Anyone out there own a Skoda?

[Irish Padre]

No, it's not the opening line of a 1980s joke! Basically, I have a new job starting next year which requires us to get a second car. I'm very tempted by Skoda - anyone out there had experiences they'd be happy to share? Thanks! David

[galway]

I've not got one, but most of my neighbours have and they swear by them, as the advert says just like a VW

[Lawrence]

Hi David, your colleague at Leuchars was in last week, how's the course going  Have just bought a 3 year old Mazda3, 1.6 TS, not a lot of power but I nice place to sit for town or motorway driving, did the 150+ mile round trip to Aberdeen yesterday and it was quiet & comfortable.

[Pete Mc]

Hello,I've had my Skoda since August 2004.It is a Skoda Octavia 1.9TDI GLX.It was first registered in 1999 and is V registered.It has been totally reliable in all the time I have owned it apart from having to replace the turbo two years ago.Don't worry about those though cos they are only made to last upto 150000 miles.Its the best car I have owned,starts first time everytime regardless of whether it is fifteen degrees below freezing as demonstrated last winter or scorching hot.It does around 47 ish mpg round town and is a very comfortable long distance cruiser.
I plan on replacing it in the next two years with another Skoda Octavia,this being a VRS TDI estate model.Cos I may have an exhibition layout by then to lug about the country.
So,I think they are a fantastic car.Best car VW Audi Group make if you ask me.With the possible exception of the Audi R8 or Bugatti Veyron.

Pete

[Tom@Crewe]

I have had several, 2 Octavia's (1.9 TDI & 2.0 TDI) and I have a Yeti 2.0 TDI.

The Skoda Octavia, Seat Leon, Seat Altea, VW Golf all have the same engines, gearbox, running gear and floor-pan's as each other and all built using the VW standards just different body shapes and prices.

What model you looking at?

[Irish Padre]

Thanks gents - that's all most helpful. I'm currently looking at a citigo as it's got all the space we need, good fuel economy, and some attractive packages on offer.

Lawrence - course is over thanks ! It was a busy 2 months and it's good to be back home again!

[Bikeracer]

I had an Octavia 1.9 TDI for seven years,no problem getting 60 plus mpg even at motorway speeds.Mine was a very early one "S" reg and had 12,000 on the clock when I bought it.

Allan

[Tank]

A friend of mine had a Skoda estate for years with now major problems.  He loved it!  I'm pretty sure it was an Octavia as well.

[Newportnobby]

My brother in law (vet, so plenty of mileage) reckons his Octavia was the best car he's ever owned and he's had a few.
Sadly he's gone down the Bavarian Made Wreck road, which he can't stay on in snowy conditions

[4x2]

I've owned a 136 Rapide and a Favorite - proper old skool skodas 
They were both hilarious and reliable, and they were the best £300 i ever spent (£150 each !!!).

Probably not the best buys for comfort though....

[Sprintex]

Plenty of jokes about old Skodas but the Rapide won its class in rallying (1400cc and under if I remember right?) for 14 years on the trot, no mean feat

They were also the first car to have a heated rear window . . .



. . . so your hands didn't get cold when pushing it! (sorry, couldn't resist it)


Paul

[Newportnobby]

 
That's probably opened the floodgates

[swisstony]

I parked my Convertible Skoda next to a building site with the roof down one day, when I came out it had been filled with building debris, so I lifted it up by it's twin exhausts and pushed it away

[Newportnobby]

Twin exhausts
You must have had the De Luxe Sports model

[Gnep]

Jokes aside (and I've heard them all ), I drive a 10-year old Skoda Fabia SDI that spent a good deal of its life on a farm, and is now done 130k miles. Still going strong and getting 60mpg, although at this point the brakes and clutch are quite worn, I'm going through tyres more quickly as the tracking drifts, and the electrics are being occassionally tempremental (I mean the window switch not always working, so nothing that stops me getting from A to B and back).

I'm 6'4" and fit quite comfortably, which I never can in many types of smaller car.

All in all, supremely cheap motoring (economic, cheap insurance, easily available parts), and has coped with a hard life (including the odd knock from a front loader on the tractor) immensely well. About 10 years/130k miles in though, and I'm thinking of replacing it before the repair bills start escalating. Would definitely get another Skoda though (if they were on the company car list, which will probably be where I go - might have to plump for a VW passat as we'll need an estate). Funnily enough Skodas are quite common in Yorkshire where value means something - in London they are not so much...

George