Test drove the Skoda Kylaq AT: Initial impressions after a short drive

Absolutely smooth engine. Both in terms of noise and vibrations. Excellent work by Skoda in controlling NVH levels

BHPian BravoMike recently shared this with other enthusiasts:

I got a chance to test drive the Skoda Kylaq AT version yesterday in Chennai. A short 12km ride through the bustling traffic of Chennai OMR and the Radial Road. The team at the showroom has been very good; they followed up till I went down for test drive and were accommodative of many last-minute changes in the schedule. Shout out to Rahul from Kun Skoda

These are my initial impressions,

1. Absolutely smooth engine. Both in terms of noise and vibrations. Excellent work by Skoda in controlling NVH levels
2. Not once did the gearbox hunt for the right gear. It always was slotted in the right gear and the shifts were almost unnoticeable. The engine gearbox combo seems to work better in this car than in Kushaq. They pull cleanly and builds up speed without any fuss
3. The car does not surge forward when you move from idle position like cheaper automatic cars do
4. The fit and finish looked good and no complaints on that front. Hard plastics are present, but that's the case in all cars in this and next higher price segment
5. Strictly for 4 passengers, a kid can squeeze in the middle, but not for long distances (unless they are being punished)
6. The boot space is decent for a car in this segment, but saying it is 400 liters plus is just number gymnastics, like Ola's claim* (*excluding China)
7. Having an electronic parking brake and auto hold feature would have been really good considering this will mostly be used as a city car
8. When they pride on developing this car for India first, they should have definitely swapped the stalk position. I am VW owner, but I feel having the indicator stalk on the left side is counter intuitive as it forces you take the hand from the gear shifter (not a big problem in automatic version, but nevertheless). Also, the cruise control should be on the steering wheel instead of the stalk
9. Some empty buttons above the HVAC controls, not very aesthetic
10. The reverse camera is a joke. No two ways about it. And missing blind spot cameras, not able to project the navigation on to the MID, and few such nice to have features will definitely hurt their numbers
11. Having the lock button in the center console is not very intuitive, when there are no other door controls there

Overall, an excellent car for a small family.

1. Is it a driver's car? - yes
2. Is it a fun car like the GT TSi (the 4 cylinder one)? - No
3. Will you regret buying it? - Not if its majorly for ferrying you, your spouse and kids
4. Is it fairly priced? - Maybe - definitely lacks some features that are useful and are present in comparable cars in this segment

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