Undercarriage wash

Despite formally not being a car-owner since May 2025, I look after the Octavia (in papers a company car, under a subsidized scheme, due to be purchased well below its market value in March 2027) as it was mine. It had the oil changed after first 1,683 kilometres, then after 1 year with 11,201 kilometres on the clock and then had a full service after nearly 2 years and 18,502 kilometres. It was supposed to be a family car, yet life has verified my plans, but a sizeable estate car has proven useful in Szlachetna Paczka, facilitating moving (friends relocating from one flat to another) and surprisingly frequently it carries 4 persons on board.

The lesson learnt when selling the Megane after 14 years is that no matter how perfect the car might be in terms of mechanics, its softest spot is the undercarriage, not seen every day, not making itself felt until something cracks up, eaten up slowly by rust. Some time ago I read statistics a typical Polish car whose last road is to a scrapyard, ends it useful life due to damage done by rust so such extent that a vehicle is no longer roadworthy and does not pass the MOT. Factory protection of bodywork is decent, but when it comes to the "invisible" chassis, this is where savings in designing cars not built to last are made. Polish road clearance winter practices only speed up the pace in which rust wreaks havoc to cars' undersides. Amounts of salt poured on roads do not correspond with depth of snow cover on roads. As a driver I would prefer to see the snow mechanically removed, as it is done in northern Scandinavia and use of salt to be constrained to ice or freezing rain which are a factual threat to traffic participants.

To make a vehicle long-lasting, a separate anti-corrosion layer ought to be put on its undercarriage soon after driving out of a showroom gate. As this costs some money, Octavia, formally not mine, has not had it done, but as I have found out, after 3 years first spots of rust might still be cracked down on and the protective cover still can be applied (albeit the operation will be more expensive).

By the time it happens, but afterwards too, an undercarriage wash after winter is a fix. To do it properly, a vehicle needs to be lifted on a car jack and washed with dedicated chemicals and then flushed. I found only one car wash in Warsaw which does it well, but comparing how dirty the undercarriage was ahead of the wash and how clean it was after, I do not regret any of one hundred seventy nine zlotys spent on it (and some twenty zlotys forked out for petrol to the other end of Warsaw and back).

I hope those treatments will help Octavia be a durable car to keep me company for some two decades. I realise driving will get more expensive with petrol prices going inevitably up, but on the other hand, I drive it sparingly and the car is amazingly frugal beyond town. For the record, between my last long-distance journeys, i.e. from 4 March to 19 April I drove merely 337 kilometres. On 21 April on its way back from a workshops somewhere in Dolny Śląsk, the odometer hit 20,000 kilometres. Fuel consumption with 4 persons (3 passengers and me) on board and their luggage with 120 km/h on tempomat: 5.8 litres per 100 kilometres. No SUV nor a crossover, by dint if their weight and dimension, could boast of such low appetite for petrol on a motorway!

Pieniny

Back from a nearly week-long foray into the Polish mountains, first non-business trip far beyond Warsaw since November 2024. Given my health-related tribulations, I feared how my lumbar spine and other vulnerable parts of body would endure the strain, but to my surprise, they got on well with it, much better with work-related sitting several hours a day. Over five days I cycled 120 kilometres and hiked 50 kilometres, with elevation gain of almost 3,000 metres in total, a quite something.

On the first day I took my new bike for a first ride longer than 50 kilometres. Velo Czorsztyn, a cycling trail around Jezioro Czorsztyńskie, at times is challenging, as one needs to cycle uphill. The section on the northern shore of the lake is most picturesque and flattest. All in all, one-third of the route is enchanting, the remaining kilometres are to be covered to reach the enjoyable spots.

On the second day I drove to Nowy Targ, to climb Turbacz, the highest peak in Gorce. The ascent involved change in altitude of some 650 metres and took me a bit more than two hours. I hiked with hiking sticks, which is an absolute game-changer. My arms were a bit sore after the hikes, but splitting the body load into four limbs brings a tremendous relief to the lumbar spine. The view from the top of Gorce turned out to be impressive, yet my expectations had been inflated by those claiming panorama of Tatry is break taking. It has not taken my breath away.

On the third day I took a break from major strain, drove to Nowy Targ and took a train to Zakopane, a town I had, shame to admit, never visited before. I considered getting there by public transport only, yet in provincial Poland combining two connections is a risky exercise. But even finding trains is a bit of an exercise, as Google shows you services you can choose from, but does not divert you to specific railway operator. As a result I got there by Luxtorpeda fast train operated by Koleje Małopolskie (PLN 7.20 for a single ticket) and returned by Polregio service (same ticket price). In the very town I have not understood what makes it a tourist hangout. Unless somebody explores Tatry mountains, there are very few reasons to spend holidays there.

On the fourth day the bike came into more intensive use, although the Velo Dunajec trail was shorter and easier than Velo Czorsztyn. The route runs also in a wilder area and is far more scenic, especially on bright, sunny days in warm part of the year when greenery is lush.

On the fifth day I did not have to get anywhere to start out a hike, as my lodgings was next to a tourist trail. I climbed to conquer Trzy Korony and Sokolica – two highest peaks in Pieniny. Although the hike was not long – less than 15 kilometres in total, it involved elevation gain of almost 900 metres, at times with steep ascents. Hot and humid air made this trip most tiresome of all.

After the recent election some have posited not to visit regions where Mr Nawrocki won. I am not into such forms of punishment. In Krościenko nad Dunajcem where I had an accommodation the newly elected president received 69% of votes in the run-off, while in nearby Szczawnica only 55%. I would hazard a guess by merely looking at locals around and on standard of housing, one could guess (with a margin error of some 10 percentage points) whether the local community was in favour of Mr Trzaskowski or of Mr Nawrocki. 

Worth also mentioning provincial Poland follows a different clock than large cities. On June evenings streets of Warsaw are full of people. The market square (note the excess concreted over area) in Krościenko nad Dunajcem at 8:34 p.m. was empty.

The foray was the first long-distance trip for my Skoda Octavia since November 2024. I strived to drive as economically as possible, however conditions (rain on my way to Pieniny, aircon on my way back, hilly landscapes along the way, traffic jams near Kraków) were not conducive. I made it there and back without filling up and the “low fuel” gauge went on after 967 kilometres. The car computer is accurate with respect to actual appetite for petrol. I am quite satisfied with it. In flat terrain, drier and cooler weather and lower speed (I drove 105 kmph on expressway) the engine consumption could drop even below 4 litres per 100 kilometres.

Skoda Octavia, three months on - vehicle review

I wrote about my motivation to fix myself up with a new car in January 2024, then shared my very first driving impressions just after picking it up.

On 23 June 2024 the car's odometer hit 5,000 kilometres, which means it took me exactly 90 days to cover it, but my Skoda app tells me on 54 days (i.e. 60% of the period) the car sat idle in my garage.

Besides, 80% of the current mileage was reached in long-distance travels:
- from Poznań where I picked up the car to Warsaw (300 kilometres),
- to Sieradz to my in-laws (400 kilometrs there and back),
- to Kraków (600 kilometres there and back),
- to Wisła and to Czech Republic a few times (1,200 kilometres there, around and back in total),
- to Wisła again (800 kilometres there and back),
- to the seaside (700 kilometres there and back).

I am undeniably impressed with how spacious the car is. Four tall adults can travel in superior comfort, the boot is capacious as hell and does not compare to any SUV. I do not regret the surcharge for the double floor, coming in useful when carrying heavy and large pieces of furniture. The wisdom of Skoda designers who have equipped the car in plenty of functional stuff has taken my fancy too. I have not managed to check out only one of them - the heated windscreen, as I was reluctant to park the brand-new car in the open air for a frosty night in late March, while having a garage at my disposal.

I have not made full use of the engine's dynamics, primarily since first 3,000 kilometres are still the period of running-in, but also due to environmental reasons and minding the safety of other road users. Maximum torque is available from 1,500 rpm and for smooth driving you need revolutions below 2,000 per minute. For outside-town travels, the gearbox does a perfect job. The sixth fear can by upshifted safely at the speed of 85 km/h and if you decide to cruise at such speed, fuel consumption below 4 litres per kilometres is within reach. 2,000 rpm on sixth gear are reached at the speed of 115 km/h, which means slow motorway driving is economical too.

In terms of fuel consumption, it averaged out between 5.0 and 5.5 litres per 100 kilometres over the period in review, with record-low 4.4 on my way to Wisła on Corpus Christi. I drove 100 km/h on tempomat, somewhat uphill, with aircon on half of my journey. Had I driven the other way(a but downhill), with no aircon, the car could have consumed less than 4 litres.

Octavia IV (I managed to order a pre-face-lift one, some PLN 20,000 cheaper than a post-lift version) is two generations younger than my Megane. One feels the difference in terms of noise inside (the old Renault is much louder) and in how it is spiked with electronics, which may irritate and at times goes bonkers. Despite those small drawbacks I am generally satisfied with the new vehicle and I hope it will serve me and my family for several years (I target two decades in use).

Skoda Octavia IV estate - in my garage

When ordering the car in January, I was told the queue for manufacturing slots ends in the 26th week of year and I should have braced myself for delivery in late July or early August. This was not an issue for me, since the Megane has served me well and the new car would have an even longer lifetime. In late January it turned out the vehicle had its manufacturing slot booked for the 9th week of the year. It arrived from the factory quite fast, also my lessor handled all registration-related formalities without further ado and hence the car was ready to be picked up on 19 March.

