I became a Skoda owner in 2009. Bought a new Fabia 2.  1.4 TDI PD engined diesel. This car was well made - was completely reliable and reasonably economic.

Regrettably the car was written off following an accident.

 

This I replaced with a new 1.6 CR90 TDI SE + in 2011.  This car was a complete disaster, and after 18 months of continually breaking down - and spending much time in the workshop, I decided it had to go, as no cure had been found. In fairness the dealer always kept me on the road with a courtesy car.

 

The next car was a new 1.2 Petrol TSI - SE  in 2013 which has been completely reliable. However it seems to be nowhere near the build standard of my original Skoda. Its noisy because of lack of sound proofing, and the now cheapness of build, and the engine (still only 21000) is harsh. I did extend the warranty because of my concern about the engine - dealer insists the engine is OK. My apprenticeship and 40 years + in the industry apparently causes me to be 'overconcerned'

I will now start to go to alternate Skoda dealers to talk through my concerns, and try to get someone who knows his job and has experience to listen. I have driven other 1.2 TSI's that are like silk - the difference is startling.

 

Would I buy another Skoda?. The answer is no as at today's date - will have to see how this pans out.

Edited 10 February, 20179 yr by 2ndskoda

I own mine for half a year, I am generally unlucky with the cars I bought

 

Fiat - repetitive idling issue

3 different Renault models - 1 had Faulty gearbox, 1 had break issue (because of the sleazy work of the dealer), third one had terrible built quality

But I drove both of them for long years

 

I also had a Toyota which was a really good car, did not make any important problem

 

Now Octavia, 6 months, generally it was okay, - however, death rattle problem with 1.2 TSI (actually with most of TSI engines), which dealer ignored and I got solution after blaming VW group with emails being `thieves`

 

1 week ago, turbo valve failure and again break failure - due to mud, salt and dirt, I still think dirt should not cause this kind of big and important problem.

 

If you ask me, after seeing that VW group is trying to put the burden on their customers shoulders, no, I would not buy any Skoda or VW group car again. I have put my Octavia for sale after 6 months - yesterday, will go back for a Toyota or Honda

I'm a long term Audi diesel owner (20+ years) and wanted a no-nonsense car to do business mileage to add to the fleet. I bought a MkII Fabia Elegance 1.6 TDI (105PS). I got it at 30k miles on a 2010 plate and I've put 40,000 miles on the clock in 3 years. Prior to my ownership, the previous owner had the EGR renewed under warranty, probably due to start stop short journeys.

 

To be fair it's been reliable, apart from an intermittent idle. I service it myself, so it's serviced every 10k miles with Castrol Edge 5w30 and the usual filter changes. It's not as efficient as I thought it would be. Generally average 50 miles per gallon. Rear brake cylinders failed which surprised me, but coming from disks all round on the Audi it's par for the course I suppose on a smaller car. Wiper arm corrosion and rubbish headlights are common faults.

 

I put winter tyres on it 3 years ago which actually makes it a pretty capable car during the cold months. Repairs, I suffered DPF and glow-plug issues last year, loss of power. Not a cheap fix. I also did the timing belt and water pump, again not cheap, but better safe than sorry.

 

I'm currently suing VW as part of a class-action along with 6,500 other owners. Why? Skoda notified me over 18 months ago that the car required an engine modification following admission of cheat devices. I'm still waiting for the fix.

 

I think long term - diesels will be taxed out of ownership. Not convinced I want a petrol as I enjoy the torque of diesel, but I want to do my bit for the environment and save money with an efficient engine. Are Skoda the answer? 

 

Probably not.

The wife has 3 door citigo & think we decided on Monte Carlo fabia as next car for her 2018, my Fabia Vrs mk2 running perfect now but had to spend on it, 2 out of 3 skodas have run really well. The citigo is quite fun to drive i have my eye on the GTI VW up.

