European Car of the Year

[LizziePope]

Check out our latest blog post – our tow car expert David Motton reflects on the fact that the Skoda Octavia, the overall winner of our 2013 Tow Car Awards, is in the running for the European Car of the Year gong! Click here to read more.
/sites/practicalcaravan.com/files/images/Skoda-Octavia-Tow-Car-Award.jpg

 

[Raywood]

I find it difficult to accept that the Octavia is acceptable as tow car of the year. The car is so light that it can tow only a small percentage of caravans and is therefore of no use to the majority of us. To me a tow car of the year has to be able to tow a good proportion of caravans, not all of them, and only then can it be given the top award. I would not argue with its win in its class but overall tow car of the year then no. Not sure what others think though.
As for European car of the year it would not be my choice as it lacks any real progress in design but that it highly subjective.

 

[Surfer]

I find it difficult to accept that the Octavia is acceptable as tow car of the year. The car is so light that it can tow only a small percentage of caravans and is therefore of no use to the majority of us. To me a tow car of the year has to be able to tow a good proportion of caravans, not all of them, and only then can it be given the top award. I would not argue with its win in its class but overall tow car of the year then no. Not sure what others think though.
As for European car of the year it would not be my choice as it lacks any real progress in design but that it highly subjective.

I agree and it males you wonder how they manage to come up with the tow car of the year award? I guess probably whoever pays the biggest backhander! LOL!

 

[seth1]

And i ask the question why.What makes it so much better than its nearest rival.What makes the difference?I would totally expect its rivals to perform just as good in every way and if not,the difference would be unmeasureable.It does seem certain people have facinations with German cars.Personally i find them bland, very boring and not as reliable as people would like to think,infact German engineering if you can refer to it as that has certainly made my businees prosper.

 

[otherclive]

And i ask the question why.What makes it so much better than its nearest rival.What makes the difference?I would totally expect its rivals to perform just as good in every way and if not,the difference would be unmeasureable.It does seem certain people have facinations with German cars.Personally i find them bland, very boring and not as reliable as people would like to think,infact German engineering if you can refer to it as that has certainly made my businees prosper.

actually its a Czech designed and built car using common VAG components. The PC magazine and CC TCOY editions go to great lengths to explain their test regime, marking system and who tests and marks the cars in each group. It's an objective approach but at the end of the day there are bound to be agreements and disagreements. To expect a successful TCOY to pull a wide range of vans reduces the competitors to one car the Disco 4! At the end of the day some marks will be awarded against measurable criteria and others will be awarded based on the testers' own views and these are subjective. I find TCOY interesting, but that's all it is the better guide is the individual class results. After all if you want to tow 1600kg you're hardly likely to be interested in the Picanto.

 

[seth1]

Quite agree Clive.But its still a bit pointless in my opinion and as ive said in the past i wouldnt let the choice of a magazine sway by decision in buying a new car.The best in its class?honestly? doesnt say much for the rest then.Czech built but uses German components from VAG,that makes it German then doesnt it,just like Bently?

 

[xtrailman]

I was talking cars today with my sons friend who does a high milage, hes had a Skoda octavia, golf, passat, and now a Audi A4.
Hes quite bemused with the popularity of the Skoda as he found it to be the least desirable of all the Vag cars hes had, by far the best is the A4.
Yet Skoda do well in the customer surveys and tow tests, go figure.

I've looked at the Yeti myself and though the quality wasn't great, its the small things i notice like the cheap looking window rubbers.

 

[otherclive]

Quite agree Clive.But its still a bit pointless in my opinion and as ive said in the past i wouldnt let the choice of a magazine sway by decision in buying a new car.The best in its class?honestly? doesnt say much for the rest then.Czech built but uses German components from VAG,that makes it German then doesnt it,just like Bently?

time to recognise that the car market is global and that companies share components. My Xc70 shares parts and floor pan with Mondeo and Freelander. Disco 4 has Ford sourced motor. Skoda must do something correct as they regularly top, or come very high in reliability and customer service. Which given the number of moans about UK caravans our industry might emulate.

 

[Raywood]

I agree with Clive to great extent but one of the points you have to take into consideration in addition to weight is value for money and the price of the Disco probably means it loses out there. My feeling is that any car weighing less than 1500 kg is not realy heavy enough to be tow car of the year.
I accept that the tests would not make anyone purchase on that alone but we had not considered a Mazda before seeing it perform well in the contest and having seen and tried it we did buy.

 

[WoodlandsCamper]

My feeling is that any car weighing less than 1500 kg is not realy heavy enough to be tow car of the year.

