newbie here,

 

I'm looking to replace my Audi A3 1.6 TDi (company car) with an Octavia estate (purchased by me) and do around 10k a year on motorway & fast A roads and lugging mountain bikes and camping gear at weekends.

 

So, in the 'real world' what are the pro's & con's of the two engines, fuel economy etc? I'm looking at something up to 18 months old 10-15k miles

 

Cheers 

Welcome!

 

You would be best with the 1.4TSI in those circumstances.

 

1.5 is only just available so unlikely to be any older than 3 or 4 months.

 

Diesel not worth it for your mileage and TSI will be quicker, quieter, smoother and probably as economical TBH. No DPF worries on petrol either.

 

Good luck with your hunt!

Yep.  tsi for sure. I got a 3 year old tdi and wish i'd gone for a tsi vrs.

All things being equal I agree with the tsi consensus. I own a 1.4tsi and the performance is exceptional, particularly compared to your 1.6d as is the consumption (for a petrol). I'll rarely get below 

However it seems that you may get a better deal on a diesel since their recent plummet in popularity.

 

Be aware that all the models you are looking at have torsion beam rear suspension which you might find offers inferior ride/handling to your current vehicle.

Try and get as thorough test drive as possible of all type to confirm your preferences of course. 

You only get  independent rear suspension on vRS and 4WD variants.

 

Thanks for the info, I'll definitely try to get a test drive. Hopefully, as the A3 was someone else's car at work and wasn't in the first flush of youth (shed!) the ride shouldn't be too noticeable. I had to sell a Mondeo estate when work told me to have a company car and I really miss the space, now 13 months later, they're taking the cars off us 

6 months ago I went from 2.0 TDI SE l DSG Estate to 1.5 TSi SE L Hatch.

 

If you want the increased noise,  sound of fuel sloshing about, rough riding and lack of smoothness the 2.0 Diesel estate is for you.

 

My first Octavia was a 1.9TDi Ambiente Hatch beautifully smooth and 100 percent reliable. My second was the Estate as above; excellent car but not as smooth as the Ambiente. The current car is a smooth as silk knocks both the previous into a cocked hat. Just come back from a long round trip to Preston  - about 550 miles; (optimistic) read out shows 43 mpg - all I know is just over half a tank'ish to get there and half a tank'ish back.

 

My opinion for what it's worth unless you are doing a really high mileage then go for the petrol - I don't think there is much to choose between the 1.4 or 1.5 (is the 1.5 going to be phased out?)

The 1.5 has only been available in this range since Sep 17, so is likely the replacement for the 1.4. The 1.5 also has the Active Cylinder Management.    

Cheers! there's loads of info on the site!

 

And there's a motorbike section 

If you are looking for 12-18 months old then you wont get a 1.5 as they only came out last Autumn

 

The big problem is locating a 1.4 petrol, when they do come up, probably need to move fast as they sell quickly (some dealers even have waiting lists of those looking which they will call).    There are loads of diesels which haven't yet found a buyer (of course salesmen will waffle about having a choice, what they really mean is cant find anyone to buy the diesels which is why they have so many).

 

Remember the tax changed in April 2017, ones registered upto March can be £100+ cheaper per year to tax.   So if you keep the car 10 years might save you £1000

 

If you cannot source what you want, might be worth doing the sums versus a new one, big discounts, possibly cheaper loan rate (but try your own bank, some are doing loans around 3%), defer MOT and repairs by 18 months which is a cost offset

 

Whatever you do, for your mileage, don't be tempted to just buy used diesel because there are loads of them (there is a reason no-one wants them either), and unless you are restricted by size don't rule out the Superb estate, you might just be lucky with one at right price as they are not on everyones radar

 

 

 

 

6 minutes ago, SurreyJohn said:

 

If you cannot source what you want, might be worth doing the sums versus a new one, big discounts, possibly cheaper loan rate (but try your own bank, some are doing loans around 3%), defer MOT and repairs by 18 months which is a cost offset

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you do this, don't forget to use the Skoda Finance deal to get £3k deposit contribution. You can then cancel as soon as the car arrives & transfer to a much better value loan from elsewhere - M&S Bank gave us 2.8% on £13k

At ~10K miles per year I would choose petrol over diesel due to limited savings at the pump and likely cheaper used purchase price.

 

I own a 1.5TSI Karoq. The engine is nice, but extremely similar to the 1.4TSI ACT. I doubt anyone would notice a difference between them unless told. With the 1.5 being so new (and quite rare), I suggest a 1.4 will be the best bet. It will likely be ~£1K cheaper than the 1.5, and offer identical performance plus almost identical economy. 

