Ok so first off she will not win any beauty contests but let’s be honest here you are sat inside when driving it

I came across the Roomster to be honest in a marketing email from my local Skoda retailer it was offering these at a knock down price of £9995 with the usual "limited stock once it’s gone its gone blah blah blah"

We had our first baby some 6 months earlier and was currently in a leased Skoda Citigo which to be far was an excellent car just it became apparent too small for day to day life

Went to have a look and they didn’t have any of that engine to test drive but they had the next one up 105bhp...

Test drive out the way we ordered one and the wait began…
Car arrived and upon initial inspection it appeared massive inside even my 6 month old daughter seemed at first perplexed in the openness of the back seating area and we duly set off on our way home

The driving position was great all round good visibility a tough rugged basic plastic dash but with everything in easy reach
Plus plenty of storage space

Next it was time to have a play with one of the many Roomster trump cards a full glass panoramic roof with dual sunblind’s so you can block the sunlight out for just the rear passengers or front or both these slide together and are held shut with a little magnetic catch

With the blind open it was amazing how much light was in the cabin almost gave it a convertible feel and with the larger rear passenger windows it certainly allows rear passenger’s ample views out the windows or the roof.

On the subject of rear passengers the back seats have their own little party tricks… the seats sit 6inches higher than the front seats now this may seem bizarre but it allows rear passengers to see over the heads of the front seats allowing again for a less claustrophobic experience, the back seats also slide backwards and forwards and tilt much the same as the front plus fold forward or be removed for carrying space.

The boot area is large affair with a 12v socket in the boot plenty of bag hooks and a strange plastic thing that clicks in the side panel and allows you to place items inside you don’t want skidding round the boot

Interior equipment wise it is quite well optioned up as standard the fact that this is a so called run out model no options could be ordered but the highlights include air conditioning, 4 electric windows, tyre deflation system, oddly enough an alarm with interior sensors and privacy glass Skoda also give you a proper spare wheel and tool kit not a useless can of aerosol glue

Engine wise it’s a peppy 86hp 5 speed gearbox nothing exciting but it gets the job done with minimal fuss gear changes are smooth and the ratios seem to suit the car a little side note is that this engine is a detuned version of the 105hp so those looking for a bit more zing can easily achieve 120-130 hp with not particular headaches on the engine, brakes wise they are more than adequate with discs in each corner.

A few months after buying we decided to go to the coast my wife and I plus our now 8 month old daughter the Roomster was packed to the gills, again amazed as to how much luggage it swallowed up and off we headed nice cruise up the a1 at 60-70mph and the Roomster was averaging 48mpg on the entire trip that also included some running around as well up there plus the dreaded traffic jams at the Tyne tunnel.
Normal day to day mpg is usually between 35-40 mpg as an average although it is getting better as the mileage increases

And 5000 miles in I have nothing major to report except an occasional clonk from the front on bad roads which Skoda could not find anything wrong

so to draw this to a conclusion let me just explain for a second this is also a lease car and normally with lease cars you lease them, drive them and then hand them back get something new or the same model rinse and repeat but this one is different I think after the first month of owning it my wife and I were talking and we both agreed the once the lease runs out we will be buying this one and if you still need convincing my parents borrowed it to take my daughter to the Norfolk broads recently and even my dad has said he would like to buy it once the lease runs out if I don’t want it.

Now it’s titled one of my top 3 cars the other 2 you ask …. Well my first car will always have a special place in my heart and my first ever brand new car I optioned up myself is the other and over the last 20years I have had a lot of company cars but none of them seem to tick every box like the Roomster does.