New car choice

techdiver

Hi,

It's come time again to change the family car, 2 kids.

I'm coming from a 2010 Audi A4 which I purchased as a UK second hand import 3 years ago.

We have decided to purchase a new car this time around.

I have narrowed my search down to 3 choices, with differing options.

1. Skoda Octavia vRS
2. Nissan Qashqai SV Premium
3. Kia Sportage EX

The Octavia is basically a nice blend of a practical family car coupled with some fun, whereas the other two are your sensible family option. Having test driven all of them, both my wife and I are in agreement that the Nissan drives better than the Kia. The issue with the Nissan is the boot space is slightly smaller than the Kia. The octavia has no such issues with the boot.

The Skoda is about €4,000 more expensive than the other 2 bit has a 0% finance deal at the moment, which narrows the gap overall.

Anyone own these, or any thoughts?

Cheers.

Atlantic Dawn

I'd go with the vRS but if you have small kids that need to be put in to baby seats in the car the added height in the Qashqai and Sportage makes like a whole lot easier.

bazz26

One thing to note is that the Octavia is about to get a mid life facelift which they have made a complete pig of the front end.

OP did you look at the Renault Kadjar? Might offer more boot space than the Qashqai though most of these small SUV crossovers are no bigger than average sized hatchbacks.

techdiver

Atlantic Dawn wrote: »

I'd go with the vRS but if you have small kids that need to be put in to baby seats in the car the added height in the Qashqai and Sportage makes like a whole lot easier.

We have an A4 at the moment and have no issues with the car seats. I seen what you are saying about the extra height though.

bazz26 wrote: »

One thing to note is that the Octavia is about to get a mid life facelift which they have made a complete pig of the front end.

OP did you look at the Renault Kadjar? Might offer more boot space than the Qashqai though most of these small SUV crossovers are no bigger than average sized hatchbacks.

I saw the facelift Octavia alright, I do prefer the current one though.

I'll have a look at the Renault Kadjar, cheers.

bazz26

5 seater Nissan X-Trail would give you more boot space than the Qashqai as the X-Trai replaced the older Qashqai+2. X-Trail is a good bit more expensive than the others though.

Facelifted Ford Kuga is just gone on sale too. Another one to look at is maybe a Seat Leon ST FR estate if you want a practical boot.

techdiver

bazz26 wrote: »

5 seater Nissan X-Trail would give you more boot space than the Qashqai as the X-Trai replaced the older Qashqai+2. X-Trail is a good bit more expensive than the others though.

Facelifted Ford Kuga is just gone on sale too. Another one to look at is maybe a Seat Leon ST FR estate if you want a practical boot.

Cheers.

We don't need a crazy large boot, just enough for the double buggy. It's why I love the Octavia. It ticks all the boxes!

Going to check the Kadjar out now too.

Uncle_moe

Was talking to a dealer and he said he didn't expect to get the facelifted Octavia in until April or May next year.

techdiver

Uncle_moe wrote: »

Was talking to a dealer and he said he didn't expect to get the facelifted Octavia in until April or May next year.

Yeah from my reading it's not being officially released until March.

Gwynston

If you're happy with the Octavia, including it's height etc. it seems the only downside is the higher cost. But wouldn't you save a few bob by going a step down from the vRS?

The vRS is nice to have, but I'm sure you'll still get loads of kit on the next one down in the range without the vRS premium.

techdiver

Gwynston wrote: »

If you're happy with the Octavia, including it's height etc. it seems the only downside is the higher cost. But wouldn't you save a few bob by going a step down from the vRS?

The vRS is nice to have, but I'm sure you'll still get loads of kit on the next one down in the range without the vRS premium.

Are you my wife by any chance?

Gwynston

No, but I sound like my wife!

To be honest I'd love to be in your position. So much choice, particularly in mid-size SUVs. But I have 3 kids who are all almost out of booster seats and I've found nearly all regular cars and SUVs I've looked at don't have enough space for the three across the back.

We have currently have an 8-y-o S-Max and I can't find anything better. It's car-like to drive but with three separate seats. But even a nearly-new 2016-shape is getting on for nearly 40k in something other than underpowered paddy-spec :eek:

techdiver

Gwynston wrote: »

No, but I sound like my wife!

To be honest I'd love to be in your position. So much choice, particularly in mid-size SUVs. But I have 3 kids who are all almost out of booster seats and I've found nearly all regular cars and SUVs I've looked at don't have enough space for the three across the back.

