Hallo everyone.

I have to decide what I'm doing, car-wise, tomorrow morning. For the last year and a bit I've had a horrible Toyota Avensis as a company car, and the one good thing about it is that everything is taken care of - servicing, tyres, insurance, fuel, the lot. I now have the choice of either a company Passat (2.0TDI 140, R-line, with satnav) or to opt out. I tried a Yeti (Elegance, CR140) and an Octavia (CR170 DSG VRS) yesterday and much preferred the Yeti apart from the Octy's better overtaking grunt. The local VW dealers wouldn't let me test drive a Passat, so I'm loathe to take that option. Also the Passat didn't seem to have as nice materials inside.

From my sums I think that I'll be slightly better off opting out and getting a lease-type-doodad with all the servicing and maintenance included. From other sums I think that the business mileage allowance will cover all the fuel, the insurance and such. I'll be doing 40,000 a year or so so having this included is pretty much essential. I got another quote for a lease which was about £50 a month less, but the Skoda deal means you get to keep the car at the end for something like £100 (I have the quote downstairs), and I'd think that even with 120,000 on it it'd still be worth a few grand at least.

I have a couple of questions if anyone would be so kind as to offer some advice.

Also I was thinking of Storm Blue with Gobi Sand leather and adding front parking sensors - everything else I'd want seems to be standard on the Elegance. Are there any other options people would regard as well worth having?

Is the dealer at all likely to throw in some floor mats? When I got my Fabia they were added free.

Has anyone used the Skoda private leasing thing with the maintenance and such?

Should I be able to get a discount off list for the car itself when using the leasing? The quote was based on full list.

Thanks!

Hi,

options I would recommend are the Annapurna alloys as they suit the Monster, TPM and the spare as your doing a lot of miles. Also if you like music there's a pretty good speaker upgrade. Mats are a factory or dealer option, so you might get them thrown in and mud flaps should be considered too.

The colour you have opted for is great, my only thought though is with that amount of miles you will be spending a lot of time cleaning her. Obviously colour is a personal thing but from a purely practical view point a dark interior and light exterior might be better.

No help on the lease thing I'm afraid.

Regards,

TP

Hallo everyone.

I tried a Yeti (Elegance, CR140) and an Octavia (CR170 DSG VRS) yesterday and much preferred the Yeti apart from the Octy's better overtaking grunt.

Why not try the Yeti CR170 and get the best of both worlds?

For deals, try drivethedeal or Broadspeed. They seem to be the cheapest at the moment and with both you can use either Skoda finance or another fioance house.

I agree, why compare a Octavia 170, against a Yeti 140, when their is a Yeti 170 available.

Edited 24 January, 201016 yr by Anthony 1

Doh!

Sorry, forgot to say - the plan is to get the Yeti CR170, best of both worlds. Nowhere seemed to have one for a test drive though.

The spare wheel makes sense - I've never had a puncture yet, but it's bound to happen at the worst possible moment if I don't have a spare.

Hallo everyone.

I have to decide what I'm doing, car-wise, tomorrow morning. For the last year and a bit I've had a horrible Toyota Avensis as a company car, and the one good thing about it is that everything is taken care of - servicing, tyres, insurance, fuel, the lot. I now have the choice of either a company Passat (2.0TDI 140, R-line, with satnav) or to opt out. I tried a Yeti (Elegance, CR140) and an Octavia (CR170 DSG VRS) yesterday and much preferred the Yeti apart from the Octy's better overtaking grunt. The local VW dealers wouldn't let me test drive a Passat, so I'm loathe to take that option. Also the Passat didn't seem to have as nice materials inside.

From my sums I think that I'll be slightly better off opting out and getting a lease-type-doodad with all the servicing and maintenance included. From other sums I think that the business mileage allowance will cover all the fuel, the insurance and such. I'll be doing 40,000 a year or so so having this included is pretty much essential. I got another quote for a lease which was about £50 a month less, but the Skoda deal means you get to keep the car at the end for something like £100 (I have the quote downstairs), and I'd think that even with 120,000 on it it'd still be worth a few grand at least.

I have a couple of questions if anyone would be so kind as to offer some advice.

Also I was thinking of Storm Blue with Gobi Sand leather and adding front parking sensors - everything else I'd want seems to be standard on the Elegance. Are there any other options people would regard as well worth having?

Is the dealer at all likely to throw in some floor mats? When I got my Fabia they were added free.

Has anyone used the Skoda private leasing thing with the maintenance and such?

Should I be able to get a discount off list for the car itself when using the leasing? The quote was based on full list.

Thanks!

Hello there Sporky McGuffin. If by 'lease-type-doodad' you are referring to Skoda Solutions PCP then, yes, you can expect a discount and for the quote to be based on the lower price.

I have experience of the Passat and have recently ordered a Yeti. The Passat is a decent car but for me not in the same league as the Yeti for desirability. The Yeti has a higher quality interior than the Passat (the VW Golf is actually trimmed to a higher standard than the Passat), has a raised driving position that makes going about the country far more interesting, and all of the practical advantages of its removable seats and shape. The refinement, handling and ride from my short test drive of the Yeti were also preferable to the Passat.

Twas the hire purchase one - too many miles for Solutions.

The Passat didn't seem dreadful, but the plastic on the inside of the doors (right below the window) seemed rather hard and brittle-feeling which was odd. Certainly disappointing after the Yeti. In fact, I'd assumed the Passat was cheaper, but it's not - to get to the same spec (apart from the missing 30bhp and two driven wheels) it's over £25k list. It'd be ok if either I didn't have the choice or if I'd not tried the Yeti first.

Edited 24 January, 201016 yr by Sporky McGuffin

I've driven the Passat CC and if you do a lot of motorway miles, it would probably be a bit more refined than the Yeti - I don't know how the regular Passat compares. As for colours, the Gobi Sand is a bit more towards "mushroom" than typical beige leather, it certainly seems to look less grubby than the seats in our old Beetle cabriolet or in my XF. And yes, VWs are expensive for what they are even with the discounts on offer, and I'm sure Yeti residuals will beat the Passat by some margin. I can live without vanity mirror lighting, bonnet gas struts and soft-feel door trim (the Yetis are hard plastic but feel very substantial). I'm very impressed with the Yeti chassis and the 4WD is worthwhile even when it's not snowing, so you can put that 170PS down without wheelspin or torque steer.

The Passat is a nice car plain and simple and I wouldn't say otherwise; it just didn't wow me like the Yeti does.

The Passat CC is a higher quality bit of kit and a different ball game though.