Honest Opinions On The Mkiii

[JungleJames]

but it defintely is not as fun or as competent to throw around a set of bends.

 

You throw it round bends?

I know the Mk3 is lighter, but not that light! Anyway, my car would brush itself off and come back and beat me up if I dared try that trick

 

All i can say is the Elegance gives plenty of feel (too much at times), the tyres are nice and grippy, and is great fun to speed round bends. OK it isnt a Jag, but it doesnt pretend to be.

If I wanted better, it'd have to be much better. Not slightly better and with seats that are about twice as tall as the car.

 

She even asked me earlier why I was going so slow round the bends. I had to remind her to check her radar, and she'd see the car in front

[Genoa1893]

I guess the multilink rear is performing much better than torsion beam.

 

I feel a little too body roll, but my taste leans towards a sportier one.

 

Fact is I would have bought a 4x4 vRS!

[PUFPAF]

All of you guys that complain from the ride quality - are you sure this is not due to 17' and 18' wheels? Cuz Im driving on 16s with RRP and actually rides very well...and surely Bulgarian roads are worse than in the UK

[ednmra]

All of you guys that complain from the ride quality - are you sure this is not due to 17' and 18' wheels? Cuz Im driving on 16s with RRP and actually rides very well...and surely Bulgarian roads are worse than in the UK

I agree - mine is on 16" with Continentals and I have no ride problems even though Brighton roads are pants

[cortina63]

Iv gone from a mk2hatch to a mk3 estate, whilst the mk2rode the bumps better,the mk3 is a big improvment in comfort looks and performance,

Edited 19 November, 2014 by cortina63

[pipsyp]

Sorry JungleJames, just have to agree to disagree there. I wont deny as a car overall the Mk3 Elegance is better than the Mk2 vRS Blackline I had before. Its considerably more modern, the interior (with exception of the seats) is nicer in desigh and there is a nice amount of tech/safety aids on board. The 150 engine knocks spots off the 170 too for power delivery and response (though i do now wonder how much the DSG stunted its potential).....but it defintely is not as fun or as competent to throw around a set of bends.

Also whilst im v pleased with the standard performance I got out dragged quite royally by a 10 plate Ford Kuga 2.0 TDCi on my way home from work the other night....im suspecting it was a 163hp or possibly tuned but was a bit embarrasing, it probably would have done my vRS too!

Ok more impressed than embarrased now; saw said Kuga again this morning and its not a TDCi.....its a 2.5T!

[Sak]

Interesting. Two different reviewers on the same website, two different Octavias(same model). They both have opposite opinion on the suspension & ride quality. Wonder why they have different ride quality?

 

http://www.caradvice.com.au/262005/2014-skoda-octavia-review/

 

http://www.caradvice.com.au/271100/medium-car-comparison-toyota-camry-v-mazda-6-v-nissan-altima-v-skoda-octavia-v-holden-malibu-v-hyundai-i40/

Edited 19 November, 2014 by Sak

[themanwithnoaim]

Human error, feel is subjective and therefore different people will have differnet opinions, its a no brainer take an extended test drive and see what you mke of it yourself.

 

It didn't get family car of the year for nothing.

 

Pipsyp, for the love of god buy or put a Rear Anti Roll Bar on your Christmas list, its a must.

[pipsyp]

Human error, feel is subjective and therefore different people will have differnet opinions, its a no brainer take an extended test drive and see what you mke of it yourself.

It didn't get family car of the year for nothing.

Pipsyp, for the love of god buy or put a Rear Anti Roll Bar on your Christmas list, its a must.

I dunno it depends on what kind of cars youve owned in the past, this Octavia whilst v competent is the least fun car ive had in a good long while. That doesnt make it a bad car it just wasnt ever designed to get pulses racing; and in fairness looking back I bought the Elegance in an attempt to be a little more sensible in car choice than I had been previously,to suit my families needs more than my own. Its worked out in thay respect but has left me wanting.....I guess really I should have just said sod it and bought the vRS as I v nearly did.

[themanwithnoaim]

Well you live and learn Pip, are you gonna have to keep it any longer now you're doing the extra milage ?

