RE: Skoda Octavia vRS 230 Estate: PH Fleet
Wednesday 26th October 2016
When it arrived back in April with just 56 miles on the clock we knew we'd be keeping KY16 HLC busy, but nobody was expecting it to cover quite so much ground. With Skoda now having collected the car, it's time to look back on the Octavia's adventures over the past six months and 15,000 miles.
Meteor Grey paint a popular optionAfter the expected new car excitement when it arrived, I was initially a little disappointed with the vRS. This wasn't because the car turned up in with the wrong options on it; we'd been allowed to specify the car exactly how we liked, albeit with a £30K limit to prevent anything too extravagant being added. No, to start with the car was just a bit underwhelming because it was neither fast nor economical. It was scoring top marks for practicality with regular trips to the tip being taken in its stride, but even as we nudged past 1,500 miles things hadn't improved. So we did what any PHer would do; we went on atrack day, which ended up being the first of many!
Interior has stood up well to hard useDespite all of this praise, it wasn't all plain sailing for the car during its time with us. First of all, from the very first time I drove the car quickly I felt that the VAQ 'diff' wasn't working as effectively as I'd experienced in other cars with the same hardware. We eventually found out from Skoda that the hardware was identical to that found in cars such as the Golf GTI Performance Pack and SEAT Leon Cupra, so we arranged to take them all along to a suitably drenched Donington Park. Ultimately it seems that the calibration is just a bit less aggressive in the Skoda, perhaps reflecting the car's nature or - the cynical view - to maintain the brand pecking order by keeping its wings clipped a tad. Tuning companies such as Revo are working on ECU upgrades for the VAQ system, which is something that should make a massive impact on performance driving without affecting everyday use. After all, what's the point of a switchable electronic system if it's not possible to have the best of both worlds and extreme settings at each end of the scale?
Practical, fast and good value? Perfect PH wagon!This service and health check also did a great job of preparing the Skoda for an epic European road trip that we'd been planning since the car had arrived. The plan was to load the car up with camping equipment and bikes, head to Italy to do some riding and watch the UCI Mountain Bike DH World Championships. Six days and over 2,000 miles later I was in no doubt that the Skoda was perfectly suited to this type of journey, with a great mix of comfort, practicality, economy and - most importantly from a PH perspective - fun when the Autobahns turned into mountain passes.
Skoda Octavia vRS 230 Estate: PH Fleet
Track days, tip runs, three Le Mans trips and more; farewell Octavia vRS, it's been fun!
Meteor Grey paint a popular option
Following this the car was transformed, and for the remainder of its time with us it continued to impress with its mix of comfort, practicality and performance. It wasn't just us either, with the car drawing a surprising amount of attention both on the forums and at Sunday Services.
Given the attributes mentioned above, the car was always going to be central to our activities at Le Mans and we certainly capitalised on it. After kitting it out with a roof box and Velospace cycle carrier courtesy of Thule and decal kit from Wrap Cube, the car was ready and proved to be an ideal companion. In the end the car made three separate trips to France, which helps explain our impressive mileage tally!
By this point the Skoda had really started to endear itself to me. I guess that I'd just spent such an extreme amount of time behind the wheel that I felt absolutely at home in the car. Here at PH we're lucky enough to get time in a wide and varied range of fast cars, but despite this I never once felt like I'd drawn the short straw with the Octavia.
Interior has stood up well to hard use
At about the same time the car's battery went flat after it had been left parked up for 10 days. Hilarity ensued when we couldn't unlock the deadlocked passenger door and therefore couldn't open the bonnet to jump start it either. Luckily a nice man called Paul from the AA saved the day, but it did leave us scratching our heads both as to how Skoda had made such an oversight and why the car had gone flat in the first place. After this the car had a a few warnings lights popping up sporadically, so the car went back to Skoda as a precaution. After completing a full inspection no reason for the battery going flat was ever found, and we never had any other issues. Very strange, but the bonus was that Skoda fitted a new pair of front tyres which were looking tired after 11,000 miles and several track days.
Practical, fast and good value? Perfect PH wagon!
