Picked up my new car yesterday. Only driven 200 miles so far but already fallen in love!

 

I have to admit I was a bit apprehensive. My outgoing car is a 10 year old Volvo V70R 2.5 with all the goodies of the day, AWD and loads of performance. It's a great car and one I have cherished throughout those ten years, so I was worried that a new vRS 220 TSI DSG Estate might not quite match up. I had driven the diesel version so I was OK with the seating position, size, comfort etc but to me it still "felt" like a diesel and a bit under-powered. Apologies to all you TDI fans out there, but to me it just didn't cut it. So I went for the TSI as it was on paper closer to the old Volvo.

 

I needn't have worried. The car is fantastic. I came back from the north to the Bristol area yesterday through very strong wind and rain. The car was rock solid on the motorway with superb stability and feel to the steering and, above all, with a performance level that subjectively matches my old V70 despite the lack of AWD and half a litre capacity. The DSG box is a joy to use with ultra-smooth changes and the car feels really agile off the motorway. Comfort is truly excellent and I emerged from the car after 200 miles relaxed and with no aches and pains in spite of the trying nature of the journey. The car feels like a genuinely quality product in the way that everything looks and works beautifully and the tech on it is outstanding. I've already updated the Columbus with the 2016 software! My only gripe relates not to the car but to Skoda's policy of denying the option of electric seat operation if you don't have leather seats. Why, Skoda??  Some people are actually not especially keen on leather, so why force them to pay nearly two grand extra for something they don't want in order to get something they do? Don't understand it. Anyway, I'll live with the manual seats...

 

I must also say that in my admittedly limited acquaintance with the car so far, I have experienced none of the problems that some others have unfortunately reported with their cars on this site (eg droning noises, harsh suspension etc).

 

So, all in all, as per the title, to anyone out there thinking of getting a new Octavia vRS - just do it! Obviously if the economy side of things is important to you then I guess you'd have to go with the diesel.  For my money, I'd have the TSI every time (with DSG). If they ever came out with a 4WD TSI 280 version, I'd buy it in a heartbeat!

 

Martin

 

 

Nothing like those first few hours driving in the new baby. Best of luck with it mate [emoji106]. Have mine a year and still love it

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I've had mine 8 months and over the moon with it (TSI VRS).

Quote

My only gripe relates not to the car but to Skoda's policy of denying the option of electric seat operation if you don't have leather seats. Why, Skoda??  Some people are actually not especially keen on leather, so why force them to pay nearly two grand extra for something they don't want in order to get something they do? Don't understand it. Anyway, I'll live with the manual seats..

 

Martin

 

Presumably the restriction to having electric seats only with the leather option only applies to VRS models, as in the brochure it clearly states with reference to the electric seats "Only available with leather upholstery on VRS" I am not sure where the £2K comes from as the Electric seats are listed as £875 and the Leather as £925 for the VRS, I agree that having to pay best part of £1000 for something you don't want is pretty galling. I suppose there must be some technical reason ? Or are Skoda thinking if they can afford the VRS they can afford the Leather?

Edited 11 November, 201510 yr by baxlobs

Next, the Mk3 gripes thread 

 

Quote

My only gripe relates not to the car but to Skoda's policy of denying the option of electric seat operation if you don't have leather seats. Why, Skoda??  Some people are actually not especially keen on leather, so why force them to pay nearly two grand extra for something they don't want in order to get something they do? Don't understand it. Anyway, I'll live with the manual seats..

 

Martin

 

Presumably the restriction to having electric seats only with the leather option only applies to VRS models, as in the brochure it clearly states with reference to the electric seats "Only available with leather upholstery on VRS" I am not sure where the £2K comes from as the Electric seats are listed as £875 and the Leather as £925 for the VRS, I agree that having to pay best part of £1000 for something you don't want is pretty galling. I suppose there must be some technical reason ? Or are Skoda thinking if they can afford the VRS they can afford the Leather?

 

Well, in the latest price list it's £925 for leather + a further £925 for electrics  or £1,850 in total which, OK, is £150 short of £2K but which I would say is "nearly" £2K! Just to be picky, the £875 electrics price refers to the SEL model, not the vRS. Why the difference? Don't know, maybe the seat design?

 

My point really was that I was being asked effectively to pay £1,850 for electric seats which is extortionate in my book. Yes I would have got leather into the "bargain" but I actively didn't want that anyway. There is no technical reason why you can't put electric motors on a non-leather seat, other than if you equate "desire to make more money" with "technical"! In a car like the vRS, the drivers seat at least should be electric as standard in my opinion, leather or not.

Martin

Next, the Mk3 gripes thread 

Where is it.....? No, don't bother I've had the gripe anyway. Love the car, though.

