Looking for our 2nd Skoda

[Richardcn]

Hello Fellow Briskodians

 

Our 2006 1.9tdi Octy Estate is due retirement (gearbox is on its way out + other work) and as a retired couple living on a narrowboat we're looking for something equally as reliable to replace it.

 

Although we only do roughly 6k a year those journeys are important ones as we have family spread around the country and weekly grandparenting duties to consider. Our budget hasn't been finalised yet but I'm guessing £4k is what we're looking at however, given the current climate, 6k may be more realistic! 🙄 Not a lot, I know, but there we have it.

 

I see that the used market is not what it once was (before the chip shortage?) but could you guys give us some ideas please. I think we can probably move away from an estate, if necessary, now that the dog is gone (not that he liked travelling much) but I do like having the extra storage for a folding bike that we use when boat moving.

 

When I was thinking about replacing the Octy last year I quite fancied getting something a bit taller for ease of access (although we're still both okay at the moment, that will likely change over the next 10 years!). However, I like the Octy so much (the fuel economy, space & reliability) I rather think that a newer one might just do the trick. If the road noise wasn't so bad (and I've tried quieter tyres to no avail) it would be a 'no brainer' (my wife hates that phrase 😏). When I had a quick peek on A/T I was both surprised and pleased to see £0 tax on 2012 Greenline 2 Octy earlier which would also be a most welcome bonus on our limited income. I like to have good acceleration when I need it but nowadays I'm happy to travel at more fuel efficient speeds (where appropriate) rather than up at the speed limit like in previous years 😁.

 

Any pointers much appreciated guys 👍

 

Regards

Richard & Paula

[Ootohere]

Welcome.

 

Hopefully someone will be along that knows the cars well. 

 

Is there any issue as far as going to places with Low Emission Zones coming in that would require you to have a vehicle of the right age / emissions?

 

Have a look in the Briskoda 'cars for sale section' and check & maybe post in the Wanted Section. 

There might be just the chance of a suitable car coming up.

 

Also you getting your current car sold.

[Richardcn]

1 hour ago, toot said:

Welcome.

 

Hopefully someone will be along that knows the cars well. 

 

Is there any issue as far as going to places with Low Emission Zones coming in that would require you to have a vehicle of the right age / emissions?

 

Have a look in the Briskoda 'cars for sale section' and check & maybe post in the Wanted Section. 

There might be just the chance of a suitable car coming up.

 

Also you getting your current car sold.

LEZ's etc are not a consideration, we avoid London like the plague (sorry Londoners! 😏).

 

I'll pop into the 'cars for sale' section toot suite! Thanks 👍

 

[EnterName]

On 20/06/2023 at 13:26, Richardcn said:

When I was thinking about replacing the Octy last year I quite fancied getting something a bit taller for ease of access (although we're still both okay at the moment, that will likely change over the next 10 years!). However, I like the Octy so much (the fuel economy, space & reliability) I rather think that a newer one might just do the trick. If the road noise wasn't so bad (and I've tried quieter tyres to no avail) it would be a 'no brainer' (my wife hates that phrase 😏). When I had a quick peek on A/T I was both surprised and pleased to see £0 tax on 2012 Greenline 2 Octy earlier which would also be a most welcome bonus on our limited income. I like to have good acceleration when I need it but nowadays I'm happy to travel at more fuel efficient speeds (where appropriate) rather than up at the speed limit like in previous years 😁.

 

Any pointers much appreciated guys 👍

Hello Richard!

I can't say I have reliable advice, but I have opinions that I invite you to hear and discard or take acount of as you see fit.

Firstly, it seems that the notably high MPG of the Greenline cars can't be relied upon in day to day driving, though it is a bit better than the standard 1.6TDI. You also get stability control as standard, which might be a very appealing thing, as it wasn't common on this generation of Octavia's, AFAIK.

https://www.honestjohn.co.uk/realmpg/skoda/octavia-2004

 

Secondly, the tax is £0 right now, but that may change. It's pointless trying to second-guess what the government is going to do, but I don't think it's reasonable to assume they will increase tax on all ICE vehicles, one way or another, and I think it prudent not to place too much reliance on an annual £0 VED on a diesel car.

 

That said, take a look at this vehicle, just within your budget.

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202305317967852?sort=relevance&advertising-location=at_cars&aggregatedTrim=&body-type=&colour=&fuel-type=&include-delivery-option=on&keywords=Greenline&make=SKODA&maximum-badge-engine-size=1.6&minimum-badge-engine-size=1.6&model=Octavia&postcode=b911ug&transmission=&year-to=2023&fromsra

[Richardcn]

8 hours ago, EnterName said:

Hello Richard!

I can't say I have reliable advice, but I have opinions that I invite you to hear and discard or take acount of as you see fit.

Firstly, it seems that the notably high MPG of the Greenline cars can't be relied upon in day to day driving, though it is a bit better than the standard 1.6TDI. You also get stability control as standard, which might be a very appealing thing, as it wasn't common on this generation of Octavia's, AFAIK.

https://www.honestjohn.co.uk/realmpg/skoda/octavia-2004

 

Secondly, the tax is £0 right now, but that may change. It's pointless trying to second-guess what the government is going to do, but I don't think it's reasonable to assume they will increase tax on all ICE vehicles, one way or another, and I think it prudent not to place too much reliance on an annual £0 VED on a diesel car.

 

That said, take a look at this vehicle, just within your budget.