As mentioned in other areas 'one size fits all' is not always the best solution. A lot of people are down-sizing their outfits due to increasing running costs, smaller families and retirement, as we will also be doing in the new year. We are going from a 2-car family to a 1-car family. Currently we have a 2007 1.9 150 PS Vectra (towing car) plus a 2005 Astra and are replacing them with a 2014 1.7 130 PS Astra. The Vectra has been an excellent towcar pulling a 1200kg MTPLM van, so I hope the new Astra won't be too much of a step-down.

 

[otherclive]

I agree with Clive to great extent but one of the points you have to take into consideration in addition to weight is value for money and the price of the Disco probably means it loses out there. My feeling is that any car weighing less than 1500 kg is not realy heavy enough to be tow car of the year.
I accept that the tests would not make anyone purchase on that alone but we had not considered a Mazda before seeing it perform well in the contest and having seen and tried it we did buy.

Ray,
I agree with you. My refrence to the Disco 4 was a bit tongue in cheek as it consistently wins its group and would be the only car able to take about 90%+ of all vans, without having to dig deep into the buyers pockets.......for a Range Rover (LoL)

 

[JonnyG]

If i buy a skoda new i can expect it to be fairly well built and fairly reliable...ummmm suppose i can expect that of any new car, but if it does go wrong i expect good after sales right? if i buy a mercedes i expect Reliablilty par excelance and after sales to match......If mercedes gives me skoda service and reliability i will feel cheated as i bought into the mercedes image and historic reputation and after sales. what passes as good or great service and customer satisfaction at mid to lower brands passes as OK at the top brands. the like of skoda and theres nothing wrong with them works because the mindset of people with image. when its contructed by VW using the same automated machines,theprodutions teams are simlar trained too as are customer service them how can skoda score so much better than VW in surveys when everything is the same bar price, unless the customers expect more from a VW than a Skoda! and note as companies get bigger and sell more and more cars they tend to slip down the all important [not] league table of par excellence.....

 

[otherclive]

If i buy a skoda new i can expect it to be fairly well built and fairly reliable...ummmm suppose i can expect that of any new car, but if it does go wrong i expect good after sales right? if i buy a mercedes i expect Reliablilty par excelance and after sales to match......If mercedes gives me skoda service and reliability i will feel cheated as i bought into the mercedes image and historic reputation and after sales. what passes as good or great service and customer satisfaction at mid to lower brands passes as OK at the top brands. the like of skoda and theres nothing wrong with them works because the mindset of people with image. when its contructed by VW using the same automated machines,theprodutions teams are simlar trained too as are customer service them how can skoda score so much better than VW in surveys when everything is the same bar price, unless the customers expect more from a VW than a Skoda! and note as companies get bigger and sell more and more cars they tend to slip down the all important [not] league table of par excellence.....

I dont think price affects ones expecations of customer service that much. Why should you feel that someone paying £18k for a Skoda doesnt know what good customer service should be? The comment about companies getting bigger and then slipping down the league tables is not supported by the evidence. By your reckoning 'cheap cars' such as Kia and Hyundai should not be at the top of the league tables for service and reliability given their move upmarket and increased sales volumes. One of the reasons that Skoda can score better than VW is probably because the ethos of their outlets is more customer orientated by having to still overcome the old jokes about Skodas. But customers will not continue to buy poor products irrespective of excellent customer service, so the hardware must be above par too. In 2014 Skoda expect to sell 1million cars....name a UK producer anywhere near that?

 

[JonnyG]

If i buy a skoda new i can expect it to be fairly well built and fairly reliable...ummmm suppose i can expect that of any new car, but if it does go wrong i expect good after sales right? if i buy a mercedes i expect Reliablilty par excelance and after sales to match......If mercedes gives me skoda service and reliability i will feel cheated as i bought into the mercedes image and historic reputation and after sales. what passes as good or great service and customer satisfaction at mid to lower brands passes as OK at the top brands. the like of skoda and theres nothing wrong with them works because the mindset of people with image. when its contructed by VW using the same automated machines,theprodutions teams are simlar trained too as are customer service them how can skoda score so much better than VW in surveys when everything is the same bar price, unless the customers expect more from a VW than a Skoda! and note as companies get bigger and sell more and more cars they tend to slip down the all important [not] league table of par excellence.....

