3.6 V6 4x4

This car is Superb

Being 6'3" with teenage boys of similar, or greater height, we needed a car to comfortably transport the family. We had Land River Discoverys for 5 years and were sad to say goodbye to the Disco 4 but it just did not have the legroom. We wanted 4 wheel drive, space and ideally performance. Moreover, being relatively low mileage and short distance drivers we wanted petrol and a nearly new car rather than take the depreciation of brand new. But used large petrol powered estates are rarer than hen's teeth. Having taken my talllest son with me and sat in A6, E Class and others the only one that had the required space was a Superb. So looking on Skoda website for used petrol Superb estates I was faced with the choice of 8 in the whole country. The nearest (still over 30 miles away) was a two year old 3.6 V6 4x4 specification with just over 20,000 on the clock. I had wanted a 1.8 as I had read the 3.6 was thirsty but we took it for a test drive anyway. Fantastic. Superb by name and nature. I had to have it.
We have done two longs trips from Sussex over the summer; one to Pembrokeshore and one to Cornwall. It is a fantastic motorway cruiser and not a word of complaint from our six footer teenage sons in the back who were limo lounging. The performance is incredible, not far off a Golf GTi, and many an Audi/BMW/Merc driver has looked in amazement as I pull away from them.
The economy is not briliant, but I did not expect it to be. Motorway cruising at 75-80mph returned about 30mpg but I did have roof box and bike on the roof which would not have helped. Overall I average around 28-29mpg but daily journeys consist of 8 miles to and from local station so rural/urban mileage mostly. But the economy is better than the Discovery and we had got used to that over the last five years.
DSG is annoying when you want that sudden acceleration as it thinks about it. Also when you engage reverse it can still roll forward if on a hill. But it is good on a downhill as will stay in a low gear until you put your foot on the accelerator so saves brakes unlike regular automatics that would change up. Once you get used to the nuances of the DSG you can live with them.
One frustrating aspect, akin to many overseas marques, is that the satnav does not accept full UK postcode. What used to be a quick process in the Discovery is drawn out as you have to type in street names and select appropriately. Why are European car manufacturers so arrogant as to not recognise the simplicity of the UK postcode system.
In summary we are exceptionally pleased wiith the car. More so as it cost only £17k (and a further £900 for two more years warranty) but even brand new it would still be a good £10-£15k cheaper than similarly specced and performing German equivalents. And that makes you feel good - a quality product for a low price. But let's keep that quiet as I have, as Honest John puts it, a "rare and interesting car" and I would like to keep it that way.

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