DESIGN & ENGINEERING
The VW Group is serious about deploying its diverse portfolio of brands
in India. Keen to leverage economies of scale that come with such a
strategy, the question VW and Skoda must have asked themselves is why
make two specially engineered compact saloons when you can make do with
one? Why indeed? And so what was born was the Vento, basically a
stretched version of VW Polo, with a boot tagged onto the rear. Ideal
for emerging markets like India, Russia, Brazil and future markets like
China and Malaysia, this relatively compact saloon delivers mid-sized
luxury for small-car money; in short, exactly what Indian customers
want. What we have here isn’t the Vento however, but its near-Siamese
twin, the Skoda Rapid, possibly the most Volkswagen-like Skoda ever.
Sure, VW and Skoda share platforms and engines, but their cars differ
considerably too. The Fabia is a completely different car from the Polo;
the Jetta has very little in common with the Laura and the same holds
true for the Superb and Passat as well. In comparison, you could
justifiably call the new Rapid a ‘badge-engineered’ Vento, and you
wouldn’t be too far off the mark.
So, under the skin the Rapid is a VW Vento. Which, of course, means it
has the same long 2552mm wheelbase, the same 1699mm width and the same
widened front and rear track. The Rapid, however, is marginally longer
than the Vento, but that’s just down to the larger nose of the Skoda.
Also identical is the suspension the Skoda uses; MacPherson struts up
front and non-independent coil springs in the rear. And the brakes and
steering system are identical too. Skoda however has tuned each of these
components a bit differently which, as we will see later, makes this
car drive quite differently from the Vento.
The Rapid may look at first like a Vento with a Fabia nose stuck on it,
and in a way it is, but the Skoda looks much more attractive in the
flesh. The large nose balances the elongated body nicely; Skoda
designers have done a fabulous job of seamlessly merging some of the
disparaging lines. The new larger fenders and mildly altered chin
complete what must have been a difficult styling exercise. While the
flanks of the car remain the same, down to the use of an identical
mirror, Skoda has altered the boot-lid, taillights and rear bumper too.
But the changes are so subtle; you’ll only spot them if you look hard.
INTERIORS
The cabin, like the exterior, is derived from the Vento with plenty of
Skoda overtones. The basic architecture of the dash is the Vento’s and
the simple layout, slender central console and the large glove-box with
the poor-fitting lid are all shared. Also carried over unaltered from
the VW are the headlight switch, climate control, and the low quality
air-con vents that, as we’ve found, have a tendency to break easily. And
the seats are identical too. The front seats have good bolstering and
thigh support, making them comfortable on long drives, the steering can
be adjusted for height and reach and the driver’s seat can be raised and
lowered too. So finding a good driving position is easy. The Rapid
however comes
with slightly coarser seat fabric and some missing chrome highlights, such as the ones found around the VW’s vents.
There are plenty of Skoda parts on the inside though, and these change
the character of the cabin quite a bit. Skoda’s chrome-lined steering
wheel looks and feels good, the gearlever is similar to the one on the
Fabia, the instrument panel comes from the Czech Republic rather than
Germany and there is a Skoda audio system as well. Unlike VW, which uses
a deep shade of brown, Skoda uses black for all these bits and that
does cause some amount of dissonance in the cabin. Still, if you are not
familiar with the Vento, you’ll find that these Skoda parts actually
blend surprisingly well. Except for the gearlever, which looks like the
chrome has been added as an afterthought.
With its extended wheelbase and additional width, the rear seat of the
Rapid is also a good place to be. There’s plenty of legroom, the seat is
wide and you get a nice airy feel when sitting in the rear. And the
seat is reasonably comfortable too. You climb out feeling fresh even
after a long drive and this is also true if you are tall. But it could
have been nicer. You sit a bit low, the backrest is a bit vertical and
there is that huge tunnel in the centre of the cabin, which makes it
difficult to get in and out if you are the third passenger in the back.
Still, like the Vento, you get the large rear air-con vent and that
clever lever that allows you to push the front passenger seat forward.
The Rapid is sold in three variants — Active, Ambition and Elegance.
The Active gets body-coloured bumpers, central locking, power windows
and air-conditioning. The Ambition adds ABS, driver airbag, remote
locking and driver’s seat height adjustment. The Elegance, the one you
see here, has alloy wheels, climate control, a CD player with aux-in,
electrically adjustable mirrors and a front passenger airbag.
ENGINE & PERFORMANCE
Power to the Rapid’s front wheels comes from a pair of 105bhp, 1600cc
motors, shared with the Vento. While both the petrol and diesel make the
same amount of power, it’s the common rail diesel’s extra 10kgm ◊ ∆ of
torque that makes it the more effortless of the two. It’s also tuned
slightly differently from the VW, and initial progression is smoother
and more immediate. Throttle responses are relatively crisp, the motor
revs more easily from medium engine speeds and there seems to be more
punch in the mid-range. So driving in traffic is really much nicer, with
only some turbo-lag present. The Rapid also lacks that big spike in
power you get on the diesel Vento, and this makes it even nicer in
traffic. You do miss the thrill of that sudden burst of power and the
Rapid doesn’t pull as willingly at the top of its powerband, but we
still found it to be just as quick. It matches the Vento to 100kph and
by 140, it’s even ahead.
