Hello all - just looking for some advice on the facelift Mk4 Skoda, I currently drive a Mk3.5 2.0 TDI SEL 17 plate which I really love and bar a few niggles has been spot on, but because of work it now needs to be changed as it is older than 8 years old

As I've had such a good experience with my current Octavia, I would like the same again and the space especially the boot I find hard to beat, however as I only do 8-9000 miles a year have been looking at the 1.5 petrol engine mainly on the advice of my mechanic

I have been looking at a facelift 25 plate Octavia SEL or sportline, SEL looks really well specced, and assuming with the bigger tyres the ride will be similar to mine, however the sportline grabs my fancy just as it looks smart, however I don’t want a harsh ride especially with the state of the roads round here

So just looking for any advice on either car on whether owners recommend them and common faults to look out for, which the entertainment system and creaky plastics seem to be a common theme reading on here (the creaky plastic around the speedo cluster on mine when the inside is warm really irritates me).  Also reading online reliability seems to not be as high as it used to be although not sure if this is a fair criticism or not

Any advice is appreciated

Thanks

Not heard of many issues surrounding the facelift models (mk4.5), plenty of problems with the first phase of mk4's though. I own a mk4 SE L and find it really well equipped, has everything I require really although I too like the look of the new sportline. For practicality though I'd say you can't go past the SE L.

One thing I noticed about the 4.5 sportline is that it doesn't have front fog lights. As I have the front fog lights on my mk4 SE L coded to come on with my high beam, I'd miss those personally. Have only ever seen DSG sportline's on sale too, do they do a manual version? I know they don't with the latest VRS..

Most of the tech issues with the 4 don’t apply to the 4.5 you should be fine. You do have a low visibility mode built into the headlight in lieu of fog lights. Many manufacturers claim that modern LED technology removes the need for seperate fog lights.

On 30/04/2026 at 01:05, scotthugh3s said:

Not heard of many issues surrounding the facelift models (mk4.5), plenty of problems with the first phase of mk4's though. I own a mk4 SE L and find it really well equipped, has everything I require really although I too like the look of the new sportline. For practicality though I'd say you can't go past the SE L.

One thing I noticed about the 4.5 sportline is that it doesn't have front fog lights. As I have the front fog lights on my mk4 SE L coded to come on with my high beam, I'd miss those personally. Have only ever seen DSG sportline's on sale too, do they do a manual version? I know they don't with the latest VRS..

Why would you want high beam in fog?

12 minutes ago, whippersnapper said:

Why would you want high beam in fog?

Not high beam in fog, fog's come on with high beam, as spotlights. Pretty dark where I live, the added light is a bonus