Which car should I buy for a 130-mile daily round trip?

I have up to £10,000 to spend on a used car for a daily round trip of 130 miles, and my criteria is reliability, economy and decent motorway performance. My preference is for an automatic gearbox. I currently...

DSG of Thornhill writes…

I have been driving a Skoda Octavia 2.0 Litre Diesel with a DSG box that I like. Is this box available outside the Audi/Volkswagen Group

I'd like an economical, 'green' car for a 160-mile commute - what should I buy?

I'm looking at buying an economical and 'green' car but I'm clueless. I'll be doing almost all motorway driving, so I'm not sure I'd get the benefits of a hybrid when doing a 160-mile round commute every...

Please review your information on the Skoda Octavia TPI fuel pump issue.

I read the comments on the Skoda Octavia 2-litre TDI PD oil pumps with alarm. I then dug into the detail on the engines in the VAG manuals and spares catalogues that I have. It appears that the 2-litre...

Is the 140PD engine in the 2007 Skoda Octavia prone to turbo and oil pump failure?

I am looking at buying a 2007 (07) Skoda Octavia with the 140PD engine in it. However I have found a few bad reports on the engine, some in relation to turbo failure at an early age and others about a...

Should I buy the 2.0 PDI or 1.4 TSI Skoda Octavia?

I'm trying to decide between the following: a brand new Skoda Octavia Elegance 1.4 TSI from Drivethedeal for around £14,500 (includes some extras) or a year-old Skoda Octavia Elegance 2.0 TDI PD for around...

Which car models are available with DSG transmission?

I am fairly sure you listed a number of makes/models with DSG transmission options in a relatively recent reply in the Daily Telegraph. I failed to make a note of these and now, of course, I'm thinking...

How common is the Mazda 3 ABS / ESP module fault?

Any idea how frequent the ABS/ESP module fault is which affects the Volkswagen Golf V, Mazda 3, Skoda Octavia and BMW 1 Series? Is it a problem that all cars fitted with this unit will definitely suffer...

What are your thoughts on buying an ex-police Skoda Octavia?

What do you think about buying an ex-police car? I guess it would be well maintained but possibly hammered? The one I'm looking at is a 2004 Skoda Octavia with 100,000 on the clock.

Which tyres should I fit to my Skoda Octavia to reduce road noise?

I recently took delivery of a Skoda Octavia L&K 1.8 TSI DSG Estate and the engine/gearbox combination is superb (much better than my previous 3.2 DSG Passat). From previous Octavia Estate experience I...