Well, I am attracted to the Octy on a number of counts, but have not bought one yet. I am looking at a 70k 3 year-old at the moment in an independent shop. Test drive was good and apart from obvious signs of hard work, she seemed fine. I left the car outside their gates and one of the lads came out to park it in their show area, but.... he could not start it. They spent all day, they said and just rang me this evening to say it needed a new 'sensor'. Well, it's not a very good start. What do you people think - should I just walk away from this one?

Thanks,

Turbot.

If it was just a sensor then it's really nothing that serious to worry about.

I bought my Octy last year with 58k on it and other than the Engine Managment light keep coming on it's been fine (and thats down to a sensor aswell, but it's only intermittant so I'm not that worried at the moment)

Make sure it's had a new CamBelt etc.. And insist it has a bloody good service before you take it off their hands and it should be fine.

Reliablity on Skoda's is one of the things that set them apart from everything else.

Quote from AA last 3 times I called em out "First one of these I've been called out to" (only called em out to clear the ECU so the EM light went out )

Quote from AA last 3 times I called em out "First one of these I've been called out to" (only called em out to clear the ECU so the EM light went out )

So he didn't mention the countless coil packs they had to replace on the 1.8T engines then

Chris

Thanks guys....

I forgot to mention (it was very late last night) that my interest is in 1.9TD varieties.

So cam-belt - anything else known to be a bit of a weak point?

I will be getting the RAC to do their vehicle inspection (

Only common problem I know of with the Octy is that the clutch master cylinder can "give up" during cold weather and the pedal will sink to the floor. I'm not sure if there has been a proper fix for this, maybe one of the people who've suffered from it can comment. Aside from that, the cars seem to be very reliable and I'm also looking at them now to replace my Fabia

Chris

I am moving on from an old fashioned Ctroen TD that has given very loyal service without significant fault in 223k miles! It is simple - the lack of that virtue is what worries me about these new machines.

The engine itself is pretty strong, and shouldn't have any major mechanical failure. The sensors do seem to be a relatively weak point, but it seems to be the case for most manufacturers now...the Skoda will at worst be no less reliable than a Ford/Vauxhall/VW of that age, and definitely better than a lot of modern Citroens.

Rob.

Only common problem I know of with the Octy is that the clutch master cylinder can "give up" during cold weather and the pedal will sink to the floor. I'm not sure if there has been a proper fix for this, maybe one of the people who've suffered from it can comment.

Mine was replaced under warranty with a modified one. The problem was the pedal sticking down and not returning.

So cam-belt - anything else known to be a bit of a weak point?

The cambelt isn't a weak point - it was mentioned because it is due replacement at 60K on diesels and the car you are looking at might not have had it done..

A friend of my dad's used his 1.9 Octavia with no major problems right up until the turbo went pop - at 300,000+ miles. I think that says a lot.

They spent all day, they said and just rang me this evening to say it needed a new 'sensor'. Well, it's not a very good start. What do you people think - should I just walk away from this one?

Are they going to give you a warranty and how do you feel about them taking a day to find that fault? As you said, the car shows obvious signs of hard work so in the circumstances I would be inclined to walk away and look for one which has had plenty of TLC.

More info: the Octy I am looking at is an automatic, so no clutch pedal problems. The sensor apparently was something that detects foot on (or off?) the break pedal - inhibits starting if foot not detected, or something like that. It took a day because their ramp was "busy all day".

I have a copy of the breakdown insurance policy they offer for 1 year + another for additional

There is no service history on this one (I wonder why?).

I've heard of the brake pedal switch going on quite a few makes...

Personally, at those sort of miles, I wouldn't touch it without a full service history!

Rob.

No service history = don't buy. Nuff said.

:iagree: