Skoda Octavia vRS (1z) - First snail powered car!
Discussion
Having had my 2003 E46 330ci Sport for just over two years, and 60k miles, mechanical hypochondria was starting to wade in, with the fear of the automatic gear box going pop. It's rather a shame as I loved the car, spent a small fortune on repairing the common (age related) issues and all it was after was a bit of body work love from the previous's "not so smart" repairs done to it. However I believe (and I was probably wrong) the gear box gave what I can only describe as a jolt between 2nd and 3rd every once in a blue moon (INPA Reported a slipping gear, gear box reset), and I thought while it has some value left in it and 99% of the time drives perfectly, I should terminate ownership.
Moving on to my new car. I've owned it around 3 months now. I knew what car I wanted to replace the 46 with, however my funds wouldn't allow another BMW of the ilk I'd want (E90 335d or an E60 535d) but I did look at the 1 series. The marmite looks do attract me but being quite tall and fat the 5 doors which seem to be the ones in my price range I find difficult to get in and out of. I used to bang my head getting in a friends every time. The 3 door or the coupe would be ideal but out of my budget.
So I wanted something reasonably nippy, certainly no less than the 330, something reliable (touch wood) and a bonus would be something better on fuel. I don't like many Jap cars, a Ep3 Type R I did consider, but I don't find them particularly comfortable. The VAG group was the area I decided to look in. Seat Leon Cupra R's were at the top of my list for a long while. A bit of an underdog, but reasonable handling and performance for a warm hatch and prices were quite low, and a few standard low mileage cars were available. I looked at MK5 Golf GTi's but the badge just added scene tax so I could only really afford high milers. Then I looked at the Octavia vRS. A friend has the diesel variant and I have always liked it, comfortable, relatively nice cabin and what I think is a nice looking car.
I did consider the diesel, still pokey when mapped and the fuel economy along with it, but again purse strings were too tight for the money they were starting at.
I then found a few petrol ones within my price range, and one stood out at what seemed quite good value. 93k miles as apposed to 120k> most were at, recent waterpump and cambelt and other than a scuff on the bumper where he hit the wall coming out of his driveway it was rather nice, and local(ish).
A friend took me to see it, we looked it over and I found a few more areas of the car that wern't described. N/s wing had rub marks on the top, looked like wire wool marks (probably had bird poop on it), and the bonnet had been painted. I questioned the seller but he wasn't aware of it being in an accident (I think he was lying) but I took it for a drive anyway. Car drove spot on apart from brakes being a little disappointing and I went away and had a think.. I bartered him down, which was easy as he had his new car arriving that coming weekend and I took it off of his hands.
I had it up on the ramps with my local indy and they said it's straight as an arrow, but looking at the bonnet and being a chip in an odd place on the A pillar agreed it's been in a minor bump. I can live with that, so long as it's not a lemon. I plan on getting the front resprayed next year but in all honesty nobody else would really tell unless they scrutinised it.
I've had to do a few things already. Firstly was to replace the front discs and pads. I was horrified as to what I found but also not at all surprised. I've posted photos below, and on top of their condition, someone has cut the wear sensor off the pad and just twisted the wires round to stop any low pad warning light. How anyone could do that is beyond me, especially for a £20 part. I replaced them with Brembo Xtra Discs and Brembo pads (with the new wear sensor!). I've also had to have the thermostat replaced as anything above 40mph the temperature gauge dropped below 90 degrees. I'm glad I didn't DIY it as it was a pig of a job on all accounts.
Anyway, it's strange being back in something FWD, that has quite a bit of torque steer (I don't like the Rainsports it has on the front, miss my PS3's on the BM) and the power delivery of the turbo when I first got it was quite addicting!!
Anyway, enough rambling, a few pics:
Moving on to my new car. I've owned it around 3 months now. I knew what car I wanted to replace the 46 with, however my funds wouldn't allow another BMW of the ilk I'd want (E90 335d or an E60 535d) but I did look at the 1 series. The marmite looks do attract me but being quite tall and fat the 5 doors which seem to be the ones in my price range I find difficult to get in and out of. I used to bang my head getting in a friends every time. The 3 door or the coupe would be ideal but out of my budget.