Clearly it was more than just us convinced by the Skoda's abilities over the past six months, as several of you have told us that you have taken the plunge and bought one for yourself. But after all that time and all those miles, would I change anything? Well, yes. Aside from the calibration of the VAQ system there are some options which I'd choose differently. The first being the heated rear passenger seats which at £200 I specified in error, mistaking them for heated front seats (which are fitted as standard). This was a waste of money as only my dog ever got use out of them, and the money could have been put towards the upgraded Canton sound system. OK, it is £1,000, but after a while the standard speakers got a bit crackly and it started to limit the available music volume. Aside from these minor things, I don't really have any criticisms.
After six months, 15,000 miles and numerous adventures, road trips, commutes and track days, I really enjoyed driving the car and am certainly going to miss it. I even grew to like the controversial 'Extreme' 19-inch alloy wheels. There, I said it.
FACT SHEET
Car: 2016 Skoda Octavia vRS 230 Estate
Run by: James
On fleet since: April 2016
Mileage: 15,xxx
List price new: £29,910 (Basic list of £27,800 plus £550 for tow bar, £765 for Adaptive Cruise Control, Crew Protection Assist for £150, Heated seats for £200, Simply Clever package for £85 and Meteor Grey paint for £360)
Last month at a glance: There's an Octavia sized whole in James's life as the vRS departs
Previous reports:
Yes, really, a grey Skoda estate on the PH Fleet
Practical family estate into track car does go!
Two trips to Le Mans down, another one to go...
Octavia gets down to some hard graft
Diff explorations, DIY and a flat battery
Continental road trip for the vRS
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Images: Ben Lowden
Discussion
I've enjoyed reading about this car because it's something I can actually imagine owning - good work.
Question though: you said you found it neither fast nor economical at the start, but then you loved it after a track day. Did something actually change? Did it need running in? Was it, in fact, on a running-in map initially or something?
Question though: you said you found it neither fast nor economical at the start, but then you loved it after a track day. Did something actually change? Did it need running in? Was it, in fact, on a running-in map initially or something?
MajorMantra said:
I've enjoyed reading about this car because it's something I can actually imagine owning - good work.
Question though: you said you found it neither fast nor economical at the start, but then you loved it after a track day. Did something actually change? Did it need running in? Was it, in fact, on a running-in map initially or something?
Thanks, we aim to please! In answer to your question, I guess it just needed a good thrashing to run it in!Question though: you said you found it neither fast nor economical at the start, but then you loved it after a track day. Did something actually change? Did it need running in? Was it, in fact, on a running-in map initially or something?
JD
The petrol may be good, but I certainly wouldn't recommend the diesel version. We've got one at the moment for hauling the dogs around and the engine is awful, it certainly doesn't feel like 184 PS, especially considering its a reasonably light car for its size. I'm sure our old A3 2.0 tdi PD 138 felt quicker, and it wasn't much lighter.
Although there's some negatives which will be the same or similar in the petrol. Such as the terrible steering, which is even poor by electric power steering standards. Also excessive wind noise at higher speeds, which I think I've read in reviews elsewhere as well. The ride is rather poor, even on the 18's, our Scirocco R is much better in any of it's damper modes.
Though I must be getting old, I'm mainly becoming tired of the very competent but rather dull / boring modern cars. Admittedly having two modern VAG cars won't help with that. Although I didn't find my M135i particularly interesting either. I'll probably go for something a bit older next, with more 'character', which will require constant maintenance and repairs, after which I'll want something new again that's less hassle. The never ending dilemma.
Although there's some negatives which will be the same or similar in the petrol. Such as the terrible steering, which is even poor by electric power steering standards. Also excessive wind noise at higher speeds, which I think I've read in reviews elsewhere as well. The ride is rather poor, even on the 18's, our Scirocco R is much better in any of it's damper modes.
Though I must be getting old, I'm mainly becoming tired of the very competent but rather dull / boring modern cars. Admittedly having two modern VAG cars won't help with that. Although I didn't find my M135i particularly interesting either. I'll probably go for something a bit older next, with more 'character', which will require constant maintenance and repairs, after which I'll want something new again that's less hassle. The never ending dilemma.
Nice write up.
I'm very happy with mine - virtually identical spec too (meteor grey 230 estate) but my hound has to cope without the rear heated seats though. Mine was new March this year and is is in today for first service @ just under 18k miles.
My experience is similar also ref the mpg and performance - mine hasn't seen track days but it got noticeably quicker once i'd gone over 10k miles or thereabouts. I've had several fast cars in the past and i have to say that once run-in properly, the skoda feels a LOT stronger than 230ps.