Martin

http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/350631-what-about-the-things-that-annoy-you/

Got mine early 2014. Cloth seats, couldn't have the winter pack on Vrs. But could have separately heated washers,heated windscreen and heated seats. Which equaled the winter pack. Same price also. Couldn't figure that out, neither could the dealer.

The only real negative I can level at the O3 is depreciation. Its pretty dire.

If you dont particularly mind or can live with a car losing close to 50% of its value in less than two years fair do's but for those who PCP and like the flexibility to change your car relatively frequently I dont think this is the car for you....again if you dont mind shelling out a good few K to get out of it early fair shout.

This is my third new Skoda and no such problems with the first two.....not sure there will be a forth.

If you dont particularly mind or can live with a car losing close to 50% of its value in less than two years

Really???? That much in 2 yrs??!!  Yikes!!!

Really???? That much in 2 yrs??!! Yikes!!!

Yep no joke my friend. I have a Feb 14 63 plate 2.0 Elegance estate manual..is stock bar a spare wheel. Done approaching 28.5k miles which isnt silly for a nearly 2 year old car........paid £23k for it, barely books £12k trade now and thats via my brother who works in the trade trying to get me the best price for it PX. Most offer low 11's or even less.

Im now in neg equity to the tune of circa £4k for a car in more ideal circumstances id like to get shot of...naturally not going to throw a load of money at it to make it go away (I dont have spare cash I can justify doing that with anyway) so likely now keeping it to the end of term.

The only saving graces are that the car hasnt yet put a foot wrong, its an awful lot of car still for the monthly cost and the wife gets to ferry herself and our kids around in something big, reliable, safe, well equipped and relatively speaking cheap to run for a 150hp diesel car.

The vRS doesnt fair much if any better Im afraid. Its a great car but forewarned is forearmed and all that.....

Edited 12 November, 201510 yr by pipsypreturns

Yep no joke my friend. I have a Feb 14 63 plate 2.0 Elegance estate manual..is stock bar a spare wheel. Done approaching 28.5k miles which isnt silly for a nearly 2 year old car........paid £23k for it, barely books £12k trade now and thats via my brother who works in the trade trying to get me the best price for it PX. Most offer low 11's or even less.

Im now in neg equity to the tune of circa £4k for a car in more ideal circumstances id like to get shot of...naturally not going to throw a load of money at it to make it go away (I dont have spare cash I can justify doing that with anyway) so likely now keeping it to the end of term.

The only saving graces are that the car hasnt yet put a foot wrong, its an awful lot of car still for the monthly cost and the wife gets to ferry herself and our kids around in something big, reliable, safe, well equipped and relatively speaking cheap to run for a 150hp diesel car.

The vRS doesnt fair much if any better Im afraid. Its a great car but forewarned is forearmed and all that.....

 

I'm certainly going to be thinking twice now OP...... :S  :S

I'm certainly going to be thinking twice now OP...... :S :S

Sensible if you are considering PCP. PCH for short term and cash purchases for long term not such a bad way to go.

Its also probably worth noting that the diesels cost more but do depreciate quite a bit less. I wouldnt be surprised if my car being a 1.4 TSI id probably be offered nearly four figures rather than five in PX.

A vRS TSI is probably the worst in this regard as its quite a niche product/halo product and the majority tend to go for TDI.

Picked up my new car yesterday. Only driven 200 miles so far but already fallen in love!

I have to admit I was a bit apprehensive. My outgoing car is a 10 year old Volvo V70R 2.5 with all the goodies of the day, AWD and loads of performance. It's a great car and one I have cherished throughout those ten years, so I was worried that a new vRS 220 TSI DSG Estate might not quite match up. I had driven the diesel version so I was OK with the seating position, size, comfort etc but to me it still "felt" like a diesel and a bit under-powered. Apologies to all you TDI fans out there, but to me it just didn't cut it. So I went for the TSI as it was on paper closer to the old Volvo.

I needn't have worried. The car is fantastic. I came back from the north to the Bristol area yesterday through very strong wind and rain. The car was rock solid on the motorway with superb stability and feel to the steering and, above all, with a performance level that subjectively matches my old V70 despite the lack of AWD and half a litre capacity. The DSG box is a joy to use with ultra-smooth changes and the car feels really agile off the motorway. Comfort is truly excellent and I emerged from the car after 200 miles relaxed and with no aches and pains in spite of the trying nature of the journey. The car feels like a genuinely quality product in the way that everything looks and works beautifully and the tech on it is outstanding. I've already updated the Columbus with the 2016 software! My only gripe relates not to the car but to Skoda's policy of denying the option of electric seat operation if you don't have leather seats. Why, Skoda?? Some people are actually not especially keen on leather, so why force them to pay nearly two grand extra for something they don't want in order to get something they do? Don't understand it. Anyway, I'll live with the manual seats...