[pipsyp]

Indeed. Unfortunately until its residual value falls more in line with what I owe on it gonna have to keep running it...reckon another 6-9 months at least.

[Matt Pez]

Indeed. Unfortunately until its residual value falls more in line with what I owe on it gonna have to keep running it...reckon another 6-9 months at least.

I'm in the same boat, but reckon probably 3 years to break even for me cos I self financed starting from nil deposit over 5 years with the intention on keeping it for at least 4 years but I'm bored with it already!  Has anyone got any PCP residual value estimates for a 3yr old Elegance 150CR with 75k on the clock?  At 3 yrs with that mileage I'll still owe about £9K but will have saved up about £3K from business mileage tax relief so anything over £6K residual will return me a bit of equity.

[Yogi-Bear]

3yr old Elegance 150CR with 75k on the clock?

 

That's an awful lot of miles for a 3yr old car... so the value of it will be a lot less than most other examples.  On the basis that the GMFV on my vRS after 42 months / 42,000 miles is £11k, I'd guess your Elegance would be somewhere around £7k-£8k for that sort of mileage at that sort of age.  IANAMotorTrader though, so it is very much a guess.

[themanwithnoaim]

That's an awful lot of miles for a 3yr old car... so the value of it will be a lot less than most other examples.  On the basis that the GMFV on my vRS after 42 months / 42,000 miles is £11k, I'd guess your Elegance would be somewhere around £7k-£8k for that sort of mileage at that sort of age.  IANAMotorTrader though, so it is very much a guess.

Still its guaranteed not to have any DPF issues with that kinda mileage.

[Matt Pez]

That's an awful lot of miles for a 3yr old car... so the value of it will be a lot less than most other examples.  On the basis that the GMFV on my vRS after 42 months / 42,000 miles is £11k, I'd guess your Elegance would be somewhere around £7k-£8k for that sort of mileage at that sort of age.  IANAMotorTrader though, so it is very much a guess.

Not as high as some but I do average around 500 miles a week. If it is worth over £7k at that point I'll be happy as it means the cash I get by opting out of company car scheme has more than paid for depreciation, insurance and servicing, so if I stick to the original plan to run this for 4 years, the equity will be even higher as I am paying about £4.5k per year on the loan but using my mileage allowance relief to over pay and reduce the term of the loan so should own the car outright if I keep it for the full 4 years.

[JungleJames]

 with the intention on keeping it for at least 4 years but I'm bored with it already!

Bored already?! Think of the excitement it gives you from the frequent trips to the back specialist to sort out your jarred back

 

Cant say i'm bored at all. The car and I have great fun together. She plays me Radio 2, and I whisper sweet nothings into her ear. Then we go and safely tear up the roads of Harris and Lewis whilst she admires the lovely scenary all around   We get on like a house on fire. Not the cars fault she was fitted with crap suspension.

[JungleJames]

Human error, feel is subjective and therefore different people will have differnet opinions, its a no brainer take an extended test drive and see what you mke of it yourself.

 

It didn't get family car of the year for nothing.

 

Pipsyp, for the love of god buy or put a Rear Anti Roll Bar on your Christmas list, its a must.

It depends what you come from. To me, its very harsh suspension, but those that are used to the awful ride of a BMW find it silky smooth

[Zillio]

So people who went from a mk2 vRS to a mk3 non-vRS seem a little disappointed, what about those that went vRS to vRS?

[Chappers.]

Well, although I collected my BL from the dealers yesterday evening, it went straight back again today as its still playing up. In their defence, the sales manager has leant me his 64 plate vRS overnight and it is a completely different beast to the 150 bhp CR L&K 4x4 I took out the other day. I'm obviously a vRS kind of guy.

 

I'm grateful for all the replies, however pipsyp has made the move I was considering - a specced up Elegance (to make the most of the 0% finance). I'm now pretty much convinced that it's not the right move for me.

 

Impressions of the new vRS are quite good - it feels a much more competent and 'mature' car than my BL and I love the xenons and extra refinement - it is noticeably quicker as well. That said, there are parts of it that look & feel very cheap (interior door panels being one example).

 

I've spent some time with the dealer today hammering out a deal on a manual CR vRS. I've got the costs down a lot, but I'm not sure I can justify the extra per month at the moment - its not that much better than the Mk2.

