Mark W

Hello All Well for the first time since about 2010 I'm back, albeit temporarily, and would like to thank the Forum for your help. Here's the story. I had a Skoda VRS diesel as a company vehicle between 2007 and 2011 partly as a result of the opinions I'd read here. I kept reading and made the odd contribution while driving a car for over 100,000 miles and "suffering" a small piece of fake chrome flaking off the dashboard, an intermittent air con fault (and that was a VAG part so could have ended up in an Audi) and a wheel bearing at about 90k. So basically trouble free motoring. 2011 - 2016 I was in the company car default option , a BMW 320D. A great car, worthy of its reputation, but was is THAT much better than the vrs for the price? I'm not sure it was. Next was an Infiniti Q30 with a 1.5 Renault Diesel engine. It got admiring looks and people would start conversations about it in car parks.....but I can see exactly why it's been discontinued, even though it has a better driving position and more space than a BMW 1 Series it's simply outclassed. I know this because the Infiniti has had to go back and I've had a 1 Series on loan. I'd certainly recommend a 1 Series as a used option if a driver fits into it without scuffing their left shoe every time they change gear, but not at new prices. Which brings me to Monday gone and the BMW was swapped for an Octavia SE Drive 1.5 DSG. Okay it doesn't have the heated seats of the Infiniti (which stopped working anyway) but the smooth drive, excellent gearbox, infotainment centre, interior space and boot have all got me a bit upset because I've only got it for 2 months :-( Little things like the ease of Bluetooth connection for 2 phones blow the Infiniti out of the water. So I might lurk for a few months and thank you for being the top Google result for all of the little tweaks I've wanted information on. Yes maybe I should have digested the drivers manual but everyone here gets to the point with accurate information so much quicker.

Hi All, A bit of a long shot, but has anyone else suffered a rattling rear end (!) on their Octavia VRS 5 door hatch? It sounds like a marble rattling about intermittently or as though the tailgate is loose but it isn't. I've adjusted the rubber stoppers to tighten the tailgate, I've emptied the boot, taken the tools from the wheel well, rammed the badly fitting parcel shelf into place then removed it totally, had the seats down then up, fitted the seatbelts into the buckles when no one is in the car etc etc etc & always to no avail. As you might have guessed I'm a tad frustrated. Help me if you can, Cheerio, Mark W.

Hi All, I rang the General manager of the supplying dealer & his initial response was that the oil filter isn't even checked on the PDI!! At which point I noted that it still should have been picked up. Anyway I've been slowly simmering, & Bahnstormers post has prompted me to send an e mail to my Fleet Administrator. Tomorrow I'll find out who the preferred Tyre Fitter is for our leasing company & I'll ask them to check my tyre pressures & wheel nuts..........& the suspension chocks while they're there !! Cheerio.

Flipping Heck!! I never thought of that! Hi Jonno, the car was sourced centrally from my companys leasing company so it came from waaay down South, hence the low loader. I live in South Shields & spend the day on the roads of Teeside & County Durham. Mine's black too so I'll keep an eye out for you. Cheers, Mark W.

Hi All, I was going to post how pleased I am to have finally taken delivery of my new Company Car but things have gone a bit badly to say the least. It was due to be delivered on Friday at about 2.30pm, but a series of low loader breakdowns & staff illnesses meant that it didn't arrive until 9.30pm that night. I give all respect to the delivery company & their driver though, as the poor lad was shattered when he finally got to my house. Anyway, a dark pool had appeared under the car by Saturday morning but it was damp & cold & I put it down to possibly condensation off the air con. I was very wrong! When I realised that the leak was more serious I called the AA to tow it to Benfield Skoda in Newcastle (excellent service from them by the way), we raised the bonnet to find that the top was not screwed onto the expansion tank & even the washer bottle lid hadn't been pushed down. The engine bay was also very greasy due to oil being sprayed about the place. The good people at Benfield checked the car over today & found out that the oil filter was "half hanging off". To be honest I could have given the car a better PDI myself!!! So not a good start but I won't let it put me off. The car itself is well equipped, handles beautifully & has the potential to go like a train. I'll just make a point of double checking my tyre pressures tomorrow. Just to be on the safe side:rolleyes:

Hi All, I've just signed up so hello everyone. And I'll bet that this question has already been asked but it seems a friendly place so I'm sure I'll be cut some slack. My new Company Car is en route & should be with me by November, so what are the differences between the 2007 MY Octavia VRs & the 2008 that I'll be getting please? And also, does the 6CD system play MP3 discs? If it does I better start burning Thanks All, Cheerio

Hi All, My first post as I hope to be the owner (well user technically) of a Company Car by November, an Octavia VRs Diesel. I'm unable to add anything of major substance to this thread other than to say that the P11D price of the car & the relatively low CO2 emissions (how Company Car Tax is calculated) are both excellent. I had another £40 "in hand" in my monthly allowance which I could have spent on any number of Golfs, BMW120s, Passats, Audi A3 Sportbacks etc, but the list prices of those cars (& bizarrely higher emissions on some of them) would have seen me paying a lot more out of my wage. My choice of car has raised eyebrows with some of my colleagues but considering what I'll get for my money it was an easy decision for me to make. Thank You, Cheerio.