As the title suggest I am planning to buy a Skoda octavia Estate. Having owned Skoda Superb 2.5 tdi I wanted something economical to run and cheap in road tax.

There are three models I am Interested in

1. 1.6 TDi PD

2. 1.9 TDI PD

3. 2.0 VRS

Of course the VRS is expensive and does it perform any better?

The difference between the 1.6 & the 1.9 is the 1.6 gives 60 + MPG and the road tax is only 30 pounds and the 1.9 gives 55 MPG plus the road tax is 115 for a year.

Can anyone tell me any more differences. Having owned the car you would be the better people to ask for.....

Once again Im being controversial here.... what about the 1.8 TSi petrol....

You will still get about 40mpg , its a brisk car with plenty of smooth power, and drives "similar" to a diesel

No timing belt to worry about either and costs less to buy than the TDi?

Many people assume economical is just about MPG but if the car costs thousands more in the first place and you dont do the miles how is that economical?

Good point by PC1212, if you do not warrant the miles to gain in the long run then either the 1.4 or 1.8 would be worth considering.

Factors to take in to consideration would be:

* How many miles a year do you drive.

* Initial outlay between the 2 engines.

* Servicing costs (as mentioned above, no cambelt on the petrol).

* How often you change your car - would that warrant a diesel (mileage dependant).

You will find a varied response, between the PD/CR/TSI owners/drivers but it should all help with making the decision.

OK , it's not on your list but just incase I had a 1.6 CR estate as a courtesy car the other day and it was fine to drive whilst returning amazing economy albeit only based on the OBC but it was nowhere near as nice to drive as my vRS and by gum did I miss that jumbo box and cruise control.

My vRS is great I can plod along like I'm driving Miss Daisy and get mid to high 50s mpg, drive more spiritedly and I get low to mid 40s. It's a fantastic car.

Thanks everyone for their response.

I will be driving 12 K Miles a Year so i wanted something very economical to Run and planning to keep the car for at lest 5 years.

Taking above factors would it not be better to drive a Octavia Diesel??

I've got a VRS Diesel Hatch and wont be moving back to petrol in this current climate! It gives you performance, good motorway cruising and good fuel consumption almost 50 MPG average driving, although it can be bettered and road tax will be cheap, its a win win situation! Go for a test drive.

Regards

I have both a 2.0 TDI and a 1.8 TSI - the latter bought very recently. The TDI needs to do at least 18,000 miles annually to justify the extra cost with present fuel prices and I bought the TSI knowing that I would only use it for around 10,000 miles annually. The TSI is much more enjoyable to drive - it is quieter and has more poke, although a re-map could uprate the TDI (and the insurance). I hope this helps.