After running a Kia Rio pretty much faultlessly for 8 years and 120.000 miles I bought dads low mileage 2010 Fabia 1.2 elegance last year. It has a lovely engine but I don't like pretty much everything else, especially the 'nanny state' remote control that thinks I'm going to be carjacked in a sleepy Lincolnshire village. I also dislike the controls geared for driving on the left hand side which are a pain, but hat's not VAG's fault as Ford et al also do this. Oh, and the crap dipped headlights, oh yes and the tramlining on our rural roads. You get the idea.  So anyway i will keep it for another 18 months (now I've spent over £500 on brakes and servicing) and then buy a new Kia Rio.  A 7 year 100,000 mile bulletproof warranty and a customer services department willing to join in on the Kia owners club forums seems like a no brainer to me. :-)

 

Phil

Like the Spitfire, Phil .

48 minutes ago, Brian69 said:

Like the Spitfire, Phil .

I can only put the Spitty down to me needing a substitute child once mine had left home....  

Generally my view is VAG group overall has lost the edge they had 15 - 20 years ago on technical design, quality and reliability. Examples are diesel EGR failures, 1.2 petrol coil pack failures and 1.4 petrol engine issues. Then there is the Dieselgate scandal.

 

Individually my car was well put together. The panels line up and the paint has no flaws. Six years on I have no rattles, nothing has fallen off, no intermittent or obscure faults.

 

When I ordered my car the dealer was an one site operation so customer satisfaction mattered not just to the sales team but the workshop too. Within a few weeks they closed and a major group took over the franchise. They also hold VW, Audi, Seat, Honda, Toyota and maybe more. My nearest dealer is also one branch of a large group. Hence unless this changes very unlikely I would buy new again.

 

Used is a possibility as presuming I keep this car another 4 years a 3 - 4 year old Rapid would be on the short list. Six years ago a Fabia estate was the only option for adequate boot floor area.

 

I now rely on a local VAG specialist independent for servicing and maintenance. They are primary reason why I would consider a VAG group car again.

I'm on my 7th Skoda ...

On 2/10/2017 at 21:57, spartacus68 said:

I'm a long term Audi diesel owner (20+ years) and wanted a no-nonsense car to do business mileage to add to the fleet. I bought a MkII Fabia Elegance 1.6 TDI (105PS). I got it at 30k miles on a 2010 plate and I've put 40,000 miles on the clock in 3 years. Prior to my ownership, the previous owner had the EGR renewed under warranty, probably due to start stop short journeys.

 

To be fair it's been reliable, apart from an intermittent idle. I service it myself, so it's serviced every 10k miles with Castrol Edge 5w30 and the usual filter changes. It's not as efficient as I thought it would be. Generally average 50 miles per gallon. Rear brake cylinders failed which surprised me, but coming from disks all round on the Audi it's par for the course I suppose on a smaller car. Wiper arm corrosion and rubbish headlights are common faults.

 

I put winter tyres on it 3 years ago which actually makes it a pretty capable car during the cold months. Repairs, I suffered DPF and glow-plug issues last year, loss of power. Not a cheap fix. I also did the timing belt and water pump, again not cheap, but better safe than sorry.

 

I'm currently suing VW as part of a class-action along with 6,500 other owners. Why? Skoda notified me over 18 months ago that the car required an engine modification following admission of cheat devices. I'm still waiting for the fix.

 

I think long term - diesels will be taxed out of ownership. Not convinced I want a petrol as I enjoy the torque of diesel, but I want to do my bit for the environment and save money with an efficient engine. Are Skoda the answer? 

 

Probably not.

Can you inform me where you where able to sue vw as I am still awaiting a fix for my vehicle...

What do you want them to compensate you for, have they caused you some losses, and what is wrong that needs fixing?

 

Are you wanting them to put a piece of plastic up your air intake and then set up new engine management that may or may not have your engine running poorer than it does now?

Just now, JGrindel said:

Can you inform me where you where able to sue vw as I am still awaiting a fix for my vehicle...

