just bought a 1.5 same spec on a 20 plate , after driving a 64 plate bmw 3 series 2l xdrive M sport for 8y, prefer the skoda , much more relaxing drive , not as many bells and whistles but at 68y old dont need them
Very useful & informative video, cheers! I've got my eye on one of these cars as I'm looking to upsize from a Skoda Fabia. How are you finding the 17 inch wheels on country roads with potholes etc? Does it feel harsh at all? Just wondering as the SE trim has 16" wheels instead but I'm not sure how much difference that extra tyre width would make. The roads around me are pretty bad!
Hi. It can be a bit harsh but not too bad if you slow down and certainly not enough to avoid having that size wheel. A test drive will let you decide one way or the other. I had a remap done last year and it now has 183bhp and 316nm of torque. Didn't affect fuel consumption too much either.
@@thedoctor007dfw Cheers, that's good to know.. and the remapping sounds tempting haha. You're right though ultimately I'll just need to do a test drive to decide for myself 👍
I've come from a 2005 ZS180 2.5 V6 (185 BHP with a CAF/CAT back) and then a 2010 Impreza RX 2.0 (150 BHP) last 16 years both with 17" wheels and stiffer than average suspension, both with bigger brakes. The ZS in particular had a hard ride although terrific neutral handling*) and both had a good deal of road noise. The Impreza had a tendency to oversteer (I spun it twice) despite the AWD and there was considerable drive train / suspension noise - it was a Subaru. I now have the 150 BHP 2018 SE 1.5 TSi saloon on 16" Ilias alloys** (same facelift and colour as this car) and I can say that in Sport mode the response is better than the Impreza and it's quicker (probably lighter too). I have new tyres and brakes all round (this month) and the handling, brakes and comfort are better than the Impreza - hands down. At least some of this is down to the 6J 16" wheels running 205 / 55 R16 tyres which are quieter and less harsh through the seat (vibration). The Impreza had marginally better grip (AWD - virtually impossible to spin the front wheels on takeoff). In terms of handling (having driven professionally at pace a range of cars including a V8 Rover Vitesse SDi), the Skoda needs to be driven properly at pace or it will understeer noticeably in the bends especially on damp and wet roads so that means easy in to the apex, then throttle in - it tightens in nicely and stays there, no wandering. On the 6J x 16s. The Skoda 17" alloys run 205/50 R17 so not a huge difference although a touch lower profile, more tread on the road you would expect. I haven't driven a Skoda on 17's although I would expect more road noise / little more vibration. * The MG ZS 180 was fettled by ProDrive in the design stage and influenced by the Accord Type R (its Japanese ancestry) and so really in a different class and it was - on the back lanes it was light, fast, great big brakes, terrifically chuck-able and forgiving - I never had a scary moment in it in 10 years despite 0 - 60 in 6.5 seconds. Having said that, the ride was flat and hard, the gearbox noisy and on long motorway journeys it could become tiresome. The Skoda 1.5 TSi in comparison, even with the un-chipped / mapped 150 BHP feels light and nippy, the turbo giving it a nice surge from low down with hardly any noticeable lag unless it has slipped into 2 cylinder ECO mode but then a quick blip of the throttle and drop a gear it is off again. Has to be driven in a certain way for pace, but its there. In conclusion, the Octavia is quieter, more comfortable than either the ZS or Impreza on 17s without any performance drop on the latter car. It's not near as quick at the ZS180 but then maybe I have grown up a little and settled down - I am preferring the better comfort experience right now and the acceleration, handling and brakes are adequate. I love the Apple Car Play also with voice control - you get an iTunes like interface on the infotainment screen and can whip through playlists. The SE also comes with a DAB radio and cruise control (ZS had none of this, Impreza had cruise). The only thing I might do is consider a turbo boost box MOD - less intrusive than a remap it sits in between the ECU and the turbo via a box and cables, essentially gives it an adjusted output signal to raise the boost and gain the same 185 BHP from the 1.5TSi... and it can be removed in 10 mins for servicing. ** and my SE does have the option of the Winter pack including heated seats, and the Bolera bigger screen infotainment - both thrown in used for the stock SE price by the Skoda dealer DM Keith which was decent of them. It is worth looking for cars with these extras on a used car - they are expensive to add.
I was looking for reviews of this car as id like to buy one. I was thinking when the cyclist went by that I know that road, top of Matlock (where I live) then saw more of your videos also based around the area. Wondering if I know you 😁. Great review video, thanks 👍
Thanks. Well spotted! I'm on Cavendish Road but have only lived here for 3 years. I've not got the Skoda anymore as the agreement ended and I needed a diesel due to the long commute I'm now doing since changing jobs. I've stuck with the VAG group and followed my late father's footsteps by having an Audi A4 Avant. 20 reg. Got a very good deal on it.
