స్కోడా రాపిడ్ 2011-2014 1.6 MPI Ambition

Skoda India, established in November 2001 is a fully owned subsidiary of the Czech Automaker Skoda Auto and a division of Volkswagen Group sales India. From the beginning till date the company has been able to establish itself well in the Indian car market. The company launched a total of six models in the market out of which the initially launched Skoda Octavia has been discontinued. One among these is the Skoda Rapid sedan a subcompact car manufactured by the company for the Indian car market. This Skoda model is very much similar to the Volkswagen Vento, which is a sedan by the Volkswagen India in the year 2010. The engine and some of the features are same from the Vento sedan. However in performance Rapid is completely different from the Vento. Priced competitively this car boasts a good competition to the other cars present is its segment. After the Yeti in the SUV segment the company is marching with this C segment sedan. It is a known fact that Skoda India never compromises on comfort, technology and looks, and this time also it is evident that they have delivered a mind-suiting eye candy. The Czech carmaker seems to be on the track to further revolutionize India with Skoda Rapid. Rapid is being built at the company's Chakan facility in Pune and Indian will remain the manufacturing hub for Rapid. This car is present in the market in 13 different variants and has both petrol and diesel engine option. Skoda Rapid 1.6 MPI Ambition one of the base variants of the car and is powered by a 1.6 liter 16V in-Line petrol engine which produces a power of 105bhp at the rate of 5250rpm and a torque of 153Nm at the rate of 3800rpm. The mileage delivered by the engine is around 13.5kmpl which is quite decent. As this is the base variant so it lacks some of the advanced safety and comfort features but it still has the standard ones like Air Conditioner, Power steering, Power Windows, Central locking etc..

Exterior

The exterior of the car is the area where this car stands apart from the Volkswagen Vento. But to keep the cost low, the company made this car very simple in design. It has solid and prominent exteriors with a symbolic nose and large, stretched and leveled headlamps that have been aerodynamically designed with halogen lighting giving the sedan a delightful look. Its outside rear-view mirrors are ideally positioned and the chrome finished center grille which runs across the front of the sedan has black slats placed below the band forms. The Rapid also has a new bonnet and square shaped huge fog lamps. The front bumper has wide air dam placed under it. It also includes rear park sensors with recessed tail lamps. To make the rear look different, the boot lid has an angular press with two dents on both sides of the number plate. The side profile of the car is very much similar to the Volkswagen Vento. Overall the exterior of the car looks luxurious and elegant in its own way despite being similar to the Volkswagen Vento.

Interior

As this car is manufactured for the Indian market. So the interior of the car will be able to fully satisfy the Indian buyers. Priced competitively one cannot expect Skoda to put in all the high end features which are available in the higher premium sedans offered by the company to the Indian market. The dashboard, switch gear, air con vents, climate control unit, power windows switches and pretty much everything else is a straight lift out of the VW's Vento . The Rapid acquires a nice dark and light beige color to the dash which gives a soothing effect to the passengers. The steering wheel is wrapped in high quality leather and has chrome insert on its rendering to give it a rich look. The instrument cluster has two dials reflecting green back light from within. The tell-tale trip computer in the middle includes the digital fuel meter, clock, distance to empty and trip meters.

Engine and Performance

The Skoda sedan is powered by a 16 Valve In-Line petrol engine which provides a displacement of 1598cc . It has DOHC valve configuration with Common Rail Injection fuel supply system. The engine is capable of generating a maximum power of 105bhp at the rate of 5250rpm and a maximum torque of 153Nm at the rate of 3800rpm. The engine is mated with a 5 speed manual transmission which further improves the efficiency. With this power and torque we can readily accelerate the from 0-100kmph in just 12.4 seconds and can touch a top speed of 185kmph. The mileage delivered by this car is 12.0kmpl in the city driving conditions and 15kmpl on the highways . It has fuel tank capacity of 55 liters which allows you to drive a distance of 742.5kms without refueling once full tank .

Braking and Handling

The brake mechanism of the car includes the disc brakes in the front and drum brakes at the rear. As this is the low end variant so it lacks the advanced features like ABS, brake assist etc. For handling there is a power steering with direct rack and pinion steering column . The wheel provides a turning radius of 5.3 meters. The suspension system includes McPherson Suspension With Lower Triangular Links And Torsion Stabilizer in the front and Compound Link Crank-Axle at the rear.

Safety Features

The safety features in the car are not the advanced ones due to cost reduction but still it has the standard ones like Central locking which all the doors once the driver door is locked, Child safety locks, driver airbags which pumps out incase of a front collision, day and nigh rear view mirror and passenger side rear view mirror. It also features Halogen Headlamps which generates two to three times more light with only half energy consumption, rear seat belts, door ajar warning, front and side impact beams, engine immobilizer and centrally mounted fuel tank.

Comfort Features

The comfort features of the sedan are Skoda Rapid takes care of the interior comfort part well as it has been created keeping the Indian customer in mind and marks Skoda's entry in the extremely important C segment. In order to make it conditioned to Indian roads, Skoda has put in some stunning comfort features inside Skoda Rapid. In all, it is much spacious with comfortable seating for five people and an armrest for driver as well as in the middle of the rear seats. The armrest serves the purpose for giving comfort at shifting gears but if one wants to keep both the hands on the steering wheel, he will have to raise the position of the arm rest. The front seats and rear seats are comfortable and well cushioned. Height adjustable headrests are given for seats. Besides, there will also be adjustable driver seat with lumbar support and electrically adjustable ORVMs.

Pros

Engine and performance, interior, price

Cons

Comfort, safety, lack of innovation at exterior