Skoda Superb estate - which one to go for?
Discussion
Hi all, I've been drawn to these over the weekend and have been into my local dealership for a nosey about - they had no cars available to test drive today so going back on Saturday but looking for some owners opinions on what to request a drive in as there is about 10-15 combinations of engine, drivetrain and gearbox.
DSG or manual?
1.8T Petrol or 2.0 Diesel (and if so is 140bhp ok or does it need 170bhp)?
4x4 worth getting?
I'm essentially looking for a new or up to 1 year old huge estate car with good levels of kit, leather, loads of room and above all for it to be well screwed together with reasonable running costs - the Superb estate in Elegance trim seems to tick all the boxes.
Or should I go for an Octavia estate, they don't seem that much smaller....
DSG or manual?
1.8T Petrol or 2.0 Diesel (and if so is 140bhp ok or does it need 170bhp)?
4x4 worth getting?
I'm essentially looking for a new or up to 1 year old huge estate car with good levels of kit, leather, loads of room and above all for it to be well screwed together with reasonable running costs - the Superb estate in Elegance trim seems to tick all the boxes.
Or should I go for an Octavia estate, they don't seem that much smaller....
5678 said:
the seats are awful and many people struggle with them. It stopped it even being an option for us as any more than an 45-60 minutes caused problems.
Is that the same with all models, they had a greenline in the showroom with cloth seats and an SE with half leather/half alcantara but the Elegance has full leather - they look like differently shaped seats so I wonder if they all suffer the same problem?yellowbentines said:
5678 said:
the seats are awful and many people struggle with them. It stopped it even being an option for us as any more than an 45-60 minutes caused problems.
Is that the same with all models, they had a greenline in the showroom with cloth seats and an SE with half leather/half alcantara but the Elegance has full leather - they look like differently shaped seats so I wonder if they all suffer the same problem?Personal preference accepted, a LOT of people struggle with the seats.
PaperCut said:
Surely it's down to your own preference
Absolutely, but just looking for feedback, the 4x4 may be pointless, the DSG unreliable, the 140 bhp diesel easily taken to 170bhp with a cheap remap etc etc.Like I say there's so many combinations that I'd be surprised if any dealer will be able to get hold of all of them for me to drive!
My own thoughts initially are petrol with the DSG box, 4x4 preferable but not essential. I don't know how problematic the DSG can be, and if manual is better for longevity - this is a car I plan to keep forever!
Bullett said:
I went with the intention of getting an estate Octavia but the boot on the normal one is massive and fine for my needs (I got as much stuff in as my mate did in his A4 Avant) I find the VRS seats which I think are different to the std excellent.
I went in to look at the Superb but did sit in a rather nice black Octavia VRS estate in the showroom which is an outside choice. It has to be an estate though for the shape of load bay, it'll be needed to take large "squarer" items.My colleague has a V6 4x4 DSG Elegance. Its pretty nippy and huge. And very good equipment levels. Well worth it if you want a fast waft-o-barge full of toys and with the passenger room and luggage space of the QEII. Just dont think about the MPG and road tax though.
I looked at getting the 4x4 V6 in saloon/hatchback but in the end I got hatchback petrol Octavia vRS with DSG mostly because im a bit of a chav when it comes to cars and the vRS is definitely better suited to chavving up
I looked at getting the 4x4 V6 in saloon/hatchback but in the end I got hatchback petrol Octavia vRS with DSG mostly because im a bit of a chav when it comes to cars and the vRS is definitely better suited to chavving up
Edited by veryRS on Monday 26th March 14:52
The seat base is quite short so if you have long legs it probably won't suit you. As I am short the seats are very good for me. I would go for the 170 TDi or the 1.8 TSi. I have the 170 TDi as it's a company car and I also tow with it - if you don't need the slightly better economy of the diesel then the petrol one would be a good choice. The 140 TDi is a bit lethargic so 170 is preferable if you want diesel. I went for the DSG and am very happy with it - I mostly use it in auto mode and just use the left hand paddle to drop a gear or two if I need a quick burst of acceleration and don't want to wait for the box to wake up.
Elegance trim has a comprehensive kit list but I added electric boot, park assist (never used it but it's not much more than adding front parking sensors), tinted glass, flappy paddle steering wheel (you have to!), heated washer jets, MDI (not necessary as there is an SD card slot but just in case I want to plug an iPod in) and tow bar preparation.
I actually found that in my required spec, the Superb worked out slightly cheaper than the Octavia (which would have been a vRS model) as it comes with more kit to start with.
Elegance trim has a comprehensive kit list but I added electric boot, park assist (never used it but it's not much more than adding front parking sensors), tinted glass, flappy paddle steering wheel (you have to!), heated washer jets, MDI (not necessary as there is an SD card slot but just in case I want to plug an iPod in) and tow bar preparation.
I actually found that in my required spec, the Superb worked out slightly cheaper than the Octavia (which would have been a vRS model) as it comes with more kit to start with.