 

Details here: http://www.vwemissionsaction.com

Just now, Awayoffski said:

What do you want them to compensate you for, have they caused you some losses, and what is wrong that needs fixing?

 

Are you wanting them to put a piece of plastic up your air intake and then set up new engine management that may or may not have your engine running poorer than it does now?

 

I've been a loyal VAG owner for over 20 years, mostly with Audi, VW and Skoda. The Allroad has already been fixed which was basically a software update. Audi left their branded car care kit worth about £30 on the passenger seat as way of compensation.

 

The Skoda is still waiting. That was 18 months ago and at least 4 letters from Skoda UK saying I'm a valued customer, yadda yadda. As I understand it, it's a hardware and software update.

 

Now stateside things are a little different. Diesels are obviously in the minority in the US, but for diesels sold there - then they're Q7s, Porsche Cayennes, mostly 3.0 litres. Their outcome is quite a bit different, with option of VW buyback of the vehicle and compensation running into thousands of dollars depending on the model.

 

What VW did was deception pure and simple. Owners are legitimately entitled to compensation given the resale value if their cars will inevitable fall, and advertised fuel efficiency can never be achieved. Unless you've been on the moon lately, then UK diesels are likely to face the wrath of the chancellor in the years to come.

 

More details here: https://www.ft.com/content/ba812da6-e860-11e6-893c-082c54a7f539

 

 

Edited 6 March, 20179 yr by spartacus68

There is no advertised Fuel Efficiency for driving on the roads just EU Test Results in a Temperature Controlled building, 

and they claim the Fix can have a vehicle achieve that after The Fix'.

http://skoda.co.uk/pages/fuel-consumption-statement.aspx 

 

So not been on the moon, just aware of the EU Test results and Comparisons supposedly of other vehicles in a temperature controlled building.

Basics with no options etc etc Diesel in the Engine Oil and tyres over inflated, brake pads retracted etc.

 

The UK Government will have to get to the bottom of any lies from the VW Group & Paul Willis, 

and what the Chairman of the Conservative & Unionist Party Sir Patrick McLoughlin knew & did nothing while he was the Transport Secretary before Chris Grayling MP took over.

 

Edited 6 March, 20179 yr by Awayoffski

GUYS !!!!!!!

it seems we have gone completely off the original subject. Can we respond by answering the question YES/NO

Yes.

No. Skoda are no longer a budget brand for poor folks like me. I would look at a Dacia or Kia (because of the 7 year warranty) or Hyundai. I think VAG group need to catch up with the makers who offer 5/7 year warranties. Maybe they do not have the confidence in their cars to do this.

7 years warranty is the way forward as by the time most folk have paid off a car 4- 5 years its usually with or without a bloom payment. So if you want to own outright its a catch 22 of no warranty at the end of 5 years....Our next car will likely be a monte carlo fabia (to replace the citigo), not heard good things about VW or Audi, Kias just look awful, and we need something after 1 owner around 8.5K to 10K max so it wont be new. Also that Emssions tax rule to think about on new cars. 

After 25 Skoda's between Me and Mrs G I don't think our next car will be a Skoda. There getting to expensive and due to the way things are designed they all look the same now buy in different sizes. The dealer network is getting worse and I honestly think some don't care anymore

 

As m8t states Dacia might be an option..........

I bought into the whole Skoda is a VW so is just as reliable. I sold my 55 plate Mondeo with 120,000 miles on it because although there was nothing wrong with it I wanted an automatic and lets be honest shiney and new. It was the biggest regret going from the Mondeo to a Skoda Octavia VRS CR DSG. Whilst the gearbox was nice it soon become clear how cheaply it was built within 18 months there were creaks and groans from the car than the much older and harder worked Mondeo. The fuel economy was no where near the bigger and heavier Mondeo. It was quite clear I had buyers remorse but I could have lived with it but having to deal with Skoda Dealers really killed it off as you were just treated like a cash cow everytime you went in for service with fake problems such as warped brake discs, rusted and pitted brake discs and oil temp sensor. There was never anything wrong with the discs and I had been under the car prior to service to clean and grease the calipers so knew they were in good condition as you'd expect from a car with just 30,000 miles on. The oil sensor had been switched off and just needed activating again which cost me £15 with a guy using VCDS. 

