സ്കോഡ യെറ്റി Zeal Elegance 4x2

For making its rugged sports utility vehicle Yeti more competitive in the automobile market, Skoda Auto has rolled out a special edition, which is christened as Skoda Yeti Zeal Elegance 4x2 . It is a styling package that gives a refined silhouette to this vehicle and it includes premium black Alcantara leather seats, black dashboard and door trims. Apart from these, it comes with the same features, which are available in the existing versions. The company has not made any changes to its technical specification and it comes with the same 2.0-litre turbocharged diesel engine, which comes with a displacement capacity of 1968cc. It has the capacity of generating a maximum power of 108.4bhp along with a peak torque output of 250Nm. It is skilfully mated with a five speed fully synchronized manual transmission gear box, which helps in delivering a power packed performance. It distributes the engine power to its two wheels. The braking mechanism of this SUV is quite proficient. It is further augmented by anti lock braking system along with electronic brake force distribution. It also has hydraulic brake assistant along with anti slip regulation for added safety. This latest version gets an attractive external appearance with a lot of styling aspects, which makes it look refined. It has an aggressive frontage with a new radiator grille, Bi-xenon headlamps, which has LED DRLs, revamped bumper along with air dam and a pair of bright fog lamps. In terms of interiors, it gets refreshed leather wrapped steering wheel, multimedia driver interface, 12-way electrically adjustable driver seat with memory function, steel pedal set with rubber anti-slip elements and six airbags. It also has an advanced audio unit with Bluetooth connectivity and a 6.5 inch touchscreen display. Apart from these, the company has blessed this vehicle with a lot of safety features like front and rear park distance control, tyre pressure monitoring, corner function with front fog lights, automatically dimming external and internal rear view mirrors. This SUV is competing against the likes of Hyundai Santa Fe, Chevrolet Captiva, Toyota Fortuner, Isuzu MU7, Mahindra Ssangyong Rexton and Honda CR V.

Exteriors:

The company has given this vehicle an aggressive body design and it is fitted with a lot of striking features, which gives it a sporty appearance. To begin with the frontage, it comes with a chrome surround radiator grille in new frame and is flanked by a radiant headlight cluster. It is incorporated with Bi-xenon headlamps and side turn indicator. It also has LED day time running lights that adds to its elegance. The bumper is painted in body color and is accompanied by a silver plated cladding for preventing minor damages. It houses a large air intake section for cooling the engine and this air dam is flanked by a pair of fog lamps that adds to the visibility. Its windscreen is made of green tinted glass and is integrated with a set of intermittent wipers. Coming to its side profile, it is neatly designed with silver painted outside rear view mirrors, body colored door handles and black finished moldings. These external wing mirrors are electrically foldable and fitted with side turn indicator. The pronounced wheel arches are equipped with an elegant set of 16-inch Dolomite alloy wheels, which are covered with 215/60 R16 sized tubeless radial tyres. Then body colored B-pillar and aluminum inserted moldings enhances the look of its side profile. Its rear end has a body colored bumper, which is fitted with couple of fog lamps. The large windscreen has a defogger and a centrally located high mounted stop lamp. Then it has a luminous tail light cluster that is powered by LED based lights and a curvy boot lid, which is embossed with variant badging and a chrome strip.

Interiors:

The dual tone front padded dashboard and center console along with door panels gives the cabin a decent appearance. The spacious internal cabin of this Skoda Yeti Zeal Elegance 4X2 trim comes in gabi sand finish and incorporated with a lot of refined features. It is incorporated with ergonomically designed seats, which are covered with premium Alcantara leather upholstery. These seats provide ample leg space and shoulder room for all occupants and makes the drive pleasurable. The driver seat has a 12-way electrically adjustable function along with 3-programmable memory function that adds to the comfort level. At the same time, front seats have lumbar support adjustment and it also has adjustable center arm rest as well. The second row seat comes with split foldable function as well. This variant has leather wrapped steering wheel along with gear shift selector and hand brake lever that gives the cabin an elegant look. There is a lot of chrome treatment, especially on infotainment system, AC vents, inside door handles and instrument cluster dials. Apart from these, the company has bestowed this trim with a number of storage spaces for the convenience of occupants, while traveling. Some of them includes an illuminated glove box with cooling effect, storage box under front seats, removable rear parcel shelf, four foldable baggage hooks in luggage compartment, door map and front seat back pockets. It also has a 416 litres boot space, which can be increased up to 1485 litres by folding its rear seat.

Engine and Performance:

Under the bonnet, this variant is powered by a 2.0-litre, in-line diesel engine with liquid cooling system and it can displace 1968cc. This turbocharged mill comes with self aligning blades and high pressure direct injection system that enhances its off-road performance. It is integrated with four cylinders and sixteen valves using double overhead camshaft based valve configuration. This power plant can churn out a maximum power of 108.4bhp at 4200rpm in combination with a peak torque output of 250Nm between 1500 to 2500rpm. It is mated with a five speed manual transmission gear box, which sends the engine power to its front wheels. It allows the SUV to attain a maximum speed in the range of 165 to 170 Kmph, which is rather good. At the same time, it can cross the speed barrier of 100 Kmph in close to 10 seconds from a standstill. It is incorporated with a high pressure direct injection fuel supply system, which enables the motor to deliver 14.3 Kmpl within the city and 17.7 Kmpl on the bigger roads, which is quite good for this class.

Braking and Handling:

The company has given this SUV a hydraulic dual diagonal circuit braking along with vacuum assisted dual rate system. Its front wheels are equipped with a set of disc brakes with inner cooling and a single floating caliper, while rear gets conventional disc brakes. This braking mechanism is further assisted by ABS along with EBD and hydraulic brake assist. It also has hill hold control along with anti slip regulation. On the other hand, its front axle is assembled with a McPherson strut, which has lower triangular links. Whereas the rear gets multi-element axle along with one longitudinal and three transverse links. This suspension mechanism is further assisted by torsion stabilizer. It is equipped with ESC along with traction control system, which enhances the stability of this vehicle. Meanwhile, it is blessed with a direct rack and pinion electro-mechanic power steering, which is quite responsive. This steering wheel comes with tilt adjustment function and supports a minimum turning radius of 10 meters.

Comfort Features:

The manufacturer has blessed this newly launched variant with a number of sophisticated features like a leather wrapped multi-functional steering wheel, which is mounted with audio and call control buttons, all four power windows with bounce back function, KESSY (keyless entry, start and exit system with engine start/stop button), remote control locking/unlocking doors and boot lid, power steering and so on. The advanced SKODA audio player comes with 6.5-inch LCD TFT color display. It is integrated with six CD changer, SD/MMC card reader, Bluetooth connectivity and eight speakers. The multimedia device interface (MDI) is compatible with USB (micro and mini), Aux-in and i-Pod connectivity. It has an automatic dual zone air conditioning unit, which can electronically regulate temperature of the cabin. It also has adjustable AC vents on rear center console, dual climatronic display, air quality sensor and pollen filter.

Safety Features:

This Skoda Yeti Zeal Elegance 4X2 variant is blessed with a number of safety aspects, which are tyre pressure monitoring, six airbags, parktronic sensors with speakers, fog lights, active front head restraints, rear defogger, an advanced engine immobilizer and many other such features. It also has seat belts for all occupants along with driver seat belt reminder notification on instrument panel.

Pros:

1. Roomy internal cabin with lots of innovative features.

2. Good engine performance with decent acceleration and pickup.

Cons:

1. Price can be more competitive.

2. Ground clearance needs to improve.