@@thedoctor007dfw Nice choice!...In my search for another Skoda Octavia I came across your video again. I say another as the one I did get decided to take off by itself down the hill (Matlock) and wrote itself off in the corner of a building that ended up in the boot. I'm going for the next model up now....will it withstand the Matlock hills? I hope so!!! :D
@@mrjdainsworth that's crazy! Sorry to hear about that. The new ones have electronic handbrakes like my A4 and they adjust automatically according to gradient so hopefully wouldn't fall foul of that.
They did thanks. The suspension on the Octavia is a little jittery at times. I now have an Audi A4 Avant (my dads influence paid off 😂 as he had 3 in his time). More sophisticated suspension and a more comfortable ride.
Are the LED headlights automatically adjusted according to the car's load? I can't find anything in the manual. I feel they're too high, even without beam. At the moment there's just me as driver, and no load, or passengers.
Apparently it was just the drivers side going to flag up as an advisory so they hadn't actually gone. You should always replace both at the same time so I thought I'd just get it done for peace of mind
@@Trooper_675 Personally, I wouldn't touch it with a barge-pole, because £10K for a car with almost 100K miles seems insane to me. Used car prices are very high at the moment, so it's a bad time to buy, IMO. I'm also guessing that the 1.6TDI has had a tough life dragging the Octavia around for 100K miles, it's not a particularly powerful unit. The DPF is probably pretty full, too. On the plus side, if it's had a lot of the high mileage consumable stuff already done, it might be a sweet car. But I'd be looking for a 2.0TDI if I had to have a diesel.
@@MrSonicAdvance Just needs to have a new dpf filter, The last octavia I had was 1.9 diesel from new with only 1 ml on clock when I changed it I had 500,000 miles on clock Rainworth motors wanted to take a pic for their mag, Only used fully synthetic oil every year, New cambelt at 70,000 and that was it.
To get rid of the squeaking suspension you have to lube up the upper bushings once per year. It is typical MQB.
just bought a 1.5 same spec on a 20 plate , after driving a 64 plate bmw 3 series 2l xdrive M sport for 8y, prefer the skoda , much more relaxing drive , not as many bells and whistles but at 68y old dont need them
Interesting, I'm looking at one of these atm.
Very useful & informative video, cheers! I've got my eye on one of these cars as I'm looking to upsize from a Skoda Fabia.
How are you finding the 17 inch wheels on country roads with potholes etc? Does it feel harsh at all?
Just wondering as the SE trim has 16" wheels instead but I'm not sure how much difference that extra tyre width would make. The roads around me are pretty bad!
Hi. It can be a bit harsh but not too bad if you slow down and certainly not enough to avoid having that size wheel. A test drive will let you decide one way or the other.
I had a remap done last year and it now has 183bhp and 316nm of torque. Didn't affect fuel consumption too much either.
@@thedoctor007dfw Cheers, that's good to know.. and the remapping sounds tempting haha. You're right though ultimately I'll just need to do a test drive to decide for myself 👍
I've come from a 2005 ZS180 2.5 V6 (185 BHP with a CAF/CAT back) and then a 2010 Impreza RX 2.0 (150 BHP) last 16 years both with 17" wheels and stiffer than average suspension, both with bigger brakes. The ZS in particular had a hard ride although terrific neutral handling*) and both had a good deal of road noise. The Impreza had a tendency to oversteer (I spun it twice) despite the AWD and there was considerable drive train / suspension noise - it was a Subaru.
I now have the 150 BHP 2018 SE 1.5 TSi saloon on 16" Ilias alloys** (same facelift and colour as this car) and I can say that in Sport mode the response is better than the Impreza and it's quicker (probably lighter too). I have new tyres and brakes all round (this month) and the handling, brakes and comfort are better than the Impreza - hands down. At least some of this is down to the 6J 16" wheels running 205 / 55 R16 tyres which are quieter and less harsh through the seat (vibration). The Impreza had marginally better grip (AWD - virtually impossible to spin the front wheels on takeoff).
In terms of handling (having driven professionally at pace a range of cars including a V8 Rover Vitesse SDi), the Skoda needs to be driven properly at pace or it will understeer noticeably in the bends especially on damp and wet roads so that means easy in to the apex, then throttle in - it tightens in nicely and stays there, no wandering. On the 6J x 16s.
The Skoda 17" alloys run 205/50 R17 so not a huge difference although a touch lower profile, more tread on the road you would expect. I haven't driven a Skoda on 17's although I would expect more road noise / little more vibration.
* The MG ZS 180 was fettled by ProDrive in the design stage and influenced by the Accord Type R (its Japanese ancestry) and so really in a different class and it was - on the back lanes it was light, fast, great big brakes, terrifically chuck-able and forgiving - I never had a scary moment in it in 10 years despite 0 - 60 in 6.5 seconds. Having said that, the ride was flat and hard, the gearbox noisy and on long motorway journeys it could become tiresome.
The Skoda 1.5 TSi in comparison, even with the un-chipped / mapped 150 BHP feels light and nippy, the turbo giving it a nice surge from low down with hardly any noticeable lag unless it has slipped into 2 cylinder ECO mode but then a quick blip of the throttle and drop a gear it is off again. Has to be driven in a certain way for pace, but its there.
