Skoda Yeti 4x2: Expert review and road test!
16 Feb 2012 1:40 PM by
Somnath Chatterjee
in
Single review,
This road test review of the Skoda Yeti 4x2 was uploaded on 16th Feb 2012
Google the word 'Yeti' and you will find that it means an abominable snowman that is said to be living in the Himalayas. That certainly is a strange name for a car especially since the Yeti is no monster and is infact the opposite of a true blue SUV instead of being one. First of all it , is not BIG like a Toyota Fortuner or the Mahindra XUV500 and secondly it is not a seven-seater either. Those factors have stopped the Yeti from being a sales hit like some of the rivals in the same price band. Thing is , people (especially Indians) want the SUV size and presence and the Yeti on the other hand looks like a big hatchback and not a SUV. Thus despite being a capable package , the Yeti was deemed too expensive and radical for the Indian market. But now Skoda have bought in the Yeti 4x2. While the Yeti 4x4 range starts from Rs 16.89 lakhs (ex-Delhi) , the 4x2 range on the other hand starts at Rs 13.46 lakhs (ex-Delhi). Interesting? Read on.
The headlines in the Yeti 4x2 include a downsized engine plus some features being taken off and of course the 4X4 being removed. If you look at the exterior you will be hard-pressed to tell the difference between this and the 4x4 version. At the back there is no '4x4' badge - thats about it. Nothing more. The styling is the same and despite it not being large , the Yeti attracts a lot of attention primarily due to its muscular body and big wheel arches that give it some of the 'SUV' look.
Open the door and get inside and it's the same here as well. That by the way is a good thing as the Yeti has fantastic interiors , everything is well made and build quality is truly special. The materials used in the interior are more likely to be seen in a Rs 20 lakh car. The Yeti 4x2 comes with features like parking sensors , Hill Hold control , dual air-bags , automatic front wiper system , gear-change indicator etc. That shows that the Yeti is well equipped though some features like Hill descent control are only on the 4x4 variant. One thing that i sorely missed in the Yeti was steering-mounted audio controls- somthing that even small cars have! But that aside the Yeti will give you little to complain about its interiors. The front seats are spacious and the rear seating is good too.
Now to the driving. The changes in the Yeti 4x2 include a switch to front-wheel drive and a 110 ps engine (reduced from 140ps). At first the changes are barely noticable and if you are not told you are driving the 110 ps Yeti you will not feel it. This is due to Skoda's clever gearing. The five-speed manual gear-box (the 4x4 variant has 6 gears) is perfectly placed to extract all the performance and in the City you do not feel any need for more power. However if you go beyond a certain speed and drive it hard , the mask falls off. The engine feels a bit strained and also loses refinement. But that is only you push it very hard , otherwise for 'normal use' it's perfectly fine. Whatever little you lose out on performance you gain in terms of fuel-economy as the Yeti 4x2 is surely to deliver better economy (less weight and no efficiency loss due to all-time 4x4). As I said earlier the Yeti is now 4x2 and thus this means its front wheel drive and this has resulted it losing some of the handling but whichever way you look at it , the Yeti is better in the handling department than others thanks to its compact size. The ride is good and the ground clearance is excellent as you sail over those giant potholes and speedbreakers.
In the end the Yeti is unlike any other SUV because it feels like a SUV with its raised driving position but thanks to its compact dimensions it's also practical to use and easy to park like a small-car. The Yeti 4x2 certainly is the one to buy if you are buying an Yeti. The 4x4 technology is seldom used and the 4x2 version of the Yeti has enough features and it does not feel under equipped compared to the 4x4 Yeti. The Skoda Yeti 4x2 is available in two versions- Active and Ambition. The Active is priced at Rs 13.46 lakhs and the Ambition is priced at Rs 14.32 lakhs. The 4x4 is only aviailable in Ambition and Elegance spec. In our opinion , the Ambition version gets our vote has the best combination of price and features as the Active is a bit too basic. So , it may be small on the outiside but the Skoda Yeti packs a mean punch!
