Hello, newbie to the forum looking at a 2005/05 plate Octavia 2.0TDI PD estate with 88k from Evans Halshaw Sunderland.

Have held the car with £100 deposit over the phone with a view to buying if all checks out ok. They say car has history and has had recent belt change, but will check this out at viewing tomorrow. Asking price £4,691

Bit of background first.....

I have never owned a Skoda before, my current car is 1.6 petrol Zafira which I'm finding thirsty,and also expensive to tax.

Had diesels before and fancied the Octavia estate mainly to fit all my musical equipment in,but also for reliability, running costs etc.

Driving is a mixture of short urban journeys and some long runs, avg around 150-200 miles per week.

I'm hoping to keep the car for another 4-5 yrs and was hoping this will fit the bill with plenty tlc!

Heard some horror stories about oil pumps and heads becoming porous?

Obviously, every car has it's faults and none are perfect, but would appreciate any advice from anybody regarding this particular model.

Thanks in advance.

http://www.autotrade...348nj?logcode=p

Forget about oil pumps. Doesn't effect the 2.0 TDI engines in the Octavia (although it does on the Mk1 Superb 2.0 TDI)

Porous head is something that is talked about a lot, but there are not actually that many cases cropping up on this forum. There are three versions of the cylinder head (A,B and C). A heads are apparently guaranteed to go porous/crack, B heads less likely to do so, and on 'C' heads the problem was completely fixed (from early 2006 onwards)

You can find out what head the car has if you remove the engine cover and look at the right corner of the head....there is a long number (upside down) with either A,B or C at the end.....that tells you what head it's got. It'll likely be a 'B' head on a 2005 but could be an 'A'.

Watch for symptoms of DMF failure.....judder when accelerating in high gear from low revs......make sure all warning lights come on and go out when you turn the ignition on etc.

I have to say, 200 miles a week is not a lot to be getting a diesel....especially as you do short urban journeys (expect low-mid 40's MPG on these trips).......have you considered a 1.6 FSI?.......you'll get one of these a lot cheaper. I'm not sure you'll get the extra outlay back in fuel savings on the Diesel with your annual mileage.

Oh, forgot to mention.....look carefully for signs of it having been clocked. Even buying from a franchised dealer, there is no guarantee it hasn't been clocked in the past.

Examine the service history carefully and look for signs of wear on the inside door handles etc. A MOT history check can be helpful, but not failsafe as it doesn't tell you anything about recorded mileage in the first three years of the cars life.

Ask if they know what its been used to tow, this could have caused premature wear on the gearbox, clutch and DMF.

Ask them to replace the roof ariel too

Thanks both for your excellent advice. I will check as much of those things out at test drive as possible.

I hear what you are saying about the mileage factor, booke23 and the petrol/diesel debate, the trouble is I need a large hatch/estate car

for family and work commitments, and most large family cars tend to be more diesel than petrol these days.

Plus,I'm trying to avoid another underpowered petrol car like my 1.6 Zafira when I'm carrying heavy music gear any distance,

as it hammers the juice, or a gas guzzling 2.0 petrol round the doors, so just trying to get a balance.

At the moment I'm spending anywhere between £40-60 p/w on petrol and £280 p/y road tax.

The car would also be carrying the equivalent weight of a small adult in the boot at all times.

Maybe a 1.9 diesel might fit the bill better?

Cheers!

I'm still running my PD140.

First thing I'm thinking is price. I paid £5700 for mine with 63k on the clock. Its an early 2005, on a 54 plate. That was almost 4 years ago now !

As already mentioned, check history. I changed mine onto fixed servicing at 100k.

Check traction control light is not on when engine is running, indicates Abs ecu failure.

Look for rust:

Sills above the some chip guard

boot seam below badges paint cracks on roof etc.

Also check for rust forming around door shut lines, early cars for

seals had a habit of rubbing the paint away.

Interior:

Check top of drivers door card. Elbow damage is common.

Would still recommend one though. Mines now onto 175k !

I might be needing a new clutch and dmf soon mind you.

Ask them to replace the roof ariel too

+1

On a 2005 car it has either failed and been replaced.....or just failed!

the petrol/diesel debate, the trouble is I need a large hatch/estate car for family and work commitments

Fair enough.....You can get an Octavia estate with a 1.6FSI, but agree it might struggle if you are laden all the time.

