I am glad to report, that this car has been brilliant. The only problem I had was stop start not working after I left my front and rear dashcams running for 5 days while the car was parked up in the garage. Older battery charger could not charge AGM2 battery correctly, so had to buy a new battery charger.

 

Of course that was my fault, the car has in fact been fault free. It needed 0.2 litres of oil at 4000 miles and has used none since. MPG long term has been 49.7 which is pretty good considering I use sport mode most of the time.

 

No rattles or squeaks, everything still feels like new. The mudflaps do a remarkable job of keeping the car clean, and I have only picked up one stone chip on the front bumper.

 

I have even had people ask me "Is that really a Skoda"  :sun:

Looks lovely.

 

Very excited to be picking my new Octavia Hatch up tomorrow.

I have had my Octavia 103Tsi estate with travel pack for 13 months and 26000 kms, no faults , goes extremely well, very economical and has loads of room in the back for our 2 golden retrievers. I will keep it for as long as I can as the residuals will be poor due to brand image and of course the VW/Audi scandal. Because of the way VW/Audi has treated its customers I will never buy from them again despite the quality of the Skoda, my other car is due for replacement soon so sadly I will look elsewhere.

Regards

Roger

Because of the way VW/Audi has treated its customers I will never buy from them again despite the quality of the Skoda, my other car is due for replacement soon so sadly I will look elsewhere.

 

 

In total agreement about criticism of VAG past general  business principles and their treatment of customers with defective vehicles in Australia but you seem more than happy with your Octavia and you do not mention any specific personal issues with the way you have been treated by dealers.

The two different Skoda sales reps I dealt with when I bought my Mk2 in 2007 and Mk3 in 2014 were both very good.

The capped price servicing costs are good relative to most other VW and Skoda model pricing so I cannot really complain at that either.

 

I'll be honest and declare I do not have any particular allegiance to Skoda as a brand, they just happened to make vehicles that, at the time I was in the market, had the best combination of features for the price for my needs. If some other manufacturer had a better offering then I would have bought it.

 

Residuals are not good, but then again that is true of most sedan/estates due to the current record levels of new car sales, the glut of 2nd hand vehicles (cars don't rust here) and the Australian preoccupation with SUVs (most of which are neither 'sporty' or have much 'utility' but are very fashionable). 

I try to keep my 'investment' in my vehicles as minimal as possible, the basic models are then lighter and have less to go wrong because I keep them for the long term and I have been happy with the price I get selling them privately.

As a one car family, we appreciate the Mk3 estate's enormous load carrying capacity, passenger space/comfort, excellent performance and economy and at a price at least A$5000 (usually more) cheaper than any equivalent rival I can think of. On top of that I have found both Octavia I have owned an absolute pleasure to drive and you really cannot put a value on that.

Edited 10 February, 201610 yr by Gerrycan

Gerrycan

I have no issues with any staff I have dealt with in respect of my Octavia, in fact all have been excellent, and I really feel sorry for them in a way as no doubt they have put up with a lot of flak not of their making.

Again I confirm my complete satisfaction with the car, it is a delight to drive and well built as well as being outstanding value. I do not understand why people buy SUVs, overpriced fashion symbols. Like you I buy the more basic models, less to go wrong, my Octavia replaced my Corolla which was basic and had 185000 kms when I traded it, running perfectly, never any trouble, but we thought it wise to have a car with more safety features. I also do all of my own servicing and maintenance (after a couple of years dealer service to preserve warranty) Being originally from UK it is a joy to work on cars with no corrosion!

Regards

Roger