Skoda Rapid [2014-2015] User Reviews

Exterior Without talking about design, the body is strong, Sturdy, Not to mention the Strong Impact Friendly Bumpers, the Door handles are of low quality, and Wiper Blades are not premium at all, Tyre and Wheels should be upgraded during Purchase as the Stock Tyres dont give good grip on tight bends. Otherwise a Good looking Car.

Interior (Features, Space & Comfort) The Boot Hindge is the only Quality Comprimise, Poor Plastic quality around the C.Pillar and Rear Parcel Trey, tend to make noise. the Space for Rear Passanges is at a premium, though the transmission tunnel can become a problem for some passangers. The AC is adequate for Mumbai Heat (Start to End without Shutting off the Car for more than 5 mins) the rear vent is nothing to talk about, best controlled by shutting off the Air Vents on the Front Door sides so the Rear Passangers dont Sweat it out.

Engine Performance, Fuel Economy and Gearbox Best gearbox out there Period, though for city driving the 1St. Gear is short but the 3rd Gear is Bliss. The Engine is what is the most likable in this car, does exactly what you need it to do. nothing but complimentes in this department. for Fuel Eco -  this is Competetion Average, Overall the Rapid is something you will Enjoy Driving rather than being driven.

Ride Quality & Handling Anything above 60 kilos is what the rear cannot handle well, the rear pull lowere to ground thus need to avoid high Speed and Bumpy roads. handeling is Top Notch, only betters by Ford Fiesta. the Rapid is a hoot to drive.

Final Words For someone who enjoys driving (short and long) this side of 10L, with good build Quality this is the car to cnsideer, As long as Skoda keeps the prices reasonable.

Areas of improvement Boot Hindge, Not worth more than 7 Lakhs for overall build quality.

Solid Build on the Outside, Quick and responsive, Handling, Hill ClimbSuspension, 1st Gear Ratio, Plastics, Reliability is a Question, 175 Profile Tyre on Lower Variant.

Exterior Decent looks.

Interior (Features, Space & Comfort) Good comfort, especially the seats very comfortable.

Engine Performance, Fuel Economy and Gearbox Good.

Ride Quality & Handling Excellent.

Final Words Amazing car , you cannot compare Skoda to a Hyundai verna , verna might be rich in features thats only the selling point, ride quality suspension handling is not very good in Verna 

Skoda out perfroms in terms of ride quality , handling and comfort in the segment. 

I am not sure why the audience dont like the brand its the lack of knowledge on Cars , always drink Scot, drive german , skoda stands out. People in India are a fan of Hyundai i am not sure why , the verna after payng 12 Laks , doesnt have decent comfortab;e seats.

SX4, Ciaz build quality, interior quality is not upto the mark, VW is good. Linea low power engine.

Areas of improvement After sales service , this is the area needs great improvement.

Built, handling, decent looks, comfortAfter sales service

Exterior - It is not a curvy design as Verna Fluid and Honda but it has a classy executive look which I like.

 

Interior (Features, Space & Comfort) - Features comes with various versions of the car as you opt to buy one. Hence, it is not a great deal to comment on. However, Space and Comfort is really awesome. You will mke out the difference when you have a long drive and you are still fresh when you reach your destination. Good leg space for tall people and better sitting comfort. 

 

Engine Performance, Fuel Economy and Gearbox - Engine is the best part of Skoda machines. Very powerful, less maintenance, Fuel efficient and smooth transition gear box. I love my car and I drive it accordingly. The better you drive the better it will perform. 

 

Ride Quality & Handling - No doubt, it has an amazing ride quality with good suspensions and handling is superb on high speeds and sharp turns. You can actually feel that the car responds to your command like a Soldier. 

 

Final Words - A very good car I recommend for the classy audience. 

 

Areas of improvement  - Service Management is an area of concern

 

 

I like the Built Quality, Performance, Handling, Comfort, Space, Boot Space and ControlService Management

Exterior No over extra styles, simply superb design.

Interior (Features, Space & Comfort) Comfort is simply awesome. Very Good legroom for both front and back seats. Audio Quality is excellent. I love it. Turn indicators on ORVM's are missing. Can adjust the mirrors electrically but not retractable. Rear hump in the back seat is very high, 5th person cannnot sit comfortably. But, Skoda people are saying its an safety feature.

Engine Performance, Fuel Economy and Gearbox From outside Engine noise is bit high, when you driving from inside it is ZERO sound. I have driven for around 2200 kms. In Highways i am getting 20+ of mileage without fail. In city conditions it is coming down to 13 -15. Steering and Gear box are so soft. you can feel like playing with a toy.

Ride Quality & Handling Simply Superb.

