Do you regret buying your Skoda?

[johnjohnhealy]

So what courtesy car would you get if you took the Skoda to be serviced at an Audi dealer?

Chris

Hmm, well as they try and give you something better than what you own....

...whats the worst Audi you can buy?

[MrkyMrk]

Well clearly not, as you say yourself, all the bits are different, it just 'looks' the same. just because a part has VAG stamped on it, does not mean it would be fitted to a VW or Audi, think about it very carefully, they are saving money somewhere in order that they (used) to sell the cars cheaper than the equivalent VW/Audi.

If all the bits on an Octy were exactly the same as a Golf it wouldn't be an Octy, it would be a Golf. *Obviously* some bits are Skoda specific but that would be mostly the surface stuff. Some is cheaper, some is the same. The dash appears to be the same but inserts, dials and other interior detailing (like those grab handles) is not quite as tactile or fancy looking. There's probably more hidden sound deadening material in VW and Audi. The shared mechanicals are just that, tho - shared. The saving is made on the shiny, showroom appeal bits, but the important bits are proper VAG. Are you trying to tell me that the bits under the bonnet - some of which have 4 rings - are actually not from the same line as the equivalent bits in the VW or Audi equivalents? That they're inferior, Skoda manufactured copies?

[flatfourburble]

Nope, it's the best car I've owned by far. Ticks every box and even I haven't been able to break it! *touchwood*

Only thing I'm not happy about is how Skoda and VAG in general treat their staff at times. But thats another tin of worms which I wont open. But it has put me off buying another one

[MrkyMrk]

But it has put me off buying another one

Lack of dealers, not the car itself, is what lowers Skoda on my list of possibles next time around. Where I bought my car from just closed down :(

[johnjohnhealy]

The shared mechanicals are just that, tho - shared. The saving is made on the shiny, showroom appeal bits, but the important bits are proper VAG. Are you trying to tell me that the bits under the bonnet - some of which have 4 rings - are actually not from the same line as the equivalent bits in the VW or Audi equivalents? That they're inferior, Skoda manufactured copies?

Kind of yes, whilst the engine block itself may be basically the same alot of the ancilleries are not, for example, look at the 2.0 diesel engine in the Superb, all the EGR equipment etc is different to anything on any other VAG car and it has serious problems that Skoda will not admit to.

There are many bits under the bonnet on an Octavia that are unique to the Octavia too and wont fit on a Golf, trust me, Since ALL the Skoda dealers closed near me my local VW dealer has been VERY helpfull in sourcing parts for our fleet of over 100 cars, but unfortunately there are MANY parts he simply cannot order because they dont fit them on VW's, the same applies with the local Audi dealer who basically cant order anything that would fit on a Skoda because they are not common parts, and yes we've tried ordering the VW/Audi equivalent parts and they dont fit.

Only thing I'm not happy about is how Skoda and VAG in general treat their staff at times. But thats another tin of worms which I wont open. But it has put me off buying another one

If you treat your staff like **** they wont really be interested in helping the customers, then they wonder why customers get irate when the customers are given the 'I dont really care, I wont be here much longer' attitude.

Lack of dealers, not the car itself, is what lowers Skoda on my list of possibles next time around. Where I bought my car from just closed down :(

Yet another dealer gone, it's not just here in the south, it's all over the country.

[MrkyMrk]

Yet another dealer gone, it's not just here in the south, it's all over the country.

FWIW, it was Jacksons Basingstoke - South.

Gutted, I am. Unlike your experiences with your now defunct locals, I got perfectly acceptable service from those chaps. Fortunately I've found another authorised service/warranty place much closer, but they only sell Saabs and Alfas. Seems decent so far, at least.

At the end of the day, being VAG was not why I bought my first Skoda. I reluctantly test drove it (Skoda?!?!?!?!) off the back of a mate's recommendation - he got one as a coutesy car after his Civic was totalled. The Civic drove him to distraction with it's faults ("I'll never have another British built Honda") and he was well impressed with the Octy (yes, I'm sure low expectations played their part). I was looking at an ST170 Estate and he kept pestering me to try this vRS thing that was cheaper, more spacious and more powerful than the Ford. Although more basic inside, the power delivery, more solid feel and vastly cheaper price won me over.

"Proper" VAG or not, I still love getting into my MKII Octy vRS

Sorry you've had such a hard time with Skodas :(

[ScoobyChris]

Mark may be a bit too far for you, but I received pretty good service from Winchester Motor Company and I know Stuart J also rates them Be prepared for a 12 volt Fabia courtesy car though!

Chris

[johnjohnhealy]

The Civic drove him to distraction with it's faults ("I'll never have another British built Honda")

Interestingly we're finding the Toyota Avensis's on the fleet are starting to develop problems once they hit around 80k (another jap car built in 'great'?? britain) yet any of the older ones (built in japan) are fine!

The Prius's seem ok too (built in japan) despite not returning anything like the claimed MPG!!

[manp136]

I Dont Know About You Guys,but I Know Some Stuff That Only A Skoda Can Achieve I Have Run More Than 6600 Kms In 14days Across The Indian Himalayas And Also Reached The Toughest Summit - The Worlds Highest Motorable Road In The World At 18,380 Ft.cmon Man Who Regrets Buying A Skoda Has Now A Real Grudge With Me.

