Passat / Octavia ????

john mayo 10

I'm thinking of buying a vw Passat 1.9TDI or Skoda Octavia TDI. I have 2 small kids so need a car with good boot. Any ideas??????

For Forks Sake

Oh this won't end well.

I assume you're going second hand? The 1.9 ain't available on the Passat no more.

MetzgerMeister

John, from what I've been hearing over the past while is that the Octavia is a more reliable car as long as it has the CR (common rail) diesel engine compared to the Passat.

There's a lot of Skodas around these days and they are very well built. If it was my money, I'd be going for the Skoda.

robtri

just to be different ...

mondeo... much better than either imho

bazz26

The Passat and Octavia are not in the same class as each other so you are not comparing like with like. The Octavia is based on the Golf, has a decent size boot but cabin space would not be as generous as the Passat.

Ardennes1944

jetta or octavia...octavia. passat or octavia? passat. passat or superb? superb. imo

R.O.R

bazz26 wrote: »

The Passat and Octavia are not in the same class as each other so you are not comparing like with like. The Octavia is based on the Golf, has a decent size boot but cabin space would not be as generous as the Passat.

As the OP has 2 small kids, rear leg room may not be the biggest concern at the moment. If they are planning on keeping the car until the kids are teenagers it may be something to think about, but if they are very small kids I'd be going for the Octavia.

Cheaper to buy, generally more reliable, better standard equipment, and bigger boot.

Tea 1000

R.O.R wrote: »

As the OP has 2 small kids, rear leg room may not be the biggest concern at the moment. If they are planning on keeping the car until the kids are teenagers it may be something to think about, but if they are very small kids I'd be going for the Octavia.

Cheaper to buy, generally more reliable, better standard equipment, and bigger boot.

Better standard equipment? Myth... both are poor enough at entry level. Bigger boot? Also last time I checked, the Passat's boot was a tiny bit bigger, either way, you can consider them the same size. The Passat is much bigger in the cabin though. More comfortable too. Go for a Passat or look for a Superb, new shape not old.

Mr Benevolent

Mondeo is the better bet, imo.

R.O.R

Tea 1000 wrote: »

Better standard equipment? Myth... both are poor enough at entry level.

Can't remember the last time I saw an entry level Octavia. Doesn't sell as well as the Ambiente, which has better standard specification than the base and Comfortline Passat.

Tea 1000 wrote: »

Bigger boot? Also last time I checked, the Passat's boot was a tiny bit bigger, either way, you can consider them the same size.

Passat's boot is a couple of inches deeper than the Octavia, the same width between the wheel arches and not as deep as the Octavia by a couple of inches. Being a Saloon as well, the opening for loading in buggies etc. is considerably smaller than the Octy - I know which I'd prefer.

I'd suggest you might want to check that again. I've one of each downstairs, and a tape measure if you want.......

Tea 1000 wrote: »

The Passat is much bigger in the cabin though. More comfortable too. Go for a Passat or look for a Superb, new shape not old.

Much bigger in the Cabin? Myth (to use your words). From the drivers seat it's very similar. Less leg room in the back of the Octavia, but I've covered that already. Passat more comfortable? Meh, personal preference on that one. I don't find the seats in either to be spectacular, but having done thousands of KM in both I'd say they are very similar.

john mayo 10

will probably buy something around 04 so what kind of money should i expect to pay private or in a garage

Tea 1000

R.O.R wrote: »

Can't remember the last time I saw an entry level Octavia. Doesn't sell as well as the Ambiente, which has better standard specification than the base and Comfortline Passat.



Passat's boot is a couple of inches deeper than the Octavia, the same width between the wheel arches and not as deep as the Octavia by a couple of inches. Being a Saloon as well, the opening for loading in buggies etc. is considerably smaller than the Octy - I know which I'd prefer.

I'd suggest you might want to check that again. I've one of each downstairs, and a tape measure if you want.......




Much bigger in the Cabin? Myth (to use your words). From the drivers seat it's very similar. Less leg room in the back of the Octavia, but I've covered that already. Passat more comfortable? Meh, personal preference on that one. I don't find the seats in either to be spectacular, but having done thousands of KM in both I'd say they are very similar.

What does the Octavia have that the comfortline Passat doesn't?
Just double checked the boot sizes, the Passat's is bigger than the old Octavia, the new Octavia is bigger by around 20 litres, not much really, and I've never had issues getting buggies etc into a saloon boot.
And when I drove a VRS Octavia coming from a Mazda 6 at the time, I was surprised at how cramped it felt. I just had forgotton that it's just a Golf with clever packaging. It's a class below the Passat, and feels it.
That's not knocking it, it's a great car for what it is, but a Superb is the only Skoda that can compete against the Passat and win.

Tea 1000

john mayo 10 wrote: »

will probably buy something around 04 so what kind of money should i expect to pay private or in a garage

You're doing it the wrong way around. Come up with your budget first. Worry about the year later, that's only trivial.

-Corkie-

john mayo 10 wrote: »

will probably buy something around 04 so what kind of money should i expect to pay private or in a garage

A nice 04 Passat is making 5K+ maybe even more. I would have the Passat if I was buying that age of car.

dahamsta

Boot in the Octavia's crap, particularly the estate. You wouldn't get a small child in there.

EPM

dahamsta wrote: »

Boot in the Octavia's crap, particularly the estate. You wouldn't get a small child in there.

I've had 8 people in mine:D