Skoda has made the petrol version better to drive as well. The 1.6 Mpfi
engine isn’t the most modern motor around and doesn’t feel as light and
responsive as some of the Japanese units. Still, with shorter gearing
and altered tuning, we could have sworn that there was a different
engine under the hood. It’s slightly boomy at some points in the
powerband, and it moans a bit near the 6200rpm redline as well, but the
petrol Rapid still feels better to drive. It’s faster to respond to a
tap on the throttle, it pulls slightly harder throughout the rev range
and pedaling this car quickly is actually enjoyable. The Rapid is
considerably quicker than the Vento in a straight line with 100kph
reached approximately one second quicker. It’s still not close to the
City though, the performance king of the segment almost three seconds
quicker to 140kph.
VW has always made some of the nicest manual gearboxes, and this one is
no different. It is light to use, the throw is short and this makes it
one of the slickest boxes around.
RIDE & HANDLING
Power to the Rapid’s front wheels comes from a pair of 105bhp, 1600cc
motors, shared with the Vento. While both the petrol and diesel make the
same amount of power, it’s the common rail diesel’s extra 10kgm ◊ ∆ of
torque that makes it the more effortless of the two. It’s also tuned
slightly differently from the VW, and initial progression is smoother
and more immediate. Throttle responses are relatively crisp, the motor
revs more easily from medium engine speeds and there seems to be more
punch in the mid-range. So driving in traffic is really much nicer, with
only some turbo-lag present. The Rapid also lacks that big spike in
power you get on the diesel Vento, and this makes it even nicer in
traffic. You do miss the thrill of that sudden burst of power and the
Rapid doesn’t pull as willingly at the top of its powerband, but we
still found it to be just as quick. It matches the Vento to 100kph and
by 140, it’s even ahead.
Skoda has made the petrol version better to drive as well. The 1.6 Mpfi
engine isn’t the most modern motor around and doesn’t feel as light and
responsive as some of the Japanese units. Still, with shorter gearing
and altered tuning, we could have sworn that there was a different
engine under the hood. It’s slightly boomy at some points in the
powerband, and it moans a bit near the 6200rpm redline as well, but the
petrol Rapid still feels better to drive. It’s faster to respond to a
tap on the throttle, it pulls slightly harder throughout the rev range
and pedaling this car quickly is actually enjoyable. The Rapid is
considerably quicker than the Vento in a straight line with 100kph
reached approximately one second quicker. It’s still not close to the
City though, the performance king of the segment almost three seconds
quicker to 140kph.
VW has always made some of the nicest manual gearboxes, and this one is
no different. It is light to use, the throw is short and this makes it
one of the slickest boxes around. 
VERDICT
From the outside, the Rapid looks like nothing more than a VW Vento with
a Skoda nose and Skoda badges. And that's what it undeniably is.
However, dig deeper and Rapid proves to be much more than a Volkswagen
clone. Yes, some of the shortcomings of the Vento remain. These are not
the most refined cars to come out of Planet VW, the Rapid doesn't seem
to adhere as closely to global build quality standards as something like
a Fabia and this car is still nowhere as well equipped as some of the
competition. However, on the plus side, Skoda has ironed out many of the
Vento's other shortcomings. The diesel engine is more linear but just
as punchy, the shorter geared petrol now works much better and ride and
handling are much improved as well. Spacious, fast, frugal, reasonably
well-built and good value, the Rapid has a lot going for it. We're going
to see a lot of them.
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATON
Engine
| Fuel | Petrol/ Diesel |
| Installation | Front, transverse |
| Type | 4-cyls, in-line 1598cc petrol, 4-cyls in-line, 1598cc common-rail turbo-diesel |
| Bore/stroke | 76.5/86.9, 79.5/80.5mm |
| Compression ratio | 10.5:1/16.5:1 |
| Valve gear | 4 valves per cyl, DOHC, 4 valves per cyl, DOHC |
| Power | 105bhp at 5250rpm105bhp at 4400rpm |
| Torque | 15.6kgm at 3800rpm, 25.5kgm at 1500-2500rpm |
| Power to weight | 91.7/87.1bhp per tonne |
| Torque to weight | 13.62/21.16kgm per tonne |
Transmission
| Type | Front-wheel drive |
| Gearbox | 5-speed manual |
Chassis & Body
| Construction | Four-door saloon, monocoque |
| Weight | 1145kg/1205kg |
| Tyres | 185/60 R15 |
| Spare | Full size |
Suspension
| Front | Independent, MacPherson struts, anti-roll bar |
| Rear | Non-independent, compound, link-crank axle |
Steering
| Type | Rack and pinion |
| Type of power assist | Electro-mechanical |
| Turning circle | 10.6m |
Brakes
| Front | Ventilated discs |
| Rear | Drums |
| Anti-lock | On Ambition and Elegance variants |
Performance
| 0-20 | 1.20, 1.54sec |
| 0-40 | 2.74, 2.85sec |
| 0-60 | 4.85, 4.85sec |
| 0-80 | 7.53, 7.56sec |
| 0-100 | 11.20, 11.44sec |
| 0-120 | 16.10, 16.46sec |
| 0-140 | 22.87, 23.68sec |
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