Bye bye Jetta, hello Sportage, Skoda - fix your Yeti pricing

[Transporter]

They need to get a Fabia into the $16-$17k +ORC range that has the same equipment levels, warranty and cost of ownership as the competition. It also has to look good which is the real problem at the moment a mother warthog wouldn't want a baby looking like that. If they can't do that they should drop the car completely and concentrate on Octavia and above as "affordable" European quality.

I'm sure that Aardvark mother woudn't mind.



But hey, there are some much ugllier cars than Yeti, when I saw the Rukus for the first time, A few hours later I still couldn't eat my lunch.

[Desmo]

I'm also looking at the 112TSI surprised to hear a sept date, they may have just trying to steer you into what they have in stock. I spoke to a dealer in Sydney on friday, they checked with the NSW sales mgr and the first shipment lands on the 15th March. Three shipments are coming this month and should be in dealers by the end of March.

Also statements to the press have indicated a March launch, there is even an artlice on Skoda's site to this effect. Pricing is another story and i would hope with the increase in competition from the XV and CX-5 that they will review the pricing.

[BlackOctaviaRS]

And BlackOctaviaRS, I'm surprised you could get a Sportage so quickly, have they fixed the supply issues or is your's a demo?

They had a few SLis and Platinums in stock at the particular dealer I went to, just happened to pick a good time to get one, otherwise it could have been a few months wait, depending on level of trim and options etc. Like any car at the moment, if you're prepared to look around and do a bit of research, you can (generally) find what you want in stock

[Ocy_RS_TDi_Kombi]

I'm also looking at the 112TSI surprised to hear a sept date, they may have just trying to steer you into what they have in stock. I spoke to a dealer in Sydney on friday, they checked with the NSW sales mgr and the first shipment lands on the 15th March. Three shipments are coming this month and should be in dealers by the end of March.

All statements to the press have indicated a March launch, there is even an artlice on Skoda's site to this affect. Pricing is another story and i would hope with the increase in competition from the XV and CX-5 that they will review the pricing.

Well if that's the case it shows just how crap the sales guys at Richmond Skoda are these days when they told me September....... Bring back George!

Pricing wise it wouldn't surprise me they screwed that up too!

[Desmo]

Well if that's the case it shows just how crap the sales guys at Richmond Skoda are these days when they told me September......

i don't trust any sales guy, their priority is moving what they have and they don't go out of their way to educate themselves on their own products....

[Jake02]

If they can't do that they should drop the car completely and concentrate on Octavia and above as "affordable" European quality.

Totally agreed, the Octavia is the very definition of affordable quality. The Fabia's quality isn't anywhere near the Octavia's in my opinion, there's a tiny bit of soft-touch plastic on the dash (ironically, it's one of three - others are the Polo and Kia Rio - superminis that has soft-touch plastics) and the dials are really classy and that's it. The rest of the cabin is black.

I really hope they do drop pricing + add equipment because the Fabia is an honest little car that deserves more than what we and Skoda Australia are throwing at it. It's also a million times nicer than the new Yaris or Barina, both of which sell in much higher numbers unfortunately. Maybe Skoda Aus should've left it until the next generation!

[VAG newbie]

Sorry, but a 5 year warranty, plus changes to Australian consumer law, make buying a Korean car these days a very safe option compared to 10 years ago.

Seriously, if you're looking for a 7 seat SUV, wait a few months for the new Sorrento. The current model is a very good car, no reason the new one shouldn't be even better

All our Korean products were repaired under warranty. For me, the duration of warranty is irrelevant, and it doesn't correlate with reliability, although I agree with you that it will give you a piece of mind.

The other reason that would steer me away from Korean cars is the handling is quite bad. I had a few occasions sitting in Korean cars as rental car, all I can say is they are little horrible things. I've driven Holden Cruze, Epica, Hyundai Elantra and ix20, Kia rondo, although their quality are certainly not as bad as it used to be, the ride and drive are still well below par. But I don't like Toyota either, so I guess it's a subjective thing.

For anyone that is thinking of getting a Fabia or yeti at the moment, my advice is wait. We are all here complaining that Skoda has overpriced these 2 cars. But skoda overpriced Octavia and Superb in the beginning too! After realizing their mistakes, they readjusted the price which made Octavia and Superb real good value for money! Even just comparing Fabia and Octavia, a Octavia 90TSI with DSG was advertised for $24985 drive away in our local dealer while they were doing the 2.8% finance, that is roughly the same driveaway price for the Fabia manual. It didn't make any sense, did it? So if we wait, we'll see Fabia come down to the $16990 mark including alloy wheel and Swing radio, and Yeti 77 TSI at $22990.

[Jake02]

But Skoda overpriced Octavia and Superb in the beginning too! After realizing their mistakes, they readjusted the price which made Octavia and Superb real good value for money! Even just comparing Fabia and Octavia, a Octavia 90TSI with DSG was advertised for $24985 drive away in our local dealer while they were doing the 2.8% finance, that is roughly the same driveaway price for the Fabia manual. It didn't make any sense, did it? So if we wait, we'll see Fabia come down to the $16990 mark including alloy wheel and Swing radio, and Yeti 77 TSI at $22990.

I really hope they do and when they do it'll make me really happy! Those cars deserve nothing more than better pricing (and buyers lol)! But it just annoys me that Skoda Aus priced them there in the first place! And why are VW Aus pricing their cars so closely to Skoda's? That also really annoys me. We have such great value VWs here but not Skodas. And Skodas are meant to be good value, that's why they've sold so well lately worldwide!

[dArK5HaD0w]

u guys do realise that its vw aus that's controlling everything skoda in australia?!?!?!?
- the pricing
- the models
- the specs
- the dealerships
- the services
- the warranty

vwag don't need skoda to "succeed" in the australian market - they have vw & audi. skoda is just the "extras" for their hip pocket.
sadly.....

[RSwag]

But seriously everyone, what can be done?

Very very simple, fish rot from the head down and Skoda is no different. They've had 5 years and has, in my opinion done a very very poor job with what has been some of the greatest economical times we have seen. They have floundered with model designation, options, standard features etc and pricing points. Throw in the dealer network situation and the whole thing becomes the joke they were desperate not to be.

There is no point in discussing what needs to be done, this has been discussed with Wiesner & Co on many occasions and the fact remains they feel they are right and everyone else is wrong. It is also evident they are content with their position in Oz, the fact that dealers have abandoned then in droves and repeat business is almost non existent means nothing to them.

You just have to be content with the fact that VW want to keep Skoda low key and niche, blind Freddy can see that it has the potential to achieve better thing but the Captain is taking orders from the motherland.

As for buying Korean Vwnewbie, are you aware that the head designer for Kia is from Audi and was the man who designed the latest Audi design concepts such as the TT. Maybe you should stop looking at the world like the nuffies at Skoda HQ and realise the playing field has changed massively, I would buy the Rio over the Fabia any day of the week!!!