I'm thinking of swapping my 03 vrs Octavia for a 05 1.4 Octavia mark 2 ,,,, what's pushing my interest in this is the reduced fuel an tax costs . I'm dropping down a load of horsepower , this I know :( , but I'm wondering what are the 1.4 mark 2 actually like ?

i see your logic, but the mk2 is a big heavy car and the 1.4 will be very underpowered imo. if that doesn't bother you then go ahead and enjoy the extra wedge in your wallet!

why not go look at a 1.4 local to you and give it a test drive first and see if you could live with the lack of power?

been thinking of buying a smaller/cheaper car too but i know i would miss the power of the vrs and regret it!

I'd be very surprised if you save any money on fuel, the 1.4 engine has to be worked very hard to pull the MK2 octavia along and as a result could end up using more fuel than the 1.8T in the vRS.

Got a nice mk1 4x4 elegance mk1

Cheaper to insure etc etc

Goes like a vrs looks like one but handle better and gets traction

I was thinking the same about the power to weight ratio of the 1.4 mark 2 . I once owned a 1.4 vw bora . It was actually hard enough on juice . An I think the mark 2 Octavia might be a bit heavier again than a bora . The vrs isn't bad on juice ,. Decisions decisions :( .

If u want an economical Mk2 it really needs to be a derv

Bora 1.9 TDI 130 Sport (6) I've owned two of them & they're a great car practicle & quick car for not a lot of money.