New to Toyota

[Pannett]

After 20 years of Skoda ownership, the major software issues with our Octavia hybrid and the disappointing selection of cars now available from Skoda, we have changed to Toyota. Our new car, to be collected on Saturday, is the Corolla Touring Sport 2-litre Excel specification with a panoramic roof. It was bought via CarWow with a saving of nearly £3700. It's pre-registered but only has 14 miles on the odometer. The attractions of the Touring version are the lovely design, the very long warranty and Toyota's reputation for reliability. I'll report further on our driving experience once we've covered a few miles.

[davidif]

I owned several Skoda's years ago and they were very good cars although they do seem to have lost their way a bit in recent times, my favourite was a Fabia VRS with a wall of diesel torque and before the nonsense of DPF's and over complication.

 

[TonyHSD]

Excellent choice of a Skoda replacement. 
The authorities are also replacing Skodas with Toyota of lately. 
Here in London we have many Corolla TS as a police cars now and surprise to me was to see a Corolla TS Trek as police or ambulance, not sure as it was dark but recognised the wheels, it was trek 2022 version and has markings and roof lights 🚨

[jcps001]

Older Skodas had a nice reputation for being somewhat reliable. That is changing.

Quite frankly, the only european brand I would buy nowadays, would be something linked to the Renault Group (Renault, Dacia). Yes, I know some people don't like them, but they seem to have a nice reliability record nowadays, especially those with manual transmission.

A very good purchase you made there. A very good car.

[Cyker]

Do they?? Dacia yes, because there's nothing on them to go wrong, but I've not noticed any major improvement in Renault; If anything they made Nissan loose their reputation for reliability when they partnered with them!  

[TonyHSD]

3 minutes ago, Cyker said:

Do they?? Dacia yes, because there's nothing on them to go wrong, but I've not noticed any major improvement in Renault; If anything they made Nissan loose their reputation for reliability when they partnered with them!  

Add the Mitsubishi to the group. 
I buy  only Toyota with my money but if someone else pay I can drive anything. 😂👌

[FROSTYBALLS]

2 minutes ago, TonyHSD said:

Add the Mitsubishi to the group

In 2020, Mitsubishi announced they were pulling out of the UK and Europe.  

They have since decided to sell two tweaked Renault models in LHD markets, but not in the UK.

[Cyker]

That was a shame; They did make some great cars - The Colt and Lancer Evo were fun, and the Outlander was one of the most popular early PHEVs. We had fun in rented L200 when we were clearing out my brother's first house (It turns out it's very easy to accidentally kick out the rear end when it's unloaded!   ). Alas they'd not really displayed much interest in the UK market for some time, but it's still sad nonetheless.

 

[Pannett]

Thanks for the comments so far. Our first Skoda was an 02 reg diesel Octavia and was reliable and economical. Since then we've owned a Roomster 1.2 litre (underpowered for N Yorkshire hills but a great car), two Yetis, both diesel, one manual and one DSG, brilliant cars but our low annual mileage made DPF problems an issue so we bought a Karoq. Good features but such a boring design and uninspiring to drive. The Octy PHEV restored my enjoyment of driving as its acceleration, roadholding and comfort were outstanding, but numerous software issues spoilt my enjoyment of the car. Either Skoda or their dealer technicians were out of their depth and as well as not fixing the software faults, I was never able to connect with MySkoda despite numerous attempts. I'm looking forward to collecting our Corolla on Saurday and hope that MyT does everything I'd expect of an app.

[AndrueC]

Honda used to be very good but my last Jazz had several niggling issues including some poor design choices. I blame it on production moving from Swindon to Japan. Now that Honda have closed Swindon I wonder if the quality has slipped across their range.

[jcps001]

22 hours ago, Cyker said:

Do they?? Dacia yes, because there's nothing on them to go wrong, but I've not noticed any major improvement in Renault; If anything they made Nissan loose their reputation for reliability when they partnered with them!  

We've also got a 2009 Clio Mk3 with 90bhp 1.5 dci engine, and when it comes to the mechanical part it is still all good. Yes, interior quality not so good and it shows its age clearly.

The only complaints about the Clio are electric problems (windows up or down, door locks, etc.). Engine and transmission (manual) are fine still today. It has not aged like the Toyotas, but it is working well.

[APS]

On 12/6/2023 at 6:07 PM, Pannett said:

After 20 years of Skoda ownership, the major software issues with our Octavia hybrid and the disappointing selection of cars now available from Skoda, we have changed to Toyota.

Good choice and welcome to the club! 

