Sounds obvious but be careful. If there is any doubt then there is no doubt.

Just think what would happen if you got it stuck. I managed to get my Nissan Patrol stuck a while back and you would not believe how hard it was to get it out. It was in about 3 feet of mud. Had to wait a couple of days for the mud to dry out a bit to try and tow it out.

Thank god for JCBs.

Agreed, and I believe I am keeping it safely within its limits, by quite a margin!

Have had to beg for help from a farmer & tractor a couple of times in the past with a 2wd car, and have no intention of having to do that again!

This might give you some idea of the smaller roads/ tracks. Also you can see what we go to the top for. Plenty of normal road cars do the trip, there are several routes, but a guard still may be wise.

Even ATV's get stuck so be carefull.

Have a look at the Green Lane Association for any local routes and maybe buy 4x4 mag who quite often do write ups on off road tracks that can be completed by "soft roaders".

And remember, just cos its raised and has AWD it lacks low range and decent tyres so dont go out of your depth.

Steve

We're not talking anything half as adventurous as what thes guys did :

?koda Auto - Scout Experience Mission

That looks something again !!!

I do think we should have a section on Briskoda where we mere amateurs, can show off our foolish antics over the coming months. !!

Hello, new to this site, found it from google. Heres my Octavia 4x4....

Nice looking car,

Welcome to Briskoda.

I passed a parked Octavia Estate 4x4 last night on the way home, I must say, they are very nice looking cars (it was highland green). It's annoying to think that some misguided badge snobbery is an issue for some folk, because when you see what they are missing out on...!

It looks just as nice as many of the Audis on the road, IMHO.

R.

Just off to pick it up ....if anyone wants a very good low mileage Fabia VRS ask Stu

(riph72 - ill give it a couple of days and then ill write up a review of some sort )

I guess you are collecting today, so looking forward to hearing your first thoughts...!

R.

Kevin is still off driving around

so Here is a pic

Kevin is still off driving around

so Here is a pic

A familiar background view !!! Hope you enjoy it Kevin

When do the new wheels go on Rob?

A familiar background view !!! Hope you enjoy it Kevin

When do the new wheels go on Rob?

Should get them next week and if it's NOT raining they may go on that weekend

I'll pop the jack in the boot if you like and they could be fitted on Friday! :P

Rob, I could bring them to the house as I'll be doing naff all that day, except dropping my mum at stansted at 6am and then wasting time before going to look at the MX5 for Graham. :P

The car looks good btw, is he enjoying it? Its crying out for some bigger wheels though, maybe Pegasus or even some 16s just to be different.

There's no one here until about 4pm but you are more than welcome to pop in for a cup of tea/coffee and a bite to eat if you want and go to the Star from here

There's no one here until about 4pm but you are more than welcome to pop in for a cup of tea/coffee and a bite to eat if you want and go to the Star from here

Sounds like it could be a plan. Could get them wheels on before we go then if the weather is nice!

If the wind ever dies down I'll get them polished and waxed hopefully tomorrow, but its so windy the garage door doesn't like to stay up!

Sounds like it could be a plan. Could get them wheels on before we go then if the weather is nice!

If the wind ever dies down I'll get them polished and waxed hopefully tomorrow, but its so windy the garage door doesn't like to stay up!

That means I'll have to clean the car ....the weather is no better down here ....and Kevin just came in .....and .......went back out again ...it's got to be the most miles he has ever driven in a day

Rob, I could bring them to the house as I'll be doing naff all that day, except dropping my mum at stansted at 6am and then wasting time before going to look at the MX5 for Graham. :P

Ooh, what MX-5 is he getting? I'm moving from an MX-5 to an Octavia, they are brilliant cars, but not much use for camping trips

I've had mine for 4 years and apart from one rusty exhaust bracket that fell off (I had it fixed but there was no actual problem without it), needing to replace the exhaust backbox and a few rattles here and there, absolutely nothing has gone wrong with it. Compared to the Ford Fiesta Zetec-S I had before it, it's been bulletproof

R.

