Skoda Octavia - VAG TSI Engine - chesterfieldhouse

With a 10K budget, what are forum member opinion as to the merits of the newer 1.5 varient over the previous 1.4? (apart from being a newer car) Particularly in an auto Octavia (l'm aware of the debate around the dsg gearbox)

Skoda Octavia - VAG TSI Engine - badbusdriver

Now sure how much of a choice your budget is going to allow, you may not have any option as to whether 1.4 or 1.5 depending on where you live and how far you are willing to travel (unless buying online without seeing or driving the car in the flesh).

Setting an upper mileage limit of 80k (and are excluding ins write-offs) there is a grand total of 32 Octavia 1.4/1.5 DSG's available nationwide on Autotrader, of which only 1 is a 1.5.

If you also consider that the earliest 1.5's seemed to suffer most from the kangarooing, it would seem prudent (IMO) to avoid the 1.4.

Skoda Octavia - VAG TSI Engine - badbusdriver

it would seem prudent (IMO) to avoid the 1.4.

This should of course read "avoid the 1.5"......

Skoda Octavia - VAG TSI Engine - Orb>>.

Looking at available dsg cars in budget on autotrader they will be 8 years old, 70ish thousand miles or more..

Are you really prepared to risk that money on a car with that gearbox, and probably no evidence of any gearbox oil change?

Skoda Octavia - VAG TSI Engine - Adampr

I had a Karoq with the 1.5. It's a smooth and quiet engine underway, but they are notoriously jerky when cold. With the DSG you mostly experience it as an uneven idle and a lack of power for about 30.seconds, then all is well. It's a bit annoying but probably OK if you're someone who likes to faff for a bit when they first start the car.

I've not heard of any significant issues with the 1.4 so would probably go for that if you're at all fussy.

The DSG in the 1.5 (and presumably 1.4) is a dry clutch so potentially less robust than the wet clutch but cheaper to fix. I had no issues at all with mine. When I sold it, the dealer got it to kick down hard a couple of times, presumably as some kind of test that all was well.

Skoda Octavia - VAG TSI Engine - Maxime.

How about the 1.0 litre TSI?

Skoda Octavia - VAG TSI Engine - Orb>>.

How about the 1.0 litre TSI?

Indeed.a 110 or is it a 115hp? By all means a lovely engine.

Skoda Octavia - VAG TSI Engine - daveyjp

Didn't the 1.4 TSi have a few problems along the way, demonstrated by the many variations? Twin charger, belt and chains all used over a few years,

I always think the 1.5 was introduced to remove from VAG memories the problematic development history of the 1.4!

Skoda Octavia - VAG TSI Engine - Adampr

Didn't the 1.4 TSi have a few problems along the way, demonstrated by the many variations? Twin charger, belt and chains all used over a few years,

I always think the 1.5 was introduced to remove from VAG memories the problematic development history of the 1.4!

8 don't know about the 1.4, but the 1.2 had a programme of 'continuous improvement' over it's life.

Skoda Octavia - VAG TSI Engine - badbusdriver

Didn't the 1.4 TSi have a few problems along the way, demonstrated by the many variations? Twin charger, belt and chains all used over a few years,

I always think the 1.5 was introduced to remove from VAG memories the problematic development history of the 1.4!

8 don't know about the 1.4, but the 1.2 had a programme of 'continuous improvement' over it's life.

The 1.4TSI's (which would include the twin charger) could be problematic when they were chain driven, but were fine when they changed to belt. Because the 1.5 had the kangarooing issues (which anecdotal evidence suggests is better now, if not entirely cured), a late 1.4 is a better choice than an early 1.5.

I believe the 1.2 remained chain but, as said, was improved. It has been said a few times on the forum how to identify a "good" 1.2 over a "bad" one, but I can never remember. Think it is something to do with the positioning of the starter motor or alternator?.

Re the 1.0, going by comments on the forum, it seems many feel the engine is too small for a car of that size. That isn't something which would unduly bother me (as long as I was happy how it drove) because the 1.0TSI Octavia is a surprisingly light car for its size (under 1200kg according to this website, even the DSG).

Skoda Octavia - VAG TSI Engine - Terry W

I had a manual 1.4TSI Octavia for 7 years which I ran to 140k. The only faults in all that time was going into limp home mode - coil pack issue, and water pump failure both fixed under warranty.