Your comment is interesting and telling of the times; software is such an important, integral part of the experience of owning a modern car and you'd be a fool as a manufacturer if you ignore this. 

Without having owned a Skoda I have high regards for the brand and I'd be interested to hear your reflections on your experience as you start living with the Corolla. Including the experience of the dealership.

Again, welcome!

[Gray86]

Great choice of car, and broker. Madness that people pay full price for their cars when you can buy through Carwow & their affiliated Toyota dealers with nothing to lose (even Toyota PCP deals). 

[Cyker]

3 hours ago, jcps001 said:

We've also got a 2009 Clio Mk3 with 90bhp 1.5 dci engine, and when it comes to the mechanical part it is still all good. Yes, interior quality not so good and it shows its age clearly.

The only complaints about the Clio are electric problems (windows up or down, door locks, etc.). Engine and transmission (manual) are fine still today. It has not aged like the Toyotas, but it is working well.

Ah fair enough - I will say the diesel engines are one of the slightly odd anomalies with the french - From what I hear, their later diesel engines especially are bizarrely good! Surprisingly reliable and certainly much more refined than the Toyota ones which, while reliable, tend to be very "agricultural"  

The electrical problems are just part of the french car owning experience; I knew a guy who loved french cars but even he would bring a multimeter with him when shopping for one  

It's one thing that I fear for when they go fully EV!!   

[Basil-BarryC]

52 minutes ago, Cyker said:

Ah fair enough - I will say the diesel engines are one of the slightly odd anomalies with the french - From what I hear, their later diesel engines especially are bizarrely good! Surprisingly reliable and certainly much more refined than the Toyota ones which, while reliable, tend to be very "agricultural"  

The electrical problems are just part of the french car owning experience; I knew a guy who loved french cars but even he would bring a multimeter with him when shopping for one  

It's one thing that I fear for when they go fully EV!!   

Our previous Mercedes A Class diesel engine was apparently manufactured by Renault I was reliably informed by a Mercedes mechanic. it was a bit noisy ( rattly ) compared to say the Mercedes C Class diesel but was both reliable and economical with fuel.

[2badmice]

On 12/7/2023 at 12:28 PM, jcps001 said:

Older Skodas had a nice reputation for being somewhat reliable. That is changing.

Quite frankly, the only european brand I would buy nowadays, would be something linked to the Renault Group (Renault, Dacia). Yes, I know some people don't like them, but they seem to have a nice reliability record nowadays, especially those with manual transmission.

A very good purchase you made there. A very good car.

I'd avoid Dacia like the plague and Renault.  Awful cars IMHO and extremely ugly looking. The only time I'd consider, is, if I wasn't interested in cars or as mentioned earlier, someone else was paying.

If you have a crash, I'd just accept the loss and get rid, their parts were shocking to get, although that could be changing, as I can't see them using Russia anymore for parts.

[jcps001]

On 12/14/2023 at 8:03 PM, 2badmice said:

I'd avoid Dacia like the plague and Renault.  Awful cars IMHO and extremely ugly looking. The only time I'd consider, is, if I wasn't interested in cars or as mentioned earlier, someone else was paying.

If you have a crash, I'd just accept the loss and get rid, their parts were shocking to get, although that could be changing, as I can't see them using Russia anymore for parts.

I'm not recommending Dacias to people that like cars. They are cheap, make no mistake. I still remember the first ones, when new from the factory, you could smell the glue. Also, if you let those things in the hot summer sun for awhile, you could smell the cheap plastic.

Yes, Dacias are cheap and not for people that like to drive. But if you want a cheap, economical car to go from point A to point B, I find them really nice. And those things have improved.

Just three weeks ago, I got a lift on a 2019 Dacia Duster, and I found to be a very nice ride. I could feel the body roll, even at lower speeds, just with a lane change, but it was nice.

Also, where I live, there are diesel Dacias being used as taxis... Those things are fairing quite well when it comes to reliability. Even the DPFs aren't giving much trouble, from what I'm told...

When it comes to Renaults, I disagree... For almost two years I used the 2009 Clio Mk3. Very safe, stable car. Very good to drive.

Yeah, sure it is not a Toyota, there are gremlins here and there, but I find those things quite alright. And I like the Renaults. Especially the diesel ones, it seems they don't give too much trouble on the DPF front, like other brands...

I would stay away from Renault hybrids or those with "EDC" transmissions. Would only go for a manual transmission Renault. Those Jatco transmissions are decent at best... But the manuals are OK, provided you're not too rough on them.