New Car

[Night Train]

I've always fancied one too - especially one of the rare convertibles (I await the wheelbarrow jokes!).

No jokes from me nowadays, maybe back when I was a teen...

IIRC: Skoda is also one of the oldest car makers. Hitler invaded to acquire the factory for its engineering ability for tank production. The London Eye is a Skoda, well, the axle in the middle of the wheel was made at the Skoda foundry as it was the only place in Europe able to take on the job to specification.

 

[tyred]

Going a bit OT now. We all call Audi and BMW drivers names but a car that has really been on my radar in the last year or two is the little Skoda hot hatch. Often in bright colours and driven by chav kn*bheads that have little or, more commonly, no interest in the safety of the people around them. It really amazes me that these cars are driven in such a contrasting way to the typical Fabia owners. I am not one to argue against powerful cars or for the nanny state but I really wonder if the manufacturers should be allowed to make such fast cars available so cheaply that the irresponsible masses can get their hands on them so easily? There, I've said it now.

A Ford Model T can be driven dangerously and is more than fast enough to do a lot of damage in the wrong hands.

Car manufacturers strive to build the best product they can for a particular price range but they have no control over how their customers use it.

 

[Fnaar]

We have a Skoda Octavia (the choice of the professional middle classes these days ) and it is, quite simply, the most reliable and economical car I've ever had. And I reckon it looks quite stylish.

 

[tyred]

No jokes from me nowadays, maybe back when I was a teen...

IIRC: Skoda is also one of the oldest car makers. Hitler invaded to acquire the factory for its engineering ability for tank production. The London Eye is a Skoda, well, the axle in the middle of the wheel was made at the Skoda foundry as it was the only place in Europe able to take on the job to specification.

I didn't know that about the London Eye, but yes Skoda go back a long way and have had a serious amount of success in motorsport over many years. More so than VW or Audi.

Many will say that Dr. Porsche "borrowed" the design for the VW Beetle from Hans Ludwinka at Tatra, another Czech car manufacturer. The Czechs were noted for the engineering excellence prior to the Soviets ruining the country.

 

[Over The Hill]

My mum had one of these..

I am sure they have got better as they really could not have got worse! In the wet the front wheels locked up really easily as soon as you touched the foot brake so you had to use the handbrake or gears to brake in the wet.

 

[Fab Foodie]

Mrs Houthakker here.....omg mr has decided to get a new Skoda Octavia....what on earth is he thinking? Can't get him to change his mind..... Well I won't be going in it.....

Mr Houthakker's a smart guy. I've owned 2 Octavias and they've been ace, I'd gladly get another next car change.

 

[Fab Foodie]

My mum had one of these..

I am sure they have got better as they really could not have got worse! In the wet the front wheels locked up really easily as soon as you touched the foot brake so you had to use the handbrake or gears to brake in the wet.

Ah, as mentioned, the lovely Skoda Estelle, I also hanker after one. Originally IIRC it was the Renault Dauphine.
Autocar once described the Super-Estelle as the nearest thing to Porsche 911, it was uncomfortable, noisy, handled badly and the motor was in the boot ....

 

[Over The Hill]

Ah, as mentioned, the lovely Skoda Estelle, I also hanker after one. Originally IIRC it was the Renault Dauphine.
Autocar once described the Super-Estelle as the nearest thing to Porsche 911, it was uncomfortable, noisy, handled badly and the motor was in the boot ....

This was a 110 which was the model before they revamped it, squared it off a bit and called it an Estelle but I think essentially it is the same thing. It handled better with a 100kg bag of cement in the front. Gearbox linkage was like a spoon stuck in a jelly and so you had this very vague feel of where the gear was. It went so rusty that one day the headlight disappeared into the wing. We were very pleased when someone drove into the back of it and wrote it off. But to be fair the Allegro that followed was really not much better.
It was a bit odd that eastern block counties took over old Fiats and Renaults which were bad to start with.

 

[Davidc]

OTH asks why some of us buy new cars and run them for 20 years and lots of miles.

Night Train has already basically answered that. We know we're going to be using the car for a long time and by buying new can get exactly what we want. Also, in practice, buying cars which aren't fashionable (but very well engineered and built) it's nearly always possible to negotiate a price which is no more than the forecourt price for a 1 year old low mileage one. Our depreciation cost per year is low - I expect mine to work out at about £500 and NT's should be about the same.

OTH, buying 2nd hand and then doing much the same might achieve slightly lower depreciation, but as a proportion of total car operating costs it won't be significant.

