Best Comments by Team-BHPians on Skoda Kushaq

I think its unfair to expect European build qualities at prices which are lower than the Koreans knowing how they fair in the NCAP. Unless this car scores less than 4 stars in the NCAP, its still good pricing. And as per the review except the seat covers, and head liners which as GTO mentioned can be replaced aftermarket, the car feels solidly built with typical Skoda quality which is much better than the competition. And the driving experience is definitely better than the competition as well according to the review.

July like the polo never went head on with Maruti or Hyundai in terms of features, or even in space, but it was still and even today is a drivers delight and the best built car in its class. We want them to bring the new Polo to India which is priced in between 15-20 lacs in many countries and if they ever do we will want it to compete in pricing with Baleno and still provide the same build quality and engines they do internationally which is totally unrealistic. Thats why they said it doesn't make business sense to launch it in India.

Probably they will eventually offer some discounts or warranty packs with the car when the initial demand cools off and they will be able to achieve their target of 3k units a month with this car as their base variants are also well equipped feature wise and can compete with the next to base variant of competition.

I was going to reply that this thread has been on fire and has crossed the Alcazar in views and replies even though it was out 24 hours later. But I decided to wait for the pricing.

Expected but somewhat disappointing, Skoda has priced the Kushaq at a premium.

Skoda knows buyers are ready to pay premium for the badge. The Kodiaq was overpriced but you will never complain paying more after 5 years cause you get such a nicer product.

The same applies here. Buyers only have the Koreans to choose from, and Skoda knows that with their brand, their better dynamics, solid build, people will be ready to pay a premium over the Kia and Hyundai.

Would I buy a Seltos, Creta over the Kushaq just for the pano roof, electric seats, 360 camera. Nope. I would prefer the Euro feel, euro brand and engineering vs the Koreans. And most definitely a lot safer car.

The 1.5L DSG is 10K lesser than Creta and 15K more than Seltos 1.4L DCT. It's steep but it's a price that Skoda knows they can get away with.

Personally the ex showroom should be 16L max for the top end so it's 1.5L more than what I would expect.

Damn, I knew they are going to go for premium pricing, but the higher variants (especially) are overpriced. I thought Skoda will keep a fair premium, considering there is some cost-cutting in the car (e.g. plastics lower down in the cabin, standard sunroof instead of panoramic, misaligned stitching, basic reversing cam and no 360 view etc.). Vid6639 & me just had a discussion on the launch and he thinks its 1.5 lakhs overpriced. Skoda has priced most of its newer launches for fat profits & the Kushaq is no different.

Anyone who sees the Kushaq's lack of presence in person and the 20+ lakh OTR price is definitely in for serious sticker shock . The other major disadvantage versus the Korean twins is the narrow rear seat (3 adults is impossible). You know what else is sad? That the ATs don't get 6 airbags. Now, this is just a braindead move in a market that loves its ATs. More than the price, something like this will cost them sales.

However, if I were the CEO of Skoda India, I would go for the same kind of pricing. Reason: Skoda's thin dealership network + lack of a diesel + terrible after-sales reputation means the Kushaq was never going to be an 8000 / month car. Now, if you can currently sell just 3000 - 3500 units / month, would you sell a variant at 18.5 lakhs OTR or 20 lakhs (just an example). That additional 1.5 lakhs goes straight to the bottom line. Cars are not priced on the basis of cost; they are priced on the basis of the maximum that a customer will pay. How much more would you pay for a 4-star GNCAP car (my source is reasonably reliable, not 100% though) over a 2 - 3 star competitor? ESC is standard even on the base variant - how much would you pay for ESP? How much more would you pay for driving one of the most fun crossovers (although new Creta / Seltos are also loads of fun)? And like it or not, the Skoda brand has some premium'ness in India (definitely more premium than a Hyundai). The brand will charge some extra money for the badge. I always overpay for good used cars & Viddy overpaid 4 lakhs for his Kodiaq. After so many years of happy ownership, ask any of us if we regret shelling out that extra money? The answer is no. In fact, the number 1 reason any Kushaq owner will regret his purchase is not because of the inflated price tag, but because of the brand's shoddy long-term reliability & pathetic dealerships. No one I know has ever regretted paying a lakh or two more for a good car (Kushaq 1.5L is a "great" car IMHO). But 8 / 10 owners who suffer poor reliability regret their purchase decision.

