A local dealer (with a very good reputation) has an 07 plate 2.0 litre diesel Octavia 4x4 estate for sale, at nearly £7,000.  The car has 100,000 miles on the clock but looks to be in imacculate condition inside and out, has a towbar already fitted and the dealer is willing to fit a a set of four new tyres of my choice (probably Continental TS850s).  He also, as usual, offers an unconditional 12-month warranty.

Not cheap, I know, but he always manages to sell his cars for well over top book price because of his reputation and his warranty.  And good S/H 4x4 Octavias are not eassy to find.

I fancy a 4x4 Octavia diesel estate and am tempted to buy.  Any comments please?
 
 

      

Edited 16 November, 201312 yr by Stuarted

I've been looking at Scouts (which hold their price well) and you could pick up one of those with similar specs for that sort of money.

I've seen them for between £5,500 up to £8,000 so if say overpriced.

Yes, non-Scouts are quite rare but they don't hold their value as well either. The last non-Scout 4x4 I looked at was about £4500 IIRC.

Just my opinion, but you already know he overprices his cars and gives a good warranty and has a good reputation. So that may outweigh the extra cost.

That's helpful - thank you.

Roughly what age were the cars you saw advertised, please - the Scouts from £5,000 to £8,000, and the non-Scout 4x4 for £4,500?
 
 

Edited 16 November, 201312 yr by Stuarted

The Scouts were all around '07-'09 (pre-FL PD engines with between 70-130k miles on the clock IIRC).

I'll see if I can find any of the listings and post links.

I really don't remember that much about the non-Scout (sorry) as it wasn't what I was actually looking for.

It's winter too. #1 bad time to buy anything with 4x4. You'll pay through the nose right now even more so should the snow start to fall.

 

Unless you're desperate hold off till summer. And yes it does sound over priced. 100k towing a caravan might mean it has had a hard life.

Mine was £6100 with 90k miles at a main dealer in Jan. I thought it was a bit pricey but overall it was not too bad, also got 4 new tyres and a service with 6 months warranty.

Sorry mines is a 2008 58 reg

Try item 181264543514 on eBay.

3 years newer, a few extra miles & about £500 more.

I have nothing to do with the car other than it came up in my search on eBay (it has been listed before).

[Not sure if I should start a new thread at this stage?]

Have now had a more extended drive in this 100,000-mile car, which has since been fitted with a new set of Nexen Eurowin 205/60R15H winter tyres.

I'm afraid I was slightly disappointed.

(1) Jiggly ride

The ride was slightly 'jiggly' - the car felt slightly restless and unsettled.  The suspension sometimes felt (and occasionally sounded) as if it was working quite hard even when driving in a straight line on anything but a completley smooth road.

Don't get me wrong, the ride was not terrible; it was no worse that most cars.  But in this 100,000-mile car the ride was not as steady and smooth as in my 200,000-mile Citrioen BX with its hydraulic suspension, nor as controlled as my 65,000-mile Mazda MX-5, nor as smooth and untroubled my companion's 100,000-mile  Ford Focus.

Is this more of a problem with 4x4 Octavias, and distinct from 2WD ones?  Is it more of a problem with older / high-mileage versions?  I wan't sure if the problem might have been worn dampers, or slightly worn suspension bushes or joints, or whether they are all like this.

(2) Limited Traction

I did not find it difficult to find places which brought the car to a standstill.  I deliberately chose slopes which, if I failed to climb, I could always escape from by driving downhill.

One was a quite rough, lumpy grassy roadside verge at the side of moderately steep hill.  The other was the start of steep, a leaf-strewn track into some woodland.  I deliberately brought the car to a halt and tried (very gently) to move off again, rather than taking a vigorous run at it.  This is admittdly a severe test, but simply taking a run at it would have quite possibly enabled most cars to cope even without 4WD or special tyres.

Difficult to tell from inside the car, but looking at the wheel tracks and at the mud on the wheels afterwards each time I got the impression that the front wheels had been spinning vigorously whereas the rear wheels didn't seem to have been trying to make much of a contribution at all.  No idea why that should be if the Haldex was working properly.

Any comments please, anyone?

Hmm, sounds like the Haldex may not be working. Mine has no issues moving up hill from a standing start even in the snow. It spins all 4 wheels if I mash the pedal to the floor before it gets going. Best bet is get someone outside with you to verify if all the wheels are spinning which is one thing I did when test driving this one. If the salesman is not happy with that, get him to lift it on a 4 poster and you can see all 4 going then

 

 

Incidentally, I bought it at 90k miles and it cost £9k, but it was otherwise young (and a while ago) and has been absolutely flawless so far, other than the wheel alignment which was way out (hey, its a MK II) and caused it to be a little jiggly, perhaps like you describe.

