Can it be true????

[brad]

I would love nothing more than Skoda to see the growth and fortune it deserves, but the fact remains it will not happen anytime soon. Even the die hards on here believe it is not good enough to find traction in this country for another 5 years +, what hope does it really have???

Brands come & brands go. I remember the early days of Toyota & Datsun and toyota was what tightwads bought & Datsun had a reputation for being made of recycled sardine cans. I remember when Bondy started bringing in Hyundai & what appalling heaps of poo they were (but they were cheap) and a few of the other korean brands (daewoo, ssangyong, etc). I also remember when people thought that BMC were pretty good & were buying them like nobodies business (and Chrysler too, come to think of it). And everyone seems to forget what unreliable pieces of dung the original Subarus were too. I'd guess it took Subaru about 10 years to get established, hyundai about 15 years. There are plenty of other brands still trying to establish themselves (Renault has been trying for 40 years) and i think Skoda has a better chance than most.

I'm still not sure why buyers with long term ownership intentions are concerned about resale - after 5 years the car has pretty well bottomed out & you've lost about 70-80% of the original value anyway - no matter what the brand.

[Brycem]

RSWag,

stop trotting out incorrect Vfacts! The sales are up - see my previous figures.

Your comments are unhelpful. You don't own a Skoda so why don't you focus your energies on the Golf forum.

You don't find me on the Golf Forum questioning Mexican build quality or dubious rear end styling of the golf wagon.

Brad's comments are spot on!

[noone]

If you ask me (yes, I know you didn't), the main issue with Skoda is the naming.

It sound pretty, but I don't want to have to say I drive a 'Superb' or a 'Roomster'. The Octavia is not so bad, but for a brand with a new badge to the country, did no one see the issue with strange naming that may be offputting?

I'm sure some will think this silly, but those sales are dismal for a brand that is using the same parts and engines as VW and Audi, especially when they are cheaper...

[aussiers]

Owned a RS Wagon for 6 months. Lucky to sell it when I did.

[VW Convert]

Owned a RS Wagon for 6 months. Lucky to sell it when I did.

Having posted that twice now, I would think it reasonable to ask that you post further information. What were the circumstances?

[bobski]

I'm still not sure why buyers with long term ownership intentions are concerned about resale - after 5 years the car has pretty well bottomed out & you've lost about 70-80% of the original value anyway - no matter what the brand.

I agree totally. I'll keep the RS for at least 5 years. I figure it'll be worth as much as almost any other car of that age in this price bracket.

While brand support is important, resale to me in this instance, is not. Anyway, in this regard, I think given small sales numbers and Skoda's performance in Europe for reliability and customer satisfaction, I think smaller numbers works to the advanatage of long term resale value.

I'd be surprised if they become a huge brand in Australia given the rife brand snobbery, but I'd be disappointed if they didn't become a known brand.

[RSOK]

Ditto. Resale value was of no concern for me, given the expected life of my RS under my ownership (easily 5+ years)... in fact I'd say resale value was the lowest of my priorities when making a decision about which car to purchase... simply put, the driving pleasure and performance of the vehicle came first (along with considerations regarding reliability I suppose).... standard equipment and running costs were also considered.

The fact that Skoda Australia is just a trading name of VW Australia means that I had no qualms about purchasing a Skoda, as in the event of the withdrawal of the Skoda brand from the Australian market (touch wood) we have VW to honour the warranty comittment and supply parts.... absolutely no issue in my book.