Purchase price of a Skoda vRS Octavia Wagon MY11

[hmoon101]

Oh, and as others have said, seems a Standard Octavia should be compared to your Mazda 6, not so much the vRS

That's exactly what I did and went for Octy 118 TSI, have never looked back since.

[RSOK]

Hmmm certainly not the first time I've heard of potential Skoda customers being put off by poor dealer customer service, inc woeful product knowledge. I must admit that the customer service from my local Mazda dealer was first rate, and while I still ended up buying the Octavia over the 6 on the strength of the car itself, I can see why many folks would immediately ignore a Skoda based on the poor customer service when they rocked up to a dealer to make inquiries and test drive, only to be confronted with a saleman who doesn't know his sh*t and who cannot answer their queries with facts.

Can't help but agree with some of the comments above about the vehicles though...don't get me wrong, I thought the 6 was a decent car but not quite up the the build and interior quality of the Octavia...nor the same driving experience. Luckily I knew my facts and had done my research and didn't need to rely on a salesman's advice/spin.

For some a car is a purchase with the head, for others like me it was more a purchase of the heart (ie what satisfies me and leaves me smiling... depreciation be damned, lidded-cup holders be damned...I want the car that I enjoy DRIVING as well as it fits my family's needs...both the Octavia and 6 wagons fit my needs, but it was the Octavia I enjoyed driving more).

[VAG newbie]

It's a good point to make about the 118 - which is what I asked the dealer to see. But he was useless and didn't have any 118's in stock for a test drive. The Scout is a bit drippy off the line for my tastes.

I've been reading a few horror stories about the Mazda diesel, but pretty much exclusively refers to the previous 2 litre engine. It would be nice to be able to wait for the next generation Octavia and Mazda due in late 2012/early 2013, but very easy to fall into the trap of waiting for the next big thing.

One option (gulp) is to pick up a SIDI Commonwhore wagon in 6 months time - under $20000 from a stealer with 3 year extended warranty. 9.3l per 100km with decent straight line speed and plenty big boot. Live without leather, but seat covers are easy to find for Aussie cars. Pootle around in that for a couple of years then flog it off for $5000-$8000 depreciation. Then look at next gen stuff.

As a father of 2 young boys (4&3), I would suggest you to consider the Superb wagon if SUV is not your taste. When I bought my Honda Euro, I said to myself, these boys are tiny, they don't need the rear leg room, so I went with the Euro.

You will be surprised how quick they grow. My boys are small compare to others in their age, yet both weigh over 17kg now. To put them into the child seat and fasten the seat belt in a tight rear space is a real strain to my back. Seriously! There is a reason that Commodore and Falcon have been Australia's favorite family car for years, and is only now taken by SUVs. That's why I'm letting my Euro go and getting a Superb now.

A 103TDI Superb wagon's RRP is $40990, but I am sure you can get it as driveaway price easily. It has park assist as standard, so all your parking sensors are there. Built quality will be miles ahead (it's in par with Audi A6!), 5 star safety (9 airbags!!) and not to mention heaps of rear leg room and the gigantic boot space! Yes, you will lose out on the leather and electric seat. But both can be opted, and if you are lucky, you should be able to pick up a demo elegance with all the features for similar money.

You can enjoy the performance and handling of your GTi now. But really, once you are a father, the safety and well being of your kids will become your priority, and you won't need those extra performance. A 103TDI should give you enough power for safe overtaking. Otherwise, a 118TSI mated with DSG in a superb will still give you a 0-100kph in 8.4 sec.

It's just my 2 cents as a father. Trust me, life is completely different when you are a dad!

[brad]

VAG Newbie proves that opinions vary like the weather.

i have a 14yo (165cm) & a 10yo (157cm) & they are both happy in the Octy - once they are in. I cant remeber having an issue getting them or the baby/booster seats in any of the vehicles we've owned in the last 14 years but we did sell a Suzuki Swift when the #1 was born. Mostly, I had medium cars (U13 Bluebird, Gen2 liberty, Mk3.5 cabrio & Octy sedan), wife had work cars that were mandated by her employers (about 10 falcadore sedans/wagons, 2x toyota Avensis verso 7seat, holden Captiva 7 seat, mitsubishi Outlander 7 seat, Subaru Outback). I did about half of the child ferrying & never had an issue getting the kids in & out of the smaller cars. Bigger just means you cart more junk around with you.

The kids favourite car has been the mk3.5 Cabrio with the roof down. The really like the turbo power in the Octy too. While I do drive a bit slower with the kids in the car, it isn't markedly so. A gutless car is just as big a safety hazard as a powerful car. Also, what % of time are the kids in the car? In my case, maybe 10% max, so no point buying a car just for the kids.