Not that it makes a difference to the customer, but I believe the 1.5L turbo-petrol is not localised, contributing further to the price. Another point that shouldn't matter to the customer, although I think is a contributor here = dealer viability. Unlike Hyundai, several Skoda dealers are suffering financially. Am willing to bet that the margin on a same price Kushaq is higher than the Creta's.

The biggest deal-breaker to me and my biggest disappointment today is that the automatics have just 2 airbags. I hope Skoda fixes this grave error ASAP.

let's be clear, build quality and reliability are not interrelated. Honda City for example, is an reliable sedan, but that doesn't make it the most solid offering in its segment, Skoda rapid feels like a tank in comparison.

Coming to our experience, between VW and Tata, major difference is how well the parts are put together and how well they work together. Tata had plenty of rough edges, misaligned interior trims and rattles.

Well, made for India Honda city hasn't been tested yet, plus Tata decided not to send their flagship Safari & Harrier for testing. No car maker is a Saint. They all make compromises at one place or the other. In the end, its up to the customer to vote with their money.

Do wonder which world folks cribbing about the pricing are living in! Skoda will not undercut Hyundai on price. And the Kushaq is a car in the same segment - even if marginally narrower and shorter. The pricing, which is in line with the Creta and Seltos has come out exactly where I expected it to be. The only thing which shocked me is the absence of 6 air bags in the Style AT and Style DSG variants - surely AT buyers would also want the entire gamut of safety features - so it does seem to be a miss. If I were Skoda, I would have priced the Style DSG at ₹18 l but provided the 6 air bags.

As for those expecting the Taigun to undercut the Kushaq, at the cost of repeating myself I say, “Which world are you living in?” The Taigun will come in at ₹50 k more than the Kushaq on a like for like basis - the only question is whether features will be different to make the comparison not as stark.

Did you just compare the 1.5 DSG to a 1.0 Sonet?

The VW 1.0 is superior to the Kia 1.0 in every way, and the 1.5 is actually a 1.4 turbo-petrol Seltos competitor.

Totally subjective, looks varies from person to person. For me Seltos is simply overdone and at night those DRLs looks like serial lights in the wedding. For me among all SUVs till 50 lakhs Compass looks the best. But then some might hate it totally. So for a person like me who likes the minimalist European design Kushaq is much better looking than Seltos.

Okay, lets face the facts now.

Skoda/VW as a brand positioned above Hyundai/Kia in India and pricing above them is always expected. Many of us expected Skoda to price the Kushaq from 9.99 lacs to 15.99 lacs and a big disappointment making us to hate Skoda and Kushaq. To be frank, I too expected 1.5 TSI MT to be priced within 17 lacs on road bangalore.

If we stop and think about it the pricing are not that bad compared to Creta/Seltos. Most of us are ok to pay bit more for Skoda than Hyundai or Kia. Yes, I agree there is no comparison on feature list on Kushaq with Korean twins. But features were never an USP for Skoda cars except Superb and still managed to sell dated cars in quite numbers. Rapid saw 3 generations of Hyundai Verna and we know which one we choose for a drive.

However, reality is different. A Skoda/VW car will never ever outsell any Hyundai/Kia cars atleast in India. The truth is Skoda/VW knows this too. They never aimed for Hyundai/Kia volumes with Kushaq, they will be aiming atleast 2.5k to 3k sales per month which is a blockbuster for the brand. Kushaq is competing in a hot segment and if they're able to capture 20 to 25% of that segment market then Kushaq is a big hit for them.

Negatives: Overall product is good but it has few rough edges as mentioned by our mods. Budget quality roof liners, rear bench shoulder room, Diesel engine, under body protection( though available as accessory), basic rear camera. Omitting 6 airbags on Style AT variants is a stupidity at its peak. I really don't care about PANORAMIC Sunroof, 360 degrees cameras, electronic parking brake, electric seats, remote start, air purifiers, 32inches touch screen which has game consoles built in etc. But majority of this segment buyers expected these features. (Hyundai/Kia corrupted many of us with features)

On paper Kushaq doesn't make sense over Creta and Seltos. On the bright side, we have new player in this segment and worthy one.

Once XUV7OO launched we may feel Kushaq is VFM (Purely my thoughts)

I think your sheet needs a few updates and is showing the Ford in much better light than in reality.

I have an Ecosport and have driven many of them so this is from a fellow Ecosport owner.

1. The build quality of the Skoda will be far better than Ecosport. The Ecosport has poor plastics, that are not even fitted properly. Open up the plastics on pillars and dash and you will find really poorly made stuff. It will rattle within a year or 2 which has driven me nuts. Going by the review here as well as knowing the Ecosport inside out, I can assure after 2 years that even a cut cost Skoda will fare better than the Ford.