A 1.9 TDI is certianly worth considering........more economy than the 2.0 TDI (10-15%) while still being usefully powerful...at the expense of a bit of refinement.....but overall an excellent choice. Because of this you need to be even more on the lookout for clocked 1.9's as a lot more of them started out as taxis compared to the 2.0 TDI.

Let us know how you get on.

Edited 9 April, 201313 yr by booke23

Thanks again to all for your sound advice. I will of course let you know how I got on. Dealer was supposed to ring me this morning to arrange test drive, but still waiting... Going to get over there tomorrow and see whats what. In no rush to change car, so might hang out for a later hatch/estate Octy in either 1.9/2.0 guise as yet though. Thanks again.

Well, arrived at the garage yesterday after being told car was ready to test drive, only to be told that the car was STILL not ready, STILL in prep,

and they HADN'T even taken the securing deposit from my card, and HADN'T even taken the car off sale as promised either. Needless to say I was a wee bit pi$$ed after that, so promptly walked away from the garage without even so much as seeing the car! So, the hunt now resumes again for another octy estate. :think:

Ah well, back to trawling t'internet again!

Cheers.

Check out the cars for sale section on this forum, you might find something there..

Update on the Octavia estate from Evans Halshaw:- They rang to apologise about mess up with car, asked me to call back into the dealership to look at the car, and offered me £100 more for my p/x. So, I went to look at the car, but didn't get the chance to drive it, as it was having work done to the rear parking sensors at the prep workshop. They could not sort the problem with the sensors, so they are sending it to the local Skoda dealer. The car is fully HPI clear and has full Skoda dealer stamped history, all MOT's, receipts for any work carried out, and a receipt for a recent timing belt change with genuine parts.

I got to fire the engine up which sounded very sweet and started without hesitation, only thing I noticed was a sound akin to a noisy release bearing as dipped the clutch, (all this done with car parked up, handbrake on and in neutral). Car looked to have been well looked after, and in very clean condition for the year both inside and out. Car had not yet been valeted either.

Not sure which head it has (A,B or C) as they weren't too keen on me dismantling anything to check it out lol!

Maybe the Skoda dealer in Newcastle could tell me, if I give them the reg etc?

Should get to test drive it soon, see how that clutch goes, and depending on which head it has, may go for it.

Watch this space.... Thanks again folks!

Edited 15 April, 201313 yr by dx100

Have noticed on the Auto Trader website that there are quite a few 05/06 Octy 2.0 pd's for sale, all with around 85-ish k on their clocks.

Jut wondering if this is coincidence/normal mileage for year, or is it because they start going t*ts up around that mileage? :wonder:

Edited 15 April, 201313 yr by dx100

That would be around average to me, equating to circa 15k a year. Certainly nothing out of the ordinary. I have an 05 that's 8yrs old next month and just under 100k.

All depends on how it's been used and that's the only slight problem buying at that mileage. Unless every single component is accounted for on service bills and the like, you're not quite sure what might be coming to end of life. Suspension dampers, bushes, CV joints etc might well be in need of replacement, so I'd factor in some contingency for sorting those in the next 15k miles, if you bought an example with that mileage on the clock.

Either engined car, 1.9 or 2.0 TDI will happily pass 200k miles, provided the car is looked after and regular maintenance is undertaken.

Thanks Wardy,

As I'm in the process of looking at a 2.0pd Octy, it makes me feel a bit better.

Obviously, I'd expect to replace commonal garden items such as bushes and suspension parts etc, but hopefully not

big things like gearboxes etc. Like you say, just depends how well a car is looked after.

Cheers.

Noisy release bearing or knackered DMF?

A clutch and flywheel will cost you £750ish.

When you drive find a steepish hill where you can totally bury the accelerator in to the carpet and take it to 4000+ rpm. If the turbo is on its way out the car will lose all power and go in to limp home mode. If it does walk away unless they will put a new turbo on it.

Check the aircon is ice cold, compressors can be a weak point.

If you can, get someone with VCDS to scan the car, or even better a AA check.

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Oh, don't let the mileage worry you my 55 plate is pushing 167,000.

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Noisy release bearing or knackered DMF?

A clutch and flywheel will cost you £750ish.

When you drive find a steepish hill where you can totally bury the accelerator in to the carpet and take it to 4000+ rpm. If the turbo is on its way out the car will lose all power and go in to limp home mode. If it does walk away unless they will put a new turbo on it.

Check the aircon is ice cold, compressors can be a weak point.

If you can, get someone with VCDS to scan the car, or even better a AA check.

