SKODA Octavia Tour (2.0 Turbo) test drive
09-22-2006, 12:38 PM
#1
Registered User
Thread Starter
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Sydney
Posts: 4,472
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
SKODA Octavia Tour (2.0 Turbo) test drive
ONCE AGAIN JETLAG IS KEEPING ME AWAKE AT NIGHT.... SO HERE GOES ANOTHER LONG POST!
During my recent trip to Colombia I figured that my constant drinking and my previous reputation as a reckless (16 yr old) driver would be enough for anyone NOT to ask me to drive their car. Well, I was right and I was wrong. I did have to drive... mostly running errands by myself and only twice with passengers. I drove a couple of different cars but the one that I did have any interest in actually driving was the SKODA OCTAVIA TOUR (2.0L Turbo).
THE LOOKS:
I can't really make sense of the looks or the internals for that matter. It is a bit like the first time I saw a Commodore (Back in 91 when I was fresh of the boat). Is it an Ugly AUDI S4? It certainly seems to have the same 2.0l Turbo engine (but with a tune that only gives out 147kw). Is it some sort of beefed up JETTA/BORA or even an unsofisticated PASSAT? It certainly has the same keyfob and seats as my Beetle (Leather clad though). I guess you'll have to make up your on mind on the looks:
http://www.skoda-auto.com/global/model/new...ctavia/gallery/
THE ENGINE:
Although it is not listed in the SKODA website this particular car had a 2.0 Turbo engine mated to a 5 speed gearbox. I say it is not listed because it had the TOUR badge but according to the website the TOUR is only a 1.9L with no turbo. Adding to the confusion, the rego papers said 1.8l/110kw EFI. This was later clarified by the owner as a "tax minimization scheme". I didn't think polite to question him about it so I decided to look under the hood and see if I could find the turbo.
And I couldn't find the turbo! There is a big a$$ plastic cover with "2.0 TURBO" stamped on it on top of the engine that leaves little space to see anything underneath. I could see part of the exhaust and what looked like a turbo intake but nothing else. I tried removing the cover but was unsuccessful due in part that I had no screwdrivers available and in part to the fact I was supposed to be running errands and not monkeying around with the car. So I don't know for sure if the "2.0 Turbo" on the cover was for real but the way the car drove leads me to think it was.
THE INTERIOR
It has leather clad Beetle driver and front passenger seats. Identical in every way except for the the passenger height adjusing lever and the slightly bigger side cushions. Front/passenger/side airbags. The dash reminds me of the 2002 Passat (USDM) with some slight tweaks.
http://www.skoda-auto.com/global/model/new...tavia/interior/
The rear seats are much like any other mid size sedan's seats: A tad too hard for leather (you end up feeling like there is no grip and your bum will slide off at the first application of the brakes) and the middle seat is there to punish unruly passengers by making them seat on it. There is very good leg room for the rear passengers though (even with the front seats pushed all the way back)
The leather trim on the door panels is nice but a bit dodgy as some of the edges in the rear seats were already lifting up after only 10 months. Add to that the fact that the panels were replaced by the dealership before delivery (the owner could not explain why) and were put back in such a way that there were rattles coming from the doors. It sounded like some cables had not been tied up properly inside the door.... very annoying.
Automatic Climate control and cruise control are standard and worked well. Mind you in Bogota, the use of any climate controlling device is a waste of time as the temperature varies with the wind. Unless you have a passenger who is willing to adjust the climate control every 4 minutes whilst you change lanes more often than Montoya trying to pass Scumi you needn't bother (Just wind the windows down 1/3 of the way and forget about it.
OTHER STUFF
The suspension is of te sporty type: on the stiff side, helps with the traction and the body roll is just enough to be noticeable but it does not get in the way of the fast cornering speeds required for effective errand running.
Whatever tyres it came with are on the crappy side. Chirping was a sure thing with any sort of half spirited take of. Even rolling turns had the same effect (although being FWD may have something to do with that) This was dissapointing but can be easily $$ corrected.
The bonnet is as long as any other sedan's with a transversally mounted enginel. However it is not visible from the driver's seat. I found that weird as I felt I was driving my wife's JAZZ. It made it difficult to park both front first and parallel as I could never tell where the heck the nose was.
The TOUR is a liftback. That seems to be the rage lately amongs mid size cars. Only problem I have with it is that you are more likely to hit the ceiling of you parking garage than you are with a hatch back as the part that lifts up is much longer. This was the case at my Dad's office... pain in the neck.
THE DRIVE
The owner said "0-100 in 6.2 seconds according to the salesman". I though it a bit optimistic but I would have my chance to find out. The first time I drove it I had trouble getting used to the pedal positioning. The clutch is too far right and I kept confusing it with the brake. There is no way to do heel and toe as the accelerator is further apart from the brake than the brake is from the clutch and it is also about 10 centimeters lower in height. I tried with different shoes (and with no shoes) but to no avail.
