Octy 1 vs Octy 2

[Babs]

Maybe is the whole "less things to go wrong on the Mk1"?

Reagardless, it's still sad to hear of your experiences with unreliable cars, and Gaff's experiences with god awful dealers!

[FTM]

loads of mk2 taxis in newcastle..and superbs as well

all of them black as they run from the central station

[Taxi 219]

I was in my local Skoda dealer last week getting a bit of work sorted on warranty and they had a poster up selling the BRAND NEW Oct 1 TDi's to taxi drivers..... I had noticed a lot of 57 plate taxi's in my area..... but where are they sourcing teh old shape from - they cant have been that many!?

Still plenty around they will officially stop making them in 2010 as quoted by Skoda UK.

[briang]

I think the build quality in the Octy 2 is not as good, had mine 3 months now and a couple of niggles, bad door buzzing from speaker in passenger door, drove in heavy rain the other day and got water coming in through top of both front doors, I recall seeing something on here before about door seals being a known problem but cant seem to find it using the search, also it mists up when first starting almost like the heater vents are blowing steam on the windscreen, even with air-con on. Would be greatful if someone could direct me to the door seals issue before I go to the dealer. I also think it might be a good idea to have a sticky about known faults, a FIAT forum I go on for ny wifes car has this and its very useful IMHO

Cheers

[Johnwg]

The octy 1 was hi jacked by taxi drivers up & down the country, a real testerment to its reliablility, but not so with the octy 2, does anyone feel that standards have slipped between the 2 cars.

From my own personal experience.

I test drove a Mk II VRS (the one I currently own), when I returned from my test drive I noticed that the dealer also had a nice low milage 05 plate MKI in stock, so thinking I may be able to save a few ££££'s test drove that as well.

I was back within 5 mins, for me the MKI came no where close to the same levels of performance and refinment that the MKII does.

Flame me if you want, but these were my own personal experiences of back to back test drives - at the end of the day it's each to their own

[surfdude]

I had one of the last of the Mk1s - a '54 Elegance estate, and I now have a Mk2 Elegance Estate.

The Mk2 definitely seems better quality on the inside in terms of styling and materials used, BUT here's a thought...

The Mk2 also has far more gadgets than the mk1 - I suppose the more toys you add, the more chance there is of having a problem - law of averages and all that!

[Tomo1971]

The octy 1 was hi jacked by taxi drivers up & down the country, a real testerment to its reliablility, but not so with the octy 2, does anyone feel that standards have slipped between the 2 cars.

Maybe thats cos a brand new Mk1 will be a couple of thousand cheaper than a MkII and as taxi's are there to make money that will be a big factor in the purchase decisions.

Loads of MkI's in Fife but also a few MkII's and superbs.

If it was just down to reliability then why do we see taxi companies use Pugs, Reno's, Vectra's etc that consistantly come bottom of reliability index's.

Steve

[johnjohnhealy]

If it was just down to reliability then why do we see taxi companies use Pugs, Reno's, Vectra's etc that consistantly come bottom of reliability index's.

Steve

I own a cab fleet of 134 cars currently, and my experience proves as far as I'm concerned, that these reliability index's are simply complete crap!

For example, take the toyota Avensis - suprisingly the most unreliable cars on the fleet. And mercedes which are meant to be unreliable, never go wrong.

Mk1 Octavia was very reliable apart from SDI gearboxes and a couple of electrical issues, MK11 Octavia is very unreliable.

These are facts, I have all the historys of the vehicles to prove it too.

[Taxi 219]

I think its just a case of all the taxi drivers who drive/thrash the trolleys out of them all day/night long thats a fact.

I have just got rid of my Mk1 06 reg TDi because it was constantly going wrong after a dealer f*cked it up after its 30K service but i can,t prove it so had to go.I now have a MK2 Octy TDi and its miles better than the MK1.It has much more legroom in the back than the MK1.Iam using it as a Taxi here but iam the only one that drives it.

[DaveI]

I own a cab fleet of 134 cars currently, and my experience proves as far as I'm concerned, that these reliability index's are simply complete crap!

For example, take the toyota Avensis - suprisingly the most unreliable cars on the fleet. And mercedes which are meant to be unreliable, never go wrong.

Mk1 Octavia was very reliable apart from SDI gearboxes and a couple of electrical issues, MK11 Octavia is very unreliable.

These are facts, I have all the historys of the vehicles to prove it too.

Would a Merc C Class work out cheaper than a MK2 Octavia to run over 100k? Not being sarcastic in the least as we have a taxi company near me that uses C Class, A4 etc and loads that uses Octavia, Mondeo etc??

[Sporky McGuffin]

I own a cab fleet of 134 cars currently, and my experience proves as far as I'm concerned, that these reliability index's are simply complete crap!

Hang on - so your 134 cars trumps anyone's individual experience, fair enough.