I must also say that in my admittedly limited acquaintance with the car so far, I have experienced none of the problems that some others have unfortunately reported with their cars on this site (eg droning noises, harsh suspension etc).

So, all in all, as per the title, to anyone out there thinking of getting a new Octavia vRS - just do it! Obviously if the economy side of things is important to you then I guess you'd have to go with the diesel. For my money, I'd have the TSI every time (with DSG). If they ever came out with a 4WD TSI 280 version, I'd buy it in a heartbeat!

Martin

VRS TSI is alot lighter, still v torquey and no doubt suffers less parasitic losses than the R in that its now AWD.

I expect the R would still give the vRS a relative trouncing off the mark up to maybe 30-40 mph but the vRS will get its legs and Id wager there probably wouldnt be loads in it....assuming your R was stock at 300ps?

TSI v TDI.....its a tricky call for most. My own perspective real world with the TDI you compromise a little performance (and its not a vast margin stock v stock) for far greater efficiency...particularly if you do alot of miles on motorways etc.

The TSI overall is a nicer powerplant than the TDI in the same respect that most 4cyl petrol powered motors (particularly turbos) are nicer than a 4 cyl diesel but I think youve either got to be pretty diesel averse, not care too much about running costs or want something you can get big power gains from tuning to go for the TSI.

I dont know what the vRS TDI is like to drive but if its anything like my Mk7 GTD it makes a very good go of feeling sporty for a diesel....in sport mode with the ESC set to sport it seems v urgent and is alot of fun...even the noise is nice...though arguably it is probably a little more competent and developed than the vRS in terms of chassis tuning and is smaller so that bit more chuckable. My own money though probably not worth the premium on the vRS as the Golfs dont hold their value fabulously either and the boot is like a shoebox by comparison.

Edited 12 November, 201510 yr by pipsypreturns

VRS TSI is alot lighter, still v torquey and no doubt suffers less parasitic losses than the R in that its now AWD.

I expect the R would still give the vRS a relative trouncing off the mark up to maybe 30-40 mph but the vRS will get its legs and Id wager there probably wouldnt be loads in it....assuming your R was stock at 300ps?

TSI v TDI.....its a tricky call for most. My own perspective real world with the TDI you compromise a little performance (and its not a vast margin stock v stock) for far greater efficiency...particularly if you do alot of miles on motorways etc.

The TSI overall is a nicer powerplant than the TDI in the same respect that most 4cyl petrol powered motors (particularly turbos) are nicer than a 4 cyl diesel but I think youve either got to be pretty diesel averse, not care too much about running costs or want something you can get big power gains from tuning to go for the TSI.

I dont know what the vRS TDI is like to drive but if its anything like my Mk7 GTD it makes a very good go of feeling sporty for a diesel....in sport mode with the ESC set to sport it seems v urgent and is alot of fun...even the noise is nice...though arguably it is probably a little more competent and developed than the vRS in terms of chassis tuning and is smaller so that bit more chuckable. My own money though probably not worth the premium on the vRS as the Golfs dont hold their value fabulously either and the boot is like a shoebox by comparison.

 

 

Interesting thoughts. I'd say the main difference in performance between my old V70R (which is a 300 bhp Geartronic [= DSG] & AWD, by the way) is at the top end rather than off the mark. Putting your foot down in the Volvo at say, 60 or 70, leaves pretty much everything as a diminishing dot in the rear-view mirror. Acceleration from rest is almost indistinguishable from the vRS TSI. However the latter does feel much more nimble round corners (the V70 has a 44 ft turning circle would you believe, about 10 ft more than the vRS for a very similar sized car!). I expect petrol costs to be about 30-40 percent lower with the Octy, so although I don't see it as an "eco" vehicle, that will be a bonus for me. Servicing costs should be no comparison (in a good way), road tax half and all the tech will keep me happy for ages. I'm seriously hopeful that I can look forward to as enjoyable a long term relationship with the Octavia as I have had with my Volvo these past years   .

Martin

I'm certainly going to be thinking twice now OP...... :S  :S

 

Generally speaking, if you're going to buy a performance car you are likely to be less concerned with economy by definition. I used to change my car pretty much every year or 18 months. Mug's game. Now my philosophy is to choose something which is more likely to divert me for a longer time so that depreciation becomes less of an issue. I also think that it's important to choose who you buy from wisely. Believe me, the difference between discounts offered by different retailers/dealers can be MASSIVE and can easily negate a big part of that depreciation cost...

 

Of course, you could always by a Smart...!    

Martin