Sporky McGuffin

It even came with a bell.

I've just taken the GLA off my list. The standard version has the gear change on a stalk off the steering wheel, and the handbrake under the right hand side of the dash - both ridiculous places. The AMG version is too noisy, has seats that only a racing whippet could fit in (and I'm a very long way from being fat!) and the worst handbrake system I've ever encountered. They moved the gear level and handbrake button to the centre console where they should be, but the handbrake works in a completely ludicrous manner. Turning it on is easy enough, just stop and prod the "P" button. Trying to move off again is ridiculous though - some combination of standing on the foot brake and wiggling the gear lever and pressing "P" again eventually works. So... Skoda UK have overpriced the Scout, oversized the Octavia range in general and restricted our Yeti options while inflating the price. The Porsche Macan is perfect apart from being nearly £50k with the same kit that's standard on the Yeti. The local VW and Audi dealers don't employ any staff who want to talk to customers. Probably lucky that I just bought a bicycle instead.

Personally I think both the Octy and the Golf look decent. The more vertical boot and slightly more compact dimensions of the Golf do appeal to be fair - the new Octavia seems HUGE to me.

My angle grinder is way down on power by comparison, but I'm pretty sure it could do the car more damage than the car could do it.

Once it gets going the Octy will be quicker, but when I test drove the two back to back the Yeti was much better at getting out of junctions in the damp. Unless you're going to spend a lot of time over the speed limit (in which case hand your licence back; you're not fit to have it) the Yeti has more useful performance.

DVLA says it's a Nissan.

I quite like the wheels on that other one. Not so keen on the grille.

I've ordered some of that there spray, and will report back.

Ooof. It's quite a lot of money. Without going silly on the spec I was over £40k.

I do a little bit - I asked, people told me, I did something different!

And this morning it started creaking a bit again. Back of the net! I'll get some spray - and I acknowledge that I should have listened when everyone told me to do it that way in the first place - sorry!

Nope - nothing is worse, and the bit that was bad is much, much better. It's only on really big bumps (which I mostly avoid) that there's any creak. I think they only replaced the instrument module, as there was a teeny bit of scrap paper left in the top bin when I checked.

It's an awful lot better - still a slight creak over big bumps so I'll get some spray as well. But it was done quickly and tidily and so on so a big improvement over previous experiences.

I quite like it - it's as if they were building an Evoke and forgot to get the elephant to sit on the back.

Well, apparently it's all done and on its way back...

My Yeti's in for a new dashboard today - since delivery it's had an annoying creak from the chrome ring around the speedo. Garland Skoda in Aldershot (the supplying dealer) had two goes at fixing it and failed (I don't think they even looked at the car the first time it was in - so not buying my next one from them). It had its first service at Ridgeway in Reading a couple of weeks ago and I asked them to have a look - they seem confident they can fix it. I'm still not overly happy that it was delivered in this state, and I'm very disappointed in Garland's slack attitude to fixing it. I'll report back on how well Ridgeway do - I'm not overly confident as a couple of services ago they "forgot" to change the brake fluid and then forgot on the second visit.

Well, as I said, if I'm wrong anywhere please let me know. The price comparison numbers I gave are easy to check though, and it is a fact that the A4 is on an older platform than the Scout, and by the respective manufacturer figures it's slower from 0-60 and for top speed (CR177 A4 vs CR184 Scout). The offset pedals are well documented. None of these are opinion - they are all verifiable.

I said in my last post that I'll be trying one. I did, though, think it was worth putting a fair picture of the price comparison, as you were comparing a broker price for a no-options Allroad (and including a finance discount) against list price for a fully loaded Scout. If I'm wrong anywhere on the comparison please point it out - I am trying to be as fair and balanced as possible. I'm not sure your implication that I'm uninformed is entirely reasonable.

Nope. As per my post the Scout and Leon can both be had with a decent selection of options for around the £27k mark via DtD. Your figure of £25175 is for the manual CR170 A4 Allroad, so lower powered than the Seat or Skoda and without DSG. It also includes a £2150 discount for taking finance, which will cost more than £2150 in interest, so let's knock that out and you're at £27,325 If you want to make it a fair comparison, the non-DSG Scout can be had via DtD for £21,842. Why pay an extra £5,483 for an older, slower A4 with offset pedals and less standard kit? That's a lot of money for a set of circles on the grille. I'll certainly be trying an A4 Allroad as a potential next car, but let's be realistic and fair about comparisons. It's a lot more money for a slower car on an older platform with less standard kit.

DTD have the Seat with the CR180, DSG, technology and lux packs for £26198. A CR184 Scout with (as far as I can tell) the same gubbins (and thus all the bits I'd want) is £27,829. For £1700 I'd probably have the Scout.

Colour aside I quite like the look of that Leon, but I think I prefer the Scout. Still tempted by an Allroad A4 next... though I have a test drive in a GLA45 coming up.

I think blaming Skoda for this is a bit silly. The sunroof, sound system and variable boot floor both add weight; as has been pointed out the Greenline is already on the cusp of its VED band, so adding any weight would tip it over - at which point why bother with the Greenline? As for the can of de-icer, of course Skoda don't allow for that. Nor do they allow for the central heating system in your house. They're not being thought police, they're following the legislation as they are required to do - no need to be hysterical about it!

But steels, without trims, look totally gangsta.

Mine's just had its first service at about 18,000 miles - I was a bit worried that I'd gone a few hundred over the "service due" bong starting but the dealer assured me that there's a bit of leeway and there would be no repercussions. I'd suggest you get yours booked in though, as Bilun's suggested.

All? Pot - meet kettle.