We have currently have an 8-y-o S-Max and I can't find anything better. It's car-like to drive but with three separate seats. But even a nearly-new 2016-shape is getting on for nearly 40k in something other than underpowered paddy-spec :eek:

Yeah, I'm trying to avoid Paddy Spec, although with the crazy prices that are charged for extras I can understand. Nissan make it much easier in fairness compared to Skoda. Skoda are actually very poor for anything other than standard equipment, like their German cousins. Everything is an extra, whereas for the same price on the Nissan, you get all the goodies.

techdiver

Any advice opinions on Colour, Black Design Package and wheels etc?

I was leaning towards Red with the Black design package and the 18" 'Gemini' (anthracite), but after reading a bit about them there is a worry that they might chip/peel easier than others.

GustavoFring

I've got the anthracite geminis on mine. They stand up pretty well, I've no stone chips in 40k or so. The red paint is known for showing stone chips and being a bit brittle though. Black pack is worth it and really cheap.

Saw a silver one lately with the black pack and silver Geminis and it worked well together.

irlrobins

We were looking for a new car earlier this year due to the arrival of our little one. Was looking at the Octavia vs Qashqai mostly. Pros and cons for each, but what made us pick the Octavia was the boot space and the 0% APR. We went with the 1.2L Petrol Style model and added a few extras like Front Assist, Sunset Tinted Windows, heated seats. It wouldn't be as fast/nippy as the VRS you're looking at, but it works well in city traffic and is pretty good on long trips too. But the boot is huge, no problems fitting the big travel system in along with a few small suitcases etc. Qashqai didn't even come close.

techdiver

Thanks for the replies.

Any opinions on the black design package? Having a "debate" about it with my wife.

irlrobins

Meh, doesn't do it for me. Worth a look on the Briskoda forums for pics (there's a dedicated thread in Octavia mk 3 section).

Lantus

The 0% on the Skoda will not be available once the new Octavia arrives so now is a perfect time to buy.

With a family I would steer clear of the vrs. Even the 2l 150bhp is 6k cheaper if you want a little oomph. Enough money for a few extras?

We have one on order. It's a bog standard diesel though. Family, commute car. Blistering acceleration is useless in rush hour traffic.

I have friends with kid(s) with quasqai and they want Octavia's! Mainly the boot. But the drive in one is very smooth. I always fall asleep as a passenger!

Listen to your wife and get a more sensible/boring car and use the money for the family. Kids college fund, holidays etc.

GustavoFring

techdiver wrote: »

Thanks for the replies.

Any opinions on the black design package? Having a "debate" about it with my wife.

Chrome doesn't really suit the car imo, the less chrome the better.

techdiver

Lantus wrote: »

With a family I would steer clear of the vrs. Even the 2l 150bhp is 6k cheaper if you want a little oomph. Enough money for a few extras?

We have one on order. It's a bog standard diesel though. Family, commute car. Blistering acceleration is useless in rush hour traffic.

I have friends with kid(s) with quasqai and they want Octavia's! Mainly the boot. But the drive in one is very smooth. I always fall asleep as a passenger!

Listen to your wife and get a more sensible/boring car and use the money for the family. Kids college fund, holidays etc.

I have looked at that option too. But by the time you spec it up to the RS level with extras there is very little difference in price.

ShadowHearth

Lantus wrote: »

The 0% on the Skoda will not be available once the new Octavia arrives so now is a perfect time to buy.

With a family I would steer clear of the vrs. Even the 2l 150bhp is 6k cheaper if you want a little oomph. Enough money for a few extras?

We have one on order. It's a bog standard diesel though. Family, commute car. Blistering acceleration is useless in rush hour traffic.

I have friends with kid(s) with quasqai and they want Octavia's! Mainly the boot. But the drive in one is very smooth. I always fall asleep as a passenger!

Listen to your wife and get a more sensible/boring car and use the money for the family. Kids college fund, holidays etc.

Advice to Pay 30k grand on a boring car.... I don't want to live on this planet anymore.

Gwynston

ShadowHearth wrote: »

Advice to Pay 30k grand on a boring car.... I don't want to live on this planet anymore.

That's a very mean-spirited and short-sighted comment to make, even for the Motors board

I would say that a very small percentage of people actually get to buy the car of their dreams for purely selfish reasons. Cars aren't just for petrolheads who like to think they're Clarkson.

This has been a polite, constructive thread for someone with quite specific needs in a family car, but who also appreciates a bit of under-the-radar driver enjoyment.

So if all you want to do is troll, then F-off to another thread...

ShadowHearth

Gwynston wrote: »

That's a very mean-spirited and short-sighted comment to make, even for the Motors board

I would say that a very small percentage of people actually get to buy the car of their dreams for purely selfish reasons. Cars aren't just for petrolheads who like to think they're Clarkson.

This has been a polite, constructive thread for someone with quite specific needs in a family car, but who also appreciates a bit of under-the-radar driver enjoyment.

