Looking for 1.9TD PD Hatch Ambiente/Elegance. Always buy direct from fleet at auction, rather than garages or the snakepit of private sales.

Right now, so few cars from fleets compared to buyers, that they're making blood - Octavia hatch Ambiente 08/58 in average condition and 75k made £6500 (inc all buying charges) yesterday, compared to Glass's Guide /Cap Guide price valuation of £4600+£400 buyer fees = £5000. Thats with no mechanical report, no test drive, no warranty.

Fleets holding onto vehicles for average of 52 months rather than usual 36 months, hence vehicles older, higher mileage, more cosmetic damage by time they come through, yet making big prices.

Never seen depreciating assets actually appreciate before !.

So, have to consider something else, although all cars may similarly have inflated auction and garage prices at present.

Here's my question - Octavia 2.0 4x4 estate and 2.0 standard estate, and 1.9 estate - what is realistic mpg?. I know I got average of approx 55mpg upwards from all 1.9 hatchbacks in past.

Anyone got any experience of 1.7 Astra 100 cdti?. Those estates seem underpriced, so presuming dreary, unreliable and unwanted. What do you know ?

Thanks for any help !

Anyone able to advise ?

As no one else has replied I'll have a go at getting the ball rolling....

I cannot vouch for the MPG on the cars your after but take a look on Fuelly, you should be able to find loads of examples on there to compare.

We had a "fleet" of 4 octy estates about MY 2007. Mileage was disappointing compared to my (then) mk1 hatch. As i recall it was down at mid to high 40's but then consider the heavy right foot of a fleet car driver.

Still better than the yeti's we have now.

I can add that I had a similar problem, looking for a 4 or so year old elegance. Prices seem high at the moment. I ended up going an older model, really because I'd run out of time and my Mk1 was falling apart round my ears. (and then had the whole sports suspension pain you can read in another thread)

Good luck!

Thanks for the helpful replies folks. Good call on checking Fuelly.

Good that I'm not the only one noticing disproportionately high prices on 4 year old Octavia at present.

I don't know about the Skoda's but I can help with the Astra. For a time my dad had one, I don't know the exact spec, I think it was an "ecoflex"? It was a fleet a car though and it was a diesel. I don't think you can compare them to Octavia's to be honest. It was awful. Slow, really narrow power band and the most horrifically nasty and cheap interior I've ever seen. A really disgusting car (in my opinion), definitely worth forking out a bit more for a quality Octavia.

We've run Astra's, Focus' & Octavia's on the fleet for years (admittedly the majority have been 1.9tdi Octy's) and for a 4 year old car I wouldn't be going anywhere near the Astra - as it's been said they seem very cheap and tacky inside by comparison. I was looking at similar aged estate cars when I swapped, and that age Astra (and Focus for that matter) were not even a consideration.

In fact it was going to look at a 5 year old vRS estate at the local dealer that lead to us signing up for the Blackline!

My Vectra diesel also started falling apart at about 4 years onwards (55 plate) and it was still very low mileage.

2.0 tdi 4x4 average mpg 45

Thanks for the further useful replies re Astra being as poor as its low pricing would suggest. Similarly the Ford Focus in my experience.

On the other hand, high mileage Mondeo 1.8 and 2.0 5/6 speed diesels rarely seem to have any problems mentioned on Engineer's reports at auction.

e.g at 100K in 3 years, Mondeos still ok, but Focus usually showing signs of major mechanical faults.

At work we have shed loads of diesel Astra's 2009 ones Estate/Hatch, most on 60000 miles+ now, 1.9CDTI's (120bhp). Interior is nowhere near as good as an Octavia as said, a lot more basic, plasticy cheaper and the horrid indicator stalks they use in them too!!! Sparse on equipment in comparison. As for reliability not one has broken down, not one warranty repair needed and they are not driven sympathetically at all (seen dented steel rims the lot). Best mpg I have seen is 49mpg to a tank driving it from full (52litres) to the point it took 51 litres all in one day was fairly impressed as that was through 4 different countries and not slow. Next day return leg of same journey I got 41mpg.... was slower on way back more traffic and wasn't good Dutch Shell diesel (same driving my VRS would have done slightly better). The 1.9CDTI in that power output I find is perfectly acceptable torque is there and 6 speed manual is spot on (have an auto with triptronic that's "ok" but nothing on a DSG of course). The power pulls it on well from the off until about 110mph then it has fallen off but still rolls on up to about 125mph on GPS. I have to admit I am impressed by them especially the reliability I've have seen since they were new to now and it pains me to say that. I do regard them as good fleet cars and am not as miffed about them being kept beyond the normal 2 years (Kia will prob replace them). Only niggle we have had is if a car is used on site only for about 2 or 3 months never getting up to temp and never above 25mph DPF light will come on which is to be expected taking it for a 10 min drive sorts it out and seems to call it off for another 2-3 months. (one was replaced when someone decided to ignore light for over a month €2000! (no longer employed here).

Overall these cars do not get the easiest of lives they cover long distances on unrestricted autobahns and when it's not their car or fuel many seem happy to sit at whatever speed they can get from them in 6th having thrashed them all the way to get there.

