Skoda revealed new Euro-spec Rapid

Here are the official pictures of Skoda’s production-ready Rapid for the European market. The Rapid is the first Skoda model to feature the brand’s new design language. Inspired by the Mission L concept, the new styling is characterised by a four-lamp headlight, trapezoidal fog lights and monochrome Skoda badge mounted on the bonnet with the company’s revised logo.

The exterior design sports clean and sharply drawn lines and the new grille is formed by vertical black slats bordered by a finely drawn chrome frame.

In profile, the liftback’s long wheelbase gives it a coupe-like silhouette, while at the rear the car’s boot design is similar to that of the Indian Rapid. However, while the Indian Rapid has a conventional boot, the European model has a liftback, hinged at the roof, like the Laura and Superb. The distinctly shaped taillights in the brand’s typical C shape, and the new logo all combine to make the Rapid unmistakably Skoda.

“This is a car that gives out a clear statement at first glance: clear, precise, fresh and emotional,” says Eckhard Scholz, Skoda board member for technical development.

Included in the model's engine line-up for European markets are seven engine options, including five petrols and two diesels. However, further details remain scarce.

The Rapid is 4.48m long and 1.7m wide, and its long wheelbase and torsion-beam rear axle are said to create larger cabin and boot space than even the current-generation Laura.

The new European Rapid will be on public display for the first time at the Paris Auto Show.

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Maruti Swift Dzire Zdi Review and test Drive

Names can sometimes be inappropriate. You know you have to be careful when you hand over your watch to the ‘Reliable’ watch company, and ‘Perfect’ drycleaners may not exactly be a vision of perfection. Look at the guillotined rear of the new Dzire, and you can tell that form definitely follows function here; the rear styling isn’t exactly desirable. Trust Maruti to be as practical as possible. So along with the thrill and excitement associated with a new car comes a bit of initial trepidation. Doesn’t the rear look a bit odd to you? Of course it does. The thing is, you soon get used to the chopped-to-be-shorter-than-four-metres look, and after a while it really isn’t a bother. And that’s partly because the rest of the car is so damned good.

One of the first trips I make in this car is to pick up a couple of friends from the airport, on a whim. Halfway through the drive though, I have a mini panic attack. Is the boot large enough to swallow all the luggage? Will everything really fit in the back, or will we have to hire a cab? The big surprise however is just how useable the 316-litre boot really is. It is tall, reasonably deep and the uniform size of the insides means getting bulky objects in is rather easy. “Where did all the luggage go?” asked my friend’s wife who, after the airport pick up, is so impressed with the comfort, refinement and compact dimensions of the car, she decides then and there that this is the perfect second car for their family.

And it really is no surprise. The insides have a nice feel to them. The two-tone colour scheme goes really well with the design of the Swift’s cabin, there is sufficient legroom and comfort for passengers in both rows, and music connectivity is pretty good as well. You get a direct plug-in for your iPod, there’s an  Aux cable jack that’s compatible  with everything apart from your grandad’s record player, and the system plays MP3s as well. Bluetooth, however, is missing, so you can’t pair your phone, which is a bit irritating. And I really wish it had better sound quality – the amplifier seems under-specified, the speakers sound below average. Jack up the volume even slightly and you get quite a bit of distortion. The audio systems in other cars are much better.

But enough about the audible entertainment: what makes the Dzire so nice to drive on an everyday basis is that spike of boost you get from Fiat’s Multijet engine. Yes, if you are a lazy driver, the turbo lag below 1900rpm can get a bit annoying, and this is especially true if you are languishing in a higher gear in traffic. But once the boost comes in, performance is so strong you will all but forget that initial lag. The turbo comes in hard enough to give you a burst of acceleration, even if you’re only at part throttle; the light car seems to sprint away effortlessly, and that really does feel great. What’s also good for long bouts in traffic is the light steering. It allows you to change lanes easily even at walking speeds, and is weighty enough as you go faster. There is some amount of feel and feedback as well.

The Dzire is good even on the highway, and that’s not just down to the engine. Maruti, it seems, has found the ideal balance between ride and handling. So the Dzire is comfortable and pliant on city streets as well as nicely planted and reasonably confidence-inspiring on the highway. “It seems to have the right blend of compliance and firmness,” says one of our testers who regularly drives out of the city for the weekend in all manner of machinery.

Where the Dzire does come up short, at times, is in the braking department. Yes, the brakes function well under normal conditions, and the pedal is pretty well weighted too – it’s just that they feel like they are lacking in bite when you really want to stop in a hurry. And that can be a bit disconcerting as you then need to hit the pedal pretty hard if you want additional stopping power.

And what of the Dzire’s chopped-to-fit rear? I haven’t really been noticing it of late, so it’s all right, I guess. What I have been noticing, however, are a lot of requests for this car from the guys in office. Add to it the overall fuel efficiency figure of 15.9kpl on a recent tank-up, despite most of the driving being enthusiastic, and you can see why. So there it is then – Maruti’s slightly oddball Dzire with a brutally chopped boot is quite a desirable car after all.

Odometer 5,900km

Price 8.74 lakh (on-road, Mumbai)

Test economy 17.2kpl

Maintenance costs None

Faults None

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Review and test drive of Mini Countryman

 A big Mini sounds like an oxymoron, but that’s exactly what the Countryman is – a car that seeks to marry the charm & iconic style of a Mini with the space & practicality of a large, four door hatchback. Does the idea work?

