It's New Skoda Rapid on the Road

[SedateDriver]

Got delivery of Rapid Ambition TDI on Friday. Didn't book that early but got against prior booking cancellation. Since the model and colour was of my choice so I grabbed it.

Didn't got a chance to drive much during this weekend but my initial views are:
- The build quality (which Skoda is known for) is not compromised though it is priced little lower than competitors and even its elder sister Vento
- Interiors are simplistic. Not much innovations here. Dual beige color looks good (I never liked black interiors)
- Exteriors do not impress much if you compare it with Hyundai Verna but yes, are contemporary and typical Skoda like.
- Diesel engine noise can be heard inside cabin specially at lower speed
- Pick-up in low gears is satisfactory. I was concerned with turbo-lag as reported in other model/make. Torque does the trick here.
- Acceleration at higher speed is very good. Due to traffic, I could only reach 80-85 kmph. At this speed, the car looked stable and hungry for more.
- Steering is balanced. Not very light, not hard. Braking is statisfactory

Prior to booking, I knew only fact about diesel cars - "they encourage you to drive more" due to better mileage. Just after 2 days of ownership, I got another fact - "they encourage you to drive Rapid i.e. faster" due to better ride quality at higher speed.

Few nice feature which I found useful till now:
- Front arm-rest provided great support to left arm. I can change gears without lifting my arm or hand. Super feature.
- Driver seat height adjust
- Steering wheel adjustment
- Opening/Closing of all windows from remote key
- Date and temperature at dial console
- For backseat passengers, center arm-rest and reading lights at center

Some pics are attached. Will post more comments after next month

 

[madaneeraj]

Re: Its new Skoda Rapid on the road

Congrats for the beauty, smell of new car interiors is joyful. Accelaration will improve after, around 1k and noise will also subsidize a bit. Do keep engine ideal for 30 seconds after starting and before switching off it will prolong turbo life.

How much Kms you have driven so far? Also is this car comes with engine guard as Laura does ( Before initial few kms you can't pull it above 60/80 kmph, if I remember correctly)?

Also brakes should be good, not just satisfactory, made me ask, what was your last possesion?

Also tell us about accessories you have purchased, along with dealership experience.

Sorry for too many queries though.


Enjoy many happy miles. I think you are the first owner of rapid on TAI.

Congrats once again.

Regards,
Maddy

 

[TSIVipul]

Re: Its new Skoda Rapid on the road

Got delivery of Rapid Ambition TDI on Friday. Didn't book that early but got against prior booking cancellation. Since the model and colour was of my choice so I grabbed it.

Dear Sedate,accept my warm CONGRATULATIONS on your new ride...
Any ways you have got the car,what I know is,you have got the best out of the crowd.Ambition means the mid variant,the one with driver side airbag and ABS.Right?Now a get a good dual din ICE system for your car and rock us all.

Didn't got a chance to drive much during this weekend but my initial views are:
- The build quality (which Skoda is known for) is not compromised though it is priced little lower than competitors and even its elder sister Vento
- Interiors are simplistic. Not much innovations here. Dual beige color looks good (I never liked black interiors)
- Exteriors do not impress much if you compare it with Hyundai Verna but yes, are contemporary and typical Skoda like.
- Diesel engine noise can be heard inside cabin specially at lower speed
- Pick-up in low gears is satisfactory. I was concerned with turbo-lag as reported in other model/make. Torque does the trick here.
- Acceleration at higher speed is very good. Due to traffic, I could only reach 80-85 kmph. At this speed, the car looked stable and hungry for more.
- Steering is balanced. Not very light, not hard. Braking is satisfactory

Prior to booking, I knew only fact about diesel cars - "they encourage you to drive more" due to better mileage. Just after 2 days of ownership, I got another fact - "they encourage you to drive Rapid i.e. faster" due to better ride quality at higher speed.

Few nice feature which I found useful till now:
- Front arm-rest provided great support to left arm. I can change gears without lifting my arm or hand. Super feature.
- Driver seat height adjust
- Steering wheel adjustment
- Opening/Closing of all windows from remote key
- Date and temperature at dial console
- For backseat passengers, center arm-rest and reading lights at center

You may call it a coincidence,but its just yesterday evening that we friends too took a good long TD of a Rapid TDI and our impressions were(most of them are same as you,so won't be mentioning them),please don't mind if I highlight any cons of the car:-
1):The built quality is second to none,typical Skoda.Knock the dash or close the door,the thud you get is simply impressive.
2):The Vento is not good above 100 kph,I mean it has slight nervousness(due to soft front suspension),but Rapid is very much confident.But then Vento is far better than Rapid at lower speeds and city speeds,as the suspension gives a great low speed ride.
3):Don't know about others,but Verna feels more silent inside,still Rapid also has a good NVH.
4):The steering response is very much confidence inspiring and the BRAKES,dear,they simply impressed me.
5):The ACC works brilliantly,weather you need to het up or get cooled down,it will simply impress you.
6):Since I love the simplistic styling,that's why I feel only Vento and Rapid to have a complete desing,I mean I always feel something missing in Verna's design,but in Rapid I love the way it looks(actually I love the cars like this only,that's why I own Innova,Laura and Corolla).
7):about front arm rest,put it on lower most position and then see,you will really shift up and down with your elbow resting on the armrest.
8):Friend was confused saying "Yaar dikki kaha se khulegi,chaabi lagani hai kya?(yaar,how to open the boot,is it external),I,have a look at the button on the front door,just above the pocket,simply press it towards back and pop.He did and said,so light it is.
9):Boot..my dear..the boot is big enough to accomodate all four of us friends in it.
10):WE PEOPLE WERE SO MUCH IMPRESSED BY THE CAR THAT SIMPLY GOT IT DECIDED,WILL BE BOOKING AFTER AUTO EXPO,BUT STILL EXPECT ME TO POST A COMPLETE RAPID INITIAL OWNERSHIP REPORT WITHIN NEXT 45 DAYS.The friend saw SX4 before Rapid and after seeing Rapid he said "Why people dump their cash on SX4 when they can buy this thing(log apne paise SX4 mein kyun barbaad karte hain jab woh iss bala ko kahrid sakte hain)?
11):One thing that I seriously disliked is the center tunnel at the rear,it intrudes a bit too much in the cabin.Agree?