I dont think price affects ones expecations of customer service that much. Why should you feel that someone paying £18k for a Skoda doesnt know what good customer service should be? The comment about companies getting bigger and then slipping down the league tables is not supported by the evidence. By your reckoning 'cheap cars' such as Kia and Hyundai should not be at the top of the league tables for service and reliability given their move upmarket and increased sales volumes. One of the reasons that Skoda can score better than VW is probably because the ethos of their outlets is more customer orientated by having to still overcome the old jokes about Skodas. But customers will not continue to buy poor products irrespective of excellent customer service, so the hardware must be above par too. In 2014 Skoda expect to sell 1million cars....name a UK producer anywhere near that?

Umm i have hit a core! logic suggest if a car built using VW hardware using VW technics then a change of badge shouldnt change its reliabilty or build quality, so tell my VW in these surveys perform poorly in comparison to skoda even in reliabilty! it can only be down to a pecieved mentality and expectation you might not like me saying that but its strangely true in the marketing world..
actually KIA and hyundia are indeed perfect examples of what i said they are small and growing, so your logic that they should not be near the top is incorrect they dont produce the volummes yet to get any backlash, there still new boys but again the products are decent and where did i say Skoda made inferior or poor cars? they are just as good and no better than VW how can they be better the hardware is VW! the largest maker of cars in Europe,so lets not be talking about the UK for comparison,Skoda is a VW success story,without VW their products, well there wouldnt be any worth mentioning....and like you say if vw made poor cars

 

[otherclive]

If i buy a skoda new i can expect it to be fairly well built and fairly reliable...ummmm suppose i can expect that of any new car, but if it does go wrong i expect good after sales right? if i buy a mercedes i expect Reliablilty par excelance and after sales to match......If mercedes gives me skoda service and reliability i will feel cheated as i bought into the mercedes image and historic reputation and after sales. what passes as good or great service and customer satisfaction at mid to lower brands passes as OK at the top brands. the like of skoda and theres nothing wrong with them works because the mindset of people with image. when its contructed by VW using the same automated machines,theprodutions teams are simlar trained too as are customer service them how can skoda score so much better than VW in surveys when everything is the same bar price, unless the customers expect more from a VW than a Skoda! and note as companies get bigger and sell more and more cars they tend to slip down the all important [not] league table of par excellence.....

I dont think price affects ones expecations of customer service that much. Why should you feel that someone paying £18k for a Skoda doesnt know what good customer service should be? The comment about companies getting bigger and then slipping down the league tables is not supported by the evidence. By your reckoning 'cheap cars' such as Kia and Hyundai should not be at the top of the league tables for service and reliability given their move upmarket and increased sales volumes. One of the reasons that Skoda can score better than VW is probably because the ethos of their outlets is more customer orientated by having to still overcome the old jokes about Skodas. But customers will not continue to buy poor products irrespective of excellent customer service, so the hardware must be above par too. In 2014 Skoda expect to sell 1million cars....name a UK producer anywhere near that?

Umm i have hit a core! logic suggest if a car built using VW hardware using VW technics then a change of badge shouldnt change its reliabilty or build quality, so tell my VW in these surveys perform poorly in comparison to skoda even in reliabilty! it can only be down to a pecieved mentality and expectation you might not like me saying that but its strangely true in the marketing world..
actually KIA and hyundia are indeed perfect examples of what i said they are small and growing, so your logic that they should not be near the top is incorrect they dont produce the volummes yet to get any backlash, there still new boys but again the products are decent and where did i say Skoda made inferior or poor cars? they are just as good and no better than VW how can they be better the hardware is VW! the largest maker of cars in Europe,so lets not be talking about the UK for comparison,Skoda is a VW success story,without VW their products, well there wouldnt be any worth mentioning....and like you say if vw made poor cars

I would just like to correct an error in your answer. Hyundai/Kia are not small they are the worlds 4th largest car maker, just behind VAG who are the third largest. But you are correct in that they are indeed growing. In 2012 Hyundai/Kia produced 7.1m cars compared to VAG production of 9.2M. Since their cars are globallly marketed the fact that they sit at the top or very near the top of the tables shows that a large car maker can meet customer expectations. Toyota and Honda have been proving that for years. If the eastern countries can do it why cannot the western ones do the same...but of the four VAG brands Skoda do manage it.

 

[xtrailman]

If i buy a skoda new i can expect it to be fairly well built and fairly reliable...ummmm suppose i can expect that of any new car, but if it does go wrong i expect good after sales right? if i buy a mercedes i expect Reliablilty par excelance and after sales to match......If mercedes gives me skoda service and reliability i will feel cheated as i bought into the mercedes image and historic reputation and after sales. what passes as good or great service and customer satisfaction at mid to lower brands passes as OK at the top brands. the like of skoda and theres nothing wrong with them works because the mindset of people with image. when its contructed by VW using the same automated machines,theprodutions teams are simlar trained too as are customer service them how can skoda score so much better than VW in surveys when everything is the same bar price, unless the customers expect more from a VW than a Skoda! and note as companies get bigger and sell more and more cars they tend to slip down the all important [not] league table of par excellence.....

