Skoda Yeti (2009 - 2017) 2.0 TDI CR (140bhp) Elegance 4x4 Outdoor 5d Owner Review

I had high hopes for the Yeti, having come from a sucession of Volvo V70s. It had a nice leather interior, the best headlights I've ever had on a car, and a great driving position, however it fell well short of expectation. I read the reviews before I bought it and they all raved about excellent ride quality, this was something I was concerned about as I do quite a lot of long motorway journeys. The ride quality was quite honestly the worst I've ever had in a car that I've owned. (I've owned quite a few over the last 33 years.) I even changed to smaller wheels with higher profile tyres to try and iron out the harsh ride but with little benefit. The car did handle well in normal driving, though the 4x4 didn't help. Pushed through a slippery corner it would understeer, then when the haldex system engaged the rear axle it would snap alarmingly in to oversteer, but it never got stuck.... anywhere! The performance looked good on paper, reasonable 0-60 time, but it just didn't feel like it could be bothered to deliver the goods when asked. To get any feeling of performance required loads of revs accompanied by a loads of harsh engine noise and the car would never provide that sea of torque that is so effective at covering the ground with minimum effort. Fuel economy could top 50mpg on long motorway journeys but struggled to average more than 35mpg overall. The car was well put together, and other than a wheel bearing and headlight issue was completely reliable during my 3 year 30,000 mile ownership. Weirdly it was actually nicer to drive as a tow car, with a small caravan it seemed more settled, rode better and the performance didn't seem too dented. I changed it after 3 years for a Volvo XC70 and there is absolutely no comparison between the two in terms of comfort and performance.