Hi all,

 

I'm new to the forum and in need of some advice please.

 

I'm considering buying a used Skoda for the first time and it's an Octavia that I'm looking at, ideally between 1 to 3 / 4 years old.

 

The wife and I test drove the Mk3 diesel SE recently and really liked it. However, it's the only model we've driven and I'm not sure if it's the right one for our needs, or perhaps an "unnecessary" extravagance.

 

We've got two young boys - 7 & 4 - and ideally we want something that will  be able to accommodate their bikes and ours too - not sure if an estate would be better than a hatchback, or if the hatchback is adequate given its cavernous boot.

 

Annual mileage is under 5000 miles and this is predominantly a 40 mile commute on the A1M twice a week and then local driving. Based on this, I'm presuming petrol is probably ideal but would be interested to hear if anyone disagrees.

 

In terms of budget, I'd like to obviously pay as little as possible but if it's justified, I'd be willing to pay what's required for a decent car that would be a medium to long term investment. Therefore, I'm not sure if its worth paying more for the mk3 (have seen some advertised around £13 - 14k) - do the upgrades over the mk2 justify the incremental cost? Also, is the premium for an Elegance worth the extra you get over the SE spec models?

 

Finally, we drove the DSG but I've heard about VW recalling some cars that have the DSG. Therefore not sure if the DSG is likely to be problematic or not. My wife and I don't have a preference in terms of manual vs automatic... we have one of each currently.

 

As such, the five key questions essentially boil down to the following:

 

Mk2 or Mk 3?

Hatchback or estate?

Petrol or diesel?

SE or Elegance?

DSG or manual?

 

I appreciate that many of these things are potentially just personal preference but I'd really appreciate any good advice that people are willing to share.

 

Looking forward to hearing from you and moving me closer to hopefully making a great purchase.

 

Thanks

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hi, as you say , it's a personal choice. As you your questions, here's my bit for what it's worth.

Get the best you can be it a 2 or 3

If you are carting bikes and kids stuff about, go for the estate

This ones a bit more tricky. I have always gone for petrol as I do quite a lot of short(ish) trips. If you will be going a lot of long runs then obviously diesel would end up more economical. I also find the petrols ones (at least when it comes to Superb's) are quieter.

I went for the Elegance trim for the little extras plus standard leather. Again depends on the amount of abuse the seats will get.

Gearbox. We have all heard the odd horror story about the DSG, but rarely hear about the good stories. For me it is DSG all the way. After nearly two years with the DSG , you would not see me going back to manual.

Cheers.

Wow, only one reply!? Oh well...Thanks for the help The Zee, it has been useful to me too, as I was currently deliberating between the manual and auto. Also, great post Shahmonger, very well written and comprehensive. Peace.

Hi, I've been a Skoda driver for around 6 months, main reasons for moving to Skoda was the amount of car you can get for the money (mk2 Octavia).  I wanted something fast, but practical, hence a petrol vRS estate.

 

Mk2 or Mk 3? - Haven't driven Mk3

Hatchback or estate?  - Estate, physically no longer than a hatch, but loads more room and flexibility (and imho looks better). 

Petrol or diesel? - Petrol, better with short journeys,  I have vRS and average 32MPG, can get close to 40MPG on a steady run.

SE or Elegance? - vRS ?  Especially if you can find one like mine, where the previous ownder ticked everything on the options list

DSG or manual? - DSG - excellent gearbox.  I'm an (almost) lifelong manual owner, but would be reluctant to go back to a manual after driving dsg.  The opinion seems to be that if the gearbox survives the first few thousand miles, it will be a good one!

 

Good luck!