[Dodgy]

I've not regretted buying mine and I'm on my second Octavia TDi. I'll be looking for a new car soon, though, and I've been looking at the competition but most of it seems to be in the VAGroup.

manp136, that's a curious writing style, why do you capitalise the first letter in each word? It probably slows your typing down and it looks pretty weird! No offence

Dave.

[johnjohnhealy]

I Dont Know About You Guys,but I Know Some Stuff That Only A Skoda Can Achieve I Have Run More Than 6600 Kms In 14days Across The Indian Himalayas And Also Reached The Toughest Summit - The Worlds Highest Motorable Road In The World At 18,380 Ft.cmon Man Who Regrets Buying A Skoda Has Now A Real Grudge With Me.

I regret buying a Skoda, does that mean we are enemies now?:confused:

I'm sure there are plenty other cars that could complete your supposed drive across the Indian himalayas:rolleyes:

[ScoobyChris]

I'm sure there are plenty other cars that could complete your supposed drive across the Indian himalayas:rolleyes:

WHAT?!?! Are you crazy?

Chris

[Dmac1969]

.whats the worst Audi you can buy?

An Audi 50? (aka Mk1 VW Polo!)..oh yes audi , I remember when you were sh*te!)

[daverapid]

I regret buying a Skoda, does that mean we are enemies now?:confused:

Right that's it...let's all machine gun johnjohnhealy! He's a Skoda hater trespassing on Skoda ground and must be executed immediately!:P

[Dmac1969]

Totally OT , but Dave , that Rapid is a minter! I wish I'd bought one in 1989 instead of the Escort 1100 Bonus that i got (Skoda was on my radar back then as well!) I bet the Rapid's wiring loom would'nt have caught fire after 3 days of ownership........

[GAFF]

At the moment I can't really say yes or no. I've had no major mechanical issues with the Mk2 but these rattles and creaks are really starting to pi$$ me off. Don't get me wrong I know you'll have issues with cars but its all about the level of service to get them sorted out. I actually think there wasn't as many rattles out of my MK1 when I sold it...nearly 5 years old.

But the dealers can't be held totally responsable either as I imagine its frustrating trying to get sorted with the distributors and then onto the manufacturer, theres a set chain or order and that must be a real pain.

I'm the type of person that wants to get stuff sorted straight again, I hate things being left on the long finger.

[daverapid]

Totally OT , but Dave , that Rapid is a minter! I wish I'd bought one in 1989 instead of the Escort 1100 Bonus that i got (Skoda was on my radar back then as well!) I bet the Rapid's wiring loom would'nt have caught fire after 3 days of ownership........

I love it dearly...I certainly don't regret owning it and won't part with it. It definately has the original wiring loom too!

[johnjohnhealy]

Right that's it...let's all machine gun johnjohnhealy! He's a Skoda hater trespassing on Skoda ground and must be executed immediately!:P

Actually I dont hate Skoda, I just hate the way they treat their customers, and I dont think they put the cars together as well as they say.

If my Superb had not had such a list of faults and I'd been treated with respect by the dealer and SUK i'd have considered another (probably Octy 2 VRS TDi but not at showroom prices!), the Superb had the potential of being a great car but sadly never lived up to it's name!

[setsquare]

No! Bought the missus a 2001 fabia about 10 months ago, so impressed I bought a 2004 fabia estate for myself in August. Compare to my 1999 low mileage vauxhall astra - creaky seats, grey velour upholstery constantly dirty, engine management light constantly on (but drove OK),

[paramedic999]

YES, fed up with quality,ride,handling,unbelievable care from dealer(went in for respray as spoiler was faded that much.......came back with over 70 extra miles on it....answer from dealer ill fill tank with fuel........since this incident car never been the same handlig odd,fuel ecomomy dropped by 100mile per tank.....just cant face having to deal with them again),.

i will never buy another skoda again, gf has a 1.4 tdci fiesta zetec.....handling,ride far superior to fabia(ok not as quick...shame they dont do a 1.9tdci with similar output as it would leave fabia in a cloud of soot).

soon as its time to get rid of it the better.....fiesta st here i come

[cheezemonkhai]

Skoda really need to get rid of their awful dealerships and very soon IMHO.

I know people that have used a single dealership around my parents neck of the woods who have almost sold the car early due to the awful service.

[Dmac1969]

The thing is , they are getting rid of the smaller , family run local dealers where you are actually a person , not just a number , and replacing them with the big , plate glass style places where the staff treat you as an annoyance.

[KenONeill]

There is a guy on here somewhere who works for Audi, he'll be able to tell you exactly what the Audi customer charter entails, but one of the things is that every customer gets a courtesy car free of charge, and where possible it should always be the model above what they own, Ok so it may be a marketing gimmick to get you to spend more next time you buy a car, but at least you get a nice courtesy car, when you take

[johnjohnhealy]

And for those of us who'd really rather not pay for a "courtesy" car that they don't want and won't use (by having it included in the service cost)?

Read carefully - the Audi service is no more expensive than the Skoda service.

Skoda then charge you extra on top of the service price, plus make you add the courtesy car fully comp to your own insurance policy (usually incuring a charge from the insurers as well).

Audi dont, they just give you the keys to a car, you either take it or you dont.

[elegance1.8T]

I got my coutesy car FOC and they covered me on insurance, said they were going to charge £8 for the privilege but never bothered, they ren't all bad.