So, in my continuing search for a replacement car, I’ve seen some fairly high millage Octavias, 3 years old, 60,000 miles on the clock, nice high spec – which appeals.

I will do a low millage with any car that I get, so was thinking that I could get a much nicer spec car for the money than one that is a year or two old, lower spec. I’d plan to keep it for at least 10 years, millage will be less than 10,000 but I do need the space available from the Octavia estate on occasion.

Is there anything I need to look at in terms of things that might have worn out / need servicing/replacing in a higher milage car ?

I have a 60k mile Octavia. It’s a 2012 and has a slightly clunky suspension noise on speed bumps, judders a bit at >70mph (possibly due to wind after a problem with a rock hidden in a verge damaged the bumper) and has a creaky boot strut (estate) but otherwise it has been good.

The 60,000mls wouldn’t bother me with a good service history, the car should easily see out the 10yrs. In that time you’ll need a cam belt change, brake pads and discs, probably a clutch and dm flywheel, exhaust maybe a dpf, egr replacement, perhaps shocks and the odd joint and bush. Most of that would need doing on a 20,000mle car just a few years later.

my guess would be the high mileage ones are typically diesel, and on your usage you might be better with petrol?

I would have thought that at 60k there would be little to worry about from a lease car – it is within the lease conditions that servicing in done to manufacturers recommendations.

Most likely the car will be on the second pair of front tyres (or ready for the third), could be on the original rears.

CLutch etc should be perfect still.

It would be worth seeing if the model you are looking at has any belts etc that need changing towards the 100k miles as they can be expensive if done and ruinous if not done!

I would be looking to see if the corners were scratched / doors dinged – body work is quite expensive to fix!

Apart from the usual stuff, as long as it’s been serviced…and I assume inside warranty (which you won’t have) it’ll be a main dealer service.

What’s the recommended cam-belt change for an Octavia?

I don’t think 60000 miles over 3 years is anything to worry about. We got ours at 55k-ish and there hasn’t been a peep from it – now at 90k. Are you buying from a main dealer anyway? If so, can you get a warranty for a year?

60k should be like new, that’s not high mileage. Cambelt service ?

A good friend who keeps his cars immaculate was offered his company 3yr old A3 2tdi with similar milage for £11,500 when it came up for renewal. I should have bought that, it was a steal. I was too fussy as it was white.

To be honest its all about the price

Go into it with your eyes open, it is a lease car. That does not necessarily mean it has been maintained without consideration for expense.
Our lease company will not bother with scheduled maintenance if it is approaching return time (by this I mean if a service is due at 12 months or 12k and you have done 10k it won’t be serviced). Have a good look at the service history, the car you buy may just about be due a major service when you get it. Check tyres too, if the ya re low but leagal off to the mart it goes as is.
My experience of our lease company is that they make it a ball ache to get niggles fixed so stuff gets left undone.

we have a 60k on a seat altea, (same engine I think) New cambelt at 60k or five years. set of front disks, rear shock a bit leaky, and its been VAG re-tuned last year. Mint apart from that, great car, looking forward to the next 60k.

Higher mileage? 60K is nowt even in 3 years, and indicates motorway mileage which is generally a bit less stressful on the car.

Where are you seeing these? Interested myself!

My 3yr old VW Caddy had 110,000 miles on it and full VW service history when i bought it last December for £6.4k – equivalent vans with 30,000 miles on the clock were £8.5k+ but i’d rather have a diesel that’s been hoofed up n’ down motorways and on longer journeys than something thats been driven around town stop/start driving. No problems with it at all, needless to say i did give it a full service including all belts when i bought it just for my piece of mind and it’s since had a remap setup on a rolling road and pulls very cleanly for a van.

I had a lift in a taxi recently, Octavia, that looked, felt and sounded brand new. The guy told me it was 9 months old, and it had 89k miles on it 8O. Apparently him and one or two other guys ran it 22 hours a day 7 days a week. They’d keep them for two years and nearly 1/4 million miles. Nothing went wrong, no bits needed changing apart from tyres and presumably brakes. And this is a taxi so mostly suburban or urban driving. Although being Glasgow there’s motorway involved too.

Given how new the car felt after 90k miles I can only conclude that age and care is much more important than mileage.