2. The Ford is equally bad in 3rd passenger and I would not give additional marks to Ford for 3rd passenger at the rear.

3. The Kushaq does have a reversing camera with static guidelines like the Ecosport.

4. Also ride and handling while the Ford is good, the setup was by no means comfortable. It was too stiff and even after 2 rounds of softening, it is still firm. The Ecosport has a shorter wheelbase and will nowhere be as composed with the larger Kushaq. Again if you read the review, the Kushaq will have more mature handling vs the Ecosport which was fun but by no means perfect.

5. Another huge negative against the Ecosport is performance. The 100BHP Diesel is very old school, doesn't like to be revved and the absolute biggest gripe I have is that it is a 5 speed unit with sort ratios. The Kushaq 1.0L if anything like the Rapid, is exact opposite. Supremely revv happy, brilliant mid range and an effortless cruiser with 6 gears.

Personally, if I didn't have so many cars already, I would sell my Corolla Altis and Ecosport and get a Kushaq 1.0L AT which replaces both into 1 car. My only gripe is that damn stupidity of Skoda to give only 2 airbags in the Kushaq AT!

Two airbags in a superior shell may well be a better bet than 6 in a tin can.

It is priced exactly where anyone with any reasonable estimation of costs, positioning and pricing would have expected it to be priced. The Koreans ARE NOT overpriced - they have 4-6 month waiting lists which suggests they are probably under priced relative to what the laws of demand and supply would dictate. And while I have not driven the Kushaq, if you drive any other Skoda/VW back to back with its mass market rivals, you would see why I would happily pay a premium for the same. And I have done that thrice - having bought a Superb instead of an Accord, a Vento instead of a City or Verna and most recently a Tiguan Allspace.

If Skoda has messed up on driving dynamics (which does not seem to be the case based on what our review says), it would be a different story. Agree fully that the 2 airbags for ATs was an inexcusable miss - hopefully they correct that soon.

You said it yourself, also not to forget the recent quality issues in Hyundai/Kia group mechanicals. There is a long thread about issues on Hyundai cars on this very forum and some of them (brake failure in previous gen Creta) are not small niggles.

EDIT: Those claiming that they booked sonet after the Kushaq's price reveal are indirectly indicating dropping it from their shortlist due to their own budget constraints by comparing the Kushaq to a segment lower car. VAG group cars are premium, safer and better to drive than most of their rivals and that's the reason they command a premium. In fact, their 40 lac rupee cars (Superb and Allspace) are bargains as they give cars 2 segments above a run for their money. Most of the people still won't get it because they prefer being "Dil se Strong" and following the trend.

Dear fellow BHPians. While it is well understood that the Kushaq as a product has struck a nerve in many, please be courteous to others as well. The choice of a car is very personal and a very emotional one at that.

There are many varied aspects in a car that get emotions rolling. For many it is the engine and handling, for others it is the look and road presence, for many others it is the feature list and a lot of us like safety.

What is good or bad no one knows. All we know is that the manufacturer is offering us a product for a price and it is up to each of us an individuals to judge what suits us best.

Please do not exchange unpleasant banter and name calling of each others car choices. The decision is a personal one and lets keep this focused on the offering and its suitability to you, your usage and your needs.

Allow me to put forward a different opinion here.

I think Skoda India have done their homework. They realise that they cannot simply take over the position that Hyundai/Kia have carved for themselves in the past 15-odd years overnight. For a car which offers a package comparable to the Creta/Seltos (give or take a few exclusive features), the Kushaq is a good option with the 1.0L TSI at the prices where the 1.5L average-performing Korean NA variants have slotted themselves in.

Yes, the mid and top variants are a bit overpriced (50K-75K, IMO) but that is where most sales come from, and Skoda is aiming to score a bit from there. As a mechanical package, the Kushaq is a compelling option over the Korean twins and with good engineering to boot. Sure, some plastics and liners are not of the quality Skoda is known for, but the car is very, very heavily localised. Inherently, the Kushaq has retained the underpinnings of a typical Skoda car in terms of performance and ride quality, and this is where Skoda hopes to cash in with the Kushaq.

