I just sold my Octavia Scout 1.8 TSI, privately, to a nice chap from lancashire. it was a year old and I decided it was not for me. Since selling my 2004 BMW I have had a string of newish cars and been pretty disappointed in them. The Scout could have been a great car, but is an opportunity lost by Skoda, in my opinion. The two major drawbacks were ride comfort on the shameful roads of South Yorkshire, which approach those of a third world country. Skoda insist on putting quite low profile tyred on a utilitarian vehicle, ridiculous. They contribute to the poor ride and do not even look right. Even Jeremy Clarkson has cottoned on to this trend by manufacturers to focus on handling over ride comfort (although he is probably a major contributor to this trend with his obsession with lap times and 0-60 mph times). I am in the position to pretty much buy whatever I want within reason, but I am struggling to find a car that is genuinely comfortable in the way my 1988 E Class mercedes and 1989 Audi 90 were (both bought when they were quite old). I genuinely believe that cars have not moved on a great deal, the tsi ensine is a good engine, but is it better than my 1980s Golf GTI? No, that was foot down in any gear and it flew, with mid thirties mpg. No progress at all.

The other drawback is noise levels and general lack of refinement. Listening to the radio was not a great experience. I have read posts from others who seem quite willing to dismantle their cars and spend hundreds of pounds on additional soundproofing. I am afraid that, for a new car, that is unacceptable. I think Skoda have missed an opportunity by cutting corners to save a little money. It is a good car, utterly reliable, but it could have been a great car.

Hatchbacks/Estates will never be quiet, Skoda have to save money in some areas over VW/Audi. After reading your comments I think you need to look at the latest A6,E Class,5 series as a saloon option in SE spec (small wheels-comfort suspension) these will be quiet and very smooth riding.

Or the Jag XF with the tiny 16 inch wheels on it.

Big fat low profiles or run-flats don't do anything for ride comfort.

You find that to get the car you want you may have to do some after-market work to suspension and wheels.

My thoughts would go the same way as JRW above that you seek some sort of 'waft' and that a used Jag XJ or S-Class or maybe even an A8 might suit.

Edited 31 January, 201115 yr by Aspman

The XJ i look after has 18 inch wheels on it but i think that they are on a 55 or 60 profile tyre. It also has air suspension and you literally don't feel any bumps in it. I do feel a little sea sick in it though! Good thinking though, a Phaeton, A8 or Touraeg might be a good option as you can get the air suspension on them and can be picked up dirt cheap 2nd hand.

that you seek some sort of 'waft'

There can be only one master wafter - A nigh-on £40k car that thanks to classic big citroen depreciation you can pick up that's hardly gone anywhere for 15k.

Part of me really wants one of these one day.

Niall

What about a B class merc ?

The two major drawbacks were ride comfort on the shameful roads of South Yorkshire, which approach those of a third world country. Skoda insist on putting quite low profile tyred on a utilitarian vehicle, ridiculous. They contribute to the poor ride and do not even look right.

The answer to this would have been to fit smaller and possibly narrower wheels with taller and possibly narrower tyres. Given that you wrote:

I am in the position to pretty much buy whatever I want within reason

I'm surprised that you didn't give serious consideration to this possibility.

I genuinely believe that cars have not moved on a great deal, the tsi ensine is a good engine, but is it better than my 1980s Golf GTI? No, that was foot down in any gear and it flew, with mid thirties mpg. No progress at all.

Perhaps you should consider the weight of the Scout versus the weight of your old Golf, and then compare the power to weight ratios. That's where the answer will be. Beyond that, you might like to think about the differing fuel economy in that context and that engines have to meet much more stringent emissions rules these days.

The other drawback is noise levels and general lack of refinement.

Isn't that the direct result of picking a budget brand from within the VW Group?

All valid points, but all seem to miss the point I am making. just to respond to a few:

VRS777 you have clearly never driven a 3 series diesel. My 330 d estate was unbelievably quiet and refined, and was sold only because the mileage was getting a bit high.,They now fit silly runflats, a flawed concept

I had a jaguar XF on 20" wheels, over rated, fraught with electrical gremlins and a poor ride on the 20" wheels I had ( I wanted the Portfolio spec). The XJ 350 commonly has corrosion problems (aluminium does corrode), the new shape is too big and fancy for me (and expensive)

I was unwilling to spend hundreds on a set of smaller wheels and tyres to correct a misjudgement on the part of a major manufacturer, I would rather buy a properly sorted car

The C6 (or C5) is also something part of me wants. The other part says don't be so bloody daft, it will break down every other day, will haemorrhage value and the dealers are dire. Tempting though, as I always loved the old big Citroens

The power to weight ratio of the golf/octavia is a fair point but we are talking about 20 years of so called progress.

it is not just the tyres, the Octavia is under damped. My summer toy ( 1999 MX5( has a better ride. I kid you not, I drove them back to back on the same roads yesterday- now that is engineering!!, my MX5 corners like a gocart, yet has a comfortable ride. It can be done.

The overall point I am making is that with a bit more attention to detail, more soundproofing, insulation from road noise, suspension sorted for British roads and tyres wirh a sensible aspect ratio , the Scout could have been a great car. If it is classed as a budget car (not that cheap in my view, just reasonable compared to massively overpriced audis and vws), that is irrelevant. Who would not pay a few hundred pounds more for extra refinement? After I picked the car up and drove from Kent to Yorkshire, and particularly after a spell on a noisy stretch of M25 i could happily have topped myself. The only way I have been able to make it tolerable was to fit layers of cloud 9 carpet underlay in the boot area. As I said, an opportunity missed by Skoda.

Thank you for your suggestions, by the way, am I alone in wanting a level of refinement I took for granted 15 years ago?

If you're not willing to make a few changes yourself, then yes I agree - there probably isn't a model suitable for you. A Superb with smaller wheels maybe. As Clarkson points out, it's an obsession across the industry with big wheels and handling. Fine if you want a sports handling car, but not if you want comfort. A change in wheels and suspension on the Scout would probably have sorted it, but if you see that as unacceptable on a new car, then yes - you've made the right decision.

Same with the 3-Series. If you don't like runflats, fit normal tyres and carry a spare.

Most of these issues you list can be addressed. But I take your point that it should be the responsibility of the car manufacturer to do this, not the owner. They should offer models that cover the whole range of owners.