Octavia 3 on dirt roads?

[Gerrycan]

My previous Octavia 2 ambition wagon with 15in alloys really soaked up the bumps and corrugations on dirt roads.
I am yet to take my new Octavia 3 wagon on a dirt road but I am a bit apprehensive what with a torsion bar rear and lower profile 225x45x17 wheels/tyres.
Can anyone else, with this combination, tell me how they have found it.

I did not read the fine print on the 'travel pack' option so was a bit surprised when the steel 205x55x16 wheels were replaced by 225x45x17 alloys (I thought the alloys would be the same size).
I know this would not worry most people but I prefer a bit of rubber between road and rims.
That said, they are no problem on road although I do not like the extra 5kg per wheel the 'upgrade' entailed.

[brad]

You'll be fine. I had 205/40R16 on the Golf Cabrio when I had it & it like dirt roads just fine.

Had 235/45r17 on the Octy for a while - ditto above.

Missus has had plenty of cars with low profile tyres that we have taken to out of the way camping spots. Her current Craptiva has shorter sidewalls than my Octy.

If you are really concerned you could always pick up a set of 2nd hand 16"s off the forums or ebay/gumtree. They are mega-cheap to the point where people can't give them away.

[Gerrycan]

You'll be fine. I had 205/40R16 on the Golf Cabrio when I had it & it like dirt roads just fine.

Had 235/45r17 on the Octy for a while - ditto above.

Missus has had plenty of cars with low profile tyres that we have taken to out of the way camping spots. Her current Craptiva has shorter sidewalls than my Octy.

If you are really concerned you could always pick up a set of 2nd hand 16"s off the forums or ebay/gumtree. They are mega-cheap to the point where people can't give them away.

The Octy2 ride on dirt roads was better than the two SUVs I have owned.
Dirt roads are only an occasional requirement but I'll put some mud flaps on the new car and give it a go at some point.

[brad]

I thought you were concerned about tyre damage etc.

I drive on crap regional roads all the time in various pool cars & just adjust my speed to suit the vehicle & my back

[Mysticality]

My wider-than-stock 18's (235/40R1 were fine on the dirt... Sure, not amazing, but not terrible. And thats with lower springs and towing a camper trailer.

Wee Jasper -> Canberra. Terrible horrible roads but it wasn't as bad as I was expecting.

[brenno]

I too was a bit miffed the option for cruise control, which really should be standard on a FBW vehicle, was bundled with an unfavourable wheel/tyre combination.

The Octavia 3 rides poorly on tarmac to the point where I feel it is uncomfortable. It wouldn't be my first choice if I had to use dirt roads.

The other issue is the booming sound coming from the rear which is bad enough on tarmac. It gets tiring on long drives.

Often a set of mk7 golf 15 inch rims pop up on eBay which is something I am considering, but I feel there is more to it than tyre and suspension design - it feels like poor suspension tune.

Agree re Octavia 2 - the ride was much better.

[GTR27]

I too was a bit miffed the option for cruise control, which really should be standard on a FBW vehicle, was bundled with an unfavourable wheel/tyre combination.

The Octavia 3 rides poorly on tarmac to the point where I feel it is uncomfortable. It wouldn't be my first choice if I had to use dirt roads.

The other issue is the booming sound coming from the rear which is bad enough on tarmac. It gets tiring on long drives.

Often a set of mk7 golf 15 inch rims pop up on eBay which is something I am considering, but I feel there is more to it than tyre and suspension design - it feels like poor suspension tune.

Agree re Octavia 2 - the ride was much better.

Is your a hatch? Search on briskoda. One guy apparently fixed it by putting foam between the seat back and the parcel shelf.

[brenno]

I have a wagon - similar spec to the OP. I've been following the thread on briskoda and am keen to know more about the issues with revised damper specs. There's an Aussie guy who posted recently with a similarly specced car (seems there is overwhelming popularity for manual wagons, are you listening VWA?) but with a different part number for dampers than those on my car.

It seems factory quality control is an issue if different parts are being fitted to vehicles.

[Antiplastix]

I just returned from a weekend away, did a lot of dirt track/firetrail driving in National Parks, including a muddy run up to the Whoota Whoota lookout near Wallis Lake. No problems even in the mud and rocks, if I was to do it again, I d probably reduce the tyre pressure. Bit harsh and bouncy at 36 psi. You really need mudflaps if your doing this regularly. Running the standard 225/40R18 Contis. The rocks chopped them up a bit.

[GTR27]

Manual wagon is popular, simply because there are no other wagons this size, available in manual. Not in oz anyway. And certainly not at this price.

[KWICKS]

Renault? Hyundai? Subaru? BMW$

[occy]

I own a Prado and a Octy3 wagon. The Octy3 is fine on dirt roads, although the low profile tyres arent ideal and mudflaps are a must if you do it regularly.

I suspect very few people could tell the difference between the torsion and independent rear in a blind test.

[Gerrycan]

I just returned from a weekend away, did a lot of dirt track/firetrail driving in National Parks, including a muddy run up to the Whoota Whoota lookout near Wallis Lake. No problems even in the mud and rocks, if I was to do it again, I d probably reduce the tyre pressure. Bit harsh and bouncy at 36 psi. You really need mudflaps if your doing this regularly. Running the standard 225/40R18 Contis. The rocks chopped them up a bit.

Thanks Antiplastix, that was the sort of experience and reassurance I was looking for.
Your TDI Elegance runs the same torsion bar rear suspension as mine and that for me was the unknown factor.
I would be very cautious about reducing your tyre pressures too much on such low profile tyres on the rough, not from experience with cars only bicycles
As an aside why would Skoda would put multi-link on the 1.8tsi Elegance and not on the tdi Elegance??

I have been quoted about $100 from Skoda spares for front and rear mud-flaps which is reasonable compared to overseas prices, + about $150 fitting, so will install myself. Mudflaps were standard fitting on my Mk2.

The rear drumming mentioned by others is present in my car but I don't think it is as bad as experienced by some.
My own theory regarding this is that the boot floor forward of the spare wheel well is an extremely resonant area that cannot be easily damped even with application of dynamat. I think Skoda used a relatively thin but very high tensile steel on the MQB hence the unusual acoustic properties. That whole area needs to be braced underneath between the two main side supports for real improvement.

As I said, just my theory, but holding a suitable length of wood firmly in place underneath and banging the area markedly reduced the drumming resonance. Just got to figure out how to hold the material in place (temporarily but safely) to test while driving.