Forgive me for asking a question that may well have been asked many times before, but im gonna be test driving an 05 Octavia Elegance estate soon and im not really mechanically minded.

What are the things i should be looking for on a test drive particular to an elegance estate /? and anything else i should check whenits stood still aswell.

Cheers,

Paul

Check all the usuals. If I had not seen the car before I would spend at least 30 mins just looking around the car before even turning the engine on.

Check for:

tyres - 4 in good nick and all the same brand/type. Good tread depth and even wear. Feel with fingers along inner tread on rears for wear. Check all inflated as per spec

Body - check from a distance all doors, bonnet and bood lid seem aligned and even gaps around. Check operation of these. Open and shut all a few times. Check paintwork for swirls, scratches, blistering, repairs.

Interior - check all seats, trim, seatbelts, tilt, adjustemtn, elec windows, all instruments, aircon, air vents,

service - check service book for stamps. Skoda or independant? Cam belt - an 05 will need to have had this done by now. Check this. Most important. Oil Changes. Brake fluid changes - this should have had at least 2x changes by now - check

Cruise Control - check this works A LOT! It can be intermittent. Make sure its OK.

Check MPG reading on the display Setting 2 - dunno why but just seems like a good idea to see how it has been driven

I'm sure others will add to this list.

This review had some information I found useful when first looking:

http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/carreviews/usedcartests/222591/skoda_octavia.html

Also, click on the pictures on RHS and read the captions