stu83

Well I've stuck a quick for sale thread up to see if I get any interest though I doubt I will - the private market for cars of this value doesn't really exist any more. Going to have a look at a Megane next week, so we'll see what that brings. Will be kind of sorry to see the Octavia go as it's a really good car and the other half loves it, but I need to do what makes me happy! Will probably end up keeping it for a further year or so if this potential exchange falls through as the longer I leave it the less an exchange makes sense.

Yep, but theres a BIG gap between what one place wanted to offer me and that retail price. Like a £5k gap. Most of the other trade in prices have been fairly decent. The private market for cars of this value just doesn't exist any more thanks to PCP. Edit : Actually a £6k gap.

Bugger me ... Looks like mines worth more than I thought! Either that or that one's overpriced. Those aftermarket stickers and badges are tacky AF.

Yeah, as others have said previously, that's probably a better way to look at it. I don't dislike the Octavia at all, which makes it hard. I think I'm probably just restless. A 245 would cost me too much unfortunately. Plus mine is stupidly speccd up (everything bar kessy, sunroof and canton) so I think moving to another similar car would be disappointing.

I wasn't a huge fan of the Cupra after driving it, plus it's almost identical to the Skoda technology and platform-wise. It's very Germanic. That's the appeal of the RS - it's totally different. And yes, probably too harsh for a daily driver lol

Lol, I'd only have it for a week before it got stolen - they disappear every week here in the West Mids. Admittedly my commute is rubbish, so the Octy makes it much more bearable, and the adaptive cruise is a godsend on the way home, but that Megane chassis ... It'd have me taking a different route home

Yeah, I'm a car lover, and previous Alfa owner. That was a heart over head purchase if there ever was one! I'm back from France on Saturday (where the car has performed amazingly I might add) so I'll go take a test drive on Monday I think and put things into perspective. I do love the practicality of the Octavia, and the fact it makes driving oh so easy, it's not set a foot wrong to be honest ... There's a hell of a lot to like about it, especially in winter with everything being heated! If anyone's after a petrol VRS at the mo, take a look at my project thread ... A pm with a decent offer might make my mind up lol. It's just about to hit 16k miles.

That's the thing ... I don't need the space, my head won out when I bought the VRS as it was more modern, way more practical, had a DSG box, loads of spec etc. I've got a few more garages to come back to me with trade in prices, so I'll see how it goes.

Hi all, Really not sure what to do ... When I bought my 230 last year I very nearly bought a Megane 275 instead. I've always been a lover of Renaultsport cars, having previously owned three ... However when this Skoda came up for sale I couldn't say no! I've been keeping an eye on the market and keep getting tempted to swap to a Megane. The 230 is really nice, don't get me wrong, but even with the remap and Eibachs it doesn't turn me on like the RS Meganes do. I drove both at the time and adored the Megane, but the Octavia made more sense, probably due to the spec and DSG. I've been given some good trade-in prices, so now would probably be as good a time as any to swap with little cash outlay. I know they're two polar opposite cars and there's things I'd really miss from the Octavia, but the Megane would make up for that through the driving experience. Am I mad?

Edit : sorry, didn't read that fully. Mines a space saver. You have to go for an 18" - got myself one off eBay. I also bought the spare wheel kit of Skoda for £45 which included a big plastic screw to fix it into place on the boot floor. You just remove the polystyrene boot filler thing and put the wheel in there. Obviously you lose the two storage compartments, but the wheel fits perfectly and the boot floor remains flat.

Yep, that's all I did. Still perfect 3-4 days in!

Cheers, will do.

It was a mistake ... A costly one, but they're looking after me with some stuff so no massive harm done. The A4 was really nice. Hated it at first, thought it was cramped, dull, no steering feel, but as the week went on I sadly really began to like it. It didn't have the character of the VRS, ie everything was quite numb and detracted from driving. But that's what also made me like it on my commute. Everything was mechanically and acoustically damped to perfection. Absolutely no movement through the body whilst driving, it just went and gripped with no fuss - the car did everything for you. Also had the new 7 speed wet DSG which was fantastic. Shame it was a diesel. Maybe in another 10 years when I'm in my 40s eh?

Oh, and bought a space saver wheel from eBay for £50 delivered (it's practically brand new) and the spare wheel kit from Skoda. £95 all in, and now I actually have a spare wheel, Jack and brace! Went around and loosened all the nuts with a telescopic brace and tightened them properly. Bit of peace of mind!