So if all you want to do is troll, then F-off to another thread...

I am not trolling, never had a taste for it, but I am blunt with my answers. I am on these forums for very long time and never had reputation for trolling.

In my opinion if you willing to spend that sort of money on car, then might as well get something you like and want. Its a lot of money to spend on driving something that you did not wanted. Saving 2-3 grand on 35k car and get something that is just worse is bonkers in my books.
If you are buying new, might as well throw better spec and some toys. Ireland is known for "paddy spec" cars, which is just sad. At least OP doing it right, but people will still being in the "Ah sure, you dont need it, get boring car for your 30 grand!"
VRS is just amazing package for a Petrolhead, who still wants to keep it practical, be fun and look great.

Gwynston

OK, fair enough. I retract my accusation.

You're entitled to your opinion, but to be fair the discussion wasn't about saving a few grand to get a paddy-spec model. It was about saving a few grand to get a mid-range model which might still has enough kit and with an engine that is significantly more powerful than the entry-level ones.

Everything is a compromise between model + price unless you have wads of cash, and everyone has there own tipping point.

For what it matters, when we had our 3rd child 7 years ago and decided we needed an MPV, I managed to persuade my missus that an S-Max was the one to go for, even though it was less spacious than the Galaxy, Sharan etc. But I wanted something I'd enjoy driving.

And I also persuaded her that I needed to go to England to source one because 99% of all the nearly-new ones here were paddy-spec with the entry level engine. So we got a high spec one with lots of toys and pokey performance.

For a few grand more I could have got the very top spec with an even more powerful engine. So it's still a compromise, but hey - we're a 5-person family with a lot of expenses, and I get at least a little bit of joy pretending I'm driving a fun car, rather than a bus.

Lantus

ShadowHearth wrote: »

Advice to Pay 30k grand on a boring car.... I don't want to live on this planet anymore.

No worries! Cars can be very much heart rather than purely head decisions. I have encouraged people to buy expensive cars that are more expensive to run because they wanted them and the feeling was they would be happy. Go for it if that is what you want and ignore anyone who tells you otherwise.

You have to do what you feel is best and balance you, your wife and family as best you want to or can. Let us know how it goes and enjoy the test drives and doing the deal! It's a great feeling buying new.

GustavoFring

I'd actually think going for the VRS might not cost that much more overall. They seem to hold their value much better than then standard octy.

techdiver

Hi, back again. Very close to closing on the Octavia (finance approved in 5 minutes 😲), but I'm having second thoughts and thinking of holding on. My reason is that Skoda are releasing the mid model face lift in February and I'm concerned about buying a model that might depreciate quicker as it will be seen as the "old" model.

Any thoughts?

GustavoFring

The facelift won't be available in VRS guise until 172 reg change. It will be an older model soon yes but the changes are relatively minor bar the new front end. The new VRS hasn't been shown officially but on the standard car the new front end is horrendous.

techdiver

GustavoFring wrote: »

The facelift won't be available in VRS guise until 172 reg change. It will be an older model soon yes but the changes are relatively minor bar the new front end. The new VRS hasn't been shown officially but on the standard car the new front end is horrendous.

Oh, I agree on the front end, but it's still the case that the "newer ones" will still probably sell better down the line.

XsApollo

I was thinking of getting a Vrs230 but held off because of the facelift coming.
I think the interior in the facelift is supposed to be getting a nice upgrade according to reports, more soft touch materials and new infotainment.
Exterior alone wouldn't of bothered me because I like the current one but the quality of the current interior isn't that great.
So I decided to wait and see what they do.

Edit: the downside is there probably won't be 0% finance on the new one.

bazz26

techdiver wrote: »

Hi, back again. Very close to closing on the Octavia (finance approved in 5 minutes 😲), but I'm having second thoughts and thinking of holding on. My reason is that Skoda are releasing the mid model face lift in February and I'm concerned about buying a model that might depreciate quicker as it will be seen as the "old" model.

Any thoughts?

techdiver wrote: »

Oh, I agree on the front end, but it's still the case that the "newer ones" will still probably sell better down the line.

If you are availing of a PCP deal then buying a model about to be superseded by a new one (granted it's only a facelift) is certainly something to be cautious of as if you plan to roll over to another car in 3 years time. If you plan to hold the car beyond the PCP deal then it becomes less of a concern.

techdiver

bazz26 wrote: »

If you are availing of a PCP deal then buying a model about to be superseded by a new one (granted it's only a facelift) is certainly something to be cautious of as if you plan to roll over to another car in 3 years time. If you plan to hold the car beyond the PCP deal then it becomes less of a concern.

