New car

[Mysticality]

The car I owned before this vRS, was a 2010 Kia Sorento CRDi. The 2.2ltr turbo diesel is more powerful than the Octy's 2ltr (147kW/436Nm vs 125kW/350Nm)
If you punched it in the dry, the front tyres would chirp and then the rear would kick in, and off it would fly.
0-100 time for the Sorento is 1.5sec more than the vRS TDI, but I reckon in 0-40 its quicker.
AWD is great for this, in something like the vRS.

I've had the Octy for nearly 8 months, now, and the only time I have EVER thought "Man, the AWD would be great here" was at a campsite in the wet, and when hooning through the local neighbourhood, on the way to the hospital.

All other times, including a bit of floodwater, gravel roads, spirited driving and just day to day stuff, the FWD is absolutely fine.

If you're considering a Scout, because its raised, has the plastic panels and AWD, then the vRS is not for you... But if you're tossing up swapping from a Subaru to a vRS, then the lack of AWD shouldn't be a concern.

[dArK5HaD0w]

don't forget the current FL octavia has NOT been ANCAP rated.
the 4-star rating is based on the pre-facelift model.

i seriously considered all the cars u've listed - the liberty gt & 3.0r, the kizashi, the golf gti. the RS clear winner for me.
i'd still buy the RS again over the others again.

with regards to prices - i paid $44k driveaway for mine. options i included were xenons & front parking sensors. i left out alarm, leather, sunroof, bluetooth (since been retrofitted) & mdi.
was a 5 month wait as i did a factory order.

[JustCruisn]

Don't simply believe that because a car is AWD is has better grip than FWD.
A recent test of SUVs found the Honda CRV FWD had better grip than the AWD Forester.
Compact 4WD comparison review

If your flogging any car too much it will slip, you just have to keep in in limits.
Don't forget to factor in the extra fuel Subaru's like to use too.

[woofy]

don't forget the current FL octavia has NOT been ANCAP rated.
the 4-star rating is based on the pre-facelift model.

i seriously considered all the cars u've listed - the liberty gt & 3.0r, the kizashi, the golf gti. the RS clear winner for me.
i'd still buy the RS again over the others again.

with regards to prices - i paid $44k driveaway for mine. options i included were xenons & front parking sensors. i left out alarm, leather, sunroof, bluetooth (since been retrofitted) & mdi.
was a 5 month wait as i did a factory order.

Geeze you either bought when no sales were on or the ACT guys are greedy, I paid $37k driveaway with sunroof and front parking sensors, race blue and it had just hit Australia. From memory VAG Aust chucked in an extra $1k bonus to the dealer so I ended up with a tad more cash for my trade in. Back then though alarms were std but Sat nav wasn't.

Ah just saw you had DSG, that was another $1k or so option but added a wait at the time. Still they weren't keen to sell me another around that price in Nov last year when I was thinking of adding a second to my garage for my work car. Times changed.

[Jake02]

Don't simply believe that because a car is AWD is has better grip than FWD.
A recent test of SUVs found the Honda CRV FWD had better grip than the AWD Forester.
Compact 4WD comparison review

That review may say the CRV is FWD but it isn't - the new CRV in a few months will have a FWD base model. But it is true - AWD doesn't necessarily mean more grip/it's a safer car.

[MarksVRS]

1st & 2nd gear can be frustrating in the wet although I think it is more down to tyre choice. I would not get Dunlops again! Overpriced (quoted $580 per tyre), noisy and not what I consider to be grippy.

I have recently found my front tyres are starting to tear up. There are small chunks of rubber pulling out of the tread so it is time for some new tyres. I do not entirely blame the tyres for that, every time I select second gear I cannot help but have it at the limit of adhesion - love it!

I think any vehicle needs to comply with the laws of physics. The load over the driving wheels, the shifting weight when accelerating and the adhesive properties between the road surface and tyre all play a part. With regards to vehicle load distribution I do not think the VRS suffers, so it comes down to tyre choice and power output.

