Skoda Octavia Estate (05 on) - Review

Review by David Ross on
Last Updated: 05 January 2010
No car maker is closer to the IKEA ethos than Skoda. Like the famous flat pack furniture maker its products are stylish, robust, practical and affordable. The Octavia estate is the perfect example of this. It's big enough to carry five adults and their luggage in comfort, has a wide range of petrol and diesel engines and is well equipped as standard. Prices start at sensible levels and many of the components have been tried and tested by Volkswagen, so it's very reliable. With 580 litres of bootspace , with the rear seats in place, it’s one of the top choices in the medium estate market. It easily comes out on top against rivals like the Volkswagen Golf Estate, which offers a total of 505 litres of storage space, and the Kia cee’d SW’s 534 litres of bootspace. In fact it even offers more room than the larger Ford Mondeo, which has a loadspace of 535 litres. Drop the rear seats and the Octavia’s boot expands to 1,655 litres. In terms of engine choice, pick the 1.6 TDI for value and comfort or the 1.8 TSI for performance. Low emission Greenline versions are available, with the most current claimed to average 67mpg. In early 2009 the Octavia estate was revised with a sleeker front end, new engines and an improved cabin. The changes mirrored those of the Octavia hatchback model. Aesthetic additions to the exterior included new lights and a redesigned bumper, while inside the interior was upgraded and fitted with a new sat nav system. A 1.4-litre petrol engine was also introduced and this, along with the existing 1.8-litre petrol engine, was available with the excellent Volkswagen group seven-speed automatic DSG gearbox. In 2011 an updated eco model was introduced to the range, cleverly called the Greenline II, which is capable of averaging a claimed 68mpg while emitting 107g/km. That lowers the cost of first year tax and road tax. At the same time a value-for-money new trim was also added. SE Plus offers plenty of added kit, including parking sensors, sat-nav, 16-inch alloys and upgraded upholstery, for a small premium over the SE version. There's also an excellent performance-orientated vRS model as well as a beefed up four-wheel drive model, named Scout, both of which are covered in separate reviews. Read on for the full Skoda Octavia estate review…
4.5 out of 5

Other Skoda reviews

4 out of 5

Running costs

Residuals for the Octavia estate are better than the hatchback as it's more sought after on the used market - and it's the diesels which will hold their value best. Overall, whether you're buying new or used, it's great value for money and Skoda servicing is not only reasonably priced, but top quality too. The Octavia has consistently performed well in owner satisfaction surveys and we've heard plenty of positive feedback about the dealers too. The Skoda Octavia estate's running costs are relatively competitive compare to its rivals.

* based on most recent data

Estimated fuel cost for 10,000 miles per year

Unleaded

£1,252 - £1,918 *

Diesel

£943 - £1,457 *

The estimated fuel cost figure is a guide to how much this model will cost to fuel each year, so you can compare between cars. It's calculated by using the model's average mpg (calculated from both town centre and motorway driving) and the average fuel price. It's based on the following cost-per-litre: petrol 135p and diesel 141p. Prices are updated daily.

Summary Running Costs

Servicing period

Fixed (10,000 miles) or variable can be chosen.

Warranty

Three years/60,000 miles.

Road tax (12 months)

£20.00 - £270.00

Vehicle excise duty (VED) varies according to the CO2 emissions and the fuel type of the vehicle. For cars registered after March 1st 2001 VED or road tax is based on the car's CO2 emissions. For cars registered before March 1st 2001 it is based on engine size.

Full running costs data

4 out of 5

Green credentials

  • A
  • B
    107
  • C
  • D
  • E
  • F
  • G
  • H
  • I
  • J
  • K
    205
  • L
  • M

CO2 emission figure (g/km)

Fuel economy rating

The arrows indicate the best and worst CO2 bands for this model.

Emissions summary

The Skoda Octavia estate's emissions are reasonably low and make it an environmentally friendly choice for green buyers. The 1.9 TDI emits 135g/km of CO2 and averages 55mpg but it's the Greenline II model, introduced in 2011, that's the star performer. It emits just 109g/km of CO2 (making it cheap to tax) and is capable of 67mpg.

Find the exact engine and CO2