Shame Skoda UK no longer list this model - it really will be a struggle to come up with a suitable replacement when the time comes. Yes there is a superb with 280ps and haldex but it's 33k ffs!
I'm very happy with mine - virtually identical spec too (meteor grey 230 estate) but my hound has to cope without the rear heated seats though. Mine was new March this year and is is in today for first service @ just under 18k miles.
My experience is similar also ref the mpg and performance - mine hasn't seen track days but it got noticeably quicker once i'd gone over 10k miles or thereabouts. I've had several fast cars in the past and i have to say that once run-in properly, the skoda feels a LOT stronger than 230ps.
Shame Skoda UK no longer list this model - it really will be a struggle to come up with a suitable replacement when the time comes. Yes there is a superb with 280ps and haldex but it's 33k ffs!
dollyboy said:
The petrol may be good, but I certainly wouldn't recommend the diesel version. We've got one at the moment for hauling the dogs around and the engine is awful, it certainly doesn't feel like 184 PS, especially considering its a reasonably light car for its size. I'm sure our old A3 2.0 tdi PD 138 felt quicker, and it wasn't much lighter.
Although there's some negatives which will be the same or similar in the petrol. Such as the terrible steering, which is even poor by electric power steering standards. Also excessive wind noise at higher speeds, which I think I've read in reviews elsewhere as well. The ride is rather poor, even on the 18's, our Scirocco R is much better in any of it's damper modes.
Though I must be getting old, I'm mainly becoming tired of the very competent but rather dull / boring modern cars. Admittedly having two modern VAG cars won't help with that. Although I didn't find my M135i particularly interesting either. I'll probably go for something a bit older next, with more 'character', which will require constant maintenance and repairs, after which I'll want something new again that's less hassle. The never ending dilemma.
My brother has the vRS TDi and says exactly the same thing; it's a dog of an engine.Although there's some negatives which will be the same or similar in the petrol. Such as the terrible steering, which is even poor by electric power steering standards. Also excessive wind noise at higher speeds, which I think I've read in reviews elsewhere as well. The ride is rather poor, even on the 18's, our Scirocco R is much better in any of it's damper modes.
Though I must be getting old, I'm mainly becoming tired of the very competent but rather dull / boring modern cars. Admittedly having two modern VAG cars won't help with that. Although I didn't find my M135i particularly interesting either. I'll probably go for something a bit older next, with more 'character', which will require constant maintenance and repairs, after which I'll want something new again that's less hassle. The never ending dilemma.
For excitement maybe you need a motorcycle...
Baldchap said:
My brother has the vRS TDi and says exactly the same thing; it's a dog of an engine.
For excitement maybe you need a motorcycle...
Glad I'm not the only one that thinks that. Although my missus hates it even more than me, which I suppose was inevitable after her modified WRX wagon. Resulting in me giving her my Scirocco R and I'm putting up with the vRS.For excitement maybe you need a motorcycle...
I've thought that about a motorcycle, I keep considering of doing my test and maybe getting a Triumph Street/Speed Triple. But I'm not sure I'd trust myself with one. I managed to put my 50cc scooter into a ditch when I was 18, so not sure if I should be allowed a real bike, haha.
Considering a E90 M3, not too old, but hopefully still has some character? Hmm....
dollyboy said:
The petrol may be good, but I certainly wouldn't recommend the diesel version. We've got one at the moment for hauling the dogs around and the engine is awful, it certainly doesn't feel like 184 PS, especially considering its a reasonably light car for its size. I'm sure our old A3 2.0 tdi PD 138 felt quicker, and it wasn't much lighter.
Although there's some negatives which will be the same or similar in the petrol. Such as the terrible steering, which is even poor by electric power steering standards. Also excessive wind noise at higher speeds, which I think I've read in reviews elsewhere as well. The ride is rather poor, even on the 18's, our Scirocco R is much better in any of it's damper modes.
Though I must be getting old, I'm mainly becoming tired of the very competent but rather dull / boring modern cars. Admittedly having two modern VAG cars won't help with that. Although I didn't find my M135i particularly interesting either. I'll probably go for something a bit older next, with more 'character', which will require constant maintenance and repairs, after which I'll want something new again that's less hassle. The never ending dilemma.
A bit of balance...Although there's some negatives which will be the same or similar in the petrol. Such as the terrible steering, which is even poor by electric power steering standards. Also excessive wind noise at higher speeds, which I think I've read in reviews elsewhere as well. The ride is rather poor, even on the 18's, our Scirocco R is much better in any of it's damper modes.