Im back! It being a 4x4 it is now pretty dirty, as ive been experimenting. So here goes:

Wasnt too sure to being with, as its such a jump from the Fabia, but there wasnt any reason why i shouldnt like it. Picked it up from Sparshatts and had to do a bit of town driving right at the start, through Fareham. This was ok, considering it was only the second time id driven it I was still getting used to it. It has the torque of the PD engine on its side, and as long as the revs are used right, its dead easy to move off and pull away. Took it out onto the motorway to come home. It has enough power to get up to motorway speed, and has enough power to get by things easily, though it wont go incredibly fast I dont think. Visibility was great, was able to see all around me and plan in plenty of time. Came off the motorway onto a country A road, which had plenty of bends and changes of speed, which the car handled well, even considering its extra height. Next was a bit of experimentation. Went up to see Misspiggy + bf, who lives up a very rough track, that I refused to take the Fabia up after a while. The 4x4 flew up it, no problem, bought a smile to my face. Manuvering on the mud and rubbish at the top was fine. Took them out for a trip to garden centre, inlcuded A roads and some minor roads, which were pretty c*&p condition, and provided a bone shaking ride in the Fabia. Again, no problem with the 4x4, which just seemed to absorb the bumps. I think thats partly due to the high profile tyres and the suspension. The passengers were both comfortable, with plenty of leg room and it was easy for me to find a suitable driving position, although I might find a better one as I drive it more. Next trip was up the forest. This is somewhere that was stricly offlimits for the Fabia, but I was pretty confident by now that the 4x4 would cope with it. The were plenty of potholes, some of which I admit I avoided, cos they were the size of a small quarry. This wasnt a problem, as I was able to go off the edge of the road, onto the mud. The speed bumps up there are mega huge, so they always needed to be approached with caution, I slowed down to tackle them, partly because I wasnt sure how high the 4x4 was in comparison, and partly because im still weary from the Fabia. The 4x4 however didnt realise they were there, and again with the larger one or two, I went round the side on the mud. Didnt do anything silly in it, as im not sure what it will manage yet. The gearbox was easy to use, coming from a Fabia im used to 6 speeds. Its quite happy crusing in 6th at 60/70. The automatic wipers are amazing! Small thing I know, but I love them.

If anyone has any questions Ill see if I can answer them

Any chance you can take a few pics of your new car? I'm almost certainly getting an Octavia Estate and it's likely I'll get a 4x4, the more shots and info I can get the better!

Cheers,

R.

Something I'd like to ask you about too... how well does the EDL interact with the 4WD? E.g. suppose the front-left wheel loses grip on wet grass, which system kicks in first? Does the EDL start braking the spinning wheel, or does the Haldex transfer power to the rear? Or do both happen together? Can you even notice?

R.

Glad to hear you are enjoying it Kevin

Something I'd like to ask you about too... how well does the EDL interact with the 4WD? E.g. suppose the front-left wheel loses grip on wet grass, which system kicks in first? Does the EDL start braking the spinning wheel, or does the Haldex transfer power to the rear? Or do both happen together? Can you even notice?

R.

I find that the electronic gubbins works things out just fine - if I boot it out of a wet or gravelly junction there's a very small amount of front wheel slip before the Haldex springs to life. I was impressed with how well it works on wet grassy slopes with just normal road tyres.

Just had cruise control fitted to mine when the car went in for it's second service - I like my gadgets

Any chance you can take a few pics of your new car? I'm almost certainly getting an Octavia Estate and it's likely I'll get a 4x4, the more shots and info I can get the better!

Cheers,

R.

'R', I'll post a few of mine if it helps your decision.

Also worth knowing that it tows brillantly - trailer, caravan, car trailer - that's where the low first gear comes in good.

'R', I'll post a few of mine if it helps your decision.

Also worth knowing that it tows brillantly - trailer, caravan, car trailer - that's where the low first gear comes in good.

That would be great, cheers. Shots from the side would be particularly good since the shots available online rarely show this properly!

I was initially concerned that the 1.9 was too low powered for the car, but enough people have said that isn't the case for me to be content about it, also I test drove one myself and thought it pulled fine. I tend not to need great acceleration, aslong as the engine doesn't feel too small for the car... which it didn't. If it can tow a caravan ok, I think it's going to have more than enough guts for anything I'll ever do.

Richard.