Undecided about what we will be doing in 3 years. We are prepared to buy it out and keep it, but wanted the best situation for other options too.

irlrobins

I would have thought the first three digits on the reg would been a bigger factor in the depreciation than a minor mid life update.

bazz26

irlrobins wrote: »

I would have thought the first three digits on the reg would been a bigger factor in the depreciation than a minor mid life update.

In 3 years time if you have a 171 old model and a 171 new model for sale, the majority of buyers will go for the new model unless the older model is substantially cheap enough to sway them.

irlrobins

bazz26 wrote: »

In 3 years time if you have a 171 old model and a 171 new model for sale, the majority of buyers will go for the new model unless the older model is substantially cheap enough to sway them.

If it was a complete model upgrade I'd agree. But would many buyers even be aware of a facelift?

bazz26

irlrobins wrote: »

If it was a complete model upgrade I'd agree. But would many buyers even be aware of a facelift?

To your average joe they probably would see both as the same. They will simply choose the newest version.

Lantus

There is always going to be a newer model around the corner. The existing Octavia is rock solid and the vrs will attract a particular type of customer. I wouldn't have concerns on this model. It's the bread and butter of Skoda sales and an amazing car.

Resale values are the highest in its class and it is still very affordable.

I'd be more worried about the next economic crash and rising temperatures destroying worldwide food production than a 2% drop in value on my Octavia.

colm_mcm

Are resale values on an Octavia better than a Golf?

GustavoFring

colm_mcm wrote: »

Are resale values on an Octavia better than a Golf?

No, but not a million miles away. They should take a little hit now that the golf is cheaper if you spec match on most models now. The only one that offers real value over a Golf is the RS.

techdiver

I'm having a bit of a problem trying to work out what to do regarding my old car. It's a 2010 A4 with 123000 miles on the clock. It has loads of add ons and is in decent shape.

I've been offered x amount on trade in but looking on carzone that is the low end of the price range for even private sales. If I do a straight deal with the dealership they will knock 6 - 7% off the price of the RS which would leave me with a good deal of equity for selling the A4 privately. The problem I'm having is that looking at carzone, many of the ads have been up for a considerable amount of time. That makes me worry.

Are people not buying privately any more or are sellers not taking down their ads after selling??

bazz26

Problem is you will be competing with lads on donedeal bringing in A4s from the UK cheaply.

XsApollo

techdiver wrote: »

I'm having a bit of a problem trying to work out what to do regarding my old car. It's a 2010 A4 with 123000 miles on the clock. It has loads of add ons and is in decent shape.

I've been offered x amount on trade in but looking on carzone that is the low end of the price range for even private sales. If I do a straight deal with the dealership they will knock 6 - 7% off the price of the RS which would leave me with a good deal of equity for selling the A4 privately. The problem I'm having is that looking at carzone, many of the ads have been up for a considerable amount of time. That makes me worry.

Are people not buying privately any more or are sellers not taking down their ads after selling??

I have my 2010 a6 up for 3 weeks now not one call.
Also fella in work had his 2010 a4 up for nearly 3 months before he sold it recently and wasn't getting many enquiries either.

MarkN

XsApollo wrote: »

I have my 2010 a6 up for 3 weeks now not one call.
Also fella in work had his 2010 a4 up for nearly 3 months before he sold it recently and wasn't getting many enquiries either.

Anything priced correctly will sell.

XsApollo

MarkN wrote: »

Anything priced correctly will sell.

Of course, I'm sure i could sell my car tomorrow if i priced it accordingly.

Mooooo

If they offered it to you cheaper on a straight deal as far as I'm aware they have to offer it at that price on finance as it's illegal not too.

GavMan

Mooooo wrote: »

If they offered it to you cheaper on a straight deal as far as I'm aware they have to offer it at that price on finance as it's illegal not too.

I'm sure by straight deal he means no trade in. They don't really care about cash/Finance. They get their cash from the finance company there an then. In fact, salesman probably gets a commish from the car sale and the finance sale.

techdiver

Thanks for the replies again. I'm leaning towards just doing the trade in. It's a risk attempting to sell privately. Might work out as a financial gain, but could also work out at a loss, as well as being a PITA too.

Still can't decide which colour to go for. Looking at the RS Challenge package for €439 which includes - 18" Alloy wheels 'Gemini', Black front grill surround, door mirrors & roof rails(Combi only), Colour 'Maxi Dot', Driving profile selection(sport, eco etc.), Supertone system engine sound system.

Red seems to go nicely with the package, and has the added bonus of being a "standard" colour without having to pay extra for metallic paint. The non metallic red is actually nicer than the metallic in my opinion.

The wheels are Gemini in black as opposed to anthracite. Would prefer anthracite, but stupidly you would have to pay extra for them even though they are essentially the same wheel as the black.