ChrisWells

I would be quite happy if they dropped diesel and DSG altogether as all I ever want and will ever want in the future is manual and petrol. It appears that there are a lot of changes for 2019 which includes reducing the number of engine gearbox combinations, which then Skoda Australia has taken further to drop all Manuals :( https://www.caradvice.com.au/650537/no-golf-gti-manual-is-this-the-beginning-of-the-end/ https://www.caradvice.com.au/651034/skoda-octavia-rs245-manual-wltp/ Even the Americans are laughing at us :( https://carbuzz.com/news/america-s-2019-volkswagen-gti-won-t-ditch-the-manual I guess we are just too small a market to be given any choice. But luckily if i had the money I can still buy a Lotus or Morgan and I doubt they will ever drop the manual gearbox until they go all electric.

OK, so UK will keep a petrol manual which is good as it means they are going to keep making them, just not going to be available in Australia based on what the dealer said :( From the link it appears there is a 245PS manual TSI which I assume is the 180KW petrol engine. I also found Skoda Rapid manuals advertised in the UK so maybe it is just Australia dropping manuals from the range.

I have a 2014 Rapid and a 2015 Octavia vRS, both 6 speed manual. I was in having a chat to the dealer and found in Australia that the only manual you can now buy is a Fabia. After some googling it appears something called Worldwide harmonised Light vehicle Testing Protocol is responsible for both Skoda and VW discontinuing manuals in Australia. Unfortunately for us in Australia most buyers are boring and happy to buy what is in stock rather than ordering in a car and settle for the boring DSG version and most dealers would rather just stock a few cars so only order the DSG. Luckily the UK drives on the correct side of the road and from what we here in Australia likes manuals so in the past I know people who have bought cars in the UK, left them in their mothers garage for 2 years and then imported them to Australia as private imports just to get the car they want when it has not been available in Australia. But am really worried by the name Worldwide harmonised Light vehicle Testing Protocol as worldwide to me means more than just Australia. Has Skoda (and the whole VW group) actually stopped making manuals worldwide?

My preferred option in Hydrogen but I expect will never take of as people think it is too dangerous etc. BMW have been running internal combustion engines off hydrogen for years and all that comes out of the exhaust is water vapour. The cars sound and perform like a petrol car. Seeing some solutions for a decent range in an electric engine car is a Hydrogen Fuel cell I think a future with Hydrogen stations generating the Hydrogen from solar (lets convert every road to solar panels and connect them to the hydrogen stations) then if both electric and internal combustion engine could be powered off the same fuel it gives us a much wider choice of cars. Sorry that is a bit off topic. In Australia I have seen a few old diesel vans run off vegetable oil and they smell completely different when they go past. Is bio diesel an option for modern cars?

I have a nice 2 year old Octavia RS wagon manual and a 3 year old Rapid manual. My wife loves the Rapid as it is small and fun to drive, but stupid Skoda Australia is discontinuing the manual. There is only one manual left at the local dealer and my wife is thinking we should grab it. When we bought the Rapid we paid extra for a 6 year warranty plus on road assistance etc. so I planned to keep it another 3 years. All my other cars i have kept for about 10 to 12 years. I love the ACC in the Octavia and the heated seats, unfortunately the Rapid doesn't come with either of those. I was hoping in 3 years that the Rapid wold have gone upmarket and we could get a high specced manual version but it seems to not even be an option anymore. So trying to decide whether to grab this one, or stick to the original plan and wait for 3 years and see what is available then. I just wish more Australians enjoyed driving properly like it appears a European person does.

Agreed, but I really notice the cars that seem to be 5 or more years old as well. Maybe it is just that most car drivers are not doing the km's required to burn the rubbish out of the filters.

Do the rest of us a favour and go Petrol. I rode a push bike to work and you can smell the diesel cars, even the new ones. I remember saying to people even before VW got caught cheating that I find it hard to believe diesels are not that polluting as they stink. Now that VW got caught I know that I and all the other pushbike riders I know are right, diesel is disgusting and needs to banned.

