Skoda Yeti versus Force One

Skoda manufacturers excellent premium cars and is present in several countries across the globe. In India it has been for over a decade and has been a good performer with its high quality cars which are beautiful and make excellent performers. It comes loaded with features and steps up the game for its rivals in its segment. Force Motors are known for manufacturing popular people carriers which are affordable and easy to maintain and bring low cost of ownership for potential owners. Force is here with their Force One, a new SUV in the segment and we compare the two cars to help you figure out if either of these are the one that you have been looking forward to buying.

Looks and design:

Skoda Yeti brings a modern and contemporary design element to the segment and despite its tall-boy station wagon looks it maintains an excellent road presence. It does feel a little short and can look smaller than it actually is. It is however very well designed by Skoda and brings muscular and large round fog lamps. It has flared wheel arches with the 7 spoke alloys on the Elegance model and 5 spoke on the base variant Ambiente model. They sport an attractive design and look great. It has a well sorted design which looks proportionate from front to rear while the best profile is from upfront. It has a large front windshield and long snout which quickly get your attention. It has a handsome front end while the rear misses out on body colored bumpers it still retains its overall classy looks. Skoda Yeti brings roof racks which add to the styling while the overall build quality is excellent and paint and finish is fantastic.

Force One has been the first entrant in the SUV market segment in India from the popular people carried ‘Force’. It is built on similar lines and shares several design and engineering similarities with the Chinese SUV known as Explorer III and therefore retains slightly out-dated styling which isn’t contemporary in today times making it seem out-dated. It has the tried and tested boxy design from over a decade ago. It does sport some elegant looking horizontal lines. Force One brings a long wheelbase and high ground clearance with flared wheel arches adding to the muscular looks of the car. Force Motors have tried their best in providing the Force One with excellent build quality and fit and finish is quite good for a first attempt at an unknown segment by Force Motors.

Looks overall – Skoda Yeti – 8/10
Looks overall – Force One – 7/10

Interiors – design, space and features:

Skoda Yeti brings ample interior space combined with the solid build of an expensive and higher specced German car. The seats are well sculpted and supportive to your back. Lateral support is ensured by the large wings that flare out on the sides. It has adjustable lumbar support. There is plenty of head and leg room even for taller passengers. The visibility of the road from the driver’s seat is excellent. Skoda Yeti has a 5 star NCAP safety rating and comes with 6 airbags, traction control, all-wheel drive, front and rear parking sensors, auto dimming interior & external mirrors, active headrests, ESP + EBD and ABS as well. It has a few more features such as 6.5” touch screen on the Elegance is fun to use. It has plenty of space for your knick knacks and brings cup holders, slide out tray beneath passenger seat and storage areas for small items. Skoda Yeti has climate control, 6-CD changer, steering mounted audio controls, fog lamps and electric seats. It also brings auto-on headlights should you forget to turn it on yourself. Skoda Yeti has a large 415 liters of boot space for all your storage needs.

Force One has plenty of cabin space and owing to its long wheelbase which is 400mm longer in comparison with a Scorpio and does well to shun its competitors in terms of luggage carrying space and rear passenger space. Force One is very spacious and has well designed seats which give plenty of support and comfort to all its passengers seated in 3 rows of seating in the car. The 3^rd row has plenty of legroom and adequate headroom and when folded has plenty of luggage carrying capacity. Force One SUV features air conditioning for all three rows and brings plenty of regular features such as music system, trip computer, electric mirrors, remote locking, daytime running LED and safety features such as Airbags come as standard. It has plenty of storage space inside, behind the 3^rd row of seats and ample boot space to carry your travel luggage.

Interiors overall – Skoda Yeti – 8/10
Interiors overall – Force One – 7/10

Engine – performance, power, torque, fuel economy, smoothness:

Skoda brings a powerful motor with its smooth and silent turbocharged 2 liter CRDi engine. It has a rev-happy diesel engine which produces 140 BHP at 4200 RPM and 320 NM of torque from 1750-2500 PRM. It has a slick gearshift which makes it easy to shift gears in the city. It has an all-wheel drive variant which makes it an excellent option to own. It brings a 6 and 5 gear options depending on your choice of the available levels of trip. It has ample low end torque if you maintain revs of over 1000 RPM and the motor is quite tractable above 1000 RPM and offers plenty of fun. Skoda Yeti has been certified by ARAI to deliver a fuel efficiency of 17.67 kmpl and there is also a 110 BHP engine lined up for the 4×2 wheel drive version of the Skoda Yeti.

