I test drove a Octy VRS today with a view to buying a new example in the near future. I currently own a Leon Cupra and it was fun to compare the 2 cars. My reasons for the change are space and price of new VRS Octys too good to resist.

I began the test after a short town crawl driven by the salesman, I took over and blasted along some short stretches of dual carrigeway situated between roundabouts. We then made our way onto the Edinburgh city bypass which is a 70 limit motorway, I had the chance to test the cars midrange urge and higher speed capabilties. The road was fairly quiet and I got the welly down a good few times, The Octy is very quick but the Leon is quite a bit quciker at the 50-100 sprints. The braking and the handling of the Octy are slightly better, although I didnt push the car to its limits it did feel more composed over bumps and around fast sweepers. The gearchange is a vast improvment over the LC, and crusing speed refinment is a bit better. The Octy feels more planted and wired to the road and the interior more plush. Overall not a great deal between the cars, the VRS is built to a higher standard, although the LC is also well made IMO. This was just a quick comparison obviously but the Octy shades it for me, with a bit of luck I will be ordering a silver one soon. I must point out that both are great cars for the money and I would recommend the LC to anyone after that size of car. For me though I require the huge load deck that is the boot in the Octy.

An interesting comparison. Are you after an Estate or Hatch version?

I'm going for the hatch version if they can offer enough for the LC!

Is yours the Lcupra or the Cupra R?

Reason being for a few hours at Star Performance over the water you could equal the Cupra R's basic figures.

Just a little light on the shadowy world of comparisons

oh you get a free coffee aswell...that has to be worth the trip?

My car is the lowly Cupra 180 lol! but it is a wee bit quicker than the std VRS although not by much. Star great place had a service and pads done there very switched on guys, nice waiting area. Remapped Octy and LCs are said to be as quick as the LCR, its even been said they are real world quicker due to smaller turbo spooling quicker etc and in the LCs case lighter than the LCR. Its all swings and roundabouts for me as they are all great cars for not much money.

I used to own 2 x Leon Cupra's, both owned from new.. The first was a 2002 model.. i.e. 16 inch alloys + small bumpers... This got stolen and was replaced by...

the second was the first of the my03 cars with big bumpers and 17 inch alloys...

In terms of outright acceleration then the Leon does feel and is slightly quicker... this is due to the 6 speed gearing... vs the 5 in the Octy...

The Octy is a better handling car + more complient.. It also uses less fuel than the Leon..

The downsides of the Octy compared to the Leon are the headlights, the audio system and the dash design...

The standard Halogen headlights on the Octavia are very poor...

Using H4 bulbs they need Silverstars or Vision plus to get them towards

acceptabe... The Leon's setup of H7 Dipped and a seperate spot / Fog

give the Leon a far better light output / pattern... So If you can afford

get in the deal go for the Xenon option on the Octy....

The Octy Standard stereo system is crap.... Simply.. It cannot handle Bass

and turns itself down.. The Leon's standard setup is far better...

Finally the Dash design etc... The Leon's dash is a better design than the

better quality Octy dash.. The CC location is better on the Leon.. The

dails are better on the Leon ( if you turn the lights down a bit )...

Build quality on Seats are not as good as they are for Skoda...

Having said that I have had my fair share of problems on my Octy..

and Sometimes dealers who don't do there job correctly....

cheers

Dazz

Some interesting points there, I will look into upgrading the lights. It seems the deal now hangs in the balance for me trying sort finance and trade value of my LC. I really want the Octy now as its great value for the list price and looks very mean, and not forgetting the extra space. Shame about the sounds though!

Some interesting points there, I will look into upgrading the lights. It seems the deal now hangs in the balance for me trying sort finance and trade value of my LC. I really want the Octy now as its great value for the list price and looks very mean, and not forgetting the extra space. Shame about the sounds though!

or lack thereof, new exhaust would soon change that, the standard turbo whoosh is quite nice though...

Tried a Vectra 2.0T SRI & 3.2 GSI today to compare it to the Octy Vrs. I had a fairly long drive along country roads and then some motorway cruising. The SRI didn't feel too lively off the mark but once rolling it was pretty swift, midrange upwards it has plenty urge, it was also very smooth at the same time. The handling of the SRI was very decent and I would say the ride was more composed than that of the VRS or the LC. On the motorway both Vectra models very quiet and comfortable, and overall a pleasure for that sort of driving. The 3.2 GSI was a bit of a let down staright line performance was no better really than the SRI, the SRI was much better in the corners. Strange I know but thats the way I see it anyway. The Vectra has impressed me, the car I tested was a 04 plate priced at

Finally the Dash design etc... The Leon's dash is a better design than the better quality Octy dash..

Not suprising as its lifted directly from the Audi A3.

Personally I wouldn't spend my own money on a vectra but agree they're pretty decent cars if the guys who run them at work are anything to go by. Can you not use this as further ammo with the Skoda dealer to drive a harder bargain??

I know where you are coming from Jimmy and its something I would give a great deal of thought before going ahead with any deal. I've found a 54 plate VRS so if a deal can be struck then theres no need to go down the Vectra route.

I personally would not touch a Vectra for the following reasons.. Its horribly styled, it looks to Americaised... The interior looks like a slab....

Also the resale value will be very low far lower than the Octy..

On the Octy vRS .. It is now approaching the end of lifespan..

There will be alternative cars that can do things far better than the vRS...

I would honestly suggest you go and test drive a Mk2 Octavia 2.0TDI in both trim levels.. I like this car/engine combination and with the big improvements in the overall design of the new car + the near eqivalent/ better performance of the TDI engine then I thing this is the car to go for...

Until details of the new vRS are released...

Cheers

Dazz

p.s. why not try other Skoda dealers to get prices from them....

Mike Cupra, are you the same mike cupra that is on the seat enthusiasts forum??