Like OTH I get rather negative reactions from the wife to my tendency to keep everything until it's completely worn out, but I've never understood the throw away mindset. I keep on mending things until either it's uneconomical or impossible.

Many students and other cash starved groups used to like the Eastern Block era Skodas. Although the designs were from the 60s and 70s, the Skodas, unlike the Ladas and FSOs, were well made and with minimal expense would go on and on. The 1980s Skodas were 'orrible to drive though. I only did so once and nearly crashed it twice, once on the first bend and once when I needed to brake hard.

 

[Cletus Van Damme]

Seriously though, buy a selection of VW or Audi badges from ebay and stick them on for all the difference it would make. Cheaper then up grading the car, more money for the same thing (at least the same where it matters.).

Mine is a serious workhorse, nearly 200,000 miles on just regular servicing, and still giving me over 70+mpg on a nice run and 55+mpg in town.
View attachment 26025
View attachment 26024

That impressive mate. I have seen taxi's with more. What engine is in it a 1.9 or is it the newer 2.0? I have read that the older 1.9 is more reliable, how true this is I do not know. Than again there were different flavours of the 1.9, I think the PD engines are the more refined. I test drove a 1.9 with the earlier 110 bhp engine and it was a bit noisy and agricultural like and not that fast either. This was ages ago, but the car seemed well put together and did not show it's 100k mileage at all. I test drove a VW passat at the same time fitted with a 1.9 PD 130bhp engine. That engine is way more refined and the car was quicker, still not fast by any means at all. Again never showed it's 90k miles at all. I do not know if both cars were essentially built on the same chassis but the Passat has to be one of the dullest cars I have driven, was a 2003 model. The Octavia just feels a bit more of a driver's car. I always keep my eye out to see if any come up for sale locally with a decent mileage and price. The hatch is also huge on the Octavia, the boot on the passat seemed like a real waste to me in comparison, that is if you want to put bikes in, take things to the tip, transport appliances etc. Never understood why the so-called prestige German cars (Audi, bmw) never made mid sized saloons with a hatch. Always put me off them, amongst other things.

 

[Arch]

You could give it a wash....

Will you get me a baby elephant to help?

 

[Piemaster]

My mum had one of these..

I am sure they have got better as they really could not have got worse! In the wet the front wheels locked up really easily as soon as you touched the foot brake so you had to use the handbrake or gears to brake in the wet.

Estelles were a bit later, and had a grille at the front. To make fair comparisons you'd really have to pick one of it's contemporaries, think of some of the stuff British Leyland were producing then.
My dad had the twin headlight version of the one in the picture. The 'fastback' coupe version I thought looked ok, no worse than any of the BL eyesores anyway. I think it'd be interesting to have one now, but with modern running gear in it (something that's been happening to mark 1&2 Escorts).
The rally success has to take into account that they didn't actually have much, if any, competition in the class they were in.

I've had Alfas for a while now. They also seem to have a reputation they've carried over in the public mind like Skoda had at one time.

 

[Paul.G.]

I,m the fleet manager for the third largest fleet in the UK and can say with confidence, nothing wrong with skoda! Dealers are far more customer focused than VW and warranty issues are dealt with quickly and efficiently. Just had a Golf off the road for six weeks waiting for a replacement seat base, madness!!

 

[Night Train]

What engine is in it a 1.9 or is it the newer 2.0?

I have the earlier 1.9TDi 110bhp engine. It does sound like a diesel from the outside but quiet as any petrol on the inside.

It isn't a quick car but I didn't need it to be. It is quick enough for what I need it for, mainly overtaking acceleration and trailer pulling on hills.

The early Octavias were based on the Golf floor pan and so the rear legroom is a bit tight if the driver is tall. The Passat is longer and I think the later Octavias may be based on that, though that might be the Skoda Superb.


The only reason I bought mine new was having the cash available at the time and weighing up the options against a used car/van.

My search spec included:
Must be Diesel
Min 5 seats
6' clear load space in the back
Good tow car
Min 60mpg official figures
4x4 for towing traction
Low initial cost
Long service interval
Low theft risk
Cheap insurance

It only lost on being a bit short on load space and not being a 4x4. The used cars had unknown history against them. I have had too many cars that only later showed up mechanical wear or accident damage.

 

[GrasB]

The used cars had unknown history against them. I have had too many cars that only later showed up mechanical wear or accident damage.

Low mileage, 3 years old & one careful lady owner... the fact the said owner, while careful, drives less than half a mile before red-lining the engine to pull onto the motorway doesn't really get a look in & that's a rather good way to wreck an engine!