this is it.

Controlled Aggression. Thats what the Skoda Octavia 1.8 RS Turbo is all about.

GTO

[Rtech]

Good Stuff there Navin!

I think you are right about the boy racer appeal. It probably is lacking in the RS, which would give a more mature power delivery.

Good to see autobahn are giving test drives now. Will be going there soon!

Rt

[anshu12420]

if u are young at heart and love the adrenaline rush skoda1.8 turbo is the car to go for the car comes with an audi 1.8 turbo 20valves powerplant which is far better any car in the segement has,you feel the rush through the seats as you cross 2500rpm,and the car can outaccelerate any car alailable here, and no complaints from the chassis either it copes up the increased power,it has a sporty handling yet a good ride.and the best part is the car comes with very tasty body kit,16"spider alloys,xenon lights,airbags,abs,cruise control(useless),that too for very attractive tag......

[GTO]

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] ] in short this is one well behaved car. if you want excitement dont buy it; get a Vtec or GTX or EVO or something like that but if you want to go fast effortlessly (not crazy fast) this car is maybe even better behaved than the Accord.

Very well put. Even the C200K which is amazingly fast does the dash in a very refined manner.

Butttttttttttttttt I just love those 0 - 100 runs in my Vtec with the tyres chirping in the shift from 2nd to 3rd and the engine sounding pure fantasy. This is one car that never ever fails to get a wide grin on my face.

GTO

[Technocrat]

yeah even i like the real time responce of the city's i mean they respond as if they are reading ur mind

but yeah a very nice rite up navin & even i had thot the same i.e. the car will have good performance but no adrenalin rush

[Rtech]

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] ]I just love those 0 - 100 runs in my Vtec with the tyres chirping in the shift from 2nd to 3rd and the engine sounding pure fantasy.

The Vtec reaches hundred in 3rd?? Or did I read that wrong?

[GTO]

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] ]
The Vtec reaches hundred in 3rd?? Or did I read that wrong?

Correct. Even though the speedo shows a 100+ in 2nd gear, the true maximum speed in 2nd gear is 98 km/h. You need an upshift to 3rd to hit a true 100.

Thats precisely the reason why the Vtec takes 9 seconds. If it had a slightly taller 2nd, it would do the ton in 8 seconds flat.

GTO

[Rehaan]

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] (GTO @ Sep. 22 2004,11:10)]

Correct. Even though the speedo shows a 100+ in 2nd gear, the true maximum speed in 2nd gear is 98 km/h. You need an upshift to 3rd to hit a true 100.

Thats precisely the reason why the Vtec takes 9 seconds. If it had a slightly taller 2nd, it would do the ton in 8 seconds flat.

GTO

Hey GTO,

Actually thats quite unlikely (ie 8 secs flat)


Think about it... you did 0-60mph in 8.7-8.9secs on your gtech pro.
60mph = 96km/h (ie no loss of time due to 2nd-3rd gearchange at a later 98km/h)
and even then it was 8.9secs...

cya
R

ps - the old gtech pro ($50) has been discontinued...there are two new more expensive models..so if anyone wants the less expensive older one buy it quik on ebay!

[GTO]

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] ]Think about it... you did 0-60mph in 8.7-8.9secs on your gtech pro.
60mph = 96km/h (ie no loss of time due to 2nd-3rd gearchange at a later 98km/h)
and even then it was 8.9secs...

Nope. Think about it, if it can do a 98km/h in 2nd gear, that means the revv limiter would come on at exactly 98. But I was upshifting atleast 100-150 rpm before the engine cut-off limit. In fact, I clearly remember the timing also blinking in 3rd gear and not in second gear.


Plus, you do remember how my car started knocking after filling up at that god-forsaken highway petrol pump. Plus we didnt exactly have a choice of good terrain. No air-pressures were checked and the car almost had a 35+ liters of fuel in it.

But more than anything, it was my first time with pro-timing equipment and timed 0 - 100 drags. I totally goofed up the initial launches with too much wheelspin. Practice, practice and more practice.

Keeping all these variables in mind, you would agree that the variables wernt in the most favorable conditions? And that I could better the time by a significant margin?

GTO

[Rudra Sen]

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] (GTO @ Sep. 23 2004,10:10)]But more than anything, it was my first time with pro-timing equipment and timed 0 - 100 drags. I totally goofed up the initial launches with too much wheelspin. Practice, practice and more practice.

Keeping all these variables in mind, you would agree that the variables wernt in the most favorable conditions? And that I could better the time by a significant margin?

Yeah buddy, practice, practice and more practice. Also remove your huge music system.. car will be even faster

[Tom]

is 100kph in 3rd gear good?

[Rudra Sen]

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] (Tom @ Sep. 23 2004,11:35)]is 100kph in 3rd gear good?

Depends greatly on the car itself. A VTEC should do more than 100 in third cosidering its light weight. Much hated Optra of mine does much more than 100 in third.. and without making any noise

[Shan2nu]

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] ]Also remove your huge music system.. car will be even faster

Seriously!!!

After all, you did pay a "heavy" price for it, didn't you? hehe

Regards...
Shan2nu

[Shan2nu]

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] ]A VTEC should do more than 100 in third cosidering its light weight

The Vtec can touch around 147kmph in 3rd gear.

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] ]Plus, you do remember how my car started knocking after filling up at that god-forsaken highway petrol pump. Plus we didnt exactly have a choice of good terrain. No air-pressures were checked and the car almost had a 35+ liters of fuel in it.

Yup, so my guess is that your car could manage a 8.5 secs time, but for the 8 sec flat time, you will need grippier tyres.

Shan2nu

[Rtech]

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] (Rudra Sen @ Sep. 23 2004,11:41)]

Depends greatly on the car itself. A VTEC should do more than 100 in third cosidering its light weight. Much hated Optra of mine does much more than 100 in third.. and without making any noise

No Tom, we didn't mean it tops out at 100 in third ofcourse!! Thats would be weak! I was clarifying whether the Vtec needed to shift to third before it touches 100. That really hurts the 0-100 times.

And Rudra...lol...we don't hate the Optra man!! Its just not the first car that comes to mind when we talk performance figures

Rt