Sandwood

This is what I would be coming from (see image of my car below). I guess I’m looking for a longer legged cruiser with 2026 levels of tech and equipment. My 2019 car is just starting to feel a wee bit dated in these respects and the mk8 and mk 8.5 GTIs don’t really do it for me in the way that the mk7 and mk7.5s did.

Thanks for that review whippersnapper and thanks to other owner reviewers as well. I’m glad I started this topic as it has given me much reassurance around jumping out of my immaculate Golf GTI Performance. Browsing the websites for AA Cars, Skoda UK Used, Cinch and Autotrader reveals relatively few Graphite Grey hatchbacks on the used market and most have the characteristics of ex-dealer demo or staff cars. Likewise, when looking for new stock, only a small handful. And almost never any Smoke Silver new or used 4.5s which would be my second choice. Rarer than hens teeth it appears. My dilemma is whether to go for an ex-demo with circa 3,000 miles or new if quickly available. I’ve told my local dealer I intend to start an active search in April so I’m still turning everything over silently! However, I have taken the important step of introducing the topic to my wife, (last time I had to do this was late 2018), so the most difficult bit is behind me. In the meantime, and at the risk of offending another owner, (apologies in advance!), I attach an image I found whilst browsing for Grey 4.5s. I think this looks absolutely cracking, especially with the plastic wheel trims off.

I mentioned vRS reviews a couple of days ago and this one is probably the very best of a motley crew. It really is a good in depth critique. The reviewer reckons the vRS now beats other equivalent, or better, VAG models in interior materials, design and build quality. My tech skills don’t extend to attacking the entire file but here is a screen shot for anyone interested in following up.

Great to hear real life owners feelings. Because it’s all about feelings with cars like these. mork….. interesting to hear about Giulia. A car a have more than once described as the most beautiful in its class. I have looked on line at them, and in the flesh, over the last 3 years but could never take the love affair further than looking. Too many risks I felt. But….I feel the vRS is a great alternative. In mk4.5 it does tick all the logical boxes plus the beauty test. It’s what I always said to my wife with my old Mk2 vRS in silver and with all my GTIs “ when you park and lock up, walk away and then……look back”. That’s the test.

That is very useful to know. Thank you. And a lesson for me ……. Google AI is only as good as the question you think you are asking. In multiple searches about the threshold calculation on Google and indeed on DVLA sites, I can’t recall anything being mentioned re delivery charges but plenty about MRP being the basis. It’s all a bit hazy. So that’s a problem solved…..don’t need to think about DCC then. (Actually, although most press road test cars are given out with DCC, very few used 4.5s seem to have it).

There is a lot of misunderstanding about the 40k tax threshold. My local Skoda dealer salesperson assured me it was the OTR cost until I challenged them, they checked it out and came back saying I was correct to say it was the MRP. If it had been the OTR price then even a vRS without options would be over the limit now.

Thanks GSD. Good stuff in that string. Especially the mk4 to 4.5 comparison. By the way, my Mk 2 was at least as well screwed together as my VWs and Audis and more reliable than the A3. House of Cars reckons the 4.5 is the best built of the current VAG family and interior quality comes out as the best over A3 or Golf.

Hi Wanderer. I think P11D only applies to company car BIK. As I no longer work, I have no BIKs (unfortunately!).

Thanks. Can you direct me to where I find the best 4.5 vRS conversation(s) on the forum. DCC will actually take you to just under the 40k band bearing in mind the dvla use the MRP and not the OTR figures for tax purposes.

I have searched out every review I can fig out of the internet for a couple of months and they create a consistent picture of how great the 4.5 is. Maybe the best one is House of Cars on YouTube (review of red estate). I have never seen a 4.5 in the road… they must be quite rare because the price is taking them into a very busy sector of the market, espec on PCP. That means potential customers needs deep dive into the 4.5 to understand what they are getting. That’s before we start on the long irrelevant badge snobbery (Audi, MB, etc).

Thanks to both responders! Good to know performance Skoda owners are still a thing. I had a mk2 vRS (CR tdi) for 18 m from new in 2010. This was my last company car and was preceded by two A3s. What followed was a Golf GTD Mk6 then four Golf GTIs including my current 7.5 Performance bought new in 2019 and sitting on 50k at the moment. (I used to change every couple of years but didn’t like the Mk 8 GTI and now the 8.5 is becoming stupidly expensive when you start adding desirable options. I had not followed the path of the vRS models at all but something caught my attention about the 4.5 and the more I looked into it the more impressed I became. I will spec anything up to the 40k MRP tax band but not beyond on a matter of principle. Current thoughts are Graphite Grey with and/or heated screen &wheel and/or DCC. Any real life experience of these two extras (value and operation) would be very interesting to me. Factory orders are currently circa 18 wks and I am concern that might take me into the threat of a MRP price increase due to either inflation (Iran war effect) or a Skoda price increase. My local dealer is going to see if there is anything U.K. wide in stock which could avoid this. I’m flexible as to when I might buy…. any time between June and Oct. At the moment Drive The Deal quotes a combined discount of around 17% which would take a basic car down to around 33.5k on the road. That’s me for now.

I am considering returning to the Briskoda fold after 15 years running a variety of Golf GTIs. Returning to buy a new 4.5 vRS. During that 15 years I have greatly enjoyed being part of the GTI Forums with enthusiastic and friendly owners exchanging views and great advice. I have to say I’m not “getting the love” from this forum that I had hoped for. To be blunt, I really don’t care about an armrest on a 2021 1.5 tsi estate or the 12v socket on a 1.2 hybrid. I’m looking for a proper vRS enthusiasts site. So my question is…….am I looking at the wrong place with Briskoda as is there somewhere else for proper vRS enthusiasts to gather?

Thanks….I only joined this week so just learning!

No replies? I’ll get my coat……

When is the next planned price rise for Octavias? AI suggests Nov 26. And, what is order time at the moment for a vRS?