Edited 19 April, 20188 yr by Orville

4 hours ago, SurreyJohn said:

If you are looking for 12-18 months old then you wont get a 1.5 as they only came out last Autumn

 

The big problem is locating a 1.4 petrol, when they do come up, probably need to move fast as they sell quickly (some dealers even have waiting lists of those looking which they will call).    There are loads of diesels which haven't yet found a buyer (of course salesmen will waffle about having a choice, what they really mean is cant find anyone to buy the diesels which is why they have so many).

 

Remember the tax changed in April 2017, ones registered upto March can be £100+ cheaper per year to tax.   So if you keep the car 10 years might save you £1000

 

If you cannot source what you want, might be worth doing the sums versus a new one, big discounts, possibly cheaper loan rate (but try your own bank, some are doing loans around 3%), defer MOT and repairs by 18 months which is a cost offset

 

Whatever you do, for your mileage, don't be tempted to just buy used diesel because there are loads of them (there is a reason no-one wants them either), and unless you are restricted by size don't rule out the Superb estate, you might just be lucky with one at right price as they are not on everyones radar

 

 

 

 

 

4 hours ago, Mr Statto said:

 

If you do this, don't forget to use the Skoda Finance deal to get £3k deposit contribution. You can then cancel as soon as the car arrives & transfer to a much better value loan from elsewhere - M&S Bank gave us 2.8% on £13k

 

 

at the risk of sounding naive (it's been a long while since buying new) how much is negotiable on the prices these days at dealers?

 

If I wave a big wad of cash and no part-ex will they throw rose petals at my feet?

 

Probably not as many petals as they would if you take their finance, including the contribution.

I'd have a look at the car broker sites like Broadspeed, Drive the Deal, etc to see what deals are out there. What Car do a 'target price' as well. You'll likely get a better deal at the end of a month if you agree to take a vehicle that's already in stock.

29 minutes ago, just music said:

Probably not as many petals as they would if you take their finance, including the contribution.

I'd have a look at the car broker sites like Broadspeed, Drive the Deal, etc to see what deals are out there. What Car do a 'target price' as well. You'll likely get a better deal at the end of a month if you agree to take a vehicle that's already in stock.

 

And probably an even better deal about week or two before the end of a Quarter, than the intermediate months, especially if a volume bonus depends on few extra sales

 

Also worth submitting an enquiry on a site like carwow, as you might attract a hungry dealer, offering big discounts to get sales volume  (they say the average discount is £3486, some of that will be Skoda contribution)

as per old saying, nothing ventured, nothing gained

 

If you haven't bought a new car for a few years, market power has changed in your favour, you can now go armed with some good prices obtained through a few clicks of the mouse,  and simply say match it or better it.   They salesman then has a take it or leave it choice, just walk if they cant (or wont) match the price.  The days of sitting there not knowing if you are getting a good deal whilst the salesman wanders off to ask a manager (pretending to do you a favour) are long gone.

 

The what car target price is the absolute maximum you should need to pay (as it is a price that generally should be available).  Aim for a lower price.

 

Edited 19 April, 20188 yr by SurreyJohn

53 minutes ago, Cakemonster said:

 

 

 

at the risk of sounding naive (it's been a long while since buying new) how much is negotiable on the prices these days at dealers?

 

If I wave a big wad of cash and no part-ex will they throw rose petals at my feet?

 

 

Seriously look at CarWow and the price for buying on a PCP - there are massive effective discounts due to up to £3K "deposit contribution" from Skoda.   If you don't want a PCP others have settled them after a few days and refinanced the car with a low APR unsecured loan (or cash if you have it) .

 

There's a thread on here about that process.   

Edited 19 April, 20188 yr by juan27

Best get on with ordering new before the order books close as they are going to be very soon.

On 18/04/2018 at 13:04, Cakemonster said:

newbie here,

 

I'm looking to replace my Audi A3 1.6 TDi (company car) with an Octavia estate (purchased by me) and do around 10k a year on motorway & fast A roads and lugging mountain bikes and camping gear at weekends.

