Skoda Roomster 2 1.6 16V 105bhp

Although they give economy I did not want a diesel as I have heard too many stories of the smoke (diesel particulate) filters going wrong and being expensive to put right. No one seems to have got this right yet and we really only do local pottering a lot of the time so petrol it is. I do want space, adaptability and a reasonable amount of oomph. I originally took a serious look at the Berlingo and Doblo but neither have petrol engines which enable one to get a move on when needed. Current vehicle is a Meriva which has been OK-ish but had faults which really shouldn't happen on a modern car.

No, I do not care what it looks like, far more important is does it do the job at a reasonable cost? If you have an ego problem (like my brother) which constantly gets in the way of you making rational decisions, all I can say is you have my every sympathy but I am no longer that stupid.

At the dealer's suggestion I tried the 1.4 16v - fine for old dears, etc., but it didn't take me long to realise that I wanted just a tad more "shove" so finally went for the 1.6 which does 0-60 in a quite respectable 11 secs - significantly better than the Dob or Berlingo. The driving position is great and feels "cosy" but also rear seat riders have said that they feel "comfy" too.

Didn't really want air-conditioning - a waste of money in this country but comes as standard, I will probably never turn it on.

As you might imagine, what finally did it for me is that I can take the seats out and I have a van big enough to carry a fridge. Some folk say the seats are a bit heavy but they must be wimps, if I can move them easily enough at age 66. This vehicle is "best of the bunch" at present and I will keep it for at least ten years I suspect. Some of the "pro" reviewers need new thinking heads in my opinion as they have marked it down for stupid irrelevancies like "plastics and appearance not to my taste" but good old Jeremy Clarkson has got it right.

In the beginning, I didn't want a Skoda and my wife didn't want a "Postman Pat" car.... I have had mine for a year by now clocking up nearly 23000 miles and I love it!

Mine is gun metal coloured, lowered suspension, 17" VW (with Skoda badge) low profile alloys and dark grey windows. I get more attention and positive comments than your average Mazda, Toyota, Citroen bla-bla whatever run of the mill car owner does so personally I like the design very much.

In my opinion, it handles quite well for such a tall car but surpricingly it handles even better when fully loaded (4 adults + luggage) 0-100 kph is reasonable as well.

We've done a couple of 700 miles trips in one go and bizzarely I didn't feel tired at any point driving this car.

The only two things which have bothered me are a faulty cruise control and noisy break discs, which has all been changed without cost at the garage.

The only thing I dont understand is why Skoda does not offer a 1,8 liter 6 speed version. I would have bought that if available!

Rumour has it that Skoda are contemplating a 7 seater version of the Roomster, so you never know what might happen engine wise.