Hi All,

I think I've finally decided on a diesel Octavia Estate, elegance spec, to replace my Focus estate and am unsure whether to go for the 1.9 105 bhp or the 2.0 140 bhp. Having had a look at prices on the web etc there doesn't seem to be a massive difference in price between the two models. I would have thought that the 2.0 would have been considerably more expensive so am I missing something here?

Either way I would prefer to avoid a DPF version as although i do around 15-20k a year the majority of my driving is a 6 mile commute to work on an A road so there may be potential DPF issues with such a small journey (my Focus doesn't have one). I've read on this forum (which is brilliant and v informative btw) that the 1.9tdi is likely to prove to be more reliable but is a bit less refined than the 2.0 PD and would 105 bhp be enough when the car is fully laden (we travel to France twice a year camping and always come back with a fair few cases of wine)? I would prefer the 2.0 as my current focus is a 2.0 TDCi 136 bhp and I appreciate the extra power and the sixth gear but am I courting trouble by going for a 2.0? I have considered the VRS but reading the problems with the injectors on the 170 I have been put off. I assume this problem does not apply to the 140 variant and are there any other issues I need to be aware of with either the 1.9 or 2.0?

My budget is around £11k and looking for a 08-09 I guess (would prefer the facelift model) and would probably look to buy from a main dealer for peace of mind and a 12 month warranty. Unfortunately there is no main dealer near me so I will have to travel to buy one so if anyone has driven both a Focus diesel and Octavia I would appreciate opinions on what the differences are between the two e.g. engine noise etc.

Appreciate your advice as always.

Hi Dave

I would persnoally go with 1.9 TDI as you can always remapp to 140/150 bhp without changing any parts in your car. I heard that 2.0 TDI sometimes have the problems with the Oil Pumps and if one of those breaks it will also damage your Turbo and few more bits. I have 1.9 TDI PD Skoda Fabia remapped to 140bhp and I'm really pleased with the results.

Cheers, Matty

Hi Dave,

I had a focus estate as a company car a few years back. decent to drive etc. I have a 2.0 TDI Octavia Sport at the moment and have not had Any major problems apart from the ABS pump issue. I believe its the best car I've owned to date. For your budget you could get a Vrs with the newer CR engine in it. the 1.9 is reliable and should easy give you 50 mpg. I currently get about 50 mpg out of mine.

HTH Simon.

I had a squiz at the VRS CR version and they appear to be out of my price bracket at the mo plus I like the spec of the Elegance having rear parking sensors etc. I've not considered the re-map route; does that have an adverse effect on the economy and insurance premiums?

I had a squiz at the VRS CR version and they appear to be out of my price bracket at the mo plus I like the spec of the Elegance having rear parking sensors etc. I've not considered the re-map route; does that have an adverse effect on the economy and insurance premiums?

Your economy will be better after remapp as long as you don't have the heavy foot (mine went up by 10/15%), Insurance might go up by max £50.00 or stay as it is, depends on who do you insure your car with...

Wouldn't rule out a VRS because of the injector problem, there's a recall out for then & are getting replaced regardless of miles or service history.

I have a 1.9 Tdi elegance estate & love it, but do kinda wish I went for the 2.0 for that extra kick & 6 th gear.

When I bought my car there was an ambiate octy sitting, 2.0 6 sp with 30'000 miles more & £1500 less but the elegance spec is way above the ambiate.

G

Edited 8 February, 201214 yr by Taxi_G

Go for one of these it has the elegance spec. (well almost) and Haldex 4x4, now finding out how good the Octavia and engine is. With a few extras and tow bar you will not get much change from £22,800 but worth it. :rofl:

The downside ordered last June and a seven month wait.

somewhat out of my price range and they are very hard to find! Anyway we have a newish Defender 110 to cope with the snow

Does the Elegance spec include audio controls on the steering wheel as i find these v useful on the Focus? I know the MFS wheel is an option but wondered whether the audio controls were standard.

somewhat out of my price range and they are very hard to find! Anyway we have a newish Defender 110 to cope with the snow

Does the Elegance spec include audio controls on the steering wheel as i find these v useful on the Focus? I know the MFS wheel is an option but wondered whether the audio controls were standard.

No, they are an option at extra cost.

if you want to avoid the DPF models, then you will need to avoid all the CR diesel engines since these all have DPFs. Also avoid the PD170 engine as this has a DPF as do the 4x4 PD Scout models. Elegance PD140 or PD105 do not have a DPF so these would be the ones to go for.

I ran a 2.0 PD140 Elegance for 100K miles without any problems, and the 6 speed box on the 2.0 gives much quieter motorway cruising.

Some differences of the 1.9PD versus the 2.0PD

1.9 = 8 Valve Engine, 2.0 = 16 Valve engine

1.9 = 5 Speed gearbox, 2.0 = 6 speed gearbox.

Hi Dave

I would persnoally go with 1.9 TDI as you can always remapp to 140/150 bhp without changing any parts in your car. I heard that 2.0 TDI sometimes have the problems with the Oil Pumps and if one of those breaks it will also damage your Turbo and few more bits. I have 1.9 TDI PD Skoda Fabia remapped to 140bhp and I'm really pleased with the results.

Cheers, Matty

The 2.0 TDi in the Octavia didn't have these oil pump problems as it used an oil pump drive very like that on the 1.9 engine, which doesn't fail. As far as Skodas go its only on the mk1 Superb 2.0 TDi where this can be a problem due to the balance shaft driven oil pump (which the Octavia version of the 2.0 didn't have.)

Personally I much prefer the 2.0 PD in the Octavia, the 140 bhp version doesn't tend to have too many issues.

As Nick just said, the 2.0PD engine in the Octavia does not have any issues with the oil pump drive failing and bares little resemblence to the 2.0 TDi engines that do like those fitted to the MK1 Superb.

I had the same dilemma back in 2008 when buying new. I drove both on extended test drives. The 2.0PDwas much better for me so I bought it. The 2.0 just went, the 1.9 needed to be driven. I drive for economy and do 60 miles a day, 40 of those on motorways.

I had a 1.9 octy as a courtesy car following a minor accident (no fault from me) for 2 weeks. This re-instated that I'd bought the right car.

4 years later its going for its 4th variable service next week at 59k miles. I have it serviced yearly a little earlier than the indicator suggests as the variable/fixed debate rumbles on so I meet in the middle!

As detailed above mine has no DPF and a 6 speed box. I average around 50 mpg.

If you want/can spend the extra ££ get the 2.0 IMHO.

Edited 8 February, 201214 yr by Web Ferret

Some differences of the 1.9PD versus the 2.0PD

1.9 = 8 Valve Engine, 2.0 = 16 Valve engine

1.9 = 5 Speed gearbox, 2.0 = 6 speed gearbox.

Not quite, I'm told the 2.0 PD140 in my Scout is 8V.

Really you need to drive both, I have the PD140 Scout and it's plenty powerful enough.

I also have a PD170 vRS, as mentioned above though don't be put off by reliability, it's pretty good. I average 50MPG in it too.

If MPG and proven reliability were my main needs I'd go 1.9. If you spend a lot of time on the motorway go for the 6 speed 2.0, either the PD140 and PD170, both are good engines.

The 2.0 TDi in the Octavia didn't have these oil pump problems as it used an oil pump drive very like that on the 1.9 engine, which doesn't fail. As far as Skodas go its only on the mk1 Superb 2.0 TDi where this can be a problem due to the balance shaft driven oil pump (which the Octavia version of the 2.0 didn't have.)

Personally I much prefer the 2.0 PD in the Octavia, the 140 bhp version doesn't tend to have too many issues.