Have had other fleet CDTI's:

1.3CDTI (90bhp) Astra estates = gutless but ok MPG so so slow

1.3CDTI (90bhp) Corsa's = pure and utter rubbish hate them with a real passion steering is hyper light at all speeds pointless wast of time

1.7CDTI (100bhp) Astra estate's/hatches = boring the 1.9 120bhp puts it to shame

(I am talking Opel not Vauxhall (for the 1.9CDTI's) here perhaps the build quality is reflected in that, are they still building RHD ones in UK?)

I would go for an older higher mileage Octavia over an Astra CDTI for a personal car any day but the 1.9CDTI 120bhp is not all that bad. If its big enough for your needs and you think it would be a better deal financially worth having a test drive in a used one somewhere just to see what you think.

Oh and on Mondeo side of things 2 years old and one had to have a new gear box....... build quality is poor no where near as good as the previous shaped ones (of which I owned all) parked by a small tree about 15 foot high with acorns they have dented the roof and bonnet in over 30 places its that easy to do, the astras suffer no such damage parked with them......... not a big list of other faults on the Mondeo's but have had plenty of annoying warranty repairs that shouldn't be needed on a modern car.

The one I drove must have been the 90bhp version because it was gutless with the most erratic power band I've ever seen. Fuel economy wasn't so great either But at the same time I'm the first to admit I'm blinkered towards Skoda's!

The one I drove must have been the 90bhp version because it was gutless with the most erratic power band I've ever seen. Fuel economy wasn't so great either But at the same time I'm the first to admit I'm blinkered towards Skoda's!

Me too :thumbup: Quality, value and economy. Hard to beat.

I work for vauxhall and think that they are all crap. Most of us own a car from the vag group only the cheap skates have a vauxhall. They have lots of problems and most of them are expensive to repair. The latest was a 12 month old insignia having a s.rack, bottom arms and shocks as they were shot. Quality.......quality crap I would stay well away from the chicken badge.

And today's auction prices, all direct from company fleet -

1/ Elegance 1.9 Estate 06/56plate 49K warranted. 1 service stamp at 14K Sold £5100 (+approx £400 buyer commission) = £5500 Clean car

Compare to CAP prices - Retail £6095, Clean £4850, Average £4450, Below Average £4050

2/ Elegance 2.0 Estate 08/58 plate 132K Full Skoda Service History. Sold £4K (+approx buyer £400) = £4400. Average condition, Engine management light on.

Compare to CAP prices - Retail £5750, Clean £4350, Average £3875, Below Average £3425

3/ 2.0 4x4 Estate 08/08, 64K Full Skoda Service History. Sold £6950 (+ approx £500 buyer commission) = £7450. Very Clean condition. Traction control light on.

Compare to CAP prices - Retail £7525, Clean £6025, Average £5550, Below Average £5050

We had a corsa van at work with the 1.3 cdti engine and it was knackered by 30000 miles. It had a new turbo fitted at 27000 miles due to it being cracked but it had been for at least 3000 miles before it was replaced. Power steering pump needed replacing at the same time due to really heavy steering.

It also handled funny but that was probably down to having a differant brand of tyre at each corner.

Edited 6 December, 201213 yr by Blackline Stu

I work for vauxhall and think that they are all crap. Most of us own a car from the vag group only the cheap skates have a vauxhall. They have lots of problems and most of them are expensive to repair. The latest was a 12 month old insignia having a s.rack, bottom arms and shocks as they were shot. Quality.......quality crap I would stay well away from the chicken badge.

Had a 1.9CDTI now that I think of it go in for oil to be drained diesel running back from DPF into sump from failed regens...... that is down right dangerous when it gets rich enough lolol. But in all seriousness I have had fleets of older Vauxhalls, Fords, Toyota, Rover, Peug, VW, Skoda, Merc most tbh over the years but these Opels have been scary reliable for us and prob driven harder than any of the others where in UK. Same shaped Astra's but with Vauxhall badge in UK did have problems with them being a little work shy.

I always laughed in my old work that none of us had a Ford, Rover, MG or Landrover and it was a multi franchise dealers covering them all. I would have had the Focus when first TDCI 1.8 came out but apprentice wages sucked and the place was a joke. Had a Vauxhall dealers on same road that we were cooperative with some shared work on used stock, I always felt they had a better time of it over us not having to put up with MG/Rover tat and the early Freelander 1.8 (oh im having flashbacks here).

Why risk the auctions they offer no warranty

and a high mile derv is possibly asking for problems

Dealers are offering some good offers and of course the added protection of the warranty

Just a thought?

Why risk the auctions they offer no warranty

and a high mile derv is possibly asking for problems

Dealers are offering some good offers and of course the added protection of the warranty

Just a thought?

Usually, auction works for me, buying mid mileage vehicles. e.g little bro's 40K Octavia cost £1200 less than forecourt prices. Done another 100K since with no problems yet. Cars with provenance - ie direct from fleet, with no private owners or garages messing about concealing bad history or problems. Always sufficiently cheaper, so that I have a pot of money to fix major problems (which I've never had this way). If trade presently paying close to retail for stock, then retail price must increase to cut a profit. Not a problem for oan or hp buyers, as only a small additional monthly cost. For a cash buyer like me, garages not the way to go.Its just a blip right now as fewer lease cars coming through, and too many buyers. For 15 yrs, I've bought, used for about 10k, sold on, recouped all of my money overall (sometimes, same, less, more, but all balances out in the end). I don't see any good deals on Autotrader right now - everything seems to be £1500 higher than used to paying. Was considering Astras as a temp car as still very cheap, but figured there was a good reason - motor trade struggles to sell them.