Final Words Great car with reasonable price. am Enjoying it :)

Areas of improvement Things mentioned in CONS section, You cannot get the below features even in Top-end of this car.

1. Turn Indicators on ORVM's and Electrically retractable feature to the mirrors

2. Sunroof

3. Touch screen with GPS.

Superb power, comfort and handling, 20+ Mileage in higwaysOnly half back windows open, Lighting cannot cover long distance, can't adjust the drvr seat fully

SkodaIndiais highly unreliable and worst auto MNC inIndia. It is highly recommended to avoid purchasing products of SkodaIndia, which is a failure inIndiawith respect to its services and customer satisfaction.

 

There are several incidences of bad customer experiences inIndiaand I am providing information for one of them.

 

We had purchased Skoda Rapid in 2012 from Himachal Pradesh. They had a new dealership in Himachal and the initial behavior and services were reasonable. In May 2015, we were travelling fromNasikto Mumbai when suddenly steering of the vehicle became hard and restricted the movement of vehicle leading to an accident and major damage to the car. This was the time when real face of SkodaIndiacame to light. Road Side Assistance is a service provided by Skoda by taking advance payment through their dealer. As RSA numbers were not reachable, we called up a service center in Mumbai. To my surprise, it was informed that the vehicle is not enrolled for the RSA program. Though, I had renewed RSA in 2014 for two years by making payment to Dev Bhoomi Motors, Mandi, H.P., they had not renewed it. Somehow I managed to get the services of Towing and taxi for the family.

 

It appears that the dealers are just charging the money for RSA and when needed, the services are simply not available.

Car was towed down to JMD Motors, Bhandup, Mumbai on the day of accident for necessary repairs. It was a surprise to notice that there were no warning indicators for steering failure and further vehicle was serviced just one month back. We had filed a complaint regarding the failure of the steering within 15 days of accident and had personally talked to service advisor in this regard. It was assured that the Vehicle will be duly inspected for this failure and necessary reports will be shared with the consent of Skoda India.

Vehicle was retained by JMD Mumbai for 3 months in the name of repairs. Initially I was told that every thing is fine with the car and it will be repaired with due process of insurance claim.  I was insisting for the technical analysis and several mails sent to Skoda customer care were simply ignored. Several mails were sent to Vikram.swaroop@skoda-auto.co.in, and ryan.pimenta@skoda-auto.co.in. Shri Ryan of Skoda was probably least bothered and when tried taking to him, I was told to send reminders to Shri Vikram Swaroop, which ultimately were never replied. It was clear that the company officials were intentionally delaying the matter.

 

After 3 months, I was told that vehicle’s engine has a crack and hence it will lead to total loss situation. Vehicle was with service center for 3 months and they were simply not able to detect the engine’s failure or it was probably an intentional act to avoid disclosure of technical fault. Further, I was also charged for the parking charges before the release of damaged vehicle.

 

For the past few months I had sent several mails to senior officials of SkodaIndia, but was never replied back. I was finally told that since the vehicle was not in the best physical state wherein it became necessary to conduct a Technical inspection of the vehicle for verification of issues to be the probable cause of its accident. Hence, the hardening of Steering could not be established and verified to be the reason for the Car’s accident. The above was after commitment of workshop persons to provide details of technical analysis.

 

 

Above is a clear case of company selling defective products and risking the life of its customers in India.   

NAService

Before buying Skoda, like many others, I was skeptical too. It happens that while passing by the showroom I saw the intrest free loan scheme and went inside for a mere query. When I test drove it, I discovered the premium quality of interior materials, the level of comfort, the proper visibility of traffic and a pleasent driving dynamics. The leather wrapped steering wheel and the driver arm rest adds to the overall appeal and comfort of this car. I have driven my Rapid 1.6 Ambition (P) for more than 3000 KMs including two long highway trips. With AC on and rush driving (100 +) it delivers a fuel economy of 11 -12 and with leisure driving (50 - 70) it returns to 15 KMPL. The best ever milage that I have clocked is 18+ KMPL (When AC switched off and leisure cruising on highway at around 60 KMPH).

The ride and handling of this car is splendid. The alloy wheel, disc brakes, ABS, and dual airbags adds an extra ounce to the mental peace of keeping my family safe in any unfortunate event. So many times I had made sharp steerings with brakes applied and in each event the car has only done what I had commanded it to do. Though the ground clearance is sufficient but on occasions I have hit the road too. The best part of the car is the sheer comfort it offers. Thanks to the rear AC vents, the suspension system and the silent cabin that though my mother a motion sick person didn't uneased a single time during the whole 350 KM journey. For average Indian height the car offers ample legroom but for persons tall like me (6 ft +), the leg room appears insufficient if sitting behind a person of equal height. The worst part of the design of this car is the intrusion of high transmission tunnel into rear middle passanger leg space. The boot is humongous. Only once or twice in the whole life this entire boot space would be needed.

