RALLY IS NOW A FAMILY SPORT. Review on Skoda Octavia RS 1.8 T

RALLY IS NOW A FAMILY SPORT

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SKODA RALLY SPORT

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Skoda may not be such a huge name in the rally championships, but of late, they have made their presence felt. But it is definitely a household name in India, with the success of the Octavia. From the Skoda stable, India gets its first family sports car, The Skoda Rally Sport.

Don't be under the impression that I own a rally sport. One of my friends took a car and he was to choose between the corolla and the rally sport, and I made sure that I brainwashed him and tadaaaaaaa, I got the feel of India's first turbocharged petrol engine.

Let me just give you the general specifications first.

Engine

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Displacement: 1751 cc.

Cylinder: 4- cylinder, 20 valves, DOHC.

Fuel injection: Electronic Multi point fuel injection.

Power: 150 bhp. With TURBOCHARGER.

Max speed: 270 kmph.

Mileage: 21-kmpl max, 16 kmpl on road.

What am I going to write in the review if I am to write all he details in these bits and phrases? So you could the rest of the details from the review.

To be frank, one major think thing I hate about the car is that it looks the same to the untrained eye as the Octavia and Lauren & Klement.

But the car in itself is a beauty. It has a 7-coat finish, and shines in the sun. The colour offered to my friend were lemon yellow, corida red, diamond silver and metallic black magic. But one piece of advice, please don't take the black colour unless you can keep it clean and shining 24 hours, 7 days a week, or you have a driver.

The most important part of a sports car is its engine. The heart of the Rally sport is a 1751 cc, 4- cylinder, 20 valve, DOHC engine. The 1751 cc engine is not much. Many similar cars in the class offer a much higher displacement, but what sets this car apart is the turbocharger. This is the first time in India that a turbocharger is being offered with a petrol engine.

WHAT ARE TURBOCHARGERS? It is a device used to increase the performance of the engine. Inside the engine combustion takes place that utilizes oxygen and fuel. In a petrol engine, the carburetor is used to mix the fuel and the air, and petrol- air mixture is injected into the cylinder to be burnt using the spark plug. This leaves us with two choices for increasing the power output of the engine, increasing the fuel or increasing the density of air that is injected into it. Increasing the air density is much more efficient as it does not affect the mileage of the engine. This is done by using a turbocharger. It is coupled to the engine, and starts its operation when the engine goes above a specified rpm.

What does this do to the power of the engine? Well! It does many wonders. The recently launched Swift has a 1.3l engine and it gives 87 bhp power, while the rally sport with a 1.8l has a power of 150 bhp. 150 horses tied to the front end of your car. All you need to do is to unleash the beast within. The maximum speed achievable is 270 kmph.

Handling this beast is a light job and is effected by front and rear spoilers and directional stability.

The car is a family sports. So you need all the safety that your family needs. This is provided by the ABS (anti lock braking system), cruise control system, intelligent airbags, and triple safety bars.

The car should also be very comfortable to drive. For this the car has rain sensors, Xenon headlamps with wash, 16-inch low profile spider alloy wheels. Also the low-end torque that this car has makes city driving a pleasure.

The interiors are more of a rally car than a family sedan. But still many perks like Recaro type leather bucket seats, black and silver finish, sun and moon roof are also available as in any similar family sports car.

The car has also got climatronic ac and parking sensors. The music system is a delight with the 8-speaker surround MP3 system.

The car would have been a delight with an automatic cruise control to maintain the speeds on the expressways without much effort. The beautiful thing is that this family sports car comes at the price of 13.4 lakhs starting, and can be got fully loaded for a price of 15 lakhs on road.

This car is definitely a steal at the price it comes at. Some of you may say that the car is not as spacious or comfortable as the Corolla, but this is a family sports and Corolla is a premium sedan.

I hope I have done justice to this wonderful car. Rally has definitely become a family sport.

THANK YOU FOR READING

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