3.6 V6 DSG 4x4 Elegance , 4 exhausts, yes I know bit chavvy.
Problem Skoda have with this car is that the quality of the leather is not brilliant, and the carpets are the sort of quality that I might consider putting down in the shed on an allotment, but not in a top of range car.
Don't have any issues with the seat comfort, some people have had enormous trouble with left leg being interfered with by the centre console, many people have reported that it takes them a long time to find the ideal position, but once found it's OK.
In my opinion Skoda really missed a trick with the L&K, instead of putting that farce of an interior with acres of really brown leather, broken up by large islands of dark grey plasticky plastic mouldings, they'd have done far better to have really sorted the quality of the materials.
Problem Skoda have with this car is that the quality of the leather is not brilliant, and the carpets are the sort of quality that I might consider putting down in the shed on an allotment, but not in a top of range car.
Don't have any issues with the seat comfort, some people have had enormous trouble with left leg being interfered with by the centre console, many people have reported that it takes them a long time to find the ideal position, but once found it's OK.
In my opinion Skoda really missed a trick with the L&K, instead of putting that farce of an interior with acres of really brown leather, broken up by large islands of dark grey plasticky plastic mouldings, they'd have done far better to have really sorted the quality of the materials.
F i F said:
3.6 V6 DSG 4x4 Elegance , 4 exhausts, yes I know bit chavvy.
Problem Skoda have with this car is that the quality of the leather is not brilliant, and the carpets are the sort of quality that I might consider putting down in the shed on an allotment, but not in a top of range car.
Don't have any issues with the seat comfort, some people have had enormous trouble with left leg being interfered with by the centre console, many people have reported that it takes them a long time to find the ideal position, but once found it's OK.
In my opinion Skoda really missed a trick with the L&K, instead of putting that farce of an interior with acres of really brown leather, broken up by large islands of dark grey plasticky plastic mouldings, they'd have done far better to have really sorted the quality of the materials.
Agree with all of that. But if you want that level of finish, buy the Audi equivalent! It's the quality of material where they save the money.Problem Skoda have with this car is that the quality of the leather is not brilliant, and the carpets are the sort of quality that I might consider putting down in the shed on an allotment, but not in a top of range car.
Don't have any issues with the seat comfort, some people have had enormous trouble with left leg being interfered with by the centre console, many people have reported that it takes them a long time to find the ideal position, but once found it's OK.
In my opinion Skoda really missed a trick with the L&K, instead of putting that farce of an interior with acres of really brown leather, broken up by large islands of dark grey plasticky plastic mouldings, they'd have done far better to have really sorted the quality of the materials.
5678 said:
Agree with all of that. But if you want that level of finish, buy the Audi equivalent! It's the quality of material where they save the money.
I agree, the Audi interiors are IMO wonderful, however 2 things put me off, price and image - I'd never thought the day would come where I say it but I much prefer the image of the nicer Skodas than that of an Audi. I'll gladly sacrifice a lesser quality of material if it's properly screwed together, I'm not going to be doing any Top Gear dashboard scratch-tests!In terms of boot space they both (Octavia and Superb) seem bigger than their class equivalents as they both have very low deep boot floors - the Octavia seems bigger than my brother-in-law's C-Class estate. With regards to seat base, I'm not that tall, 5'10" and not particularly lardy, so I hope I can get on with the seats ok.
Thanks for all the replies so far.
yellowbentines said:
I agree, the Audi interiors are IMO wonderful, however 2 things put me off, price and image - I'd never thought the day would come where I say it but I much prefer the image of the nicer Skodas than that of an Audi. I'll gladly sacrifice a lesser quality of material if it's properly screwed together, I'm not going to be doing any Top Gear dashboard scratch-tests!
In terms of boot space they both (Octavia and Superb) seem bigger than their class equivalents as they both have very low deep boot floors - the Octavia seems bigger than my brother-in-law's C-Class estate. With regards to seat base, I'm not that tall, 5'10" and not particularly lardy, so I hope I can get on with the seats ok.
Thanks for all the replies so far.
I had to put my reservation about the image (imagine!) when ordering my A6. After looking at pretty much everything in and around class though, it was the best package/deal. In terms of boot space they both (Octavia and Superb) seem bigger than their class equivalents as they both have very low deep boot floors - the Octavia seems bigger than my brother-in-law's C-Class estate. With regards to seat base, I'm not that tall, 5'10" and not particularly lardy, so I hope I can get on with the seats ok.
Thanks for all the replies so far.
I do agree about the Skoda models appearing to have more space compared to otehr models in class. The Superb especially. I don't know how they manage the boot space AND keep the rear leg room that they do.
Beefmeister said:
You can't get DSG with the 170 TDi.
Really? See, these are things I need to know!The car isn't going to be used for fast weekend B-road blasts (nor is it designed to) so I'd probably go for a lesser engine in the 140bhp if it meant I could get DSG, auto will suit the purpose of the car better whether its petrol or diesel.
Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff