• PHEV potentially the cheapest to run – for now
• Not much difference between 115 and 150hp models
• Petrol model only marginally worse Than diesel

What are the running costs?

Diesel remains the best choice if you’re going to do big mileage in the Skoda Octavia Estate. The official WLTP figures show both the 116hp and 150hp TDI diesels are capable of doing well over 60mpg and our experience suggests you can get into the high 50s on a long run.

However, the mild hybrids are closing the gap. We achieved 50mpg in the 150hp TSI e-Tec in 800 miles of mixed driving – matching the WLTP numbers – and we expect the 115hp to post similar results. Given the price disparity between between petrol and diesel, mild-hybrid might now be the more cost-effective option.

The conventional TSI petrol engines range from high-40s to low-50s miles-per-gallon. We achieved 40-45mpg in our testing. CO2 emissions are pretty low across the engine range, minimising the first-year VED bill you pay when buying a new car.

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The TSI iV plug-in hybrid is theoretically capable of well over 100mpg on the WLTP cycle, and around 46mpg when running on its petrol engine. Expect to see around 60mpg using a mix of petrol and battery power and 35-40 miles of EV range.

You can find the MPG and CO2 for every Octavia Estate model on our specs pages.

Servicing and warranty

Servicing intervals for the Octavia Estate are once a year or every 20,000 miles. Skoda’s servicing charges are perfectly reasonable, but you can minimise the cost by taking out a fixed-price, multi-year service plan.

The car is covered by an industry-standard three-year/60,000-miles warranty, well behind the seven years of coverage you get with a Kia Ceed, or the 10 years the Toyota Corolla has.

Reliability

• Skoda does well in customer satisfaction surveys
• Lots of tech shared with other VW Group products
• Some issues with software and recalls

The Skoda brand has a great reputation for reliability and customer satisfaction, as shown by its performance in innumerable industry surveys. However, that reputation has been shaken a bit as some people – including ourselves – have experience some software issues with this generation. But those should have been fixed in the facelift, and it hasn’t stopped people liking their Octavia Estates, as our owner reviews show.

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A number of recalls have been issued and you can find the details on the government’s vehicle recall check website. Affected cars should have had rectification work carried out; check the service history of any used car you’re interested in buying and/or contact a dealer to find out if that’s the case. Outstanding recalls are now listed on a car’s MOT certificate, as well.