Had the Roomster 1.6TDi for just over 2 weeks now and have done just under 800 miles, including a 170 mile round trip 5 up for a birthday party in Lincoln

Lets get the minor niggles out of the way first.

The climate control has the subtlety of a sledge hammer! On auto it sets the fan speed almost permanently on 3 bars blasting a noisy gale out of the face vents. I drop it manually to 1 bar most of the time.

It is a little stiff getting out of reverse - goes in OK but needs a hefty pull to get it out.

The Amundsen+ sat nav is just way too wordy - by the time it has said "Please make a right turn at the 2nd for the A six thousand two hundred and fifty three" in its very slow deliberate staccato I have past the 1st and am trying to work out which turn it means. Why not just "Turn 2nd right" and let me get the road number from the maxidot? One splurge of verbal diarrhea at the double roundabout interchange from the A57 to the A1 North prompted my 2yr old granddaughter to comment - "Grandad's new car never shuts up talking"... Been using a TomTom for 7yrs so maybe It'll take a while get used to it. I didn't specify it for the sat nav. I wanted to have my music collection available and a single CD player for Wagner's Ring cycle is a pain. I had MDI in the last car's glovebox with an HDD connected. MDI on the Roomster is in full view with the cable sticking out to get entangled in SWMBO's footwell luggage. So I paid the extra £250 or so over the MDI to get the Amundsen+ with its SD card input.

But that is it! Everything else has way exceeded expectations. After downsizing to save cash I was expecting a dull compromise but nothing could be further from the truth.

I was worried about the long journey with 5 up. 2 kids seats with mum squeezed between. The Roomster's varioflex seating is brilliant because you can slide them forward and back, and adjust the back angle to maximise shoulder room and there is loads of leg room for the middle seat passenger too. Access through the big square rear doors makes fastening the kids into their seats a doddle. Really comfortable up front too.

When SWMBO said she wanted the silver grey dash option I wasn't so sure! Quick check to see if she is looking over my shoulder... She was right - it really makes the interior seem even bigger and brighter

The kids (5 nearly 6 and 2 nearly 3) loved the big windows and panoramic roof. Spent chunks of the journey playing I-spy with a somewhat brief section where it had to be through the roof!!

It was great cruising on the A1 - smooth and quiet. Light traffic so maintaining 70-75 was no problem and 5th (occasionally 4th) gear acceleration for lane changes was plenty. Set off with a brim-full tank and after 170 miles the fuel gauge had just moved off full. Maxidot said 61mpg going down and 58mpg coming back. I've only refilled it once and that gave maxidot average of 57.8 and brim to brim of 54.8 after a mixed bag of commuting and A road cruising.

For music the Amundsen+ is fantastic. No need for a car full of CDs. It reads a 32GB SD card in seconds and navigating through the directories is instant - unlike the several second delay on the Bolero. Sound quality is good enough for me (if you ever get to hear it through the sat nav logorrhea!)

Glad I added cruise control - very useful through the Eckersley 50mph section on the A1.

Build quality is, if anything, a small step above the 2 Octavias. Not a single squeak or rattle and everything feels solid and well built.

To sum up - I can easily live with the minor niggles. The Roomster is just plain brilliant! Love it to bits already!

Great review, I think you will see a c5% improvement in your fuel economy when you've got a few more miles on the clock

Regards all

Juan

Sent from my iPhone using my thumbs

Great to hear, sounds like we have made the right choice (for once).Ours will be used for carrying Grand Daughter and /or taking loads to the tip..It will also be spending some of its life on the A1 as well (son lives in Lincolnshire).Delivery has been brought forward and expected at the end of July. Getting impatient now..

Know what you means about Elkesley...must be the most useless piece of unsafe traffic management, purely to appease the natives, that I have ever seen

Anyways happy continued motoring and thanks for the update

Great to hear, sounds like we have made the right choice (for once).Ours will be used for carrying Grand Daughter and /or taking loads to the tip..It will also be spending some of its life on the A1 as well (son lives in Lincolnshire).Delivery has been brought forward and expected at the end of July. Getting impatient now..

Know what you means about Elkesley...must be the most useless piece of unsafe traffic management, purely to appease the natives, that I have ever seen

Anyways happy continued motoring and thanks for the update

Good news on delivery - it will be worth the wait!

Not complaining about Eckersley. Been ploughing up and down the A1 for many years and that section has some nasty junctions where too many folk needed reminding they are on an A road not a motorway. It provides a few minutes of calm in a frantic journey

My guess is that as (if?) the A1 upgrade continues they will make an intersection there and NSL will be restored.

Great review

I've had mine four years. With the possible exception of the Yeti, I can think of no other car I would rather own.

Not complaining about Eckersley. Been ploughing up and down the A1 for many years and that section has some nasty junctions where too many folk needed reminding they are on an A road not a motorway. It provides a few minutes of calm in a frantic journey

My guess is that as (if?) the A1 upgrade continues they will make an intersection there and NSL will be restored.

Problem with it though is that havent spent a penny on doing the junctions that need doing and now everybody knows where all the cameras they all speed up and slow down..hey ho but as you say the Cruise Control will be great which I dont have on my Octy and miss like mad..

The climate control has the subtlety of a sledge hammer! On auto it sets the fan speed almost permanently on 3 bars blasting a noisy gale out of the face vents. I drop it manually to 1 bar most of the time.

Climate is very dependent on ambient temperature. If the car thinks it is below 10 deg C outside then I usually set the climate to 19 or 19.5. If it is warmer outside then 20 to 21 will keep the car pleasant. A tweak of 0.5 deg C can make a big difference to the way the auto function performs.

Great review

I've had mine four years. With the possible exception of the Yeti, I can think of no other car I would rather own.

Absolutely concur with that. And now my heart has ruled my head and a Yeti sits on the drive .

That said, to my mind the Roomster still represents that true Skoda value, more so with the 0% vat offers that have been around the last few years.