Was still running very smoothly on original clutch when sold.

Current car is a 1 year old Ateca with 1.5L DSG. Don't like stop start system so disable it every journey. Front wheel grip limited under hard acceleration from stationary. Otherwise gearbox very smooth changes and engine excellent.

Whether reliability concerns over DSG boxes is justified is debatable - VW group have been using them in huge numbers for more than 20 years - whilst there may have been early concerns I would expect they would have modified designs to fix any faults within a few years.

Any car with 70k+ risks failure of either gearbox or clutch depending on service regime, typical driving conditions and in particular driving style - mechanically sensitive or heavy footed.

Skoda Octavia - VAG TSI Engine - chesterfieldhouse

Post has been prompted by my sons wife having recently bought a 3 year old 1.5 Karoq (auto) They too report a slight hesitation on starting from cold & in motion, for example when excellerating away having negociated a roundabout.

As l said, the debate around reliability of the dsg gearbox will divide opinion however, they do seem to be one of the smoothest around.

Getting back to the 1.4/1.5 engine..............Autotrader has engine power & torque the same. MPG is also noticibly less with the later 1.5 even in the ACT varient.

Skoda Octavia - VAG TSI Engine - badbusdriver

Post has been prompted by my sons wife having recently bought a 3 year old 1.5 Karoq (auto) They too report a slight hesitation on starting from cold & in motion, for example when excellerating away having negociated a roundabout.

As l said, the debate around reliability of the dsg gearbox will divide opinion however, they do seem to be one of the smoothest around.

With regards to the different types of automatic transmissions, I've experienced the four main types over the last four cars we had. T/C on a Hyundai i30 1.6 turbo diesel, CVT on a Honda Jazz 1.3, ACT (single clutch automated manual) on a Suzuki Ignis 1.2 and DCT (which, despite having a different acronym, is what a DSG is, a dual clutch automated manual) on a Hyundai Bayon 1.0 turbo.

Best overall (IMO) in terms of smoothness, how well it worked in general, and how well it worked with the engine was the CVT in the Jazz. 2nd best was the i30's T/C, then the DCT and last (by a ways!) the ACT in the Ignis.

Re the DCT, I found it fine most of the time and fairly smooth (though not as smooth as the CVT or T/C). But putting it into gear when cold resulted in a bit of a lurch (possibly because the idle speed when cold was quite high) which isn't ideal if in a tight parking spot. It also suffered from occasional judder when cold pulling away. And, when driving "normally" it was fine, but if pressing on, not so much. It was as if the transmission had been programmed for a high revving n/a petrol (like the Jazz) rather than an engine with a big slug of torque low down in the rev range and little to be gained above 3.5k rpm.

Re reliability, yes a DSG/DCT can be reliable, but they just don't tolerate abuse well. Fine if buying new, but down to the luck of the draw if buying a used example at 7+ years old and with 70k+ miles. Personal choice and all, but I wouldn't.

Getting back to the 1.4/1.5 engine..............Autotrader has engine power & torque the same. MPG is also noticibly less with the later 1.5 even in the ACT varient.

I wouldn't read too much into that. Even looking at real MPG figures (like what you'll find on this website) can be misleading. Because it doesn't say how the car is driven, type of journey, and how many owners have submitted their figures. What you'd need to find is someone who's owned both 1.4 and 1.5, because they will have been driving in the same way with both cars. But personally I wouldn't expect much difference in economy between the two.

Edited by badbusdriver on 28/06/2025 at 15:40

Skoda Octavia - VAG TSI Engine - Big John

Getting back to the 1.4/1.5 engine..............Autotrader has engine power & torque the same. MPG is also noticibly less with the later 1.5 even in the ACT varient.

In 2018 WLTP (Worldwide Harmonized Light Vehicle Test Procedure ) was introduced that rather changed stated economy figures. Most 1.4tsi engines are pre 2018 and 1.5tsi versions are 2018+.

Skoda Octavia - VAG TSI Engine - chesterfieldhouse

Getting back to the 1.4/1.5 engine..............Autotrader has engine power & torque the same. MPG is also noticibly less with the later 1.5 even in the ACT varient.

In 2018 WLTP (Worldwide Harmonized Light Vehicle Test Procedure ) was introduced that rather changed stated economy figures. Most 1.4tsi engines are pre 2018 and 1.5tsi versions are 2018+.

Good point!