I think you have got in one Jonnyg

 

[Surfer]

I agree with Clive to great extent but one of the points you have to take into consideration in addition to weight is value for money and the price of the Disco probably means it loses out there. My feeling is that any car weighing less than 1500 kg is not realy heavy enough to be tow car of the year.
I accept that the tests would not make anyone purchase on that alone but we had not considered a Mazda before seeing it perform well in the contest and having seen and tried it we did buy.

Ray,
I agree with you. My refrence to the Disco 4 was a bit tongue in cheek as it consistently wins its group and would be the only car able to take about 90%+ of all vans, without having to dig deep into the buyers pockets.......for a Range Rover (LoL)

Apparently they only use cars where the manufacturer has agreed. The Jeep GC is a more than capable tow vehicle but is never featured despite it winning many awards. It is not the only vehicle left out of the tests. I also assume that although their may be a model in a lower category, the model is not include din another i.e. it is in the under 1800c vehicles but not in the 2000c above category.

 

[ProfJohnL]

I do not understand the vitriol being unleashed again about the TCOTY. The testers are not suggesting its is the car to suit everyone, but that of its type and size of the cars tested in their opinion it has the best overall mix of attributes to tow.

It's quite possible that from the same range of vehicles tested, a different TCOTY could have been chosen if the mix of testers was different.

Just consider that if you were choosing the TCOTY, its more than likely that other readers would disagree with your choice.

Because we all have free choice we can and do have different criteria we apply when choosing our tow vehicles. This is why apparently two very similar people may choose very different vehicles.

When it comes to towing there simply isn't a one size fits all tow car.

Most of us do not have the luxury or chance to test so many different cars, so whilst you may not share the testers conclusions because of a significant factor such as your caravan is too big for the car they have chosen, For some one with the same sized caravan, the TCOTY may be a worthy contender when they come to choose a new car.

Don't consider TCOTY as a recommendation, think of it more as a benchmark.

 

[JonnyG]

hi Prof

it again falls into a mindset thing and again there is nothing wrong with a skoda personally i like them more than most but the word "towcar" and indeed the title towcar of the year brings up a vehicle capable of towing most mainstream caravans snd indeed sizes too.now ok not suggesting the only entranants should be able to tow 2000 plus kg but all this rubbish 85% is just that rubbish,cars should be tested towing the largest caravan they legally can, after all people will buy them and some will possibly tow them at their max tow weight which theses tests fail to cater for which is ironic given the lenghts they claim to go to yet some/many might have bought or been pusuaded to buy a car based on these test but will they be towing at 85%? If you're going to do tests then at the very least add a section for towing at the max legal limit of ever car, who knows which will fair better and not necessarily mirror the 85% test.afterall not everone tows at 85% so why on earth make that the only benchmark!! it doesnt really level things out at all,just sounds and looks good..

 

[ProfJohnL]

.... the word "towcar" and indeed the title towcar of the year brings up a vehicle capable of towing most mainstream caravans........

Hello Jonny
This goes to show that you should never assume the whole story from just the headline.

....it doesnt really level things out at all,just sounds and looks good..

I never wrote or intended to suggest it levels anything out, Benchmarking is about comparing a less well known set of criteria against an established set of values.

Have a happy Christmas

 

[Raywood]

Not sure I would regard this as vitriol but I do not think the Skoda was heavy enough to be tow car of the year. I know it is all a matter of opinion and what points you prioritise, I just cannot agree with the weighting of the criteria used.

 

[Tukums]

Now coming up to 2 years of Skoda Octavia ownership and what a good TOWCAR it is and deserves to win awards, granted mine does have more weight and traction. Not everyone wants a heavy caravan which has to be towed by a big heavy car, mine does for me towing a light’ish 4 berth caravan even at a 82% ratio, giving 33-35 mpg towing and must appeal to the majority of caravanners who want a light quality towcar with low running costs. They are value for money cars, look under the bonnet and under the car; all you see on the parts and components are VW / Audi logos. Bland; no way, more practical with no frills and does the job well. Mind you the first Skoda’s may have been a bit bland compared with the models of today, and who knows may have won some awards.

So, the Practical Caravan Tow Car Award winner for 2014 will be the new MK3 Octavia Estate 4x4.