Faults:

Would not start every other day, despite having a Skoda mechanic look at it all the time.

Started to rust badly after only three years.

Passenger door handle fell off whilst driving down the road one day.

Radiator leaked after the second day, but put two raw eggs in it, which cured it for a while.

Would always stall when stuck in traffic and would backfire when tried to restart.

Windscreen wiper fuse kept blowing.

Gear linkage broke after 14,200 miles.

Heater jammed on hot (smells of rotten eggs).

Throttle return spring jamming after 14,420 miles.

General Comments:

Would you believe I traded in a tidy Triumph 2500S for this car as I needed something which was cheap to run.

After owning 10 odd cars prior, I can quite honestly say that this Skoda was the biggest pile of rubbish that I ever had the misfortune to drive, and it beggars belief that I paid money for it.

It wouldn't start nearly all the time, everything kept falling off and the road handling was abysmal. How Skoda got away with selling these death traps beats me...

Alas, with only 16,050 under its rusty belt, the throttle jammed once again (had three springs fitted over 3 months by Skoda) so I just got out the car and walked away. There was a sense of exitement and relief as the engine went BANG! and then the Skoda was off to the scrapyard. Goodbye to bad rubbish.

I went and bought a Lambretta scooter after and that was 100% more reliable!

Faults:

Absolutely nothing. Put that in your pipe and smoke it Mr. Volkswagen!!!

General Comments:

This car is a bombproof go-kart. I love driving it. I bought it in the UK last winter and brought it over here, where it seems to handle Irish roads better than most cars I've driven. It has a nice neutral cornering stance until the rear (where the engine is) breaks away for some oversteery fun, the suspension eats the bumps and the steering is pin-sharp (no need for power steering on this). It's also really fun to drive and be in.

Of course there are a few people of my age, who drive rubbish like Micras, Polos, Ibizas and so on who think I'm an idiot for driving a Communist-era Skoda. I always point out that Skoda built solid, affordable, well-engineered, high-quality cars when Volkswagen were still building the world's worst car.

No Skoda joke is ever justified. This one is totally reliable, needs only minimal maintainence, and when it does need to be eventually serviced, the mechanical layout is so simple that anyone handy with a spanner can do it.

If you need a reliable, economical, spacious, fun first car, then give one of these Skodas some serious consideration. A good one is well worth the low price you'll pay, and will certainly serve you very well.