In conclusion, the Octavia is quieter, more comfortable than either the ZS or Impreza on 17s without any performance drop on the latter car. It's not near as quick at the ZS180 but then maybe I have grown up a little and settled down - I am preferring the better comfort experience right now and the acceleration, handling and brakes are adequate. I love the Apple Car Play also with voice control - you get an iTunes like interface on the infotainment screen and can whip through playlists. The SE also comes with a DAB radio and cruise control (ZS had none of this, Impreza had cruise).
The only thing I might do is consider a turbo boost box MOD - less intrusive than a remap it sits in between the ECU and the turbo via a box and cables, essentially gives it an adjusted output signal to raise the boost and gain the same 185 BHP from the 1.5TSi... and it can be removed in 10 mins for servicing.
** and my SE does have the option of the Winter pack including heated seats, and the Bolera bigger screen infotainment - both thrown in used for the stock SE price by the Skoda dealer DM Keith which was decent of them. It is worth looking for cars with these extras on a used car - they are expensive to add.
@@thedoctor007dfw Who did your remap if I may ask? Nice review. Just bought one myself.
I was looking for reviews of this car as id like to buy one. I was thinking when the cyclist went by that I know that road, top of Matlock (where I live) then saw more of your videos also based around the area. Wondering if I know you 😁. Great review video, thanks 👍
Thanks. Well spotted! I'm on Cavendish Road but have only lived here for 3 years. I've not got the Skoda anymore as the agreement ended and I needed a diesel due to the long commute I'm now doing since changing jobs.
I've stuck with the VAG group and followed my late father's footsteps by having an Audi A4 Avant. 20 reg. Got a very good deal on it.
@@thedoctor007dfw Nice choice!...In my search for another Skoda Octavia I came across your video again. I say another as the one I did get decided to take off by itself down the hill (Matlock) and wrote itself off in the corner of a building that ended up in the boot. I'm going for the next model up now....will it withstand the Matlock hills? I hope so!!! :D
@@mrjdainsworth that's crazy! Sorry to hear about that. The new ones have electronic handbrakes like my A4 and they adjust automatically according to gradient so hopefully wouldn't fall foul of that.
@@thedoctor007dfw sounds much better! Fingers crossed 🤞. Speak soon im sure. Still watch your videos 😀👌
Did the new shocks make a difference? Mine feels a bit crashy over bumps, hope the new shocks help.
They did thanks. The suspension on the Octavia is a little jittery at times. I now have an Audi A4 Avant (my dads influence paid off 😂 as he had 3 in his time). More sophisticated suspension and a more comfortable ride.
@@thedoctor007dfw When we getting a video review 😉
@@spoornet I keep meaning to get around to it. Just finding time with the ongoing wedding plans.
Are the LED headlights automatically adjusted according to the car's load? I can't find anything in the manual. I feel they're too high, even without beam. At the moment there's just me as driver, and no load, or passengers.
Yes they adjust automatically on this model 👍
Would you recommend the 1.6 diesel Octavia estate
Hi. It's a decent engine and I had one as a courtesy car once. Not as quick or smooth as the petrol but very economical
I've got the 1.6 vw golf estate does the job a can get 65 to gallon on the motorway
It's quartz grey.
Update on the car?
I have an Audi A4 now. Changed in August. My dad had 3 in his time so his influence paid off
Any spare wheel?
Yes but it's a space saver one if memory serves me well
Needing new shocks after 4 years seems a bit poor, unless it's got a starship mileage.
Apparently it was just the drivers side going to flag up as an advisory so they hadn't actually gone. You should always replace both at the same time so I thought I'd just get it done for peace of mind
Define starship mileage on an octavia haha , thinking of getting one, 2018-- 96K miles on a 1.6TD engine. they're asking 10K
@@Trooper_675 Personally, I wouldn't touch it with a barge-pole, because £10K for a car with almost 100K miles seems insane to me. Used car prices are very high at the moment, so it's a bad time to buy, IMO. I'm also guessing that the 1.6TDI has had a tough life dragging the Octavia around for 100K miles, it's not a particularly powerful unit. The DPF is probably pretty full, too.
On the plus side, if it's had a lot of the high mileage consumable stuff already done, it might be a sweet car. But I'd be looking for a 2.0TDI if I had to have a diesel.
@@MrSonicAdvance Just needs to have a new dpf filter, The last octavia I had was 1.9 diesel from new with only 1 ml on clock when I changed it I had 500,000 miles on clock Rainworth motors wanted to take a pic for their mag, Only used fully synthetic oil every year, New cambelt at 70,000 and that was it.
They didn't need to be changed.
Is the DSG7 reliable?
Not had any issues with it personally
@@thedoctor007dfw what's the mileage on yours?
@@dragospahontu 35k now
@@thedoctor007dfw usually at that mileage you are ought to change the oil inside the transmission.
@@dragospahontu thanks. I'll look into that 👍