Skoda Yeti

When the Skoda Yeti reached Indian shores, we were impressed. So impressed, that we named it our Car of the Year right away. Interestingly, it was the first SUV to win TopGear India’s top award. An SUV that bowled us over with its car-like dynamics on a proper road, and its SUV-like characteristics off it. The wholesome combination made the Yeti an irresistible package. Not many people came close to buying one, much to Skoda’s dismay. The problem was the lack of visual mass vis-à-vis the price it commanded. A price that could well fetch you a full-sized SUV or a proper luxury sedan.

Skoda claims that from among the customers who took a test drive of the vehicle, half of them ended up buying it. Unprecedented, they say. Not surprising, we say, as it is genuinely capable off-road, and fun on it. And that is partly where the problem lies the Yeti impresses the one who drives it, but doesn’t have the same effect on those around it.

The situation doesn’t change much for Skoda with the new Yeti. It’s a mid-life refresh, so the overall shape hasn’t changed. In fact, if anything else, it has shrunk a bit. Thanks to the redesigned bumpers, it has lost a millimetre in terms of overall length. It’s shorter now by a full 45mm. But would you notice it? Not easily, because the width and the wheelbase are still exactly the same. If anything, the new Yeti looks wider, thanks to a completely redesigned front and rear. At the front, the headlights are now angular, with sharp edges and single-tube LED daytime running lights. The characteristic round fog lamps have moved down from the nose to the bumper. They are now rectangular in shape, but still move with the steering input, lighting up the direction you’re headed in.

There’s a more prominent grille similar to the one on the Octavia with a uniform chrome surround in place of the thick chrome bar on the outgoing Yeti’s maw. The bumper, too, is more angular now, with a more horizontal extension. The lower air intake grille has been replaced by a vertical example similar to the one above it. At the back, the number plate is fixed into a more angular recess, but the major change are the new tail-lamps, which now get C-shaped inserts like most other modern Skodas. The rest of the car stays as it was.

The Yeti, with its split-folding seats, has a very compact yet flexible cabin. For example, you can still boost boot space from 416 litres to 1485 litres by simply folding the rear seats. The latter can also be removed completely, just in case you need more stowage room. The seats are well-bolstered, and the cabin has a nice, cosseting feel to it. Legroom isn’t vast, but there’s lots of headroom, so you
won’t feel claustrophobic.

Inside, the changes are mostly restricted to the addition of more features. Electrically-adjustable seats, cruise control, Bluetooth telephony, automatic headlamps and keyless entry are some of the useable ones. All of these come as standard, because Skoda will launch the new Yeti in only the top-of-the-line Elegance trim. Also fitted is a tyre pressure monitoring system, which should come in handy if the car will be going off-road often. The Multimedia Device Interface on the centre console looks similar to the older car’s, but has an updated interface.

The new Yeti will be available in both two- and all-wheel-drive versions. Under the hood is the same 2.0-litre diesel as on the outgoing model, with different levels of tune for the two variants. So, the 4x2 churns out 110bhp/250Nm, while the 4x4 gets 140bhp and 320Nm. This is a sweet engine, which emits a nice, raw note when you give it some stick. The AWD gets a six-speed manual gearbox, which is a quick-shifting unit. The throws are short and precise, which only helps quicken the drill.

The Yeti has a nicely-weighted steering wheel. It’s communicative, and works well as you hustle the car through the twisties. The new Yeti gets a new-generation Haldex clutch for its all-wheel-drive system. It’s also used by VW in the Golf 4Motion globally, but this one’s a lighter unit. It is a more robust system, designed to handle vibrations and extreme temperature changes. The most important part of the AWD system is the electronic differential that can not only control power going to the front and rear wheels, but also individually, making it less trickier to get out of sticky situations off-road. It also helps when the tyres start losing grip going into a fast corner.

The Yeti encourages you to go off-road, and comes fitted with high-tech gizmos like Uphill Start and Downhill Assist, which controls engine revs, brakes, and allows the driver to concentrate on the steering bit. There is also the rough road package, which covers all the vital areas of the underbody which could potentially be damaged.

First launched in India in 2011, the Yeti has found a loyal, if not vast, customer base that swears by its abilities. With the facelift, the overall design is now easier on the eye, and a host of features makes it an even more complete product. It misses out on some small things - like a reverse camera, and some big things - like an automatic gearbox. That said, it still ends up charming you with its capabilities, for which you need to thank the Yeti’s lack of bulk. There is news that the next-
generation Yeti will be decidedly bigger, but no one can tell if it’ll be able to match this one on the ‘fun’ front. Best enjoy the present, then.