Ive had a Mk 1 4x4 & now a Mk 2 Scout

On traction something is wrong. The Haldex can be disconnected so it may just be un plugged, its a trick often used to stick a 4x4 onto a 2wd Rolling Road. Either way all 4 wheels should be trying. When very slippery, ie snow or steep cut grass slopes that are soaking wet ( I run Toyo Performance tyres ) The car will attempt to pull away just on tickover by slowly letting the clutch out, If more vigour needed & its starts slipping often the rear "wanders gently as the rears spin as well. The one you tested does not sound right, agreed the bias is slightly more to the front but such a marked difference does not sound right

Re ride I can only comment on a scout but that certainly never feels jiggly, can be a bit "leany" on bends when reaching tyre squealing levels but otherwise fine & pretty solid feeling, certainly consistently smooth. Ive had 2 BX's & a Xantia & sorry but you will never get that level of comfort with old fashioned springs & dampers even if its a newer car

Just a thought

Not sure what these are like http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201310179337881/sort/default/usedcars/radius/1500/keywords/4x4/page/3/onesearchad/used%2Cnearlynew%2Cnew/make/citroen/postcode/so213hj?logcode=p

Hi,

 

I'd agree with others re the Haldex not working.  I've not had any issues with pulling away uphill on slippery surfaces (eg snow) on the 6 years we've had our 4x4 so it does sound like something is wrong there.  The fronts will slip a little but then the back kicks in and occasionally there will be a slight sideways kick as the torque transfers but I've never failed to move off (I live in Sheffield with some pretty steep hills and additionally never clear my sloping drive of snow).

 

On the jiggly front It could just be high tyre pressures.  If they have been over-inflated as per the high load settings but you have no load in the car then I've found that it can feel a bit jittery, but not if the pressures are set correctly...

 

I'd walk away and find another.

Thanks for the helpful comments.

Ride: I accept, as Stuart_J said, that conventional mechanical suspension is never likely to fully match the smooth glide of the hydraulic suspension of even an old, 200,000-mile Citroen.  But the ride of this Octavia was not even as good as my friend's old 100,000-mile Focus.

Do all Octavias feel like this, or are 4x4 versions or estate versions worse in this regard - a slightly unsettled, jittery ride, even on good roads?  Do they get worse as they age and the dampers / bushes / joints begin to wear?

Traction: I have double-checked with my companion, and it appears the the Haldex was working.  On the first test, on the grassy bank, I felt both ends sliding sideways, so the wheels both ends were spinning.  And on the second test, she chickened out and stood by and watched - the rears were spinning as much as the fronts.

I guess I was expecting too much and the test was too severe.  It is very difficult to standardise any test for traction, isn't it!  Even if you had two car side-by-side on the same ground, one car with one type of tyres might be best on one type of surface (mud, wet leaves) but worst on a different type of surface (wet grass, ice or snow).  And of course driver skill makes a huge difference.
 
 
 

Edited 20 November, 201312 yr by Stuarted

Ive never had issues with ride on any Octavias we have owned. The only way you can compare what you are feeling is to try another, it might just be something you notice & others dont.

Im one of the somewhat older ones on here & have had loads of various cars but find the scout more than adequate & certainly not jittery, Ive driven it to Southern Spain & back twice & was rather impressed at how solid & smooth it felt. Ours is on 94000 miles & still feels Good. If you want to experience real Jittery try an Abarth, My wifes is like a hooligan on steroids but what fun when you are pushing it.

Mine is an 06 plate 1.9TDI 4x4, I paid a fraction over 6k for it about 18 months ago with 50k miles, FSH and a 12 month warranty which came in handy when the rear wiper and esp died 10 months later.

I'd been looking for ages and at the time some dealers wanted 8k for a comparable car. There can't be many cars out there that hold their money like an Octy 4x4.

I'm still amazed at how well mine will pull away on slipways/beaches when recovering boats, sometimes I hear the slightest bit of slip when moving off but never wheel spin as such.

I was under the impression that the 4x4, whilst rolling a little more in the corners has a better ride quality than the 2wd models.

When I was growing up we lived down a unadopted/unmaintained road which got to the point where a normal cars couldn't get down due to a lack of clearance. I think we were one of the only Families who didn't end up buying a 4x4, Dad had a BX and with the suspension raised it used to make it no problem. Great cars and probably still the most comfy car I have ever been in.