So I wanted something reasonably nippy, certainly no less than the 330, something reliable (touch wood) and a bonus would be something better on fuel. I don't like many Jap cars, a Ep3 Type R I did consider, but I don't find them particularly comfortable. The VAG group was the area I decided to look in. Seat Leon Cupra R's were at the top of my list for a long while. A bit of an underdog, but reasonable handling and performance for a warm hatch and prices were quite low, and a few standard low mileage cars were available. I looked at MK5 Golf GTi's but the badge just added scene tax so I could only really afford high milers. Then I looked at the Octavia vRS. A friend has the diesel variant and I have always liked it, comfortable, relatively nice cabin and what I think is a nice looking car.
I did consider the diesel, still pokey when mapped and the fuel economy along with it, but again purse strings were too tight for the money they were starting at.
I then found a few petrol ones within my price range, and one stood out at what seemed quite good value. 93k miles as apposed to 120k> most were at, recent waterpump and cambelt and other than a scuff on the bumper where he hit the wall coming out of his driveway it was rather nice, and local(ish).
A friend took me to see it, we looked it over and I found a few more areas of the car that wern't described. N/s wing had rub marks on the top, looked like wire wool marks (probably had bird poop on it), and the bonnet had been painted. I questioned the seller but he wasn't aware of it being in an accident (I think he was lying) but I took it for a drive anyway. Car drove spot on apart from brakes being a little disappointing and I went away and had a think.. I bartered him down, which was easy as he had his new car arriving that coming weekend and I took it off of his hands.
I had it up on the ramps with my local indy and they said it's straight as an arrow, but looking at the bonnet and being a chip in an odd place on the A pillar agreed it's been in a minor bump. I can live with that, so long as it's not a lemon. I plan on getting the front resprayed next year but in all honesty nobody else would really tell unless they scrutinised it.
I've had to do a few things already. Firstly was to replace the front discs and pads. I was horrified as to what I found but also not at all surprised. I've posted photos below, and on top of their condition, someone has cut the wear sensor off the pad and just twisted the wires round to stop any low pad warning light. How anyone could do that is beyond me, especially for a £20 part. I replaced them with Brembo Xtra Discs and Brembo pads (with the new wear sensor!). I've also had to have the thermostat replaced as anything above 40mph the temperature gauge dropped below 90 degrees. I'm glad I didn't DIY it as it was a pig of a job on all accounts.
Anyway, it's strange being back in something FWD, that has quite a bit of torque steer (I don't like the Rainsports it has on the front, miss my PS3's on the BM) and the power delivery of the turbo when I first got it was quite addicting!!
Anyway, enough rambling, a few pics:
A 10 year old car with scratches and worn brake pads - shock horror!!!! Sorry but after a recent experience selling a 4 year old Suzuki Swift I'm not sure what people expect these days. Advertised as 'good' condition with 'age related marks/dents' one guy arrived and walking over to the car started with "scratch, dent, scratch, scratch, dent" (before even saying hello).... In the end I told him to increase his budget, go and buy a brand new one and stop wasting my time. This was followed by an older guy who came to view it, briefly, said it was as advertised and handed over the full asking price!
Anyway, lovely car in the best colour and from the pictures looks in good nick. I am biased though!
They respond well to a remap!!
Anyway, lovely car in the best colour and from the pictures looks in good nick. I am biased though!
They respond well to a remap!!
Nice though the colour is, you see a lot of them around in race blue. I'd have rather gone for a different colour if one had been available but I bought mine second hand as well and blue is a lot easier to find.
