New Octavia ....when? How Much?

[Gerrycan]

Bit of a generalisation to say that they wouldn't rate any diesel.

With a name like EVO I thought it would be all WRX and Lancer stuff which would mean the preferred flavour would be high revving petrol.
Personally I like diesels except for the DPF complications.

[Gerrycan]

Woohoo....less than a week till the ship docks! Starting to get excited. So excited, I bought another $250 of detailing gear in preparation for the car........

Oh My......

You can get professional help for your condition...

[MJKooLio]

You can get professional help for your condition...

I have the solution!

[GTR27]

I joke about it, but I have planned to buy all this stuff. I have been working an extra day each week since about June. 6 days a week sucks, but at least I can pay cash for this stuff and not worry.

Edit: oilburna I basically got stuff I needed to replace, or was missing from my kit. Got a good wheel brush, some car shampoo (dodo juice), 303 interior protector, detailing spray (dodo juice red mist), new buckets and grit guard, new waffle weave drying towels, a few new foam applicator pads and a couple of other bits and bobs. I still have synthetic sealant (Wolfgang) and poorboys wheel sealant in my kit. Will prob need a day or two to detail the car when I get it. But it's cheaper than interior and paint protection, and at least I know it's done right.

[Buckers]

FYI - Nice "Speed Date" car review on the caradvise website: Skoda Octavia RS Wagon Speed Date | CarAdvice

Sums up the car pretty well I thought.

Also another one from a few weeks back which also gave it good marks: Skoda Octavia RS Wagon Speed Date | CarAdvice

Noticed in the last RACV magazine (for those in Victoria) that their "Australian's Best Cars" awards short list includes the Octavia 103TSI in the medium cars < 50K category and the Octavia RS in the Sports cars < 50K. Will be interesting to see how it goes - winners announced Nov 25th.

[brad]

With a name like EVO I thought it would be all WRX and Lancer stuff which would mean the preferred flavour would be high revving petrol.
Personally I like diesels except for the DPF complications.

They like fast cars but generally all the magazines like fast cars. Having a Nissan Tiida on the cover doesn't sell many magazines...

Evo | Supercar and performance car reviews and news

[kasi]

OK, test drove an Octavia 1.4 TSI today. That little engine is certainly a corker, even though I had read reviews and personal reports that it was good, was still surprised at its zippy performance when I drove it myself.

Car was so quiet and required so little accelerator compared to my old car that at times the speed crept up quickly without me noticing, at one stage glanced down at the speedo and I was doing about 85 in a 60 zone.

Brake application was much more sudden than I'm used to, hope I can develop a smoother technique quickly. Ride and steering was reasonably good on 45 aspect ratio tyres, no excessive jolting through the wheel over bumps which I had experienced in some older rack and pinion steering cars.

Was impressed with the space, performance and value so I bought one. Hopefully in about 2 weeks or so I will be taking delivery of an Ambition Plus DSG wagon + Tech Pack and Extended Warranty. Wasn't planning on a Tech Pack or metallic paint but the only wagons currently available here had those options so I took what I could get. After I got home and thought about it more I'm now glad I got the Tech Pack.

I received excellent service from Peter at Central Coast Eurocars, no pressure, relaxed, friendly and helpful, a much better experience than I expected buying a new car.

I've owned lots of different cars but this is my first new one since 1997 so I'm quite excited. Go Skoda.

[GTR27]

Tech pack is a great option IMO. They are such a nice car to drive for the money, and as you say the 1.4 is surprisingly spritely.

Nice to see someone else look past the badge, drive one and buy based on the car itself

[kasi]

Some of the Tech Pack options I'll probably never/rarely use but the better sound system, keyless entry and xenon lights I was interested in having though. So I actually did want the Tech Pack, just didn't want to have to pay for it, as adding it plus the extra warranty put the total price up a bit high for my budget.

Luckily I was offered a good deal even though my car was not a custom order but was one of a few just arrived. That really took the sting out of paying extra for the Tech Pack.

I wasn't expecting that as stock of wagons seems to be scarce at the moment, but I had no trade in to complicate matters and was willing to take any colour except black, so maybe that helped. Or because I had only been enquiring about a car without a Tech Pack the Sales Manager knew I wasn't just saying that as a bartering ploy but was fair dinkum. Whatever it was, I'm happy with the price, there's nothing else anywhere near this price that is big enough for me plus my brother in the back seat. The fact it drives really well too is a great bonus. Perhaps could have even gone for a bit extra off, but it was unlikely to be much more if any and I wanted to keep a good relationship with the dealer as I'm going to get the car serviced there.

The car didn't just drive well but inside it felt and looked like good quality. I'm not going to go on like some reviews about whether or not the car had soft touch plastics and how my phone paired, but the doors really did shut with a nice solid sounding thunk, haha.

You're right, Skoda is not a brand that I had thought highly of, just a strange European brand I had seen as support cars in the Tour de France. It was actually one of your posts on another forum about how happy you had been with your previous Octavia RS that put Skoda on my shopping list. So thank you for that.

[GTR27]

That's good I've helped someone at least look at one of these cars. I can hand on my heart say my previous rs was the best all round car I've owned. Sure there were some things I preferred from other cars (the traction control was too aggressive I feel) but I genuinely loved that car and it just did everything well. I seriously regretted selling it, so when I had the opportunity to get another family car, I looked at buying a second hand rs. Most of them were around 25-30k which started me looking at a new ambition. It was missing a few things, so I looked at an ambition+ originally I wanted it without tech pack and sub 30k, but I really wanted xenon's..... Tech pack worked out hardly more than xenon's alone, so I got that. I really wanted the sunroof, but the missus wasn't sure so initially we didn't order that. After some large delays, and lots of convincing we added that to our order. So we ended up getting an almost maxed out ambition+ (I wanted a manual, and didn't want to stump up for an rs as it's primarily a kid carrier).

Now I have gotten a little carried away with bling and extras, but at least everything about the car is exactly what I want. I'm really fickle about my cars, so the wife wanted to make sure I was 100% happy, so we didn't seem our car in another year or two like the last few....

Edit: the hardest thing with telling people about a Skoda on forums is there will always be nay sayers who will bag the cars, with absolutely 0 knowledge or first hand experience of them. People who seem to be madly anti vw anything. I research everything to crazy amounts, and test drive literally everything. I compare at very high detail differences in the car, and also include how it drives (I.e does it have feel/feedback, or does it drive like a Camry). The Octavia IMO is unbeatable under 40k, at multiple price points for the level of kit, driving experience, build quality, room and convenience. I have people call me fanboi, but the truth is, if there was a better car, I'd buy it. I'm not brand loyal in any way at all.... Have owned all sorts of brands. I buy whatever is best at the time for my needs/circumstances, and always look past the badge

[kasi]

Although we test sat in a few, surprisingly I didn't test drive any other cars, I knew from researching online reviews and reading personal feedback that there was likely few if any other cars in that price range that had both sufficient head room and legroom in the back for a 6' 2" passenger.

Plus once I had driven the Octavia, I was so impressed that immediately there was no question about it for me, I just had to have one as I really couldn't see any other suitable sized car being equal or better at that price.

Mondeo hatch has the fashionable, dreaded sloping roof that restricts rear headroom excessively. There was a Mondeo wagon but it had a list price of $40k in diesel and the 2.3 petrol was reportedly a bit anaemic. No Ecoboost available in wagon. Mainly short trips meant the diesel may have had DPF issues and too much time spent in shopping centre and other car parks now means the bigger turning circle and size of the Mondeo wagon would probably make it unwieldy.

Perhaps some kind of SUV like an X-Trail or something would have suited but I'm not really a fan of SUV type vehicles when a more usual style car suits my needs and handles better.

Have you noticed that in Australia the Octavia 1.4 wagon is quoted at 103 kW @ 4500 rpm, whereas the hatch is 103 kW @ 5000 rpm? Must be because the wagon is tuned to potentially carry heavier loads than the hatch I suppose.