[pipsyp]

Well, although I collected my BL from the dealers yesterday evening, it went straight back again today as its still playing up. In their defence, the sales manager has leant me his 64 plate vRS overnight and it is a completely different beast to the 150 bhp CR L&K 4x4 I took out the other day. I'm obviously a vRS kind of guy.

I'm grateful for all the replies, however pipsyp has made the move I was considering - a specced up Elegance (to make the most of the 0% finance). I'm now pretty much convinced that it's not the right move for me.

Impressions of the new vRS are quite good - it feels a much more competent and 'mature' car than my BL and I love the xenons and extra refinement - it is noticeably quicker as well. That said, there are parts of it that look & feel very cheap (interior door panels being one example).

I've spent some time with the dealer today hammering out a deal on a manual CR vRS. I've got the costs down a lot, but I'm not sure I can justify the extra per month at the moment - its not that much better than the Mk2.

Couldnt agree more chappers; whilst the Blackline in certain respects was not perfect it was an awful lot of car for the money and I do rather miss mine. Looking back I should have kept it a bit longer and if I did anything at all should have bought a new vRS TDi or something completely different. Still its not a bad car, just dont love it. You live and learn for sure.

[Gerrycan]

It depends what you come from. To me, its very harsh suspension, but those that are used to the awful ride of a BMW find it silky smooth

Have you tried driving other similar Octavia 3s to see if your interpretation of the suspension characteristics is generic or specific to your vehicle?

I ask because I cannot reconcile the polarised opinions that get posted, unless it is due to the batch of bad rear shockers which we know, and Skoda acknowledge, has been accidently released.

 

My background is that here in Australia not all country roads are sealed and they can develop a characteristic called 'corrugations' which can be quite severe.

In the past I have had SUVs for ground clearance, but the firm suspension to control body roll, did not handle corrugations at all well.

Seven years back when I got my Octavia II estate with 15 inch rims the ride on dirt roads was a revelation, and the ride and handling on tarmac was equally good.

This year I changed to the Octavia III with torsion bar rear. I was very worried that it would not be as good, especially when I found my 'Travel pack' upgrade included a change from steel 16s to alloy 17s with a 45 profile tyre.

While the new car is not as good as the old Octavia on dirt roads it is still remarkable and it would probably be closer still if it had the 16s fitted, but as I don't do as much dirt as I did so I am very happy with the current ride on tarmac (even bad tarmac).

 

You can see I am a fan of the my ride, so do you think that a large rim size/ lower profile tyres fitted to your vehicle, or possibly defective shocks are contributing to your adverse ride?

[Sak]

Human error, feel is subjective and therefore different people will have differnet opinions, its a no brainer take an extended test drive and see what you mke of it yourself.

 

It didn't get family car of the year for nothing.

 

Pipsyp, for the love of god buy or put a Rear Anti Roll Bar on your Christmas list, its a must.

I own one already. Have no complaints about ride quality. Just wanted to share two extreme opposite opinions from those  journalists 

[sniperpenguin]

The dash rattle in sport mode is the speakers making it sound like the windscreen is shaking. I think this is normal.

 

There is a fix at the dealers..... drop in and it will be done under warranty (Its a loose clip)

[Diango]

I've had two little 'glitches' so far:

 

- Check tyre pressure came on  (turns out there was a .3 bar discrepancy between the front tires, after only a week's worth of driving - topped them up and reset the system)

- Had a 'check coolant level' this morning.

 

I pulled over at the nearest gas station to spot that my coolant level indicator (the one under the hood, on actual reservoir ) was indeed under the minimum fill line.

However - once I (carefully) loosened the cap (and thus removed the pressurization) the level rose to halfway between min and max. 

 

Topped it up to max regardless and the warning was gone. 

[fiisch]

Anyone who bought a vRS and thinks the ride is harsh needs their heads testing....

 

Very supple, comfortable ride for what is supposed to be the sports branded model, but equally with good handling on a big car.  vRS mkiii is excellent - no complaints whatsoever after 12,000 miles, aside from the fact that some **** fitted mine with a diesel engine.