Have you been out in heavy rain yet? My major bugbear with mine is the bloody door seals leak a bit in heavy rain, really must get round to replacing them. 115k miles so far and other than a dealer cockup* the only non consumable I've had to have replaced was one of the rear brake disk dust covers. Had to get a garage to do it as it seems to be bloody near impossible to get the calipers off without a ramp.
Contisports and Pilot sports both work well IMO, but mines a diesel so heavier tin the nose than yours, not sure how that effects tyre choice
* Had it serviced by a local main dealer who managed to get the fuel filter housing to leak, it dribbled fuel on the auxillary belt which eventually failed, jammed something which in turn threw out the timing belt and resulted in skoda and the garage between them forking out £4.5k for a new head, and then another 3 or 4 visits to the same dealership to sort out the sensors they'd messed up when fixing it. Neadless to say I use a different garage these days.
Have you been out in heavy rain yet? My major bugbear with mine is the bloody door seals leak a bit in heavy rain, really must get round to replacing them. 115k miles so far and other than a dealer cockup* the only non consumable I've had to have replaced was one of the rear brake disk dust covers. Had to get a garage to do it as it seems to be bloody near impossible to get the calipers off without a ramp.
Contisports and Pilot sports both work well IMO, but mines a diesel so heavier tin the nose than yours, not sure how that effects tyre choice
* Had it serviced by a local main dealer who managed to get the fuel filter housing to leak, it dribbled fuel on the auxillary belt which eventually failed, jammed something which in turn threw out the timing belt and resulted in skoda and the garage between them forking out £4.5k for a new head, and then another 3 or 4 visits to the same dealership to sort out the sensors they'd messed up when fixing it. Neadless to say I use a different garage these days.
Edited by RizzoTheRat on Wednesday 7th December 14:01
It does appear there is a distinct difference in expectations of would-be purchasers - a friend sold a '99 Elise earlier in the year and even though it was 16 years old and had about 30k miles, private buyers expected all new suspension & the paint to be in as new condition & yet it was bought by a specialist for a customer in Italy. I often think the best thing on a car over 3 yrs old is to put it through an MOT just before I sell it to indicate how it is as the MOT testers will highlight things many buyers wouldn't look at/think about & to explain it's priced to reflect those things. FWIW, Skodas are still massively underrated although the WM Police use Octavias as traffic cars & have the estate version for their dog units & I'm told the officers who use them rate them highly.
RizzoTheRat said:
Nice though the colour is, you see a lot of them around in race blue. I'd have rather gone for a different colour if one had been available but I bought mine second hand as well and blue is a lot easier to find.
Have you been out in heavy rain yet? My major bugbear with mine is the bloody door seals leak a bit in heavy rain, really must get round to replacing them. 115k miles so far and other than a dealer cockup* the only non consumable I've had to have replaced was one of the rear brake disk dust covers. Had to get a garage to do it as it seems to be bloody near impossible to get the calipers off without a ramp.
Contisports and Pilot sports both work well IMO, but mines a diesel so heavier tin the nose than yours, not sure how that effects tyre choice
* Had it serviced by a local main dealer who managed to get the fuel filter housing to leak, it dribbled fuel on the auxillary belt which eventually failed, jammed something which in turn threw out the timing belt and resulted in skoda and the garage between them forking out £4.5k for a new head, and then another 3 or 4 visits to the same dealership to sort out the sensors they'd messed up when fixing it. Neadless to say I use a different garage these days.
My drivers door seal leaks as well!Have you been out in heavy rain yet? My major bugbear with mine is the bloody door seals leak a bit in heavy rain, really must get round to replacing them. 115k miles so far and other than a dealer cockup* the only non consumable I've had to have replaced was one of the rear brake disk dust covers. Had to get a garage to do it as it seems to be bloody near impossible to get the calipers off without a ramp.
Contisports and Pilot sports both work well IMO, but mines a diesel so heavier tin the nose than yours, not sure how that effects tyre choice
* Had it serviced by a local main dealer who managed to get the fuel filter housing to leak, it dribbled fuel on the auxillary belt which eventually failed, jammed something which in turn threw out the timing belt and resulted in skoda and the garage between them forking out £4.5k for a new head, and then another 3 or 4 visits to the same dealership to sort out the sensors they'd messed up when fixing it. Neadless to say I use a different garage these days.
