The vRS badge from Skoda stands for pure performance, a fun driving experience as well as a powerful engine. The previous vRS badged car in India, the Octavia vRS lived up to the vRS benchmarks. But, now Skoda's launched a new vRS model in the country - The Laura vRS. The car costs 16.9 lakhs EX SHOWROOM MUMBAI.
The nitty gritties:
The + ve's:
- Sporty appearance. Seems to be the most sport looking sedan below 20 lakh rupees.
- 4 Airbags, ABS, EBD.
- A sunroof !!
- Touchscreen 6.5" music player with EIGHT speakers.
The -ve's:
- Engine same as that of the regular petrol Laura's. No difference in tuning, or power production.
- Interior trim could've been better. Lacks in minor detailing such as steering wheel coming without audio controls !
- 2 lakh difference in pricing over regular petrol variant for not much of a different car.
- No optional DSG gear box !!
The interiors:
The Laura vRS dashboard is very plain jane in terms of the features department. But when it comes to sportiness, it rules the roost !
The Aluminium inserts on the dashboard are simplistic and minimal, yet they play an important role when it comes to adding that "sporty feel" to the cabin.
The pedals too are designed to look sporty. However, I feel that the dead pedal may be a tad too small for drivers with large shoe sizes.
The chrome rings around the tacho and the speedo look elegant, plus they enhance that "sporty" feeling Skoda aims to give the driver of the Laura vRS.
The centre console has oodles of those aluminium inserts which truly make it look elegant.
The music system is controlled by a 6.5" touchscreen. It features an Aux input, an SD / MMC slot as well as a six CD changer.
The vRS's seats are upholstered with Alcantara leather upholstery. They are truly comfy and feel well padded.
The rear seats are similar to those of the standard Lauras, except the different upholstery.
The Rear centre console comes with two aircon vents along with this small cubby hole for storing tiny things like keys.
Boot space is humongous like all other Skoda sedans. This one comes with 560 liters of storage place, without the rear seats folded down ! The boot of the Laura vRS is excellent at gobbling up luggage.
With the rear seats folded down, Skoda claims that the Laura vRS boasts of a mind boggling storage space of 1430 liters !
The Exterior:
Photo courtesy: Skoda India
The exterior is pretty similar to the stock Laura versions, EXCEPT for the remodelled, more aggressive bumper with the different fog lamp design. Further, the lower grille has a Honeycomb design, instead of the "criss cross" design in the stock Laura design.
Photo courtesy: Skoda India
The front grille is the traditional Skoda design grille with the chrome highlight, except for the vRS (Rally Sport) badge on it.
Photo courtesy: Skoda India
New Alloys look good....
Photo courtesy: Skoda India
The dual tailpipes give it's looks the required grunt.
Photo courtesy: Skoda India
The rear design is pretty much unchanged except for the spoiler.
This time, the Skoda Laura vRS comes with no side skirts which is a good move on Skoda's part. The side skirts get scuffed and scratched because of speed breakers or broken roads.
The sunroof on the vRS is well integrated into the rest of the body.
The Powerplant:
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Lying under the hood of this monster of a car is a 1.8 liter 4 cylinder petrol TSI engine.It cranks out 160 Bhp @ 4500 to 6200 RPM and 25 kgm of torque from 1500 - 4500 RPM. It drives the front wheels of the car and is mated to a 6 speed manual transmission.
Note: This engine is the SAME one available in all the petrol variants and is NOT a special vRS engine. This is a disappointment.
Final Verdict:
The Laura vRS is an amazingly built car which no doubt, beats the Honda Civic, Toyota Corolla Altis and the Mitsubishi Cedia in a segment where the Civic originally ruled - the under 20 lakh performance sedan segment. The Civic's engine seems to be showing signs of aging. It produces 132 Bhp, whereas the Laura vRS's engine produces an amazing 160 Bhp !
But, lets talk about vRS territory now. The Laura vRS beats all other petrol cars at its price in terms of sheer performance. But, does it live up to the vRS name ? Sadly, it doesn't. The vRS name brings to mind powerful engines. But, the Indian vRS is available with the same engine as the stock car it's based on. Abroad, the Laura vRS (it's called the Octavia vRS abroad) comes with a 2 liter petrol engine cranking out around 200 Bhp and 28 kgm of torque. Impressive.
So finally, if you're looking for a petrol sedan under 20 lakhs with good performance, the Laura vRS is the car for you (if you can spend the extra moolah). Otherwise, go for the stock petrol Laura, you'll only miss out on a few cosmetic changes - performance will remain unchanged.
- Naayl Humza
14 year old car enthusiast.
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