I had a Subaru Outback manual with the dual range gearbox and replaced it with a VRS manual wagon in May (well ordered it October 2014). I really wanted an AWD but also wanted the features of the VRs, The two main reason I moved from Subaru as firstly after my model they go really ugly and secondly they dropped the manual gearbox. I would consider this if it came in petrol manual, but I doubt it ever will in Australia. I looked at the Superb and the sales brochure showed a nice manual one but the dealer told me that is the UK model and we can't get manuals here and told me if i wanted a manual get the VRs. So if the AWD is only available as Diesel and auto in the UK then the chance of a petrol manual in Australia seems very low.

Hi, You must be a lot younger than me. As a kid growing up in the 70's I dreamed of a MGB. But would have been happy with anything convertible. Yes Japanese RWD cars from the late 80's certainly had an appeal. And as we know the MX5/Miata has sold well since then using the same front engine, RWD layout.

Thanks guys, It seems that there is only one set of back mud flaps for the Octavia and not different ones for the Wagon/Estate/Combi and the Hatch/Limo. So there is no reason for Superskoda to say limo on the rear mud flap description. MK12MKD - I did read that post, google found it for me and that is how I initially found this forum. I was just a bit concerned as nobody actually said the Octavia Estate and Hatch mudflaps are the same. Sorry for being pedantic but I wanted to make sure before ordering because depending on the item postage to Australia is about the same price. So no sending them back I plan to order mudflaps, cargo netting and rear bumper protector for both the Rapid and the Octavia. And the ice scrapers as we don't get them here and they seem like a cool idea. Thanks Chris

Hi, I have read on other posts how the standard mud flaps will fit the RS models with some hot water to soften them. I plan to buy mud flaps from superskoda however the rear ones say limo models (Not RS, Not Scout) Based on other posts the RS bit is not really an issue, however I can't find anywhere selling Estate Mudflaps, most just say Octavia III rear mudflaps. so is there different mud flaps (like there is for the Rapid) or will the limo ones fit the estate? Also is the cargo netting the same for both the estate and hatch? Thanks Chris

Hi everyone, I am fairly new to Skoda ownership, in fact it is the first European car I have owned. We needed a new wagon, we had two cars a Subaru Outback and Nissan Silvia convertible, the poor Silvia died when my son got his licence (due to him not treating it like a 25 year car needs to be treated) so it was in lots of pieces in the garage while I rebuilt it.and leaving use just the Subaru outback that my son was taking out nearly every night so my wife said she wanted her own small car. We looked at Mazda 3's as that is what she liked but I convinced her to try an Octavia as I knew she would like the vision out the back a lot more and that is an important feature for her. I wanted a wagon for carrying stuff and yes we have had wagons for decades so it was her turn to chose but really I didn't want to have to rely on the Subaru wagon my son was driving all the time actually being home when I needed it. I had also test drove an Octavia vRS while having a days transit waiting for connecting flights so knew I liked it. It was next to a Morgan dealer and I had gone there to dream,but dropped in next door to see the Skoda's as Tour De France was on and I have always thought they looked good with all those bikes on the top. She agreed the Octavia Wagon had better rear vision out the back than any other car she tried so we ordered one which finally turned up about 9 months later. Luckily by waiting we managed to spec heated leather seats which are great. We both loved out Outback, however the new one has a stupid hand brake and CVT gearbox so was out of the options. In fact looking at wagons with a manual gearbox really means Skoda octavia and not much else. But in the meantime our poor Subaru hit a kangaroo so we were down to one Silvia in lots and lots of pieces. I went to Skoda dealer to see how close the Octavia was and the original 6 months was going to be longer not shorter. So rather than hire a car for a month I thought better buy something so went looking at cheap second hand cars at dealers near the Skoda dealer, Anyway I walked back to the Skoda dealer where I had left a borrowed car and saw a low interest sign, inquired and ended up buying a Skoda Rapid. Then before the Octavia turned up I got my Silvia going. Now the Octavia has turned up I have 3 working cars, both Skoda's are great and the Silvia has to stay as I love having a convertible. I just wish Skoda would make one. Cheers Chris