It was the only car I actually began to loath and became the shortest period of time I've owned a car. Thinking back to the Felicia my wife had, which wasn't a great car but it was built solid.

 

Would I buy another? Never. 

3 hours ago, CWARD said:

I bought into the whole Skoda is a VW so is just as reliable. I sold my 55 plate Mondeo with 120,000 miles on it because although there was nothing wrong with it I wanted an automatic and lets be honest shiney and new. It was the biggest regret going from the Mondeo to a Skoda Octavia VRS CR DSG. Whilst the gearbox was nice it soon become clear how cheaply it was built within 18 months there were creaks and groans from the car than the much older and harder worked Mondeo. The fuel economy was no where near the bigger and heavier Mondeo. It was quite clear I had buyers remorse but I could have lived with it but having to deal with Skoda Dealers really killed it off as you were just treated like a cash cow everytime you went in for service with fake problems such as warped brake discs, rusted and pitted brake discs and oil temp sensor. There was never anything wrong with the discs and I had been under the car prior to service to clean and grease the calipers so knew they were in good condition as you'd expect from a car with just 30,000 miles on. The oil sensor had been switched off and just needed activating again which cost me £15 with a guy using VCDS. 

It was the only car I actually began to loath and became the shortest period of time I've owned a car. Thinking back to the Felicia my wife had, which wasn't a great car but it was built solid.

 

Would I buy another? Never. 

That used to really grate me - if they could get away with it some dealers would change the discs every service.

 

Henry's Skoda phoned me yesterday - when I told the woman I had sold the car she asked me if I'd buy another - I dishonestly replied 'it would depend on what's available' as I didn't want to give her any grief (she's only the poor soul that has to phone customers and take 'feedback'), but the honest answer would have been that my experience with Skoda dealers has put me off (first Parks of Hamilton then Henry's - although in most aspects Henry's North were pretty good; rusty / warped discs excepted - it was Henry's South that hacked me off). 

Edited 9 March, 20179 yr by Brian69

I know there are good and bad dealers every where for every manufacturer but Skoda seem to make an art form of it.

On my 3rd Skoda now.

 

1st was a Mk1 Fabia vRS - bought with 16k miles, sold with over 80k. Superchips remap was the only change I made, and apart from tearing through front tyres, the car was faultless.

 

2nd was a Mk2 FL Octavia vRS TSI manual. Owned from new for about 18 months, did about 30k miles, and apart from the DRL failing (replaced quickly under warranty), faultless.

 

3rd (current car) Mk3 Octavia L&K Diesel DSG, from new and now 20 months old has not has one single issue - just passed 30k miles.

 

I'd have another Skoda in a heartbeat, however there are far too many deals to be had on more premium brands (E-class especially) so that's where I'll probably go next.

Tough question. I can't see myself getting another Skoda, lost faith in their customer services and to be honest they just don't make a Skoda with enough power for myself. 

 

I've looked at a few alternatives, my favorite being the golf R closely followed by the A45 AMG mercedes. 

 

I've loved my fabia for the 3.5 years i've had it and I dont plan on part exchanging or selling my vRS when I upgrade. I genuinely want to keep this car for as long as possible. my heart will always be with my fabia.

If the MKI Fabia PD Vrs was still available I'd have one today, the best Skoda ever built.

 

Fun to drive, Quick and could be made quicker at low cost, economical, loverly driving position, roomy, a sleeper, looked good, 

 

What more is there to say and Yes I've had two

 

 

The End

 

 

 

Edited 9 March, 20179 yr by Auric Goldfinger