SKODA OCTAVIA DSG AUTO

We at Chapelhouse are pleased to offer this superb Skoda Octavia for sale at very competitive price, Skoda's under VW ownership have become increasingly more popular and this is an excellent example which benefits from the DSG auto gearbox making it a rarer more desirable car. This Skoda in this condition would cost considerably more than our asking price at a dealer or major retail outlet; I will try to explain why you would get no more for your money.

This lovely car has arrived with us direct from the fleet of Bank of Scotland fleet and so is a ONE OWNER vehicle, we have the V5 in our possession. The MOT is until April 29th 2009 and the car has a full main dealer service history, services were carried out as follows 18k, 37k and 59k and we have the service book in our possession. Please note as the car has just been serviced at Skoda you have nearly 20k miles ahead of you with no servicing costs to budget for. So as you can see with this excellent provenance this Skoda is definitely a pure retail car however full retail price for this motor in this condition is £7695 so at our price you can get your retail car for nearer a trade price.

We have furnished you with a massive picture gallery so you can make an informed decision as to the cars condition, as the camera will not pick up minor blemishes we have checked the car for you too and all I could find to mention was minor stone chips to the bonnet and minor scratches to the rear bumper loading area, this car really is in superb condition.

The interior is presented in a dark cloth to compliment the bodywork and again is in superb condition. The interior being in good condition is generally the case with ex fleet cars as they spend much of their lives up and down the motorways of Britain with just the driver on board and so the seating appears much cleaner and newer than the mileage suggests, although this car of course has only 60k miles on the clock so for a modern diesel engine it is not high mileage and literally just run in, this car if serviced regularly is good for another 200k miles.

Before writing the scripts for our cars I often start by checking what the experts think at Parkers or Whatcar, this of course can be good or bad as they are independent reviews, in the case of this Skoda I was very pleasantly surprised. As they point out this car represents "German engineering at a bargain price" and that is just the start. "Whether you're buying new or used, Octavia is great value for money. It's well equipped, cheaper than many similar models to buy and is exceptionally well built."

Further to this summary Parkers make specific observation worth noting; it gets four and a half out of five for practicality and they say "The large backside provides a boot that is particularly generous in its size and there are numerous nets and hooks to help keep everything in place. Seatbacks split fold for extra practicality and there are plenty of storage compartments within the cabin"
Behind the wheel comfort they enthused over saying "Interior design continues the Skoda trend by being exceptionally clean cut. Materials are of a reassuringly high quality with a finish that would be justified on an executive car, let alone something which seeks to satisfy a value for money remit. Driving position offers plenty of adjustment and it's easy to get comfy"

Interior comfort is further embellished by a very good specification which includes; front and back electric windows, electric mirrors, centre positioned cup holders, multi function steering wheel, cruise control, air conditioning, CD player and user friendly stereo, ASR traction control and so on.
When it comes to the critical issue of safety this car scores a very good four stars on the Euro Ncap rating and has the following features; "Score four stars in the Euro NCAP crash test. Driver, passenger and side airbags are standard, whilst curtain bags are optional as are active headrests. All models get central locking and an immobiliser, an alarm is standard on Ambiente or Elegance trim levels otherwise it's an option"

Having taken the car on a forty mile test drive I must say it is a lovely smooth ride and the superb DSG auto box is very responsive, none of that insufferable delay synonymous with auto transmissions down the years, ask and this car goes. Everything works as it should and as you would expect from a three year old car with just 60k on the clock. The car handles superbly and was equally comfortable around town or cruising on the motorway, again Parkers agreed with this as they said of the handling; "The old Octavia was always a sharper handling car than the Golf, whose underpinnings it shared. Those mechanicals have now been replaced with a significantly more sophisticated set-up from the next generation of VW products and the Octavia is better than ever. It always feels well planted on the road and responds keenly to driver inputs without becoming nervous in tricky situations like slippery tarmac"

Finally the topic that seems to be in our faces on a daily basis, fuel costs. With prices escalating to the point where many of us now have to choose our journeys carefully it is more important than ever to choose a car that is economical, this definitely is. Even with the added comfort of an auto box this car does a remarkable 47mpg combined economy and on a run that would be well over 50mpg, that is a massive consideration and if an auto car is a must for you at last you do not have to compromise your budget.

So there you have it, the increasingly popular Skoda Octavia, a ONE OWNER car with full dealer service history, nearly 12 months MOT, excellent condition and a car that the independent reviewers enthuse about, at this price it will be a bargain, do not miss out.