I was very surprised when I first heard about the Skoda Superb, as I seriously doubted that it would be a sales success. We all know that from the Felicia on Skodas have been good cars and great value but the truth is that people who have

Originally posted by William in this post

the truth is that people who have

far from it, I feel the superb offers a "better than passat" package at "less than passat" prices - I'm also proud to be associated with the Skoda brand, and would happily purchase a superb.

Tavia4x4, you and I both are Skoda fans and have no problem with the badge, but I am sure Skoda likes to win new customers not just sell new cars to existing Skoda drivers. I still feel that at this time Skoda will struggle to find new customers for expensive cars. Yes the Superb is better value than the Passat, no argument with that, but it is still expensive.

Yes robmawer people spend

purchase cost and running costs do not go hand in hand.

4x4 is 16.5k - but insurance is reasonable and I can get 42mpg, and skoda servicing is cheaper than VW servicing.

Also, for the VW anti-corrosion guarantee - you need to pay for a "body service" every 3 years, whereas with skoda you do not. I also find the skoda dealers much better to deal with.

I think if Skoda have made enough of a change to attract me as a first time buyer, then they will for others.

Depends on the Dealer. There used to be two dealers in Belfast, RK Oliver and S.E.R.E.. Olivers is a small family owned business and are great to deal with, but SERE was the typical faceless large company, which actually managed to lose the franchise due to various dodgey going ons.

42mpg from a 1.8T engine, that is good going, I only get about 32mpg from my 1.6. Used to get 40+ from my 1.3L Felicia.

I have to say that I felt that it was a pity that when the Felicia was dropped the Fabia was so expensive. Sure it is cheaper than the Polo, but loads of main stream makes have super minis as cheap or cheaper, and while the Fabia is better, loads of people would buy a Citreon or Renault before they would touch a Skoda.

When I bought my first Skoda (1997 Felicia) it was the cheapest new car you could buy in the UK. I suspect that Skoda have realised this problem, with the release of the 1.2L Fabias and 1.4L Octavia to make their range affordable for more people.

Personally myself, I choose to go second hand this time rather than pay

Originally posted by William in this post

No manufacturer expects to sell performance variants in large numbers, because of their terrible fuel economy and extreme insurance costs (I am 34 and it would cost me over

You can buy a Superb PD 100 Classic for about

I also ment to add that VAG would probably be better of keeping Skoda as cheap cars, with Seat as normal priced, VW as slightly up market and Audi as fully upmarket, than having all 4 brands over lapping as much as they do, ie Skoda to build the Lupo/Arosa and Fabia/Ibeza with Seat doing the Octavia/Toldeda/Leon. VW doing its range plus the Superb has a Passat variant.

Originally posted by William in this post

Skoda to build the Lupo/Arosa and Fabia/Ibeza with Seat doing the Octavia/Toldeda/Leon. VW doing its range plus the Superb has a Passat variant.

Wouldn't work - firstly, the markup on small cars is a lot lower than on executive cars, so Skoda wouldn't have much money for R&D, QA, etc.

Secondly, I'd rather be seen dead than in a Seat...although the two could quite likely coincide... :p

Rob.

Dr Zoidberg, I live in Northern Ireland. We are ripped off for insurance. Very few companies will quote for insurance for anyone living in NI and those that do can charge a fortune. My 1999 1.6 LX (75bhp) cost me over

Originally posted by William in this post

Dr Zoidberg, I live in Northern Ireland.

Ah , that explains it.

Actually the Superb has sold better than expected in the UK. The diesels seem to be most popular and probably the best choice.

As for Skoda's market position, I'm happy where it is. If Skoda are re-aligned lower down the price levels then I'll just not buy one. Sure, Skoda sold a fair number of Felicias but since moving upmarket with the Fabia, Octavia and Superb they've sold alot more. Maybe Skoda are taking sales from the other VAG brands but they're also taking sales from Ford, Vauxhall, Renault etc.

As for the badge snobbery. Really, who cares anymore? Are people in Clio and Fiestas really looking down their noses at Fabias?

William I live in NI too -

Hi Rik, If I had actually been buying a vRS I would have shopped around more for quotes the

William I used to be with Elephant, usually decent quotes but a bit silly for the vRS. Nice people to deal with but I reckon they have a small no. of staff - trying to cancel my insurance and get the proof of no claims was a hassle - although they were always friendly -j ust not too efficient. A few colleagues have had the same experience.

JMW are Jim McWhirters - they have a no. of offices here. They have a big ad in the Yellow Pages. Try their 'dial-a-quote' line 02890 492492.

I have no personal experience of Oliver's but know of their reputation as a long standing Skoda dealer. I did give them a call when I was shopping around but they didn't have a vRS. The dealer I use also had the first Fabia vRS in NI. Black finish, very nice. It sold in no time so I'm keeping an eye out for it.

Originally posted by William in this post

I was very surprised when I first heard about the Skoda Superb, as I seriously doubted that it would be a sales success. We all know that from the Felicia on Skodas have been good cars and great value but the truth is that people who have

I'm sure it has a place. IMHO it seems rather a dull car, and if I had to look at it from the outside, I'd suggest it's bought by people who wanted a Passat but wanted to save money. That's cool anyway, cos I find most Passat drivers to be lacking in social skills, shall we say?

I will probably agree with you Nick on the first 2 points, especially the second s it applies to me, but I think its also a niche market car with the as said rear legroom at that price.

Andy

ps I will add that we would have had another Octy if it had more rear legroom as opposed to so much boot.

i saw a 1.9 TDI comfort spec superb today going for

William, you sound like it suits you to have cheap cars and you enjoy owning and running cheap cars. If that is the case then you should look to the Koreans, Daewoo, Kia et al produce well engineered and cheap cars which cost peanuts to run and insure.

There would be nothing worse than for Skoda to return to making the Felicia/really cheap cars. The development of the Skoda brand has been incredible, the products are thouroughly engineered, reliable and in many cases desirable. The whole "anti-brand" thing about Skoda's is part of the appeal and partly why the company has grown so much - BUT it wouldnt have been possible without great cars, and yes the Superb has to be included. I know someone who traded an A8 4.2 for a Superb V6, and I have ordered a Fabia vRS.

Without the model development neither of those sales would have happened - both of them were expensive top of the range models and both of those sales will prove better for the company that selling a dozen 4 grand run abouts in terms of exposure as much as becuase of the higher margins of options such as xenons and nav, and the generally quite high price. I guess the point Im trying to make, in a rather long winded way, is that without the product transformation, including the rise in price, quality and equipment available, Skoda would not be here. If the "anti - brand" sentiment that gives the cars an air of cool did not exist the company would have made a few more cheap, undesirable cars for a few years and then gone under as very few people would have actually bought the cars.

Im looking forward to getting my Skoda, and am delighted to be able to say that. If Skoda carried on the way you seem to want then I know I could not possibly be saying that.

Cheers.

I've never owned a Skoda until I got my Superb, not saying its the best car I've had (I do like my Saabs), but hey it is not far behind my last Saab in terms of me being happy with the car, and the Saab costs over