 

So, in the 'real world' what are the pro's & con's of the two engines, fuel economy etc? I'm looking at something up to 18 months old 10-15k miles

 

Cheers 

 

None of the dealers or brokers with their deposit contributions on new cars won't get anywhere near the price of an 18mth old car.  My car was 5mth old when I bought it, just over 1k on the clock, an SE-L with most of the option boxes ticked, in metallic. The list price of car + options was just over £27,000. Broker price was around £23k. Even if you add in those discounts, you'd never get anywhere near the £17750 I paid, and that's for a 1.4tsi.  Diesel, perhaps not best option given your driving, nearly new cars going for much less.

 

Those buying on finance might find attractive deals buying new but if you have cash, you'll save thousands more buying nearly new.

 

21 minutes ago, Offski said:

Best get on with ordering new before the order books close as they are going to be very soon.

 

And never ever get pressured in to buying a car. If you want the best price, take your time and shop around.

Edited 19 April, 20188 yr by Guest

No just wait a little while as VW Group will be desperate to move any cars already built by August 2018 as you might see if you read Autocars article.

Just to add - none of these tactics work with the vRS 245 

52 minutes ago, Scot5 said:

 

None of the dealers or brokers with their deposit contributions on new cars won't get anywhere near the price of an 18mth old car.  My car was 5mth old when I bought it, just over 1k on the clock, an SE-L with most of the option boxes ticked, in metallic. The list price of car + options was just over £27,000. Broker price was around £23k. Even if you add in those discounts, you'd never get anywhere near the £17750 I paid, and that's for a 1.4tsi.  Diesel, perhaps not best option given your driving, nearly new cars going for much less.

 

Those buying on finance might find attractive deals buying new but if you have cash, you'll save thousands more buying nearly new.

 

 

And never ever get pressured in to buying a car. If you want the best price, take your time and shop around.

 

Fortunately, I don't have to rush, I can use the Mini for a while 

 

13 minutes ago, mumphie said:

Just to add - none of these tactics work with the vRS 245 

 

Funny that!!  I'd love one, but after my wife's AMG A class was targeted by thieves, I want something under the radar. 

 

Cheers 

Get the 1.4lt in the 140PS or the 150PS which ever is available...the 1.5lt 150PS is too new & so not reduced much by comparison.

 

Forget the diesel & the 122/125PS in the 1.4lt...

 

Mind you I am bias having had a 1.4lt 140PS for 3.5yrs now & having driven the diesel version of my car.....I prefer the lighter nose weight for better handling on the back roads for starters...& I can  get 48mpg (calibrated) on shell v-power on back road runs over 30miles..& have the car in sport mode all the time...

To be fair, as others have said, the 1.5 is probably too new to find (perhaps an ex-demo?) but the 1.4 TSI ACT is a brilliant engine.

 

Obviously not a vRS, but pulls well enough for most people's needs. Best thing about it is the diesel-like economy with petrol refinement, and still low road tax! In fact, I really do struggle to see why anyone would buy a diesel, unless you're pulling a hefty load on a regular basis.

 

One thing you could do is try the Skoda Used section (and you will have to keep going back to check for new additions), there is a coming soon (or newest) option.  Can reserve online (this might sound like a daft idea, buying unseen) but remember if it’s from a main dealer and has 1 or 2 years warranty left so any problems should be fixed.

 

I had a friend that was after a petrol auto, dithered, went back in hour later and wasn’t there anymore as someone had presumably reserved it.

2 hours ago, mumphie said:

To be fair, as others have said, the 1.5 is probably too new to find (perhaps an ex-demo?) but the 1.4 TSI ACT is a brilliant engine.

 

Just to clarify, the 1.4 TSi in the Octy is not ACT, only the 1.5 is. The Superb got the 1.4 ACT. All are solid motors, just watch for the exaggerated pull away assist issue on the 1.5, there is now a fix for that.

 

 

4 hours ago, SurreyJohn said:

One thing you could do is try the Skoda Used section (and you will have to keep going back to check for new additions), there is a coming soon (or newest) option.  Can reserve online (this might sound like a daft idea, buying unseen) but remember if it’s from a main dealer and has 1 or 2 years warranty left so any problems should be fixed.

 

I had a friend that was after a petrol auto, dithered, went back in hour later and wasn’t there anymore as someone had presumably reserved it.

need to be careful though, a lot of 1 year old cars are sold as one owner, low mileage, ex management cars.

however when you receive your log book through the post , the reality is there ex avis, hertz etc.

could have been leased out to one careful owner, garaged every night and hand washed only, on the otherhand might have been a daily rental hired out to every tom , **** and harry.

you pays your money and take your chance, I suppose.

 

ps, I did hear there's been complaints to trading standards etc about garages miss informing customers but not sure if anything's been done about it yet.