But your 134 cars also trumps the tens of thousands of cars in the reliability indices?

You can't have it both ways.

[johnjohnhealy]

Would a Merc C Class work out cheaper than a MK2 Octavia to run over 100k? Not being sarcastic in the least as we have a taxi company near me that uses C Class, A4 etc and loads that uses Octavia, Mondeo etc??

Probably not over that period, as the majority would be covered by warranty, the difference is, the merc will do 500,000 miles without having any serious problems, and possibly a lot more, the Skoda (just like Fords/Vauxhalls etc) will be knackered by 200,000 miles, so you keep the Merc over a much longer period, and in the end, it pays for itself.

Although at taxi driver prices, a C class isn't that much more than a well specced Octavia anyway!

Hang on - so your 134 cars trumps anyone's individual experience, fair enough.

But your 134 cars also trumps the tens of thousands of cars in the reliability indices?

You can't have it both ways.

Well that depends if you trust the companies who put these surveys together, based on my own experience (which is quite comprehensive to be fair), I feel something is wrong with these surveys as they dont seem to ring true, wether it's down to peoples expectations of certain brands or not I dont know.

[ednmra]

Going back to Mark 1 and Mark 2 Octy's, I found both extremely reliable so far, maybe a somewhat better build on my Mk1 vRS, but no comparison in the "feel" of the car on the road.

Mk2 is better steering/handling, better gear change, and very nice to drive long distance and I am very interested to see such equal tyre wear front and rear, unusual on heavy front wheel drive car.

I wonder if that is a reflection of a more balanced, much more neutral, setup?

[jawsnpaws]

On a personal basis , we have a mk 2 A class , which has been utterly reliable over 3 years , but the servicing has been consistently dreadful , and worse , which prevented me from justifying the extra money over and above an Octavia for a C class .

The Mk 2 Octavia is without doubt a more dynamic car with some very nice extras , but the car was designed about 6 years later and that is a long time in the car industry . However the equivalent build quality is just not there as it was , especially with the midpoint revision of the Mk 1 . When volume sales increase ALL manufacturers suffer the same build compromises - new line shift teams have to be trained and acquire skills . This may be one of the reasons as to why there are " good " and " bad " cars .

Whilst the life of a Mercedes may well be 500000 miles , for the average private motorist this means ownership of some 40 years - changing life styles and fuel economy do not make this feasible .

Probably not over that period, as the majority would be covered by warranty, the difference is, the merc will do 500,000 miles without having any serious problems, and possibly a lot more, the Skoda (just like Fords/Vauxhalls etc) will be knackered by 200,000 miles, so you keep the Merc over a much longer period, and in the end, it pays for itself.

Although at taxi driver prices, a C class isn't that much more than a well specced Octavia anyway!

Well that depends if you trust the companies who put these surveys together, based on my own experience (which is quite comprehensive to be fair), I feel something is wrong with these surveys as they dont seem to ring true, wether it's down to peoples expectations of certain brands or not I dont know.

[madfiddler]

Still plenty around they will officially stop making them in 2010 as quoted by Skoda UK.

Strange that , a friend in the trade (admittedly not a skoda dealer) told me the other day he had heard the mk1 was being re-released in 2010 as a special budget model!

[Taxi 219]

Strange that , a friend in the trade (admittedly not a skoda dealer) told me the other day he had heard the mk1 was being re-released in 2010 as a special budget model!

Yes thats true so i don,t know what they are thinking and planning with it.

[Yeti_Man]

Yes thats true so i don,t know what they are thinking and planning with it.

Iirc its going to be on sale only in some lesser developed countries.

[soldatov]

I think it depends on where you drive, as we use two Skoda, a company Octy 1 estate and Octy 2 4x4 estate both 1.9tdi's .Octy 1 =16months old yrs old, done 70,000km,

and our private Octy 2= 22,000km in 6.5 months, neither had a problem to report on last service. Both used on long motorway trips lasting 4.5 hours each way or around 1,000km and used on very bad potholed a, b roads in Austria, Slovakia, Serbia, Croatia and Bosnia, Both driven by different drivers changing on long trips to be safe, as many as 9 to 10hrs in any 24 hr period. They are subjected to several months in snow, ice, below -15 to even lower at times, and 35dg C to 40+ dg in summer. Then of course stupid me !! so has our private Nissan Sunny 2 lt diesel, which has done 240,000km approx . Other company cars such as Audi's, Peugeot etc do the same use, in fact the company allows its own key staff on the ground to choose the best deals on offer when they require a car. That company runs several hundred cars in most European east and west countries, they would not allow that to happen if there was a reliability problem with any car specifically. Mercs are only used by top brass, and never get worked at all, they just get changed because of age. In short for the 200,000km average you keep the car say 5yrs in our case, I doubt there are many bad models, just some a little better than others like our Nissan, who's 2lt d engines were used in some UK taxis I understand.

Our 2 Octy.

------------------------------------

Octy 2, 1.9 TDI PD Ambiente 4x4 Combi and Nissan Sunny 2.0 DLX, Company Octy 1.9 TDI Tour Combi.

[VRS195]

Well my car will be one year old on 13th June (measured from factory build roll off).

I have done 10,900 miles and it has just had its first service.

I had two probs neither were quality issues, a stone caught in the front brake caliper (fixed for free by dealer even though it is obvioulsy not the car or dealer's fault) and a smashed rear window and bodywork damage were some **** threw gravel at my car window and snatched my camera.

However, every time I drive it I smile and I love it. I think it is the most complete and in its class (and others) the best handling car I have driven.

It does help it has had the Eibach drop and the ESP is truly stunning at holding a line which by rights you should be going round backwards on.

I love how chuckable it is and how practical it is.

I love the torque from the engine and I love the economy. So when I press on, it goes and when I don't, it saves me fuel.

It never ceases to amaze how few miles of sensible driving after a hoon brings the average mpg back to almost economical!

I love the seats and the driving position and I love that I can have (almost) all the gadgets for such reasonable money. And I am convinced it still looks as good as an Audi almost twice the price.

On which note I am getting the car (or is it me?) a birthday present of a Skoda Sat Nav unit to replace the Stream MP3.

[twonks]

For example, take the toyota Avensis - suprisingly the most unreliable cars on the fleet. And mercedes which are meant to be unreliable, never go wrong.

We have also had a fleet of Avensi' (lol) at work and every one of them had something major go wrong mechanically at just over 80k.

In our household we now have a mk1 vrs that has done 135k of hard driving (ex police) and still drives well, and a mk2 vrs tfsi with 16k on it. Both drive well, although the mk2 is a much nicer place to be. (And has not put a foot wrong yet)

However, as a bit of a sidewards step I find the dealer to be very non plussed about anything. They just don't seem interested in customers after they have sold the car.

My previous car was a Mazda6 and the dealers would bend over backwards to help customers. The showroom was a bit of a mess frankly, but the level of service more than made up for it. So much so that if Skoda don't buck up I'll be going back to Mazda next time round.

[Micky 32]

I drove a mk1 octy(garage loaner) when waiting for my mk2 vRS. The mk1 wasn't an RS but the mk2 is in a different leaque in all fairness. The mk1 feels very cheap in comparison. The driving position and the feel is just totally different.

[madfiddler]

Well my car will be one year old on 13th June (measured from factory build roll off).

I have done 10,900 miles and it has just had its first service.

I had two probs neither were quality issues, a stone caught in the front brake caliper (fixed for free by dealer even though it is obvioulsy not the car or dealer's fault) and a smashed rear window and bodywork damage were some **** threw gravel at my car window and snatched my camera.

However, every time I drive it I smile and I love it. I think it is the most complete and in its class (and others) the best handling car I have driven.

It does help it has had the Eibach drop and the ESP is truly stunning at holding a line which by rights you should be going round backwards on.

I love how chuckable it is and how practical it is.

I love the torque from the engine and I love the economy. So when I press on, it goes and when I don't, it saves me fuel.

It never ceases to amaze how few miles of sensible driving after a hoon brings the average mpg back to almost economical!

I love the seats and the driving position and I love that I can have (almost) all the gadgets for such reasonable money. And I am convinced it still looks as good as an Audi almost twice the price.

On which note I am getting the car (or is it me?) a birthday present of a Skoda Sat Nav unit to replace the Stream MP3.

nice to hear someone writing positive stuff about their octy for a change

[johnjohnhealy]

We have also had a fleet of Avensi' (lol) at work and every one of them had something major go wrong mechanically at just over 80k.

There is a reason why Avensis' are so unreliable, and sadly it's because they are built in england.

The Prius for example, which is made in japan, is very reliable!

[Taxi 219]

There is a reason why Avensis' are so unreliable, and sadly it's because they are built in england.

The Prius for example, which is made in japan, is very reliable!

Must agree 100% there.All the Japanese cars made here are totally unreliable where as before they were the greatest cars to own.

[soldatov]

our private Nissan Sunny 2 lt diesel, which has done 240,000km approx . I doubt there are many bad models, just some a little better than others like our Nissan, who's 2lt d engines were used in some UK taxis I understand.

quote= johnjohnhealy

There is a reason why Avensis' are so unreliable, and sadly it's because they are built in england.

The Prius for example, which is made in japan, is very reliable!

That may explain why our old Nissan is still going well, it was built in Japan then shipped to europe, yet I understood the UK factory was of a good reputation.

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Octy 2, 1.9 TDI PD Ambiente 4x4 Combi and Nissan Sunny 2.0 DLX, Company Octy 1.9 TDI Tour Combi.