Some pics are attached. Will post more comments after next month

[/QUOTE]
,still please post some more,also that dash is not looking good without the ICE,so get it done as soon as possible.The button of which I am talking about can be seen in the fourth pic on the driver's door just above the door pocket.

Congrats for the beauty, smell of new car interiors is joyful. Accelaration will improve after, around 1k and noise will also subsidize a bit. Do keep engine ideal for 30 seconds after starting and before switching off it will prolong turbo life.

+1,Madan dear you save my fingers from taking the pain...

How much Kms you have driven so far? Also is this car comes with engine guard as Laura does ( Before initial few kms you can't pull it above 60/80 kmph, if I remember correctly)?

My Laura had it,but my chauffeur did first 200 kms,so I didn't faced it.

Also brakes should be good, not just satisfactory, made me ask, what was your last possesion?

Brakes are really impressive and with a touch of ABS,they are great.also the 185 section Apollo Acceleres do their job quite well too.

Also tell us about accessories you have purchased, along with dealership experience.

Well,Skoda dealership experience is always great and I am sure same will be here too.

Enjoy many happy miles. I think you are the first owner of rapid on TAI.

Congrats once again.

++1 again..Madan you are a good guy,my fingers are happy now...

 

[Varun560061]

Re: Its new Skoda Rapid on the road

Congrats for the new car !!

Whats the use of the knob\switch found below the air vent (right ride) in the 6th pic..

 

[TSIVipul]

Re: Its new Skoda Rapid on the road

Congrats for the new car !!

Whats the use of the knob\switch found below the air vent (right ride) in the 6th pic..

A typical Skoda sign it is,the headlight adjustment cluster it is.

the knob is used to switch the headlights ON or OFF,while the scroll is used for the leveling,here is one pic of it:-

 

[THE XOVER]

Re: Its new Skoda Rapid on the road

Congrats SedateDriver on the acquisition of your Rapid, it is surely a game changing car of future.Take good care of her and drive sedately (need I say that seeing your user name).

 

[car_crazy]

Re: Its new Skoda Rapid on the road

looks great :) !! congo sedatedriver. SKODA classic !!

 

[Thetraveller]

Re: Its new Skoda Rapid on the road

First Proud owner of Skoda Rapid. This car looks killer and pricing is perfect. Many many congratulations buddy!

The simple styling, use of beige and rock solid build is what I like in the car. I had done TD of Vento and was impressed by the build quality there. With Skoda Rapid, I am sure the everything must be taken up by a notch!

 

[shailinder]

Re: Its new Skoda Rapid on the road

Congratulations SedateDriver. I am sure you are going to love this beauty for a long-long time.

Please share your experience at Nawab motors and how you managed to reach to a car "Rapid". I mean what all cars you considered before sealing the deal. What is the OTR price and discounts (if any).

 

[ashikawa]

Re: Its new Skoda Rapid on the road

@sedatedriver
Congratulations a lot on your new car. You had put to money on right product. No other car can give you this level of satisfiction. With its pricing a little lower than Vento it bacame the Best VFM in this segment.

I read your post regarding alloy upgrade in other thread. Beware of any warranty issue instead of regretting later. Do check that the upgrade meets the terms of warranty and also consider Extended warranty and AMC if available. As VW has already provided extended warranty on Polo and Vento. I hope that skoda will definately follow this soon.

 

[asifs454]

Re: Its new Skoda Rapid on the road

hwz the clutch in rapid?is it hard like in vento?i found it very difficult in the traffic.

 

[350Z]

Re: Its New Skoda Rapid on the Road

Heartiest congratulations, SedateDriver. Skoda Rapid is indeed a value for money deal. The sophisticated design and interior feel falls in a class of its own. Yesterday I was checking this out. There’s not a single scheme going on though, and the dealer informs that delivery will take at least a week or two. How long did you wait? Do share some more photographs and keep us updated.

Drive Safe,
350Z

 

[dodge_v1per]

congrats dude..welcome to skoda gang!! do you mind telling total cost??

 

[Vishwas]

Congrats for your Rapid SedateDriver.The color choice is good and looks very decent when viewed from a distance,so how is the rear seat space? And how much did it cost you on the road?

 

[truecitylover]

Re: Its new Skoda Rapid on the road

Congrats for your Czech Beauty SedateDriver .
Can see the legacy build class with Skoda. Nice to see that they have maintained it in quality unlike their Japanese/ Korean counterparts despite the killer price.

Do share the Average fuel effeciency that you've noticed so far. And as usual, please pour in more pictures.

Wishing you many more happy miles ahead!!!

A typical Skoda sign it is,the headlight adjustment cluster it is.

the knob is used to switch the headlights ON or OFF,while the scroll is used for the leveling,here is one pic of it:-

It's used for fog lamps and rear de-fogger too.