Marketed more as a crossover than a hatchback, the Countryman easily looks a couple of sizes larger than the two door Minis, yet is smaller than, say, a Skoda Yeti. Frontal styling is aggressive, with a power bulge on the bonnet, near vertical grille & large, swept back headlamps, lending the Countryman the face of a bulldog. In profile, though, the Countryman is quite conventional, & it’s only the blackened pillars that link this to other Minis. Its squared out tailgate looks neat & the twin exhausts give an indication of the car’s sporty intent. But more on that later.

With a high enough roof, ingress is really easy, & once inside you get a cabin that is unmistakably Mini. Taking pride of place on the dashboard is the very retro oversized analogue speedometer that can be specified to house the optional & easy to use 6.5 inch infotainment screen. There are plenty of other details that take you back in time, but their execution is to the highest of modern BMW standards. We simply loved the exquisitely crafted toggle switches on the centre console & rear doors, & the fighter jet thrust lever like handbrake.

We also liked the back support from the smartly finished front seats, but found them lacking in thigh support. & why is there no electric adjustment for the front seats? Rear seat passengers don’t have it all that nice either. There are no dedicated rear AC vents, the seats offer insufficient thigh support & the flat backrest is not very supportive. Legroom is decent, but the restricted width & high centre tunnel make the rear bench best suited to two occupants. Simply said, for a car of this price, you’d expect a more spacious cabin, but viewed in isolation, the interior is roomy by typical hatchback standards. To add to the versatility, the rear seats can fold & split 40:20:40 to free up more space to supplement the already large 350 litre boot.

But Minis are more about fun than practicality, so how does the Countryman score here? Quite well, actually. India gets only the more powerful Countryman S model that features a 1.6 litre direct injection petrol engine with a twin scroll turbocharger. The motor produces 181bhp at 5500rpm, all of which is routed to the front wheels; there’s no all wheel drive for India. Peak torque is 24.5kgm, delivered between 1600 & 5500rpm, & the turbo’s ‘overboost’ feature momentarily bumps this figure to 26.5kgm (from 1700 4500rpm) under hard acceleration. The result is a motor that is responsive, has almost no lag, & is happy to rev to its 6500rpm redline. Then there is the quick shifting six speed automatic gearbox that, in Sport mode, is ever willing to grant you a downshift when you need more power.

Benchmarked against other cars of this size, the Countryman even handles quite well. The electric steering may be slightly inconsistent, but body control is fairly good & there is less roll than the tall ish stance would have you imagine. Yes, the Countryman S is softer sprung than the Cooper S we’ve road tested elsewhere in this issue, but the ride is still pretty flat at highway speeds. That said, the suspension does have a firm edge, & the low profile tyres mean the car constantly thumps over our potholed roads. Also, the wheels tend to follow imperfections in the road surface, & call for a firm hand on the steering at all times. However, a fairly tight turning circle, light enough steering & good visibility do make the Countryman really easy to live within the city.

But at Rs 35.9 lakh, the Countryman is exorbitantly priced. Sure, it looks unique, is reasonably good to drive & comes with a rich cabin, but in terms of space & comfort, it can’t really compete with similarly priced models from BMW, Mercedes Benz & Audi. The Countryman then, despite its practicality on paper, is for the few Indian buyers who want their car to stand out from the crowd & are willing to pay the price for it. As it stands, the Countryman has its work cut out for it.

Fact File
Price Range (in lakhs)*
Ex showroom price Rs 35.9 (ex showroom, Delhi
Engine
Fuel Petrol
Type 1598cc, direct injection, turbo
Power 181bhp at 5500rpm
Torque 24.5kgm at 1600 500rpm
Transmission
Gearbox 6 speed auto
Dimensions
Length 4110mm
Width 1996mm
Height 1561mm
Wheel base 2595mm
Suspension
Front Independent, MacPherson struts, anti roll bar/Independent
Rear multi link, anti roll bar
Brakes
Front Ventilated discs
Rear discs
Performance
0 20 1.09
0 40 2.29
0 60 3.85
0 80 5.83
0 100 8.44
0 120 11.85
0 140 16.77
0 160 24.01
Acceleration in gear
20 80kph in 3rd gear 4.94sec
40 100kph in 4th gear 6.60sec

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Mahindra XUV500 bookings will open from 8 June

Mahindra will re open bookings for XUV500 from June 8, 2012. The SUV will now be available across India, in addition to the existing 19 cities where it had been launched earlier.

Mahindra received around 25,000 bookings in the first eight months of its launch, & around 7,200 vehicles have been delivered so far. The SUV maker ramped up its production capacity in a phased manner to reach 3,000 units in January 2012. In order to cater to the growing demands, the company now plans to ramp up the number to 4,000 units per month.

Commenting on the occasion, Pravin Shah, CEO, Automotive Division, M&M said, “It has been an incredible journey so far for the XUV500 & we are pleased to take the product national. Now that we have ramped up our production capacity significantly, we are confident that we will be able to take care of the growing all India demand for the XUV500.”

Once bookings resume, the SUV can be booked for Rs 40,000 50,000, with the deliveries taking from a month to four months’ time.

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All new Maruti Ritz revealed

These are the first official images of the updated Maruti Ritz. A car we had scooped earlier in March.

The Ritz is sold as the Suzuki Splash in other global markets such as Japan & also in some countries in Europe. These official pictures have been released on Suzuki's Japan website.

As is evident from the images, the updated Ritz gets a slightly-altered & a lower mounted nose,  & gets a one-piece grille. The headlamps are more pointier & the fenders now rise up above the bonnet 'V'.  The rear-bumpers also get fake air-vents.

The facelifted Ritz will also get minor updates to the interiors & lighter shades. Under the hood, we expect the 84bhp K-series 1.2-litre petrol & the 74bhp 1.3-litre diesel motors mated to a 5-speed manual gearbox.

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