As the only Skoda dealer in Poland co-operating with my employer is based in Poznań, I had to take a day-long trip there and due to work-related constraints I ventured there on Monday, 25 March.

I was positively surprised by how cheap the train to Poznań was, since from times I travelled there often in business, a single ticket cost my employer around PLN 150. My second-class Intercity ticket bought six days in advance set me back only PLN 58.65. Given the journey duration of 2 hours and 50 minutes (and running punctually like a clockwork), this finally makes a tempting proposal.

I got to the dealership by public transport (35 minutes from Poznań Główny station to the outskirts of Komorniki seems a decent result). An hour later I was at the nearby petrol station filling up the car. I returned to Warsaw via old DK92 national road up to Konin, with a lunch stopover in Września, then headed for A2 motorway.

First driving impression - I am positively surprised by the fuel consumption, especially since the engine is not run in yet. The average consumption on my way from Poznań to Warsaw according to the car's computer was... mere 4.8 litres per 100 km. I drove moderately dynamically outside town and set tempomat at 105 kmph at motorway. The outcome gives hopes for low appetite for petrol in out-of-town trips once the mileage hits 5 digits.

Second driving impression - this vehicle is a tablet on wheels. I am overwhelmed by plenty of electronics out there and still find my way around the link between the car and my smartphone. Though must I say the user's guide in concise and written in plain Polish.

Third impression - can say little of how dynamic the car is, because of unfinished running in. It feels the engine is still factory-numb.

Fourth impression - Skoda engineers have fitted the car with tens of practical solutions (not confuse for gadgets).

No more impressions so far, since from Wednesday on I have resisted the temptation to use the car purposelessly, so it stays parked in the garage, waiting for a longer journey to my in-laws in Sieradz (due tomorrow). No photos since the car belongs to my employer, do not look out for it on WN plates - PY ones are in use.

Skoda Octavia IV estate

Given what I have written about replacing old, but still reliable vehicles with brand-new ones, you are now in for an unrepeatable opportunity to accuse me of duplicity. In the second half of 2024 I am bound to drive out of a showroom in a car mentioned in the post title.

My Megane III by that time will be over 13 years old and will likely have more than 110,000 kilometres on the clock. Reliability-wise, I cannot complain about the car's performance. Except for wear-and-tear and regular maintenance, the car haas not needed additional visits in a Renault garage. Conceivably, it might serve somebody well for years, though at the back of my mind I see a risk it might become a piggy bank all of the sudden.

If so, why am I replacing it? Firstly, this is probably one of the last moments to lock in a car from the "old motoring" era. You know my skepticism towards electric vehicles, which I believe are a dead-end street and are far from being environment-friendly. I intend to keep the new car going for possibly long, even if it involves bans for city centre entrance (I don't need to drive there anyway) and paying sin taxes for the combustion engine. If I use the new car sparingly and not replace it for two decades, my carbon footprint will be much lower than of somebody who will buy three electric cars and drive much longer distances than me over the same time.

Why the very Skoda Octavia IV estate? Firstly, it is quite capacious (plenty of space for 4 passengers inside, boot of 640 litres) and is not an SUV. Secondly, it offers reasonable price-to-quality trade-off. Thirdly, the comfort and pleasure of driving the VW 1.5 150 hp engine with manual gearbox (I still dislike the automatic transmission after driving several thousand kilometres in company cars equipped with it) is superior.

I believe reliability of this vehicle, if I use it respectfully and have it maintained with proper care, might still be good. The weakest spot of each brand-new car is electronics. Octavia IV is also spiked with it and here I envisage some room for spontaneous visits in Skoda garages.

I will not pay up-front over PLN 130,000 for the car, as I will not even purchase it. It will formally be a company car, with rental instalments deducted from my pre-tax salary, which effectively means a tax shield of approximately PLN 35,000 during the three-year lease term. After that I will have the option to prolong the lease for next 2 years or buy out the car for PLN 70,000. All in all, the net savings in such financing scheme add up to more than PLN 30,000.

As written before, I plan to use the car sparingly - I will keep avoiding short-distance journeys and city traffic, have it serviced each year and park it in a dry garage, with a hope it pays me back with trouble-free service for at least 15 years.

Since my car is customised, its manufacturing has been queued for the last week of June, so I will pick it up in late July or August. The vehicle will be still before the facelift, which will spare me gadgets, but save an equivalent of my monthly salary.

All in all, I feel a bit guilty on account of buying it, yet with a prospect of raising a family I would need a new car anyway - the Megane would not serve me for next 20 years and the best moment for fixing myself up with a non-electrified vehicle with a manual gearbox might be missed soon.