Though I must be getting old, I'm mainly becoming tired of the very competent but rather dull / boring modern cars. Admittedly having two modern VAG cars won't help with that. Although I didn't find my M135i particularly interesting either. I'll probably go for something a bit older next, with more 'character', which will require constant maintenance and repairs, after which I'll want something new again that's less hassle. The never ending dilemma.
The petrol engine is a much nicer experience than the diesel engine. It is significantly more smooth and linear, with less "off boost" sensation, than the previous TFSI unit.
The steering has no feel. It is nicely accurate though but if you get your kicks from steering feel, this ain't your car. That said, the Focus ST is only slightly less rubbish in this respect.
The driver aids/lane assist is a bit weird at first but less intrusive than you'd think. It's more of a suggestive tug than a yank on your hands. That description will be anathema to most PHers but it's better than it looks written down by me.
Wind noise seems to be variably reported, and send to be down to individual cars. Bad ones are annoying. Good ones are fine. How lucky do you feel? I'd recommend a good long high speed run if you're buying second hand to make sure you have a good one.
James Drake said:
MajorMantra said:
I've enjoyed reading about this car because it's something I can actually imagine owning - good work.
Question though: you said you found it neither fast nor economical at the start, but then you loved it after a track day. Did something actually change? Did it need running in? Was it, in fact, on a running-in map initially or something?
Thanks, we aim to please! In answer to your question, I guess it just needed a good thrashing to run it in!Question though: you said you found it neither fast nor economical at the start, but then you loved it after a track day. Did something actually change? Did it need running in? Was it, in fact, on a running-in map initially or something?
JD
I'd also second the comments about wind-noise (pretty bad actually - not sure how that got signed-off at design/prototyping) and ride quality (ditto - almost no different to my FD2 Civic Type R, shockingly enough - slightly better at low speed, worse at high speed). Suspect the main culprit in ride quality is overly-heavy 19" wheels with 35-profile tyres - makes the handling feel rather "heavy" and Teutonic too, unfortunately.
Otherwise it's a genuinely lovely piece of kit, albeit very modern and very VAG.
blearyeyedboy said:
A bit of balance...
The petrol engine is a much nicer experience than the diesel engine. It is significantly more smooth and linear, with less "off boost" sensation, than the previous TFSI unit.
The steering has no feel. It is nicely accurate though but if you get your kicks from steering feel, this ain't your car. That said, the Focus ST is only slightly less rubbish in this respect.
The driver aids/lane assist is a bit weird at first but less intrusive than you'd think. It's more of a suggestive tug than a yank on your hands. That description will be anathema to most PHers but it's better than it looks written down by me.
Wind noise seems to be variably reported, and send to be down to individual cars. Bad ones are annoying. Good ones are fine. How lucky do you feel? I'd recommend a good long high speed run if you're buying second hand to make sure you have a good one.
I thought that may be the case with the wind noise, I'm sure they can't all be like that. The petrol engine is a much nicer experience than the diesel engine. It is significantly more smooth and linear, with less "off boost" sensation, than the previous TFSI unit.
The steering has no feel. It is nicely accurate though but if you get your kicks from steering feel, this ain't your car. That said, the Focus ST is only slightly less rubbish in this respect.
The driver aids/lane assist is a bit weird at first but less intrusive than you'd think. It's more of a suggestive tug than a yank on your hands. That description will be anathema to most PHers but it's better than it looks written down by me.
Wind noise seems to be variably reported, and send to be down to individual cars. Bad ones are annoying. Good ones are fine. How lucky do you feel? I'd recommend a good long high speed run if you're buying second hand to make sure you have a good one.
I suppose I should have put some positives though as well, it is a nice place to be, I do quite like the interior and it's well equipped. And as an estate car it should have enough space for most people's needs.
Back to the negatives. Ours has done about 7000 miles now and I don't think I've averaged much above 40 mpg. But with the lack of performance and the poor mpg maybe ours has an issue, I've thought about taking it in to a main dealer, but I don't really have much faith in them and doubt they'd resolve anything. But as a commissioning engineer that's just me being sceptical.
One silly little thing that irritates me is the throttle pedal, it seems they use the same pedal in the manual and dsg, to save money, so the manual still has a switch at the bottom of its travel which would be used for kickdown. The switch actuation is very noticeable and just feels wrong in a manual where it has no function.