Quick (boring) update. Had fun recently with a flat tyre ... Didn't want to waste a new £140 tyre with the weld stuff, so tried to take the wheel off to get the tyre repaired. The lovely guys at my local tyre place put the wheels on SO tight that it broke the wheel brace from my Mrs' car (I don't have one, the car came with a compressor and can of weld). Had to call Skoda assistance to come and take it off, then got it all sorted at another tyre place. Then on Sunday one of my brake hoses decided to burst. That was fun. Turns out when my springs were replaced the garage (whom I previously trusted and have used all the time for the last 10 years or so) damaged one of my hubs. Essentially the carrier for the brake hose was knackered, so the hose kept rubbing until it wore through. Another Skoda assistance call, this time the car was recovered and was put in a brand new Audi A4 S-line Avant for the week. All sorted, but due to the issue being caused by another garage's issue, it wasn't covered under warranty. Cue one new hub, brake line etc for the princely sum of £547. I'm more positive news though, I've sorted an annoying fuel line rattle I've been getting :

As above, if it's the lifted spoiler it'll most likely need holes drilling in the boot lid. Yours looks more like a lip spoiler, so the tape should do. If you're not planning on removing it then you could always use some tiger seal. It's an incredibly strong sealant used for car parts. Usually applied with a calk gun. About £8 iirc from Halfords etc.

Sorry, completely missed this. I'll try and get a photo later. Photobucket have decided to stop allowing 3rd party hosting now so need to move all my photos for posting :-(

Ah, sorry, I was supposed to give you my number wasn't I? I think it was me being paranoid - I heard a noise once while I was parking, but I've tried to reproduce it and can't. Could've just been a different noise than I'm used to due to the car park surface or something. I mentioned it to the dealer during the week who couldnt find anything (surprisingly) so at least it's noted down.

This is genuinely 100% silent ... Or at least for the moment! Took it out on a good drive and kept the revs in the range where it used to happen, and nothing ... It's beautiful. My local dealer had a look at it during the week (or claims to have done) but actually did bugger all, hence taking it into my own hands.

For a few months now I've had a really annoying rattle / buzz from the driver's side door roughly around 1800 - 2200 rpm. After a few searches etc I saw some mentions of a 'fuel line rattle' so decided to have a look into it today. Got myself under the car and revved it to 2krpm, and lo and behold the rattle was coming from the fuel lines, the end of which can be seen here (the two pipes in the bracket) I found that if you put pressure on the holder or pipes, the buzzing went away ... so time for a solution. Popped to Wilkos while I was in town and bought these for £1 : I couldn't quite get to the fuel line bracket without taking the plastic shield off, so I got my socket set with a 10mm socket on and GENTLY unscrewed the nut closest to me holding the shield on. I emphasise GENTLY as it's plastic and it sits on top of a screw. The 'nut' part stays attached to the shield. With this down I could easily get access to the bracket. I used one of the foam pads and thoroughly wedged it between the top of the large black holder / bracket and the car. Put it all back together and VIOLA! SILENT! I hope this helps a few people. Took literally 5 minutes, no need to jack the car up (I was parked up a kerb) and cost £1, Now I have 17 more foam pads to use!

Had my economy in that range a few times on long distances, even after the remap. I found that you unfortunately have to stay around 70mph to achieve it - any more and it drops a fair bit, especially above 80.

Same as above, I'm on Eibachs with the 19s. The ride quality is perfectly acceptable - I find it much better than the original springs, plus it feels a lot more controlled around corners. Just changed an axle to 235/35/19 and there's noticeably more rim protection ... The new tyres have gone on the rear so I can wear out these rubbish Pirellis. 4mm left, so only 2mm or so to go!

I got 24.3mpg this morning on my 18 mile commute. M42 was ruined so I took some back roads and drove 'enthusiastically' to make up time.

This. My VRS 230 (now 288bhp) doesn't 'feel' as fast as my MK1 LCR which only had 265bhp, but the Octavia definitely makes things disappear in the rear view mirror a LOT quicker.

Anyone else noticed that Waze is now available? Gave it a go the other day - not as intuitive or easy to use as Google maps, but it has potential. Waze is always fantastic for routing through traffic.