Edited by RizzoTheRat on Wednesday 7th December 14:01
Maty,/MrC986, I expect a car to be as described, not get there having the for sale advert describe the car as "other than the scuff on the front bumper, the car is mint" slightly over embellishing the actual condition. When I got there the front wing the paint had gone very thin with scouring pad marks in a concentrated area, and paint flaking off on rear edge of the bonnet (thankfully not noticeable unless your sat in the drivers seat). The last is what prompted me to ask about accident damage. I also expect consumables to be worn too, but cutting through a pad warning sensor and twisting the ends around to stop the warning light coming on is a bit 
.
Quite rightly I don't expect a mint car for that age, I never would. I got it for a good price, certainly lower than others with this sort of mileage and other than the little bits mentioned the bodywork is in superb condition, I bought it knowing this and I am quite happy with in.
Thanks for the kind words. I shall be looking into getting it mapped in the new year. I have seen various different predicted figures between different companies, however I think I'll go in expecting a conservative gain and perhaps be a little surprised if it comes out any more.
The face lift looks nice Maty. They come with a few more goodies you can change in VAGCOM compared to mine, however I do have the Maxidot display which I am chuffed about. Are those 17s? My friends diesel is on 17s, mine are 18", not sure if they came larger on the petrol as standard?
As for door seals, I've read they're a common issue. Mine don't leak, touch wood however they squeak quite a bit, drive me crazy. I've found silicone spray and Autoglym vinyl and rubber care illuminates the noise for a while. I'll look into the cost of replacements.
. Quite rightly I don't expect a mint car for that age, I never would. I got it for a good price, certainly lower than others with this sort of mileage and other than the little bits mentioned the bodywork is in superb condition, I bought it knowing this and I am quite happy with in.
Thanks for the kind words. I shall be looking into getting it mapped in the new year. I have seen various different predicted figures between different companies, however I think I'll go in expecting a conservative gain and perhaps be a little surprised if it comes out any more.
The face lift looks nice Maty. They come with a few more goodies you can change in VAGCOM compared to mine, however I do have the Maxidot display which I am chuffed about. Are those 17s? My friends diesel is on 17s, mine are 18", not sure if they came larger on the petrol as standard?
As for door seals, I've read they're a common issue. Mine don't leak, touch wood however they squeak quite a bit, drive me crazy. I've found silicone spray and Autoglym vinyl and rubber care illuminates the noise for a while. I'll look into the cost of replacements.
Apart from that it does look mint to be fair. Trying to hide accident damage though is another story.
Mines on 18" wheels. I would recommend Goodyear eagle F1's for rubber, mines on its 2nd set of fronts now and they are phenomenal! I got 25k out of the first set of fronts which is unheard of for me.
Mine only leaks during prolonged heavy rain, I haven't noticed any squeaking though.
I went for a conservative map as well, took it to 250bhp (though mine is the newer TSi engine). Totally transformed it and didn't really affect economy.
Mine has had a annoying rattle/squeak from the glovebox area since I got it, 2.5 years and 45,000 miles ago. Despite taking the glovebox out many many times I still can't find what causes it, drives me mad!
Mines on 18" wheels. I would recommend Goodyear eagle F1's for rubber, mines on its 2nd set of fronts now and they are phenomenal! I got 25k out of the first set of fronts which is unheard of for me.
Mine only leaks during prolonged heavy rain, I haven't noticed any squeaking though.
I went for a conservative map as well, took it to 250bhp (though mine is the newer TSi engine). Totally transformed it and didn't really affect economy.
Mine has had a annoying rattle/squeak from the glovebox area since I got it, 2.5 years and 45,000 miles ago. Despite taking the glovebox out many many times I still can't find what causes it, drives me mad!
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