I did a few take offs and was sure the "2.0 Turbo" cover on the engine was just rice stickers until I decided to try harder (without doing a clutch dump). At first it felt dead but a couple of instants later the tyres started chirping, the car started moving, the revs got up to 3100 and I was in business. Change to second at around 70KPH and 100KHP came by very fast. I kept going until 150KHP when I run out of road. There is no dump/wastegate sound so I am still a bit skeptical about the turbo bit. However it behaved like the smart on hard accelleration (dead below 3000RPMS and then it pulls like heLL!) so maybe it is just a "refined" turbo.
Breaking is for race drivers. This thing makes you feel like your face is gona fall off if you dare stomp on the brakes. It has 4 discs that I didn't check the size of but they looked about the same size as the S2Ks. Pedal feel is like a Honda: no much play, brakes hard with little pedal travel.
The match between engine and gearbox is just right. 5 gears is enough for you not to feel the need to rev it up before upshifting. Accelleration is good enough for you not to have to. I broke a couple of my old time records (home-dad's office-home) without driving as hard as when I first set them. Maybe that is the point of the TOUR badge: more than fast enough whilst the kids in the back seat can read books or watch DVDs (and you get where you are going before the movie is finished)
In conclusion, the next time you are in NewZealand with the wife and kids you wouldn't do too badly if you rented one (assuming they are available for rent). http://www.skoda.co.nz
During my recent trip to Colombia I figured that my constant drinking and my previous reputation as a reckless (16 yr old) driver would be enough for anyone NOT to ask me to drive their car. Well, I was right and I was wrong. I did have to drive... mostly running errands by myself and only twice with passengers. I drove a couple of different cars but the one that I did have any interest in actually driving was the SKODA OCTAVIA TOUR (2.0L Turbo).
THE LOOKS:
I can't really make sense of the looks or the internals for that matter. It is a bit like the first time I saw a Commodore (Back in 91 when I was fresh of the boat). Is it an Ugly AUDI S4? It certainly seems to have the same 2.0l Turbo engine (but with a tune that only gives out 147kw). Is it some sort of beefed up JETTA/BORA or even an unsofisticated PASSAT? It certainly has the same keyfob and seats as my Beetle (Leather clad though). I guess you'll have to make up your on mind on the looks:
http://www.skoda-auto.com/global/model/new...ctavia/gallery/
THE ENGINE:
Although it is not listed in the SKODA website this particular car had a 2.0 Turbo engine mated to a 5 speed gearbox. I say it is not listed because it had the TOUR badge but according to the website the TOUR is only a 1.9L with no turbo. Adding to the confusion, the rego papers said 1.8l/110kw EFI. This was later clarified by the owner as a "tax minimization scheme". I didn't think polite to question him about it so I decided to look under the hood and see if I could find the turbo.
And I couldn't find the turbo! There is a big a$$ plastic cover with "2.0 TURBO" stamped on it on top of the engine that leaves little space to see anything underneath. I could see part of the exhaust and what looked like a turbo intake but nothing else. I tried removing the cover but was unsuccessful due in part that I had no screwdrivers available and in part to the fact I was supposed to be running errands and not monkeying around with the car. So I don't know for sure if the "2.0 Turbo" on the cover was for real but the way the car drove leads me to think it was.
THE INTERIOR
It has leather clad Beetle driver and front passenger seats. Identical in every way except for the the passenger height adjusing lever and the slightly bigger side cushions. Front/passenger/side airbags. The dash reminds me of the 2002 Passat (USDM) with some slight tweaks.
http://www.skoda-auto.com/global/model/new...tavia/interior/
The rear seats are much like any other mid size sedan's seats: A tad too hard for leather (you end up feeling like there is no grip and your bum will slide off at the first application of the brakes) and the middle seat is there to punish unruly passengers by making them seat on it. There is very good leg room for the rear passengers though (even with the front seats pushed all the way back)
The leather trim on the door panels is nice but a bit dodgy as some of the edges in the rear seats were already lifting up after only 10 months. Add to that the fact that the panels were replaced by the dealership before delivery (the owner could not explain why) and were put back in such a way that there were rattles coming from the doors. It sounded like some cables had not been tied up properly inside the door.... very annoying.
Automatic Climate control and cruise control are standard and worked well. Mind you in Bogota, the use of any climate controlling device is a waste of time as the temperature varies with the wind. Unless you have a passenger who is willing to adjust the climate control every 4 minutes whilst you change lanes more often than Montoya trying to pass Scumi you needn't bother (Just wind the windows down 1/3 of the way and forget about it.
