Used Scout - what to check?

[wfdTamar]

Found this too - 2008 Elegance 4wd 65,500 km $21,990 dealer seems unsure of its specs (did have it listed as an Ambience till I pointed out the error), doesn't have xenon lights by the looks. I've offered $19,500 sight unseen (with a few clauses to cover my bum if he's dodgy).

2008 SKODA OCTAVIA ELEGANCE 1Z Wagon Cars For Sale in NSW - carsales.com.au


Pretty much the Scout in sheeps clothing. The only thing it has going for it is the 4wd, otherwise it's pretty old and old spec.

[BluChris]

Hey, don't knock the pre-FL Octy's (I have one). See the other recent thread where vRS resale is discussed. Suggests trade in valuations are low as is interest (especially pre-FL). Octavia's not alone in that but certainly as the car is still a relative unknown they can be hard to sell second hand. Doubly so once the warranty is out.

This suggests 2 things: 1) if you buy, plan to keep or expect to literally pay the price 2) bargain hard. The dealer will know the car is hard to shift, and you should make it clear you know it too.

I'd say Elegance spec diesel 4x4 would make a nice ride, pre-FL or not. The Elegance has the better diesel (compared with my Ambiente), decent equipment. Ad suggested it does have xenons, but double check they got it right. Bargain at the right price, like all second hand Octy's.

Oh yeah - if the 3 year dealer warranty is included in the price but is NSW only, tell them you want $ off instead - you won't be going to NSW to claim on it...

[wfdTamar]

The dealer didn't have a clue what it was. Listed it first as an Ambient with the Ambient specs (77/250), but in the comments had 103kw, 6 gears and xenons.

It was only after I questioned it that they realised it was an Elegance. It definitely doesn't have xenons as it doesn't have the washers.

So yes, it's not the 1.9 engine which would have been a compromise choice (probably rule it out for me completely), but the 103kw PD one which is ok, not Common Rail, but ok still.

I'd think most people after 4wd would want the Scout, so this really is an orphan model. Maybe a few suspension parts peculiar to this model (as I think it has a slightly higher ride height than the standard model - 20mm).

They did offer one of those third party 3 year warranties for $1600, but I didn't want it having seen one before they are very limited in what they cover and the dollar value of what they do cover. Said they would cover the 3 month statutory warranty where I am (Tas) and give me a letter to that effect. It was a demo model before the previous owner had it which I'm not that keen on (lots of short, cold, thrashing drives). Just got to hope that the kind of people looking at this model wouldn't be the kind to thrash it in a test drive. I've almost bought it, just waiting on the results of an inspection.

---------- Post added 07-02-2012 at 04:35 AM ---------- Previous post was 06-02-2012 at 05:13 PM ----------

I was also considering a Passat V6 3.2 litre, 4x4 like this:

2007 $28,888, 42k km

Nicely spec'd, but another rung up the price ladder and a lot of bad stories about Passats.

2007 VOLKSWAGEN PASSAT V6 DSG 4-MOTION FSI Type 3C MY07 Wagon Cars For Sale in VIC - carsales.com.au

[BluChris]

Mine was a demo. The issues from that are (a) used brushes during the drought to wash it. Pity but only really noticeable under fluoro and a bunch of car care products have helped (b) a couple of persistent rattles. Should be fixable but the dealer was both deaf and not particularly helpful. Mechanically have yet to notice any problems arising 3 years in (though not big k's).

The 1.9 is slower and noisier but I kind of like the character and for what I do, 90% suburban commute, it's fine. Cruises easily too.

Yes, the AWD Octavia is unusual here, but in the context of being a Skoda in Australia, kind of moot really. Most people have no clue about the brand and it largely sells to the well informed. Hope the inspection is positive and you enjoy the car.

[wfdTamar]

Back to when to change the timing belt. According to this UK site it's 4 years/60,000 miles

Octavia 2004 | Skoda | Car Reviews | Honest John

[woofy]

That's what confuses me more than anything, the UK Skoda brought it down from 105km/7 yrs to 4yrs/60k miles. There are a few members on Briskoda that had theirs break at 5 yrs, which seems to be what caused that. Skoda here are using the standard time, but at least one dealer is saying its not worth the drama and for the inspection they may as well replace it as its almost the same amount of work....I'm still none the wiser. When I asked the Skoda person what the inspection time was then, they didn't know.

[wfdTamar]

Yes, and I really doubt what use an inspection is going to be - sure it'll pick up a big obvious flaw in the belt, but not little fatigue cracks which would be the cause of some failures.

Surely by now they must know very well when the belts fail in certain climates and have a damned good idea when the should be changed. Considering how disastrous it can be if it happens it'd be nice if they could be definite and very public about the times.

Also for a supposedly modern engine, why can't they design something that has a decent interval for something so major? I mean if it is 4 years that's not very long.

60,000 km's sounds ridiculously short to me (that's what it is on my Vectra and that's only because it was a flaw in the engine design). I would expect at least 100,000 km's should be able to be designed into an engine. Otherwise use a sodding chain!

---------- Post added 08-02-2012 at 10:24 AM ---------- Previous post was 07-02-2012 at 12:18 PM ----------

Can I get opinions of these MTA inspection photo's? Of the Elegance 4x4 mentioned above. Dealer said, 'as good as you'll get' - excellent condition. How much do you reckon the flaws are worth knocking off my offer? Thanks.

Elegance 4x4 - a set on Flickr

[BluChris]

Hi wfdtamar - PM'ed a reply - you may have received it twice as it took time and I got logged out. Sorry if so. Short version - ask for more $ off to pay for refinish work and visible wear. Otherwise if not happy keep shopping. I'd agree with report - 7/10 (max).

There's also a Vic wagon on carsales and a SA wagon on Drive now but I suspect not for you - Vic: Ambiente 1.9 diesel, 2WD, DSG. On the other hand very low K's and from the photos appears very nice. 25K before haggling. SA: Elegance 2.0 diesel, 2WD, manual, ex-tour down under. 86K, private sale $18,500. Very limited photos.

[wfdTamar]

Wouldn't even consider the 1.9 unless it had something else I'm after (4x4) although HonestJohn.co.uk compares it favourably to the 2 litre.

Just asked a body shop what that sort of scratch would cost and they reckon up to $400 each panel that's affected because they need to do the whole panel and maybe blend it into the adjacent ones.

Won't buy it unless they go a fair bit lower - that worst ding could be pricey because it's gone right through. They could have saved themselves the MTA cost by doing better photo's and not BSing in the first place.

[wfdTamar]

Ok, I got the Elegance 4x4. They had it detailed before I got there (after the photo's I posted). Actually is much better than it looks in the photo's. Seats are fine (except for a bit of thread that's come out of the edge of the seat back). One small ding and a paint chip. The scratches almost all buffed out (one 30mm feint one left). Mechanically drives fine. Poshest car I've ever owned.

[BluChris]

Gotta love a happy ending