[swingdoctor]

The facelift in 2009 for the RS from what I understand was just that a facelift. And although the added safety features do make the current RS a safer option then the previous model, it would not still give it a 5 star ANCAP rating. This is because the previous model did not perform well enough in the front offset crash, and no amount of airbags or other safety features would change this unless you redesigned the car. So Skoda has not sent the car to be retested because I assume as they haven't redesigned the body, they knew the newer model would not perform much better from the previous one. And its injuries to mainly the driver rather then the passenger and back seat occupants that is the issue, ie me rather then my kids.

Personally this is not a deal breaker to me, just one of a long list of considerations.

I've not yet driven the car but its still sounding like the best option for me. I'd be getting an auto in a hatch, preferably with leather seats but definitely the best deal I can get haha. I've seen them advertised for $37500 drive away, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed, but I'll probably only look at buying in December/January when hopefully, I can get a better deal.

[DunlopRS]

1st & 2nd gear can be frustrating in the wet although I think it is more down to tyre choice. I would not get Dunlops again! Overpriced (quoted $580 per tyre), noisy and not what I consider to be grippy.

I have recently found my front tyres are starting to tear up. There are small chunks of rubber pulling out of the tread so it is time for some new tyres. I do not entirely blame the tyres for that, every time I select second gear I cannot help but have it at the limit of adhesion - love it!

I think any vehicle needs to comply with the laws of physics. The load over the driving wheels, the shifting weight when accelerating and the adhesive properties between the road surface and tyre all play a part. With regards to vehicle load distribution I do not think the VRS suffers, so it comes down to tyre choice and power output.

MarkVRS – this is a bit off topic but anyway - are these the OEM Dunlop SP Sport Maxx GT 225 40 18s? – how many kms did you get out of them? – Mine came off at about 23000 km to be replaced with 205 55 16s (another story - http://www.vwwatercooled.org.au/foru...vrs-73054.html ) and I think I would have been looking for new ones anyway at 25000km.
My dunlops could NOT put the power down. I was constantly having to take care to not have the wheels spinning. With the 205 55 16s I have to try very hard to get them to spin.. Great outcome for less than 30% of your quoted price……

[woofy]

The facelift in 2009 for the RS from what I understand was just that a facelift. And although the added safety features do make the current RS a safer option then the previous model, it would not still give it a 5 star ANCAP rating. This is because the previous model did not perform well enough in the front offset crash, and no amount of airbags or other safety features would change this unless you redesigned the car. So Skoda has not sent the car to be retested because I assume as they haven't redesigned the body, they knew the newer model would not perform much better from the previous one. And its injuries to mainly the driver rather then the passenger and back seat occupants that is the issue, ie me rather then my kids.

Personally this is not a deal breaker to me, just one of a long list of considerations.

I've not yet driven the car but its still sounding like the best option for me. I'd be getting an auto in a hatch, preferably with leather seats but definitely the best deal I can get haha. I've seen them advertised for $37500 drive away, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed, but I'll probably only look at buying in December/January when hopefully, I can get a better deal.

Nope, the testing predates the current shape, it was last done in 2004 I believe, the first Skodas we had here were already different, the fl was minor but even mine which was just pre FL was different to the series I which the tests were based on.

[bobski]

One of the first things I did with my Octavia was take a long trip down to Adelaide and Kangaroo island. Where I found on slick wet dirt roads, that AWD is now not required for general purpose driving. The stability control systems these days makes it very hard to get yourself into serious situations, so I think the AWD question is a furfy unless you want to rally cross or track day it.

The Octavia, as stated will spin the wheels on takeoff (especially the TSI), however it has very little torque steer and I've never felt unsafe giving it heaps off the line (again the computer works this out). It performs very well in the wet and dry.

So for your question, If it was me, I think the key differences with the Audi. Refinement (The Audi has much better road noise isolation), servicing costs (That badge could mean pain!), price (obviously - and you lose a LOT more money driving it off the lot).

Safety didn't come into it for me as much - I had thought that the difference was that they hadn't tested the new model with curtain air bags (sounds like its not completely true). However even knowing that, I doubt it'd make a difference to me now.