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202305317967852?sort=relevance&advertising-location=at_cars&aggregatedTrim=&body-type=&colour=&fuel-type=&include-delivery-option=on&keywords=Greenline&make=SKODA&maximum-badge-engine-size=1.6&minimum-badge-engine-size=1.6&model=Octavia&postcode=b911ug&transmission=&year-to=2023&fromsra

Thanks for the link, mileage is a little higher than I'd have liked but certainly worth considering.

 

Good point about the tax, of which I was already aware but at least it's in a lower group which hopefully would mean a rise to circa £200 is unlikely to happen overnight, hopefully!

 

Can you expand on the Greenline fuel economy 'unreliability'. Is there a problem with that engine that I should be aware of? I realise that mpg figures rarely represent true life but as they are all that way then they must at least be representative of a better fuel economy than say a 2ltr petrol? I'm not expecting those figures especially on an older car but I would expect the best figures of of the bunch. Unless you know otherwise?

 

We have increased the budget to £5 and both Superb and Yeti are also on the shortlist now. It won't be expanding any further though! Your thoughts on them please everybody?

 

Regards

Richard

[EnterName]

1 hour ago, Richardcn said:

Thanks for the link, mileage is a little higher than I'd have liked but certainly worth considering.

 

Good point about the tax, of which I was already aware but at least it's in a lower group which hopefully would mean a rise to circa £200 is unlikely to happen overnight, hopefully!

 

Can you expand on the Greenline fuel economy 'unreliability'. Is there a problem with that engine that I should be aware of? I realise that mpg figures rarely represent true life but as they are all that way then they must at least be representative of a better fuel economy than say a 2ltr petrol? I'm not expecting those figures especially on an older car but I would expect the best figures of of the bunch. Unless you know otherwise?

 

We have increased the budget to £5 and both Superb and Yeti are also on the shortlist now. It won't be expanding any further though! Your thoughts on them please everybody?

 

Regards

Richard

Hi Richard, I supplied the link in my earlier reply.

10 hours ago, EnterName said:

Firstly, it seems that the notably high MPG of the Greenline cars can't be relied upon in day to day driving, though it is a bit better than the standard 1.6TDI. You also get stability control as standard, which might be a very appealing thing, as it wasn't common on this generation of Octavia's, AFAIK.

https://www.honestjohn.co.uk/realmpg/skoda/octavia-2004

To save you a click, here's the relevant "real-world" MPG as supplied by people reporting their car's MPG.

According to these figures, the Greenline is nowhere near the quoted figures, thought it is a bit better than the standard 1.6TDI.

With that in mind, it might still be a better fit for your needs than the standard 1.6TDI. That's all I was getting at.

 

As for your expanded list: Everyone seems to love the Yeti. Personally, I found it a bit small for my needs, but you can't argue with happy owners.

I didn't find a Superb I liked at a price I was willing to pay at the time, so if there's anything to learn from that, the Superb is more expensive and a bit less common than the Octavia, in my experience when buying used.

Check the relevant forums for more on each.

[Richardcn]

Ah sorry, I missed that link. I can see what you mean now. I've yet to look around a Yeti but I'll need to remedy that asap, likewise the Superb. I'm starting to think that the latter will just not be suited to the varied parking arrangements that we have to use as roving boaters though. Plenty more research to do on here.

 

Thanks for your help.

[Richardcn]

My latest thoughts on our choices concern the much discussed DPF. I've now been reminded of why we bought our current Octy, specifically to avoid the potential costly problems that DPF's (and EGR's) can cause. This has stopped me dead in my tracks, so to speak.

 

Now I'm seriously considering looking at a petrol engine, even though that would mean higher tax and lower mpg, two of the things that WERE important factors for us. I'd love to hear people's thought on this. I have become accustomed to the diesel driving style and I find it very comfortable but I'm sure I could 'learn' to drive petrol again if I needed to.

 

Regards

Richard

[Gaz]

I made the move back from diesels to petrol some years ago now and don't regret it one bit.  My mileage (now about 7,000 miles a year) doesn't justify it, and wouldn't do a modern diesel any good.  

 

If I can make the transition, anyone can 

 

Gaz

[Richardcn]

Thanks Gaz.

 

We'll be doing a similar mileage so maybe it makes sense. I don't like the road tax cost (nor having to tell the missus that it won't now be only £30!) and, for a Yeti anyway, my insurance would be noticeably more (from my first search anyway). That wouldn't go down well either but then again the explanation of how much that little light on the dash is going to cost us when we have a DPF diesel would be even less welcome!

 

Regards

Richard

[Ootohere]

@Richardcnhave you checked what your present car would cost if you had to get a years insurance today for it.

There are some crazy 1/3 rd or more increases in insurance?

[Richardcn]

I haven't but doing that might, at least, make it an easier pill to swallow. After my second search I'm still seeing about a £hundred more!!! WTF

 

Regards

Richard

[Richardcn]

Checked our current car and the quote has actually gone down a bit, definitely not up! I know it's a newer car that we're looking at but even if I increase our current car value to £5k it doesn't put the premium up much at all. There's obviously a good reason for it and maybe I'll find a similar thing for Octavia and Superb quotes, we'll see. That would not be at all welcome but c'est la vie.

 

Regards

Richard

[Richardcn]

We're now looking at just the Octy & Yeti, both in petrol form, 1.2tsi manual. Any tips or advice would be very welcome.

 

Regards

Richard