OTHER STUFF
The suspension is of te sporty type: on the stiff side, helps with the traction and the body roll is just enough to be noticeable but it does not get in the way of the fast cornering speeds required for effective errand running.
Whatever tyres it came with are on the crappy side. Chirping was a sure thing with any sort of half spirited take of. Even rolling turns had the same effect (although being FWD may have something to do with that) This was dissapointing but can be easily $$ corrected.
The bonnet is as long as any other sedan's with a transversally mounted enginel. However it is not visible from the driver's seat. I found that weird as I felt I was driving my wife's JAZZ. It made it difficult to park both front first and parallel as I could never tell where the heck the nose was.
The TOUR is a liftback. That seems to be the rage lately amongs mid size cars. Only problem I have with it is that you are more likely to hit the ceiling of you parking garage than you are with a hatch back as the part that lifts up is much longer. This was the case at my Dad's office... pain in the neck.
THE DRIVE
The owner said "0-100 in 6.2 seconds according to the salesman". I though it a bit optimistic but I would have my chance to find out. The first time I drove it I had trouble getting used to the pedal positioning. The clutch is too far right and I kept confusing it with the brake. There is no way to do heel and toe as the accelerator is further apart from the brake than the brake is from the clutch and it is also about 10 centimeters lower in height. I tried with different shoes (and with no shoes) but to no avail.
I did a few take offs and was sure the "2.0 Turbo" cover on the engine was just rice stickers until I decided to try harder (without doing a clutch dump). At first it felt dead but a couple of instants later the tyres started chirping, the car started moving, the revs got up to 3100 and I was in business. Change to second at around 70KPH and 100KHP came by very fast. I kept going until 150KHP when I run out of road. There is no dump/wastegate sound so I am still a bit skeptical about the turbo bit. However it behaved like the smart on hard accelleration (dead below 3000RPMS and then it pulls like heLL!) so maybe it is just a "refined" turbo.
Breaking is for race drivers. This thing makes you feel like your face is gona fall off if you dare stomp on the brakes. It has 4 discs that I didn't check the size of but they looked about the same size as the S2Ks. Pedal feel is like a Honda: no much play, brakes hard with little pedal travel.
The match between engine and gearbox is just right. 5 gears is enough for you not to feel the need to rev it up before upshifting. Accelleration is good enough for you not to have to. I broke a couple of my old time records (home-dad's office-home) without driving as hard as when I first set them. Maybe that is the point of the TOUR badge: more than fast enough whilst the kids in the back seat can read books or watch DVDs (and you get where you are going before the movie is finished)
In conclusion, the next time you are in NewZealand with the wife and kids you wouldn't do too badly if you rented one (assuming they are available for rent). http://www.skoda.co.nz
09-24-2006, 06:59 PM
#3
How did the joke go:
Old man: Little boy, get in the car
Little boy: No, go away
Old man: Come on. I've got boiled lollies
Little boy: No, leave me alone.
Old man: Get in the car!
Little boy: DAD, YOU BOUGHT THE BLOODY SKODA!
Or:
Customer: I'd like a windscreen wiper for my Skoda
Shop assistant: Hmmmm, that's a fair swap.
Old man: Little boy, get in the car
Little boy: No, go away
Old man: Come on. I've got boiled lollies
Little boy: No, leave me alone.
Old man: Get in the car!
Little boy: DAD, YOU BOUGHT THE BLOODY SKODA!
Or:
Customer: I'd like a windscreen wiper for my Skoda
Shop assistant: Hmmmm, that's a fair swap.
09-25-2006, 02:52 AM
#4
Registered User
Thread Starter
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Sydney
Posts: 4,472
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Originally Posted by AusS2000,Sep 25 2006, 12:59 PM
Customer: I'd like a windscreen wiper for my Skoda
Shop assistant: Hmmmm, that's a fair swap.
Shop assistant: Hmmmm, that's a fair swap.
That is what I thought of the SKODA before. I guess I have changed my mind a little after the test drive. If it is not owned by the Volkswagen/audi group now they sure do a good job of stealing stuff from them.
09-25-2006, 03:57 AM
#5
Registered User
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Seaforth, Sydney
Posts: 943
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
VAG bought 60% of Skoda off the Czech based company a few years back and the Octavia is based off of the Audi A4, VW Passat platform.
i took the 1.9tdi for a spin around Prague and it was a nice drive, a lot better then the commodores and falcons.
the thing went forever on a tank of fuel, it was sluggish as hell all the way up to 80km but i managed to get it to 190km on the freeways.
i took the 1.9tdi for a spin around Prague and it was a nice drive, a lot better then the commodores and falcons.
the thing went forever on a tank of fuel, it was sluggish as hell all the way up to 80km but i managed to get it to 190km on the freeways.
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
Rambler
California - Southern California S2000 Owners
20
04-13-2005 09:05 PM