Content courtesy: 
on 10 May 12 at 7:21 PM
nice and compact car this is awasome........
This road test review of the Skoda Yeti 4x2 was uploaded on 16th Feb 2012
Google the word 'Yeti' and you will find that it means an abominable snowman that is said to be living in the Himalayas. That certainly is a strange name for a car especially since the Yeti is no monster and is infact the opposite of a true blue SUV instead of being one. First of all it , is not BIG like a Toyota Fortuner or the Mahindra XUV500 and secondly it is not a seven-seater either. Those factors have stopped the Yeti from being a sales hit like some of the rivals in the same price band. Thing is , people (especially Indians) want the SUV size and presence and the Yeti on the other hand looks like a big hatchback and not a SUV. Thus despite being a capable package , the Yeti was deemed too expensive and radical for the Indian market. But now Skoda have bought in the Yeti 4x2. While the Yeti 4x4 range starts from Rs 16.89 lakhs (ex-Delhi) , the 4x2 range on the other hand starts at Rs 13.46 lakhs (ex-Delhi). Interesting? Read on.
The headlines in the Yeti 4x2 include a downsized engine plus some features being taken off and of course the 4X4 being removed. If you look at the exterior you will be hard-pressed to tell the difference between this and the 4x4 version. At the back there is no '4x4' badge - thats about it. Nothing more. The styling is the same and despite it not being large , the Yeti attracts a lot of attention primarily due to its muscular body and big wheel arches that give it some of the 'SUV' look.
Open the door and get inside and it's the same here as well. That by the way is a good thing as the Yeti has fantastic interiors , everything is well made and build quality is truly special. The materials used in the interior are more likely to be seen in a Rs 20 lakh car. The Yeti 4x2 comes with features like parking sensors , Hill Hold control , dual air-bags , automatic front wiper system , gear-change indicator etc. That shows that the Yeti is well equipped though some features like Hill descent control are only on the 4x4 variant. One thing that i sorely missed in the Yeti was steering-mounted audio controls- somthing that even small cars have! But that aside the Yeti will give you little to complain about its interiors. The front seats are spacious and the rear seating is good too.
Now to the driving. The changes in the Yeti 4x2 include a switch to front-wheel drive and a 110 ps engine (reduced from 140ps). At first the changes are barely noticable and if you are not told you are driving the 110 ps Yeti you will not feel it. This is due to Skoda's clever gearing. The five-speed manual gear-box (the 4x4 variant has 6 gears) is perfectly placed to extract all the performance and in the City you do not feel any need for more power. However if you go beyond a certain speed and drive it hard , the mask falls off. The engine feels a bit strained and also loses refinement. But that is only you push it very hard , otherwise for 'normal use' it's perfectly fine. Whatever little you lose out on performance you gain in terms of fuel-economy as the Yeti 4x2 is surely to deliver better economy (less weight and no efficiency loss due to all-time 4x4). As I said earlier the Yeti is now 4x2 and thus this means its front wheel drive and this has resulted it losing some of the handling but whichever way you look at it , the Yeti is better in the handling department than others thanks to its compact size. The ride is good and the ground clearance is excellent as you sail over those giant potholes and speedbreakers.
In the end the Yeti is unlike any other SUV because it feels like a SUV with its raised driving position but thanks to its compact dimensions it's also practical to use and easy to park like a small-car. The Yeti 4x2 certainly is the one to buy if you are buying an Yeti. The 4x4 technology is seldom used and the 4x2 version of the Yeti has enough features and it does not feel under equipped compared to the 4x4 Yeti. The Skoda Yeti 4x2 is available in two versions- Active and Ambition. The Active is priced at Rs 13.46 lakhs and the Ambition is priced at Rs 14.32 lakhs. The 4x4 is only aviailable in Ambition and Elegance spec. In our opinion , the Ambition version gets our vote has the best combination of price and features as the Active is a bit too basic. So , it may be small on the outiside but the Skoda Yeti packs a mean punch!
Content courtesy:
nice and compact car this is awasome........