Between Skoda and Vauxhall

Scenario, erm, my car is making funny noises

SD - Bring it in and we'll charge you an hours labour

VX - Bring it in, we've found the fault sir would you like us to fix it?

SD - Well, we're not sure what it is but if you give us another £200 we'll try to find what we already should've.

VX - Cars fixed sir, would you like to pick it up?

SD - Well we think we've found it, the parts should be in sometime next year

I rue the day I set eyes on this car, and the trouble others are having shows me I'm not an isolated incident either.

Why are so many dealers rubbish but my local one brilliant?!

maybe vauxhall found the fault and cured it quicker because they're used to finding faults and have a huge list of faults and fixes for them!

are you serious?

i had maybe 2 faults with my corsa that vauxhall fixed very quickly and efficiently and my dad has never had anything but excellent service from them in about 13 years of mobility cars and when i had my corsa the service was excellent.

skoda on the other hand have been terrible at everything and the car has been far more unreliable than anything else i have ever owned.

Is that why Skoda are always near the top of JD Powers surveys on reliability whilst Vauxhall are near the bottom? You do get good and bad cars in every make and also good and bad dealers!

are you serious?

No, not overly, it just annoys me when people generalise that all dealers are the same. I've only ever been to a Vauxhall dealer once, for a touch up paint, after giving them the chassis number they gave me the wrong paint! Does that mean all Vauxhall dealers are that bad? Probably not!

No offence meant!

Is that why Skoda are always near the top of JD Powers surveys on reliability whilst Vauxhall are near the bottom? You do get good and bad cars in every make and also good and bad dealers!

Nah - that's more likely down to the fact that Skoda drivers tend to have chosen the car they're in which leads to them caring enough to fill in a survey. JD Power doesn't measure reliability btw, just people's opinions of their own car.....

Chris

Add in that VX sells probably 10x as many units as Skoda so there's 10X the chance of bad ones, JD survey is a complete load of cack if you ask me, they rated the Omega as a bad car, funny how I had two of them that stayed reliable, the Vectra B was another one they said was a dog, the one I had cost me £120 for a Mass air meter in 70k and 3 yrs ownership, don't even get me started on how bullet proof the Cavalier was, in a way it's my own fault, I used to work for VAG 20 yrs ago, and I knew back then that mechanics would ditch the brake fluid instead of changing it, and the engines would flag at not high mileages, usually the crank shells, as with most German products with the exception of Bosch they are overhyped and no better than anything else, you shine a dirty car up and it looks fantastic, from what I see VAG BMW etc just lay the paint on a bit better at the expense of components and this is what makes ppl think they are so out of this world.

Between Skoda and Vauxhall

Scenario, erm, my car is making funny noises

SD - Bring it in and we'll charge you an hours labour

VX - Bring it in, we've found the fault sir would you like us to fix it?

SD - Well, we're not sure what it is but if you give us another £200 we'll try to find what we already should've.

VX - Cars fixed sir, would you like to pick it up?

SD - Well we think we've found it, the parts should be in sometime next year

I rue the day I set eyes on this car, and the trouble others are having shows me I'm not an isolated incident either.

Solution to this problem?

Buy a Vauxhall.....................

Solution to this problem?

Buy a Vauxhall.....................

I'm gonna asap Simon, I think half the problem for me is the hype I heard before buying, and both the car and the dealer are not what I expected tbh, sure it's a nice car, but that's almost like being stranded on a desert island with a top model chick who has the clap and there's no medical help for 20k miles.

Or, another angle on things, had I known you have to take the front off the car to do a timing belt, or only one type of oil, or that the seatbelts don't have a nice recoil action, or that the gear selector would fall apart, or the dealer would play bluff to avoid replacing a knackered part, or have to remove a badly sited battery in case water collects and does all the electrics in, or a bulb would be such a pain to replace, or the seats creak, or the suspension creak, or the steering not be able to keep up with me turning it, or the trim coating flaking off, or the tyres wear prematurely, or you not be able to get a wiper arm off, or the mirror switch fall into the door, or the wait for parts, or the alternator squeal I wouldn't have bought one at all.

I don't mean this to be anything against you Simon, you are a good forum person, who helps if he can and a plus mark for any forum, but for nearly 10k and 8 mths, this is not a good car at all, it's a cheaply made dog imo.