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Yeah, let's hope it's not the dmf on it's way out. Can't see them spending ££'s putting a new one in with a clutch prior to sale if it is. They would probs take it off sale and just send to auction. The warranty probs wouldn't cover it after sale either, being a 'wear and tear' item. I'll try that test for the turbo as well, but if anything dodgy shows up I'll be walking away.

Cheers!

Boost is limited in 1st & 2nd (I think) so give it some beans in 3rd, keep mind you will be doing 70mph though, and make sure it is wide open throttle.

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I have to say, 200 miles a week is not a lot to be getting a diesel....especially as you do short urban journeys (expect low-mid 40's MPG on these trips).......have you considered a 1.6 FSI?.......you'll get one of these a lot cheaper. I'm not sure you'll get the extra outlay back in fuel savings on the Diesel with your annual mileage.

Are the 1.6 FSI's fairly economical? Have seen a 55 plate estate for sale from a dealer in Elegance spec. Might check it out anyway as still haven't heard back about the 2.0tdi Octy yet. Cheers.

Are the 1.6 FSI's fairly economical? Have seen a 55 plate estate for sale from a dealer in Elegance spec. Might check it out anyway as still haven't heard back about the 2.0tdi Octy yet. Cheers.

Well the book combined figure for the 1.6 FSI is 42 MPG. The 2.0 TDI's book combined figure is 51 MPG. (not that you'll achieve either of these figures if you do a lot of urban miles...but they are the only figures to go by when making comparisons!)

Using those figures the 2.0 TDI will use about 21% less fuel than the 1.6 FSI......but the 2.0 TDI is considerably more powerful so this isn't really a representative fuel economy difference in the Petrol vs Diesel debate. If you compare it to the 1.9 TDI (similar bhp to the 1.6 FSI), which does 55 MPG combined, this makes the 1.9 TDI 34% more economical than a 1.6 FSI.

And of course petrol is 3% or so cheaper than Diesel. Factoring this into the above calculations, we see the 2.0 TDI is 18% more economical (but considerably more powerful) than the 1.6 FSI, and the 1.9 TDI is 31% more economical.

I imagine the 55 Plate 1.6 FSI you have found is considerably cheaper than the 2.0 TDI you're looking at.......I'd wager that it has also considerably lower mileage than the 2.0 TDI too. You have to ask yourself, will the extra cost of the 2.0 TDI be recouped in fuel savings with the annual mileage you do? (I'd say maybe.....if you factor in that you'll probably get more for it when you sell/px it vs the petrol.). Will the higher mileage of the TDI and greater mechanical complexity (turbocharged, DMF EGR etc) cause you in incur more unexpected problems and repairs during your ownership? (In my experience of having low mileage vs high mileage cars.....most probably)

Whatever you decide, I can still understand why people go for diesels when when doing low/moderate mileage. Fuel costs are by far the biggest running cost of any car (assuming it's not on finance), and it's the one running cost you seem to feel directly in your pocket more than any other. Some people choose to invest more capital in a car to have the lower costs at the fuel pumps regardless of the mileage they cover.

I wouldn't touch the 1.6FSI personally. Won't be all that economical in real-world terms and is what I'd describe as 'slow'.

At this level I'd go for the 1.9TDI every day of the week. Better economy, better to drive, just better.

I wouldn't touch the 1.6FSI personally. Won't be all that economical in real-world terms and is what I'd describe as 'slow'.

Any 1.6 FSI owners care to comment?

Ive driven a 1.6 FSi Golf for some distance and was very underwhelmed, lack of torque and had to be revved hard to make good progress.

I later had a 1.9 TDi PD 105, less power but loads more torque, quicker and much better to drive all round.

Personally whilst the 1.9 is a very good engine the 2.0 is generally better; much stronger performance without any real economy deficit.

I've a 55 plate 1.6 FSI. She drives fine with one person in the car and an empty boot. Try putting anything else in and it's exactly what is said above, struggles with any form of power etc. She quickly feels very heavy and you have to put your foot really far down to pick up any sort of speed.

Personally I only drive in the city centre so it's all stop and start. I average 36 MPG, which I consider good and a lot better than any previous car I've had. That is also on 4 mile trips so the engine is always cold too.

Damo

Well folks, I am now looking for a Skoda to replace the missus' car (she has the Skoda bug now lol) as it looks like I am getting a company car myself, not sure what they are giving me yet though.

So the advice given on here will be a big help.Thanks again everyone.