Sorry guys but that's only the rumour I heard from my mate. Don't have the 2.0 TDI and can't really say anything about it but hopefully my next car will have the 2.0 TDI as I really want to buy Octavia VRS or the Superb in the latest shape...

Sorry guys but that's only the rumour I heard from my mate. Don't have the 2.0 TDI and can't really say anything about it but hopefully my next car will have the 2.0 TDI as I really want to buy Octavia VRS or the Superb in the latest shape...

A lot of people just assume it affected all 2.0 TDi PD engines equally, it didn't, only those with a balance shaft driven oil pump ie Superb, Passat, A4, are prone to it. The 2.0 PD engines in the "Golf-platform" cars such as the Octavia used a simplified oil pump drive setup with no balance shaft, very like the 1.9 engines, which is why you don't tend to get this problem with 2.0 TDi Octavias.

A lot of people just assume it affected all 2.0 TDi PD engines equally, it didn't, only those with a balance shaft driven oil pump ie Superb, Passat, A4, are prone to it. The 2.0 PD engines in the "Golf-platform" cars such as the Octavia used a simplified oil pump drive setup with no balance shaft, very like the 1.9 engines, which is why you don't tend to get this problem with 2.0 TDi Octavias.

What about 2.0 TDI Superb's...?

What about 2.0 TDI Superb's...?

The mk1 Superb with the 2.0 PD engine can be very prone to oil pump drive failure. Having said that it doesn't seem to affect them all. I think it was partly down to a bad design and partly due to a faulty batch of balance shaft modules fitted to some of them. It appears to have been sorted by the time the mk2 Superb came along but the PD was soon replaced by the CR engine in the mk2 anyway.

Thanks all for the replies. Most of my journeys do not require a 6th gear but travelling to France twice a year and other long UK trips I think I will appreciate the extar power of the 2.0 and the sixth gear. My mind keeps changing on a daily basis!

Most of my journeys do not require a 6th gear

Get the 1.9 then, save a little cash and be happy knowing you have one of the most reliable engines on the road today

if your not bother about the extra performance then go for the 1.9 as it has superior economy over the 2.0

I went from a petrol 2 litre focus estate to a 1.9 elegance estate (new) in 2008 and have not regretted it. The focus was a better drive, but gobbled fuel. The performance of the 1.9 is more than adequate and we regularly take 4 adults plus walking gear and luggage to the lake district with no problem. Overall I get around 47mpg from a mix of short jouneys during the week and longer motorway runs at the weekend. Only regret is that I did not specify the radio controls on the steering wheel. Oh - one other moan - why does the radio pick up Radio Sheffield traffic announcements on the M6 at Thelwall???

Get the 1.9 then, save a little cash and be happy knowing you have one of the most reliable engines on the road today

I'd go with the 1.9TDI too... I think it's the best diesel engine that was ever made...!!

Thanks all for the help. One more question I am afraid; is the maxi-dot thingy worth having? Having had a good look around it looks like my budget will get me around an 08 1.9 or 2.0 pre face lift elegance or possibly a 1.9 09 model facelift elegance if i am lucky. Not many of these cars seem to have the maxi-dot fitted (I know it is an option). Is the lack of it a deal breaker or is it something that wouldn't be missed?

Thanks all for the help. One more question I am afraid; is the maxi-dot thingy worth having? Having had a good look around it looks like my budget will get me around an 08 1.9 or 2.0 pre face lift elegance or possibly a 1.9 09 model facelift elegance if i am lucky. Not many of these cars seem to have the maxi-dot fitted (I know it is an option). Is the lack of it a deal breaker or is it something that wouldn't be missed?

Retrofit it unless you can find a car with it. Never had it but I want it & I'm gonna get in installed very soon

Here's a decent spec elegance that's for sale on here,

http://briskoda.net/forums/topic/226488-2008-octavia-estate-19tdi-elegance-for-sale/page__pid__2666971#entry2666971

Maxidot & MFSW

Cracking price also

G