But, where they have abysmally lost the plot, is the feature list for the top ATs. I have always been a firm believer that similar variant names should have similar equipment lists, and more often than not, Hyundai India themselves has been the culprit of providing more features on a Creta SX AT (for example) over a Creta SX MT, which, quite frankly, is not acceptable (except for the change in transmission, but of course). So, the same features available on the Style MT but not in the Style AT is quite baffling and mind-boggling, specially when the features are passive-safety related and are so crucial on our absolutely unpredictable roads.

And, no diesel. For a compact SUV which reminds one of performance when you see the badge on the grille up front, not giving a diesel to the Kushaq is like tying a boxer's right hand behind him, right before a fight. What are the brains in product management smoking, I wonder.

Yes, the Kushaq will not set the sales charts on fire, but if it can pull off ~2,000 units a month, that too as a petrol-only offering, it's a moderate success. All this when Skoda horror stories, unpredictable transmissions and dealerships, eye-watering spare part prices and questionable ownership experiences are taken into account. Let's see what the future holds for the car in sales numbers in 6 months' time before burying it.

And please, in an era where i20/Baleno prices are touching 11L+ and a Tata Nexon is nearing 15L in some cities, overpricing shouldn't be a worry. I don't think there's any such thing as VFM anymore. Even Maruti-Suzuki has been jacking up prices of their cars every 3 months these days - check the prices of a Swift or DZire top-end now. Let's not bring Hyundai into the equation - they have been masters at overpricing their most popular offerings from Day 1 itself.

For the record, I have not driven the Kushaq yet and am going strictly by our official reviews and youtube videos.

And yes, all this is coming from a 1 year old 2020 Creta SX IVT owner.

There exists a market of buyers who specifically look for German cars. Be it the beater or the garage queen, ranging from the Polo to the Maybach. Having such people in my extended family, seeing them buying a Creta, I almost lost belief in the existence of this market, until it was replaced by a Superb in less than 2 years, for the simple reason that not only was the Creta small but it didn't feel half as good as any of their cars in the past. These people barely even consider anything not German, hence I put forth my case that the pricing will help Skoda either way in serving the people who once wanted something that offered as much car as the Seltos/Creta/Harrier but were taken aback by the thought of moving to what they find inferior.

That brings me to the fact that price isn't a planted issue wherein the Kushaq is concerned. The people who want it, will buy it at a premium. What really pinches is the undue advantage being taken of this set of buyers by bidding farewell to vitals and feel-goods (which really should be there at the proposed segment). It's not that homework hasn't been done by Skoda, it's rather overdone, with too much faith in these buyers which has led them into the decision to subsequently remove features in their new launches. Variant discrimination between Automatic and Manual for features like airbags was last observed in the Hyundai Grand i10 in the Asta variant where the Automatic didn't get airbags. Is this what we expect from a brand like Skoda? Not clever, at all.

Nothing's gonna stop the Kushaq from doing high sales and being a success for the people who have been waiting for a much more solidly built car by a reputed and premium name like Skoda. But it is the undue advantage that pinches, to see the sad state we are being driven into.

I'm still lost at the strategy.....

If the 1.0L TSI AT didn't get the 6 airbags it would have still been understandable as long as the 1.5L TSI DSG got it.

A buyer who is looking at 1.5L TSI has already decided to pay 1.6 lakhs more for the 1.5L engine over the 1.0L. On top of that he has decided to pay 1.4 lakhs for the DSG over the manual.

In effect the buyer is paying 3L over the top spec 1.0L TSI MT for the DSG and 1.5L engine. For this buyer who is spending 3L more for the same car removing 6 airbags and TPMS is way too bitter a pill to swallow. More than anything it's outright inexplicable.

I love the well-written review (5 stars). My Pick from the lot would be 1.5 Manual in a darker shade with the blacked-out grille ONLY if it gets five stars in a safety test like the T-Cross.

I feel no one should book or reject a model based on the reviews. Journalist & writers can only present facts and share their 'personal' opinion. It's just food for thought. We should book/reject a car only after multiple test drives. It can't be an impulsive decision when you are buying something for your family.

Coming back to the Kushaq, T-Roc is ₹ 5 Lakh more expensive than top-end automatic (On-Road Price, Delhi) for the extra money we get: A Wider car with Five stars on Euro NCAP, Fatter Tyres, 4 Extra airbags, rear disc brakes, TPMS, Two-zone climate control, Front parking sensors, Panoramic Sunroof, Digital Cockpit and a few more goodies.
If it isn't a stretch and you get good discounts T-roc makes more sense to me personally at around 3 lakhs more.

I think that this will change the days for Skoda/VW in India and for the better, I believe.