Im in looking at a Skoda Octavia vRS 2006 plate, with 70,000 miles and a full service history. It is priced up at £8,250 and it has recently been serviced (not a major one) and everything so far looks very good. My only concern is that it has 3 owners, but the current one seems to know his stuff and from the sounds of it has taken very good care of it.

I was hoping someone could advise me on stuff worth checking/looking out for?

That's a bit pricy, see here My link

Most for that price are 57 plate so look at 7995 at the most.

The most I want to spend is £8,000 so i would offer around £8,100. Its a 56 plate, has 4 as new tires good tires & xenons.

I'm not sure how well these cars hold their price esp when high mileage is brought into the equation. Age vs milage :S

Edited 6 June, 201016 yr by Guest

I am considering buying this car tomorrow, so if anyone else has any last minute input i would be very grateful!

Edited 6 June, 201016 yr by Guest

I am considering buying this car tomorrow, so if anyone else has any last minute input i would be very grateful!

Take it for a reasonable test drive, the tyre noise from the rear can be horrendous, I sold my 56 plate with 92,000 on the clock for £5k, if its got new tyres it should be ok, but beware after about 12k it will probably get noisy. Otherwise its a good car, I only changed mine out of necessity.

Cheers

Andy

I just traded my 56 plate PD VRS with 33,000miles for £9k. So I suspect this will go on the forecourt for at least 10k. On my car I have the 18" alloys, jumbo box and rear parking sensors.

I am considering buying this car tomorrow, so if anyone else has any last minute input i would be very grateful!

Very happy with my 56 plate vRS PD Hatch. Mine has much lower mileage though at 30,600 miles. Road noise is a bit annoying (to the point that I'm considering some sort of noise damping in the boot & under the rear seat). But great fun to drive - powerful with MPG of about 39-40 - and I drive enthusiastically except when sitting in queues of traffic in the Manchester rush hour.

I've driven/owned MG ZS180 (Octavia vRS reminds me of this even though the MG was a little faster), Mazda 6 Sport (probably better built but much less fun and more boring than Octy vRS) and Mondeo Zetec S TDCI (better MPG than the Octy vRS and a good car but slower, more boring and common as muck).

Get a good long test drive and the main thing is to be sure that the price is right for the mileage and make sure there is good service history etc.

It has a full service history, first 3 with Skoda main dealers, then 2 independents. Is this anything to worry about it? or is it just a matter of if they have done it correctly, then no real difference?

It has a full service history, first 3 with Skoda main dealers, then 2 independents. Is this anything to worry about it? or is it just a matter of if they have done it correctly, then no real difference?

If they've done it correctly, and critically, have used the right oil, then no, independent is fine. In fact, I prefer it in a way - in the time I own the car at least, though slightly annoying how much value people place on main dealer stamps when you come to sell it. I buy the parts and oil from a Skoda dealer, take them to my favourite mechanic and chat to him whilst he does it. I get to drive the car into the workshop and in / off the ramp, I see my 507 spec oil go in, I see the oil filter get changed and I get flexibility about what extra things get checked / done beyond what's in the service schedule. Costs a small fraction of the main dealer service price, I've seen with my own eyes that everything has been done right, I get his stamp in my book and I file all my Skoda parts desk invoices with the service item parts.

Edited 7 June, 201016 yr by wega3k

If they've done it correctly, and critically, have used the right oil, then no, independent is fine. In fact, I prefer it in a way - in the time I own the car at least, though slightly annoying how much value people place on main dealer stamps when you come to sell it. I buy the parts and oil from a Skoda dealer, take them to my favourite mechanic and chat to him whilst he does it. I get to drive the car into the workshop and in / off the ramp, I see my 507 spec oil go in, I see the oil filter get changed and I get flexibility about what extra things get checked / done beyond what's in the service schedule. Costs a small fraction of the main dealer service price, I've seen with my own eyes that everything has been done right, I get his stamp in my book and I file all my Skoda parts desk invoices with the service item parts.

My new octy is on variable service but i fully intend to do an oil change every 10k myself just because I don't believe in letting a car do more than that between changes. Typically engine oil is normally at its best for 100 heat cycles or so. I can get hold of 5L of VW spec long-life oil for £23 quid too

What is the warranty issue with new cars and dealer scheduled servicing though? Will it not void the warranty if it isn't done to "manufactures specification"?

My new octy is on variable service but i fully intend to do an oil change every 10k myself just because I don't believe in letting a car do more than that between changes. Typically engine oil is normally at its best for 100 heat cycles or so. I can get hold of 5L of VW spec long-life oil for £23 quid too

What is the warranty issue with new cars and dealer scheduled servicing though? Will it not void the warranty if it isn't done to "manufactures specification"?

The warranty won't be void if manufacturer spec parts are used and the servicing is done by a VAT registered garage. It's an EU directive as the manufacturer's stating the work had to be done by them was restrictive practice

The warranty won't be void if manufacturer spec parts are used and the servicing is done by a VAT registered garage. It's an EU directive as the manufacturer's stating the work had to be done by them was restrictive practice

Cheers for that, its always just seemed to be a bit of a shady area :S my mate used to work for VW and they always said that work must be carried out by them or a "VW approved garage"