BHPian Omkar recently shared this with other enthusiasts: From the fair amount of time I’ve spent with the Skoda Kylaq, I’ve grown to like it a lot. I’m not talking about the features, space, or practicality aspects of the car, but rather the mechanicals and driving feel. It’s a compact car that is quite fun to drive. The 1.0-litre TSI engine is perfectly suited to the car’s size and complements the chassis well. The first time I drove it was at the camouflaged drive at the CoASTT High Performance Centre in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (detailed drive report here). I got to drive the manual Kylaq on the main track and the automatic version on the small go-kart track. Later on, I drove the production-ready Kylaq during the media drive (Post #1 of this thread), and it all came together. The car performed as expected, and it was a joy to drive. Cut to the Skoda Octavia RS track event at the Buddh International Circuit, and I met the Kylaq again at the handling circuit. This time around, we got to drive the Kylaq automatic through a moose test, a slalom test, and an autocross circuit designed by the professionals at Rayo Racing.Skoda Kylaq: Slalom And Autocross Circuit TestFirstly, we had the slalom test, where the cue was to accelerate, lift off, turn, accelerate, lift off, and turn. Importantly, don’t knock over any cones. The car’s acceleration wasn’t too quick, so it wasn’t much of a challenge. Next up was the moose test, where the only instruction was to stay flat out and not knock over the cones. The car can handle it, so don’t lift off. Didn’t doubt it, so never lifted off:Video Finally, we had the autocross circuit. Here’s one of the instructors, Aditya Pawar, showing us how to go about it. He was very precise with his inputs and was carrying very good speed throughout:Video And when I got behind the wheel:Video Yes, I wasn’t as quick as I’d have wanted to, but we just had one lap, and I couldn’t memorize the course in the sighting lap. So, I was just driving off the instructions from the co-driver – Rally Style. Times when I went in too hot into a corner, the traction control kicked in and kept the car in check. I felt it was a bit intrusive, but it was just one lap, so I couldn’t do much about it. All in all, the handling is sorted, and the car has a connected feel to it. The steering could do with a bit more directness, but apart from that, the car feels almost like a go-kart. It’s very easy to place the car in corners and carry some good speed. Even when driving the automatic, the highlight of the car was the handling package and not the torque converter. It could easily carry a lot of speed, and the quick direction changes didn’t feel unnerving. The car didn’t toss around, and the suspension stiffness was just right to make you feel in control and push harder. Unfortunately, due to time constraints, I didn’t get more time to drive the Kylaq, but at the end of the day, it was another fun day with the Kylaq.Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.