Oh and why can't VAG make the sat nav accept Uk postcodes? Surely that's what most people want to use.
havoc said:
I'm in the process of rejecting mine (contract hire - within the 5-day permitted period) due to the poor economy (28mpg from first tank driven with deference to running-in, on a 32-mile mixed-road commute where the Civic easily matches/beats it's official Combined mpg- unlike the claimed 45mpg Combined for the Skoda) - be interested to hear how your experience started and evolved in more detail, if you wouldn't mind?
I'd also second the comments about wind-noise (pretty bad actually - not sure how that got signed-off at design/prototyping) and ride quality (ditto - almost no different to my FD2 Civic Type R, shockingly enough - slightly better at low speed, worse at high speed). Suspect the main culprit in ride quality is overly-heavy 19" wheels with 35-profile tyres - makes the handling feel rather "heavy" and Teutonic too, unfortunately.
Otherwise it's a genuinely lovely piece of kit, albeit very modern and very VAG.
Our car went from averaging about 27mpg for the first 1,500 miles to about 34 - 36mpg after our track day! Obviously MPG figures are tricky because it depends on driving style, the type of journey etc but that's my experience. I'd also second the comments about wind-noise (pretty bad actually - not sure how that got signed-off at design/prototyping) and ride quality (ditto - almost no different to my FD2 Civic Type R, shockingly enough - slightly better at low speed, worse at high speed). Suspect the main culprit in ride quality is overly-heavy 19" wheels with 35-profile tyres - makes the handling feel rather "heavy" and Teutonic too, unfortunately.
Otherwise it's a genuinely lovely piece of kit, albeit very modern and very VAG.
We also never found excessive wind noise to be a problem on our test car. I wonder if there is inconsistency in the manufacturing process or if the door / window seals are sensitive to how they've been installed? One thing I did notice was a slight increase at higher speeds after we had a new screen fitted following a large stone chip, but again this was fairly minor (you had to listen for it)
With regards to the ride, that's also an interesting one as we found the ride was a bit brittle at low speed but as expected (for what is effectively a hot hatch) once up to speed. Out of interest is your car a hatch back or estate? Also, what brand of tyres are fitted to it? When you say the handing felt heavy were you using the vRS driving mode? I only ask as this setting makes the steering much heavier - and as such we never used our car in that mode.
JD
Aaron_W said:
Something I'm curious to is how does the Skoda behave compared to say, a Leon Cupra or Golf GTI under hard driving?
I can't comment on the latest Cupra or GTI, but I used to have a 2008 Leon Cupra and the handling was in a different league to our vRS, but of course our diesel doesn't have the clever diff of the 230, and more weight over the front end.havoc said:
I'm in the process of rejecting mine (contract hire - within the 5-day permitted period) due to the poor economy (28mpg from first tank driven with deference to running-in, on a 32-mile mixed-road commute where the Civic easily matches/beats it's official Combined mpg- unlike the claimed 45mpg Combined for the Skoda) - be interested to hear how your experience started and evolved in more detail, if you wouldn't mind?
I'd also second the comments about wind-noise (pretty bad actually - not sure how that got signed-off at design/prototyping) and ride quality (ditto - almost no different to my FD2 Civic Type R, shockingly enough - slightly better at low speed, worse at high speed). Suspect the main culprit in ride quality is overly-heavy 19" wheels with 35-profile tyres - makes the handling feel rather "heavy" and Teutonic too, unfortunately.
Otherwise it's a genuinely lovely piece of kit, albeit very modern and very VAG.
You'd think the 19's would be issue, but still poor on 18's as well. I'd also second the comments about wind-noise (pretty bad actually - not sure how that got signed-off at design/prototyping) and ride quality (ditto - almost no different to my FD2 Civic Type R, shockingly enough - slightly better at low speed, worse at high speed). Suspect the main culprit in ride quality is overly-heavy 19" wheels with 35-profile tyres - makes the handling feel rather "heavy" and Teutonic too, unfortunately.
Otherwise it's a genuinely lovely piece of kit, albeit very modern and very VAG.
The Scirocco R has 19's with 35 profile tyres and it rides much better than the vRS on 18's. Admittedly the Scirocco has variable dampers as standard, but even on the firmest setting the ride is as good if not better than the vRS on 18's, in comfort or normal it's significantly better than the vRS.
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