Hi I am a new y so please bear with me!.  I have had this car for 21years. The mileage is 60,000 miles. A lovely car. Something has gone wrong with it.  My local Skoda dealer (who have maintained it for 21 years) say it needs a new gearbox and controller. It is only moving forward in first gear. They say it is uneconomic to repair. It is in really good condition and would be a shame to scrap it. I can’t really afford to spend thousands on it. Any suggestions would be welcome.

Hi, welcome to the community.

 

that’s a good age of car and if structurally sound, just run in.

 

if uneconomical to repair was heeded more often, we’d have far fewer classic cars of tomorrow.

 

vested interest of a dealer to say this imho. The choice is yours, many of us have thrown  good money at bad, sounds like you have an otherwise good l&k Octavia. Second hand prices are really high atm. Would not surprise me if they did the repair and flipped it.

Loads of scrapped / reconditioned parts out there.

 

What’s the estimate to repair? Is it with new or like for like?

 

Can you get a new(er) car, one you know every creak and rattle for the same, that won’t have a big repair bill?

 

try a local independent garage. The main dealer prices will be excessive for such an age of vehicle. Continuity at this age adds nothing to the car value. Some peace of mind maybe for you. At least get a second opinion/quote.

 

Let us know  how it goes. I’m hopeful a future classic can be saved, and enjoyed.

7 hours ago, jasbir said:

Hi I am a new y so please bear with me!.  I have had this car for 21years. The mileage is 60,000 miles. A lovely car. Something has gone wrong with it.  My local Skoda dealer (who have maintained it for 21 years) say it needs a new gearbox and controller. It is only moving forward in first gear. They say it is uneconomic to repair. It is in really good condition and would be a shame to scrap it. I can’t really afford to spend thousands on it. Any suggestions would be welcome.

Do not despair!

As Colin suggested, have a look round for a reputable independent garage.

It may be possible to fit a reconditioned gearbox, or even a working second-hand gearbox & controller at a more manageable price.

Whatever you decide, there are usually more cost-effective options than going to a Skoda dealer, if their prices are unfavourable to you.

Good luck!

Thank you Colin and ‘Enter Name’!. Good suggestions. I will seek another opinion find out costs of repair. I should mention, I bought this car from the Skoda dealer - I live next door! 20 years ago. The same mechanic has been serving this car every year for 20 years!  They have been very good (although not cheap) and I trust them. I agree it might make sense to buy another car if it is going to cost nearly the same as the repairs. I also have a Fabia which I drive most of the time. The Octavia is only used occasionally.

Is this a DSG gearbox you are speaking of?

A 2001 Octavia in good condition is a very rare and sought after beast, low mileage even more so, one owner main dealer serviced even rarer, that it is an L&K as well makes it a Holy Grail in my book.

 

Whoever ends up with it will surely repair it and hopefully cherish it, I hope you find someone to repair it economically for you to retain.

If you're anywhere near Reading, or can get the car here, I can personally recommend a very good independent mechanic, who also knows VAG cars very well and has all the brand-specific tools, including VAGCom/RossTech...

Hi TM,  I live in SW London! Also the car is not drivable at present. It only moves in First gear . No reverse. It is with the dealers now. I have asked them for a proper quote. They send automatic gearboxes to a specialist company for repairs.  I am waiting for their reply.  Also looking for an independent Skoda repairer near me.  Looks like a tall order. If the quote is too high I might consider selling it to a Skoda lover who can repair it or afford to get it repaired - rather than scrapping it . I have enjoyed it for over 20 years!Thank you for the info re: Reading. I will you posted. 

On 26/04/2023 at 10:41, J.R. said:

Is this a DSG gearbox you are speaking of?

Not on a mk1 Octavia it won't be.

 

I second (or third or whatever number it is by now) to get a second opinion from a decent independent garage, preferably one that's experienced with the older auto models. At main dealer labour rates I can imagine fixing a gearbox would be eye wateringly expensive. Is converting it to manual an option?!

 

If you do decide to get rid I expect you'd get more for it selling it yourself as spares/repairs than selling it for scrap. The headlights and wheels and tyres alone are could easily be worth a few hundred pounds.

Thanks Petrolbloke! I am still waiting for a quote from my local dealer. As I said earlier they use a company that only does auto gearboxes. They were closed over the bank holiday. They will open tomorrow and I will chase. I think it is going to be over the top. Selling it as it is or for spares might be the only way. I will know in a couple of days. 

Update

The specialist gearbox company told my dealer that new parts for this model are not available anymore.  However they have sourced a used  controller for this model on ebay for £75.  When that arrives they will look into the gearbox with view to repairing it (will give me a quote first).  If it is reasonable then I will have it repaired .  If not then sell for spares!

Great news! The controller was installed and hey ho! the care is running.  They did not have to open up the gearbox which would have cost a pretty penny even if they found that it could not be repaired.  As it happens the gearbox is fine and it was only the controller.  Therefore it cost me all together about £300 and car is as good as new.  I nearly scrapped it!  It pays to have good relations with your local garage and the mechanics - they went an extra mile for me to find the controller and saved me fortune and even the car.

thats brilliant news, yond Octavia lives another while

 

On 12/06/2023 at 21:47, jasbir said:

Great news! The controller was installed and hey ho! the care is running.  They did not have to open up the gearbox which would have cost a pretty penny even if they found that it could not be repaired.  As it happens the gearbox is fine and it was only the controller.  Therefore it cost me all together about £300 and car is as good as new.  I nearly scrapped it!  It pays to have good relations with your local garage and the mechanics - they went an extra mile for me to find the controller and saved me fortune and even the car.

Excellent news!

I have a  PD130 L&K. I love it, and it's been faithful to me the last couple of years.

Hi all,

I have just had this car MOTd and it passed with flying colours!  However the sad news is that I have lost the parking space in a locked compound at the back of my house.  I dont really want to pay the council to pay for parking 2 cars on the road ( i also have a Fabia).  Therefor this bloved car has to go.  Any ideas which will give me a reasonable price will be welcome.  The car drives beautiflly and as stated earlier has always been maintained by Skoda dealer.  The milage is 65000 miles.  It had the camshaft belt and the water pump replaced at 40K miles.  Many thanks Jes