Till now I have not experienced the notorious Skoda after sales service so pray to god that just like an awesome car. they come up with a value to money service too. Let's hope they treat their special pool of luxury oriented customers with extra care and attention. Hope they have improved.

Summing it up, the deal which I got with a 0% intrest scheme + all accessories from dealer level (seat covers, foot mat, parking sensor), this car is an undeniable temptation.

Summary:

Pros: Very comfortable for driver as well as passengers, Safety, fuel economy, build quality, and of course the ride and handling.

Cons: Rear legroom, poor design of door bottle holders, more storage spaces could have been provided, wheel size could be larger, tyre pressure monitoring is missing.

Interiors, Comfort, Handling, Fuel Economy, Quality of interior materialsIntrusion of high transmission tunnel, Rear legroom

Exterior

 good classic sedan shape. but lights are not good looking. head lamps could have been copied from octavia (or polo at least). back side design including tail lamps is quite boring. retractable ORVM is offered in hatch backs but not in rapid.

Interior (Features, Space & Comfort)

 good quality interior. but when hatches are offering cool glove box , i really struggle to fit my water bottle in any bottle holder while driving.

Engine Performance, Fuel Economy and Gearbox

 good power. but i expected a bit more. above 1600-1700 rpm it pulls nicely. and above 2000 rpm it really pulls strongly. 

mileage : i got upto 24 (trip mileage of car) on highway . but for that the vehicle has to be driven at 70 to 80 kmph(in 5th gear and light load) . any faster will result lesser mileage. 

Ride Quality & Handling

 handling is superb. 

but one probably needs to build a little bit of muscle to drive a rapid :).  i mean the steering , clutch , even the accelerator and brake ... everything is heavy. (at least i feel and i am in my early 30s , not 60s)

Final Words

 really a very good product in this price. but few features could make it complte even at the cost of few thousands. still i am happy with my car and enjoy driving it.

Areas of improvement  

 features those are common now a days like - retractable ORVM, reverse camera, cool glove box and a usable bottle holder, auto-lock  should be added. a little modification in head lamp and tail lamp can give great look to the car.

 

handling, classic shape, build qualitydesign of lamps(both head &tail), no usable bottle holder, no retractable ORVM, no reverse camera

Exterior : The vehicle build is outstanding. It looks Sturdy and Elegant. Black Alloy Wheels and smoked lamps gives graceful look to the car.

 

Interior (Features, Space & Comfort) : Nice interiors, good quality plastics used. Comfortable egonomics. 

 

Engine Performance, Fuel Economy and Gearbox : Pick up is superb. Very smooth ride and engine noise levels are barest minimum when compared to Honda City

Ride Quality & Handling : Smooth ride with equally smooth gear shift. Sitting inside the car one feels very safe. Driving on the highways is a great pleasure.

 

Final Words : Best car in the C Segment, Value for money

 

Areas of improvement  : Tall rear hump makes 3 people uncomfortable sitting in the rear. Provison of rear parking sensor will be added feature. After sales service biginning to show improvements. Skoda should work aggresively to try and avoid the thud sound while negotiating pot holes. The sound is very prominent even on small pot holes.

 

 

Looks, Engine, PerformanceRear hump, Reverse Parking Camera

I bought Skoda Rapid MH-02-CW-8093 at Mumbai on 30-05-2013. Only done 21000 KM but since last 2 years the car has been called 13 times to the workshop for repare.

1st - Car had left side pulling since begging which was rectified after 6/7 visits of 3/4 months.

2nd - Driver side window stucks since begging which they are still analysing even after 2 years & not able to resolve.

3rd - Battery damaged within 2 years which they say they have replaced but my car still have starting problem which are yet to identify.

4th - Fuel pump switch automatically damaged within 2 years which they replaced.

Skoda does not care for customers, they just gave a call after 2 years of repeated complain, they do not even meet you if you want. Absolutely they do not connect.

AUTOBHAN the visible dealer at Mumbai also does not care too. Their service centre is horrible, they do not rectify problems but they creat new problems every time you give them your car.

MY OPINION - Skoda cars are great when it comes to engine but all other things are faulty. Company & it's dealers just do not care and let the customers to suffer. This experience is common across most SKODA users. I suggest like me just do not buy due to brand value as you n your car needs servicing.

Skoda cars are great when it comes to engineMANY DEFECTS, PATHETIC AFTER SALES, DEALER AUTOBHAN-MUMBAI IS WORST