11 things about my Skoda Slavia 1.0 AT: Four-month ownership review

Coming from a Hyundai Grand i10, I find the steering feedback exceptional. People who have owned a VW Polo or Ford EcoSport may feel differently.

BHPian Live.Love.Drive recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Hello everyone,

I want to share my review of Skoda Slavia 1.0 AT, which I've owned for the past four months. Before I begin, I must extend my gratitude to fellow members of this community. Your invaluable insights played a significant role in helping me narrow down my choice of car.

Here's a brief overview of the cars I considered before settling on the Skoda Slavia.

Cars Considered:

Honda City, Hyundai Verna, Volkswagen Virtus and Skoda Slavia

The first obvious choice was Honda City. It is one of my favourite cars. I test drove the manual variant and liked it a lot and decided to buy it immediately after the test drive. Timeless design, sweet rev happy engine, Honda reliability, what else could you ask for right?!

However, after some time, I found myself leaning towards purchasing an automatic variant considering our ever-worsening traffic conditions and the auto boxes could also be fun, especially with paddle shifters.

So I test drove the Honda City again this time with CVT. I liked it but I noticed a lot of engine noise filtering through the cabin and I did not like the throttle response in the CVT variant. It definitely had a rubber band effect. NVH package was a letdown.

So I decided to explore other options in the market.

Hyundai Verna

I did not like the design when I saw it in the ads but in person, it felt better, I felt the design language was too outlandish and the cuts and creases not helping either; Car felt like two design languages merged into one.

Anyway, I test drove both 1.5 NA IVT and 1.5 Turbo DCT.

I liked the interior layout in 1.5 NA IVT better and the engine was smooth and refined but there was no wow factor in the way it revved. It was good but just not enthusiastic enough at least for me. It was not compelling enough to trade my Grand i10.

I test drove 1.5 Turbo variant as well, this was plenty powerful and I liked it immediately. My only concern was with DCT reliability and I did not want to take a risk as I was planning to hold the car for a long time.

VAG Twins

Test drove Volkswagen Virtus 1.0 TC and 1.5 DSG and liked them both. I felt 1.0 TC has enough poke, it has a more versatile auto box and is cheaper as well. So my mind was set on 1.0 TC

Positives:

• Timeless Design
• Smooth shifting TC: No Shift shocks, masks the turbo lag quite well
• 3-cylinder unit but does not sound crude
• NVH package is good; I felt NVH is better than Honda City
• Added bonus of bigger Ground Clearance
• Ventilated seats
• The overall build quality and Safety rating
• Punchy performance

Negatives:

• 360-degree camera: I feel it is a sore miss, with a car of this size at least front parking sensors should be provided
• ADAS: I particularly like adaptive cruise control. Honda City offers it from the V variant

Test drove Skoda Slavia 1.0 TC and it felt similar to Virtus. I liked Skoda Slavia a wee bit more than Volkswagen Virtus just for that Crytal Blue color. That's it. We booked the car in Oct and got the updated car with powered seats, a subwoofer and 10-inch screen.

Some of the points I noticed in my four months of ownership of Skoda Slavia 1.0 AT

There is turbo lag

This is especially felt when we have to completely come to a halt while dealing with traffic. Initially, I tried many options like putting it in Sports mode, using paddle shifters but the lag stayed. Only way to deal with it is to keep it above 2000 rpm. What I did was to press the throttle just enough to get to 2k+ rpm and then release and then slowly accelerate thereafter. So when we get to 2k+ RPM it stays there for a fraction of a second (this is the case in my AT) even when you have released the paddle. This method has worked for me to counter the Turbo lag.

AC effectiveness

Yes as many others have already pointed out AC could be better. It makes some hissing noise as well.

What has worked for me is to not put it in Auto mode. Fan speed at 2 and temperature set at 21, recirc on and airflow to feet as well. I don't have to set this every time I start the car. That's good. Also, I have got the sun shades from Skoda for all four windows and rear and they definitely help.

Wireless connectivity to infotainment system

Apple carplay of my wife's iPhone connects seamlessly every time. I own an Android phone, and Android Auto connectivity is not as good. I prefer connecting through a wire.

Brake noise

Again as pointed out by many, there is this brake noise issue when we completely halt the car. I don't know the solution to this. Please let me know if I can get rid of this noise.

Interior Quality

Enough has been said about this already. In my 4.5 months of ownership, I have not noticed any rattling. The bronze strip that runs across the dash looks great but when we touch it, there is some play and noise. Don't know why Skoda could not fix this properly. Also the AC vents which again look great but there is some play when we press the plastics around the AC vent. Rest of the interior is quite sturdy and doesn't feel flimsy.

Can we seat 3 in the rear

No, you can't, it's an excellent 4 seater, seat contouring is on point. For the third passenger although there is some space but seat contouring won't allow it.

There is some workaround we can do. I ordered a couple of Fovera backrest support cushions from Amazon, these things make the bucket seats flat allowing the third passenger to sit that much more comfortably. Only caveat is we will lose some under thigh support.

I only use these cushions when we absolutely cannot avoid a third passenger.

Seat Ventilation effectiveness

Seat Ventilators are my new favourite, trust me you don't know you need them until you use them.

In my Slavia I found ventilation working reasonably well, I always keep it at the first level (there are 2 fan speed options), and on the second level, there is more noise than action.

1.0 TSI is mile muncher

I had my apprehensions about the "cruise" abilities of this three-cylinder engine but I'm pleasantly surprised. It can cruise in triple digits all day long. And there is ample power to make quick overtakes as the turbo range is wide 1750 to 4500 RPM.

Ride quality

It is very good. It glides over the rough roads. 16-inch wheels and a stiff platform have allowed Skoda to tune the dampers more towards comfort.

Driving Dynamics

Many have complained that the steering is too light but I felt it is very good. Steering feedback is exceptional. Keep in mind that my previous car was a Grand i10.

People coming from a Polo or EcoSport etc may feel differently.

Engine Noise

Engine noise is well-contained. VAG group has done a great job in containing the noise. There are no vibrations or harshness inside the cabin. Yes, the engine is quite audible from the outside.

The only time I feel there is engine noise is when coming off from a highway toll booth and quickly trying to get to triple digits. Crack up the music and you won't hear anything.

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