In-depth Reviews

Skoda Octavia vRS Estate (2013-2020): owner reviews

Name: Skoda Octavia vRS estate
Brand: Skoda

"The Skoda Octavia vRS Estate is a fantastic all-rounder, thanks to its seamless blend of practicality and performance, along with a well built interior"

by Carbuyer team

30 Apr 2019

Carbuyer Rating

4.2 out of 5

Owners Rating

4.0 out of 5

Buy used for less at Buyacar

86%of people would recommend this car to a friend.

Owner Rating

4reviews
2reviews
1reviews

Common Problems

Engine, Other (1 cases)
Electrics, Engine, Gearbox / clutch, Other (1 cases)
Other (1 cases)

I would recommend this car to a friend

Version

2.0 diesel VRS Estate

Year of registration

2014

Average annual mileage

5,000 – 9,999

Owned

Less than a year

Bought Car

New

Typical MPG

Review

I had coveted one of these for a few years but never really in a position to spend 'big' money on a new family car. When the old RAV4 T180 started to get expensive to maintain the decision was made. I tested a Mazda CX5 ( a bit dull/overpriced), a Quashai (under powered/smaller boot) and Seat Leon ST (boring interior/smaller boot) the Octavia VRS estate was head and shoulders above them all in terms of all round ability/quality. First impressions were a really high quality cabin and the very supportive seats and coupled with the red trim gave a real sense of occasion when set against the Seat, Nissan and Mazda. All the switch gear is solid and satisfying to the touch and does make you wonder why you pay many thousands more for the VW equivalent. I bought mine with the upgrade Columbus Sat Nav which is a fantastic 'Infotainment' system and seamlessly links you and your car to the 21st century. Engine is great and really good compromise between frugality and fun. We usually get between 45-52 MPG on motorway runs. Sport Mode is a little childish and just like the second exhaust port is completely fake but it still sounds great from the drivers seat and is just a bit of fun. Boot is cavernous and I think class leading and can always get the family's holiday luggage, golf clubs, dog basket squeezed in. Handling is on the safe side of fun but as a family hot/warm hatch everything feels really tight and in control. This leads to the one downside and that's the ride quality. In everyday use its fine but over bumpy, uneven surfaces it can get a bit jiggly and that's OK from my perspective but the wife doesn't like travelling in the back at speed and its not the 1st time I've heard this about the Octavia VRS (Evo Long Term Car to quote one example). When the tyres are due for replacement I may well trawl the forums to see if anyone has swapped them out for a quieter, softer ride. Overall though this is a car I would highly recommend. If you had a couple of kids, need space on a regular basis but also want a bit of fun then for around £20k (I bought mine 6 months old with 7k miles) I can't think of anything that comes close. We don't do a lot of miles but the 50mpg consumption an £30 a year tax is a big bonus. The only thing I can foresee myself changing this for is a Golf R Estate and then only if the Bonus is much, much bigger than expected.

I would recommend this car to a friend

Version

2.0 cr 184

Year of registration

2014

Average annual mileage

5,000 – 9,999

Owned

Less than a year

Bought Car

Used

Typical MPG

Review

Ultimate all rounder and it's actually cool to be seen in now. Fast and sounds good with it too. Only use good quality fuel in it, but thats the case with all modern diesels.

I would recommend this car to a friend

Year of registration

2010

Average annual mileage

10,000 – 14,999

Owned

2 - 3 years

Bought Car

New

Review

Bought this car and was recommended by reputable mechanic to remove DPF because of inherent problems with DPF system. I had some work done that included the removal of DPF and an engine re-map. The work carried out was to a high standard, but since I had the work done the car seems to be smoking a lot on acceleration, fitted a baffle on the exhaust to quell the smoking, it has worked a bit, but not to what it was before it was standard. The BHP has now been increased to 220 from 170, this has made the car much quicker and enabled me to keep in 5th and 6th gear a lot more. If you own 1 of these vehicles, think twice before removing DPF, get it re-mapped for sure, and only consider removal of DPF if you only do short journeys. If had have known what I know now, I would have got the car re-mapped but not removed the DPF because of the smoking problem. After some research, DPF problems don't commonly effect vehicles that carry out long, high speed journeys.

I would recommend this car to a friend

Version

2.0TSI - 230bhp vRS - Petrol

Year of registration

2018

Average annual mileage

10,000 – 14,999

Owned

1 - 2 years

Bought Car

Used

Typical MPG

Review

What a brilliant car. Quite simply, it does absolutely everything very well. Great cruiser and a comfortable car. Really quiet and refined. Didn't upgrade to the 19" wheels (twitchy ride) nor did I upgrade to the DSG box which isn't a great gearbox on anything from the VW brand. Manual gearbox is slick and precise. Kids love the room in the back and trips to the tip are handled with ease. Family holidays with four bikes on the roof and week's worth of luggage not a problem. Performance is strong right from standstill and pulls all the way to the red line. Highly recommended and if there were more intelligent people out there, these would sell out in days. Unfortunately, people are snobs and like either the BMW or Audi badges on their bonnets, not to mention will foolishly pay £5-£10k more for the same car. More the fool them I say!

Version

Tdi VRS DRS

Average annual mileage

More than 20,000

Owned

3 - 5 years

Bought Car

Used

Typical MPG

Review

A real beauty to drive. Responsive, great handling, the DSG gearbox is great and there is a huge amount of space. It's a shame it's so so unreliable. In four years I've had a gearbox problem (software), xenon headlight problems (twice), cruise control failure (software again) water pump failure and a total security failure that wouldn't let me out of the car! Skoda customer service was good, but this shouldn't be happening.

I would recommend this car to a friend

Version

184bhp manual

Year of registration

2016

Average annual mileage

More than 20,000

Owned

Less than a year

Bought Car

Used

Typical MPG

Review

I've had this car since January 28th and already put nearly 30,000 miles on the clock. I'm a sales manager and have this as a company car!! I can't recommend this highly enough!! With the miles that I do I needed something that was going to be comfy enough to sit in for hours on end, and was still going to be fun! This car does both and the practicality of the car is heavenly! With such a large boot space and my car regularly being full of products this is and ideal car for me. The only regret I have is not getting the DSG automatic with my new area which includes London! All in all I would recommend this to anybody!!

Reliability

5 out of 5

I've never had any issues with the car

Performance

5 out of 5

Couldn't ask for a better car to drive on a daily basis!! Always puts a smile on my face no matter how early I have to set off for work

Running Cost

5 out of 5

At first until the engine is worn in, the car likes to drink oil which can get a bit costly, however on fuel even with it being the vrs still extremely good

I would recommend this car to a friend

Version

1.4 petrol Estate

Year of registration

2016

Owned

Less than a year

Bought Car

Used

Review

I purchased this car because I needed a car with sufficient space to carry two golf bags. The standard luggage space is insufficient, but I thought that with the back seats folded down I could fit two bags in with ease. Not so! Folding down the back seats creates a pronounced shelf over which the bags must be lifted (with difficulty) in order to fully insert them into the car. This is a bad design fault which I was not aware of when placing the order. I hope I can have an insert made to raise the load floor to the correct level.