Or, another angle on things, had I known you have to take the front off the car to do a timing belt, or only one type of oil, or that the seatbelts don't have a nice recoil action, or that the gear selector would fall apart, or the dealer would play bluff to avoid replacing a knackered part, or have to remove a badly sited battery in case water collects and does all the electrics in, or a bulb would be such a pain to replace, or the seats creak, or the suspension creak, or the steering not be able to keep up with me turning it, or the trim coating flaking off, or the tyres wear prematurely, or you not be able to get a wiper arm off, or the mirror switch fall into the door, or the wait for parts, or the alternator squeal I wouldn't have bought one at all.

I don't mean this to be anything against you Simon, you are a good forum person, who helps if he can and a plus mark for any forum, but for nearly 10k and 8 mths, this is not a good car at all, it's a cheaply made dog imo.

Thanks for the comment and I am not trying to cause friction but forums are all about opinions so I will voice mine......

All I can comment on and refer to is what I own and drive on a daily basis, you know mine has 138k on the clock and you know I don't go to the dealers as it's pointless but I can honestly say my Superb is the best car I have ever owned with little in the way of problems (touch wood) that I don't expect from a car with this sort of mileage........

In reference to your failures then I am sorry to hear these but I have to say the following:

- Bulb replacement is bad on most new cars and that's just the way it is, this is not specific to the Superb;

- Trim Coating flaking would be applicable on all VAG cars and to be fair most manufacturer's as they all use the same process, so again this isn't specific to the Superb;

- Wiper Arm's are difficult to get off but there is a trick to it and I had the same problem on my VW and Superb but when you know how, it's easy, so again not specific to the Superb.

These are just my opinions and it does sound like you have had some problems that I haven't experienced and I am sorry for that.

Don't get me wrong, if I had more money I wouldn't be driving a Superb and by no means do I think that a Skoda is the best car on the road but if your not happy with it then move on mate........you have to remember that the Superb is a VAG car so common problems within the VAG group will be on the Superb but I am sure that other manufacturers have their faults as well......

Use the Internet to find the weaknesses of the B5.5 design and address them.

Avoid VAG dealers at all costs.

Choose the right engine and transmission.

Avoid "toys" (The Japanese are good at these).

Maintain it carefully.

Result: A car which will last a long time with very little rust. If you have chosen the right diesel engine, it won't burn much fuel either.

rotodiesel.

Oh don't apologise Simon, it ain't your fault, i think the difference between mine and yours is that yours is well past warranty where mine is sort of in and out of it, +60k but the form says unlimited miles, but I know if I take it to Skoda I will get a bill, so I'm waiting for the break and what I didn't give Skoda will damp the damage, I love the car, it's everything in a car, but it's not backed up at all, and when it is they have a reason to ask for payment, 75% of my gripe is Skoda rather than the Superb, I won't be getting another as I have no confidence in Skoda, maybe it's not Skoda, maybe it's VAG as most of the recommendations came from Octavia owners, but having been a GM customer for so long, I'm sure you'll understand why I want back in the Griffin.

I will never buy another Skoda - because of the dealers. Cant wait to get rid of it.

Fantastic car, but the dealers will shortly mean Skoda hits trouble.

I will never buy another Skoda - because of the dealers. Cant wait to get rid of it.

Fantastic car, but the dealers will shortly mean Skoda hits trouble.

Once again, not all dealers are the same! Just because they all look the same, that doesn't mean all the staff are the same!

...rant off.

.... or that the seatbelts don't have a nice recoil action,

lol....I thought that was just my car!

Once again, not all dealers are the same! Just because they all look the same, that doesn't mean all the staff are the same!

...rant off.

Dont know about "all" dealers. I have tried three each several times - all have been bad to the point of being criminal.

Anyway,I shouldnt have to try more than one. They should all be perfect.

Nah - that's more likely down to the fact that Skoda drivers tend to have chosen the car they're in which leads to them caring enough to fill in a survey. JD Power doesn't measure reliability btw, just people's opinions of their own car.....Chris

Exactly, but remember it is not Skoda that should be getting examined, its VAG. Which magazine years ago, used to champion Japanese white goods - but it was really only the people that cared to justify "being different" that filled glowing reports - the people that bought British manufactured goods either could not care less or had sized up the "complete deal" and were happy enough. Its a bit like the ever present VX versus Ford love/hate war - I've had many Fords and only one VX and I don't know what all the negative fuss from either party was all about. One thing to remember about consumer groups, 30 years ago Which were so honest and behind the consumer that you could only buy their magazine by direct debit - so you really had to work very hard to stop the subscription - they were just another misinformed group of robbers (mainly).

I had two Vauxhalls before I moved to Skoda in 2002.

The second one which I part exchanged for my first Skoda (an Octavia 1.8 Turbo 4x4) was a Calibra 4x4 Turbo. It was 18 months old with 23,000 on the clock when I bought it and on the next day I had problems with changing gear. On closer examination, the lever moving the clutch in and out at the end of the clutch cable had fractured by what looked like metal fatigue.

I got the car to the local Vauxhall agent (who didn't sell me the car) and they said it would take four to six weeks as the part was unavailable in the UK and it'd have to come from Germany! I asked why it couldn't be posted direct to the agent but I was told it must go through all the official channels. I was without a car that was only 1 1/2 years old for more than a month! I'd have flown to Germany myself if they'd let me collect the part and so I'd be mobile again!

Later on in my ownership, the power steering went and another time I lost four wheel drive (the only time we had snow when I really wanted it!). At three years old and the first MOT, I collected a bill for over £1k as the airbag light had come on and so that had to be changed, along with various other things like new discs and pads on the rear. Vauxhalls only had a one year warranty then (has it increased now?).

So by my experience, I don't think Vauxhalls are more reliable than Skodas!

I've not used a dealer for over a couple of years. I use them for parts only and ensure they order the part that I have personally researched and written down myself.

So far, 100% accuracy. I also have a bloke off Ebay who gets me bits and bobs a bit cheaper than my dealer.

So, all in all, can't comment about dealers as I don't use them. and I plan to keep it that way for the foreseeable.

I've not used a dealer for over a couple of years. I use them for parts only and ensure they order the part that I have personally researched and written down myself.

So far, 100% accuracy. I also have a bloke off Ebay who gets me bits and bobs a bit cheaper than my dealer.

So, all in all, can't comment about dealers as I don't use them. and I plan to keep it that way for the foreseeable.

Try GSF mate, less than half what Skoda ask most of the time.

I had two Vauxhalls before I moved to Skoda in 2002.

The second one which I part exchanged for my first Skoda (an Octavia 1.8 Turbo 4x4) was a Calibra 4x4 Turbo. It was 18 months old with 23,000 on the clock when I bought it and on the next day I had problems with changing gear. On closer examination, the lever moving the clutch in and out at the end of the clutch cable had fractured by what looked like metal fatigue.

I got the car to the local Vauxhall agent (who didn't sell me the car) and they said it would take four to six weeks as the part was unavailable in the UK and it'd have to come from Germany! I asked why it couldn't be posted direct to the agent but I was told it must go through all the official channels. I was without a car that was only 1 1/2 years old for more than a month! I'd have flown to Germany myself if they'd let me collect the part and so I'd be mobile again!

Later on in my ownership, the power steering went and another time I lost four wheel drive (the only time we had snow when I really wanted it!). At three years old and the first MOT, I collected a bill for over £1k as the airbag light had come on and so that had to be changed, along with various other things like new discs and pads on the rear. Vauxhalls only had a one year warranty then (has it increased now?).

So by my experience, I don't think Vauxhalls are more reliable than Skodas!

3yr 60k

4X4 :thumbdwn: Vx never got that right

Discs and pads are wear items anyway

As for the clutch lever, it was probably a one off and had to be made for you, generally most things arrive within 24 hrs on mainstream models, you had the tech model of the range, and it wasn't perfect in either the Calibra or Cavalier.

As for the clutch lever, it was probably a one off and had to be made for you, generally most things arrive within 24 hrs on mainstream models, you had the tech model of the range, and it wasn't perfect in either the Calibra or Cavalier.

I'm going back over 10 years here and the car was still in production when I bought mine, so I'd have thought they would have a ready supply of the levers.

3yr 60k

4X4 :thumbdwn: Vx never got that right

Discs and pads are wear items anyway

As for the clutch lever, it was probably a one off and had to be made for you, generally most things arrive within 24 hrs on mainstream models, you had the tech model of the range, and it wasn't perfect in either the Calibra or Cavalier.

Yes originally VX got the 4X4 Cav quite a bit wrong - in fact they had to stop manufacture until they solved the leaking seals on the viscous coupling. I never had any real problems with my 1991 Cav GSI 4X4 - well except ABS controller failure early on and the normal cam cover oil weeping problem. I had that car 9 years and 75K. The new Vectra 4X4 should be okay with some Subaru input (maybe).