Check it for rattles and knocks.

My year old Octavia has started to have a few little niggles already that I’m not to happy about to be honest.

The fuel lines rattle at certain revs, the b pillars vibrate. There is an annoying squeak coming from somewhere and also the leather isn’t wearing very well either.

60k? That’s low mileage for a 3yo lease car! Mine had 120k on the clock when I bought it at 4.5yo.

That mileage would not put me off. Bought my previous Octavia at 3 years old and ran it to 170K without any problems.
Recently bought a 3yr old ex lease Volvo withh 100K on it.
If a car is covering 20K+ per year then the likelihood is that it is doing easy motorway miles (this obviously doesn’t apply to the taxi example above though!)
If the price is right and nothing looks abnormal then go for it.

Avoid the 1600 diesel – I have the Passat with the same engine.

It is seriously lacking in torque and as a result leased ones will likely have been ragged. Mine is about to go back and I pity whoever buys it!

Our lease company will not bother with scheduled maintenance if it is approaching return time

Depends on the company then I presume – ours would insist the work gets done. I had to send my last one in for a service a fortnight before the lease ran out.

As above, mileage isn’t a problem but check the service history in case any maintenance is due.

I’ve had loads of high mileage vag cars over the years and they’ve been fine. Just replaced my Octavia on 150k and it was running fine. Only got rid because I was still doing 20k per year/fancied a change.

Cambelt interval on vag cars is 80k or 4 years, around £450 Inc water pump.

If it’s on variable servicing it will have been done every 18k or so. Might be due a service now.

Likely to need pads and maybe discs at that mileage. (check for lip on disc)

Turbos , particulate filters , exhaust valves can fail, usually on older cars over 100k,

Clutch s should be fine for 130k ish, depending on use.

my guess would be the high mileage ones are typically diesel, and on your usage you might be better with petrol?

It is 1.4 petrol – diesel wouldn’t get a look in – too expensive in Holland and you can see them getting banned from city centres at some point.

Where are you seeing these? Interested myself!

Holland, so might not be suitable for you 😉 ( and it’ll be more expensive than in the UK ).

Just back from the test drive – felt good, though hard to compare, getting out of a 17 year old Deafener and getting into a space ship modern car.

Thanks for all the feedback – dependent on price, I might well go for it.

I too am looking at an 3yr old 1.4 Octavia but with 80K on the clock. Wasn’t particularly bothered by the mileage, though in 3 years it now does seem quite high, especially for a petrol. Again my low mileage commute means it makes sense, as I’m struggling to feel any love for the fabia (mk3)

I’ve had loads of high mileage vag

Haven’t we all.

I bought an ex lease Mazda with 57k on the clock at 3 years I’m. It’s been brilliant. And we’ve now evened out the mileage. Kept it 4 years and just swapped it. It had every service reqd item that it needed whilst under the lease scheme.

as I’m struggling to feel any love for the fabia (mk3)

Yep, that accords with my feelings. The Octavia is both a bigger and better car.

Anyone got any experience, might be a Dutch thing, of a showroom setting a price for a car then a mandatory extra fee to make the car ready for purchase – 600 euros in this case ? There was a certain amount of telling them to jog on, but I am interested in terms of what to offer.

The price is 22,450, 600 added for the delivery packet, I walked away with the salesshark offering it to me at 22,550.

For giggles, the delivery packet includes:

• 6 month guarantee
• 130 point inspection
• cleaning interior/exterior
• Waxguard
• Min half tank of fuel
• min 1 year MOT
• handing over the service history
• customised trade in offer

jambalaya – Member 
60k should be like new, that’s not high mileage.

For a 3 year old car? A rep / fleet car maybe. 60k on it I’d expect fair bit worn. Like new would be more like 2k to 10k on it.

My Civ is 9 years old and on 80k, but that’s been a low mileage car until last couple of years where I’ve been clocking up the miles a bit. Was barely a few hundred miles when I bought it, one year old, factory owned. Cracking deal with several £k off the new price, high spec, full warranty.

Still though, only just worn out the shocks on it and hardly anything else but standard servicing done in all the years I’ve had it.

Was a HP/lease kind of deal when I got it, but I paid to keep it as liked it so much.

I’ve had loads of high mileage vag

😆 😆