Force One packs a good amount of punch with its powerful motor. Force Motors have brought in the Mercedes-Benz 2.2 liter OM611 common-rail engine which produces an excellent power of 139 BHP and massive amount of torque of 319 NM. Force has gone the unconventional way to bring in the performance required of an SUV such as the One. Force has a very tractable motor which gives it excellent low end torque and highway punch. It is mated to a five-speed manual Mercedes-Benz G32 gearbox which offers slick and smooth gearshifts. Force One has been certified by ARAI to deliver a fuel efficiency of 11.6 kmpl.

Engine overall – Skoda Yeti – 8/10
Engine overall – Force One – 7.5/10

Suspension – Ride, comfort and handling:

Skoda Yeti brings a comfortable ride quality which is slightly on the firmer side. It brings a well sorted suspension setup which absorbs all the bumps and undulations on the road. It isn’t built for serious off-roading but will take out on a easy trail just off the road. The chassis and suspension is well sorted out to enable the Yeti take on fast corners and triple digit speeds on the highways. It has ABS + EBD and traction control to help slow it down and retain stability while doing it quickly. It brings innovations such as Hill Descent Control, Drive-Off Assistant and Off-Road ABS. It also brings Airbags for added safety of its passengers.

Force One brings a huge smile on the handling front and delivers strongly owing to Lotus Engineering UK who has setup the car with an excellent suspension for the best handling. It has paid off for the Force One and it’s quite visible as one drives this SUV. It manages to take on corners at good speeds with a well controlled ride and minimal body roll. Force One has ride quality which is quite good while the suspension feels a little soft it provides ample cushioning on bad roads but still remains a little pitchy sometimes. However it manages to eat up all the bad bumps on the road and the ground clearance makes it easy to tackle deep potholes. Force One is shod with 235/70 tyres which provide adequate grip levels on and off road. It brings ABS and EBD and Airbags for additional safety.

Suspension overall – Skoda Yeti – 8/10
Suspension overall – Force One – 8/10

Value for money – sticker price, standard features:

Skoda brings an excellent product at very good value. Skoda Yeti comes in a solid build, so typical of German car manufacturers and feels luxurious. Skoda Yeti has been well received in the market owing to its contemporary design, compact size and build quality all at very good pricing. It has a huge list of features, very good interior space and modern features. It offers good fuel efficiency and performance. It has been well priced starting with the base model Skoda Yeti Active 4×2 starting from 13.46 lakhs ex-showroom Delhi, Skoda Yeti Ambition 2WD top end model is priced at 15.20 lakhs. The AWD versions start with Skoda Yeti Ambiente priced at 14.32 lakhs and the top end model 4×4 Skoda Yeti Elegance is priced at 16.89 lakhs ex-showroom Delhi price.

Force is currently selling their Force One in its fully loaded variant at a price of 10.65 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi) and at present it is available in only one trim level. Force Motors have tried their best to give it a long list of features and the SUV scores in many areas such as space, handling and performance and the only downside at the moment is the small number of dealers present and after sales support, which given the company performance is bound to improve over time. Force has done well at their first attempt at building an SUV. They used an existing platform to deliver the goods and frankly we think given time they will be back with an all rounder. For now we certainly feel that Force One is certainly value for money given its price tag and feature list.

Value for money overall – Skoda Yeti – 8/10
Value for money overall – Force One – 8/10

Verdict:

Skoda has a brand value despite a few niggles in its after sales. It builds excellent cars which offer very good features at good value for money. It brings quality and craftsmanship to a segment where pricing is the key to success in sales. Skoda Yeti is one such product from the stable of Skoda. Skoda Yeti brings very good performance and luxury combined into one compact SUV. Force One is a good attempt from Force Motors to break into the SUV segment which is now being bombarded with options. Force One brings a powerful motor, plenty of features but a slightly outdated styling. Force Motors would do well if they expanded their reach so as to be able to cater to more people.