Interesting that xenon lights was the major item of the Tech Pack you wanted, I've never had a car with them myself so my wish to have them was based only on the positive opinion and feedback of others.

My best car overall so far has been my Mercedes 300E, so solid and nice to drive, it just got too old unfortunately and became uneconomical to maintain. Really liked my V8 HJ Holden wagon too, it was a long time ago now but it went like a rocket, was relatively easy and cheap to maintain, handy to sleep in the back on surfing trips and sounded great. It really sucked the juice though, be expensive to run now at today's petrol prices. It is partly fond memories of that wagon that has me excited about owning a wagon once again, it's so convenient to be able to fold the back seats down to carry large items in the back of a wagon.

Need some car shampoo, a new wash mitt and related items. Wouldn't mind some cargo netting to stop things sliding about but won't be getting lots of bling like you, although the chrome key ends are strangely appealing. Where did you order them from, if you don't mind letting me know?

[GTR27]

Genuine VW Golf Mk7 Chrome Key Top Kit BRAND NEW | eBay

I havent ordered yet, just waiting back on hearing about shipping. But i've searched a lot and that guy is the cheapest! The key ends certainly add a touch of class to the car (as silly/frivolous as it sounds!)

[brad]

Have you noticed that in Australia the Octavia 1.4 wagon is quoted at 103 kW @ 4500 rpm, whereas the hatch is 103 kW @ 5000 rpm? Must be because the wagon is tuned to potentially carry heavier loads than the hatch I suppose.

Probably a typo. There will be no difference in the tune between the two body types.

Perhaps could have even gone for a bit extra off, but it was unlikely to be much more if any and I wanted to keep a good relationship with the dealer as I'm going to get the car serviced there.

Service wouldn't have a clue or care what you paid.

As long as you're happy with the price, that's all that matters.

[Dzl_Dubba]

Genuine VW Golf Mk7 Chrome Key Top Kit BRAND NEW | eBay

I havent ordered yet, just waiting back on hearing about shipping. But i've searched a lot and that guy is the cheapest! The key ends certainly add a touch of class to the car (as silly/frivolous as it sounds!)

This bloke is cheaper Genuine VW Golf Mk7 Chrome Key Top Kit BRAND NEW | eBay

I completely forgot about these haha, thanks for reminding me GTR

[kasi]

Probably a typo. There will be no difference in the tune between the two body types.

Yes at first I thought it may be a typo, but then thought it strange that it is in both the brochure and the pricing brochure.

Service wouldn't have a clue or care what you paid.

As long as you're happy with the price, that's all that matters.

You're probably right but I have the memory of purchasing a Magna in Sydney and Booths of Gosford being cranky and rude that I bought elsewhere. Ended up getting it serviced at Tuggerah instead.

Plus the salesman seemed happy enough with the deal and offered me a free loan car whenever I was in for service. Would I have still been offered that if I had attempted bartering harder for the last possible bit of discount? Perhaps, but I've had such a bad run with mechanical issues with my last car that I wanted a decent relationship with my local Skoda dealer as there are no others nearby.

Not much point threatening to walk out the door if this is just about the only affordable car we can fit in, it is in short supply and it is the only Skoda dealer in town. Plus I'm at risk of losing my driving mojo as I've been without a car for 4 months now, so was keen to conclude a deal quickly while a car was available. The discount I received was in the same range as others on this forum had reported negotiating, so I thought that was a pretty good deal for a regional dealer.

Others may be more experienced at buying new cars and keen to try and negotiate right down to the lowest possible price but as the deal was much the same as others here had negotiated and I didn't have to wait 6 months or longer I thought I did OK and was satisfied with that.

If others are skilled and knowledgeable enough negotiators to do better, good luck to them, I feel the Octavia is much better value than similarly priced cars even at full driveaway price, so was pleased to receive any discount at all which made the substantial discount I received like a bonus. You know; new car, happy, happy.