1988 Skoda Favorit GLX 1.3 petrol from UK and Ireland

Summary:

Competent reliable and gives no trouble with care and attention

Faults:

Initially the first thing to go wrong was the headlights which were dim and flickery luckily it was a simple job of cleaning the contacts.

One of my screenwipers fell off whilst taking my car to get it's M.O.T in 1993.

Starter motor required replacement at around 70,000 miles.

New clutch at 97,000 miles roughly.

Indicator switch became dodgy in 1997 then was fixed.

Gearbox by 1999 was tired third gear was noisy though a freind found a cheap replacement.

Some welding was required in 2000 due to a dodgy pillar, which was leaving a puddle on the floor every time it rained.

Fuel gauge stopped working in 2002.

Seals became grotty by 2000.

Seats were threat bare in 1999 the seats were worn badly and became increasingly more uncomfortable by 2002.

General Comments:

The Car has been very cheap to run and reliable.

It's engine was not powerful enough on the motorways and was a little noisy. When going at 70mph the car was struggling.

The seats were fine, but worn badly causing them to eventually become very uncomfortable.

The plastics were horrible it was as though everything was stuck on by super-glue and was given little thought.

The cars steering however was good and if the car if it had a better engine it would be more exciting to drive.

It was competent cheap reliable and quite long lived, which was quite surprising. It is the perfect car for anybody who wants a car on a budget and a seriously tight one at that with the used prices so low!!!

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 25th August, 2005

1988 Skoda Favorit 136 L 1.3 from Slovakia

Summary:

Good first car especially to drive around the city

Faults:

Battery replaced. But there are still some trouble with starting during the winter. It seems, that some other electrical parts are gone.

Starter replaced this winter after the car failed to start on a petrol station.

Repainted with some rusty bodywork parts (i.e. front fenders) replaced.

Rear left door repainted again after an accident.

One rim damaged after hitting a curb. Surprisingly the tire survived.

Timing chain replaced.

Distance counter stopped working short after I bought the car. I'm not missing it.

Co-driver's seat adjustment is not working, but nobody complained so far, so no bother to fix it.

Wipers stopped working.

Someone smashed a stone into headlight. Just the cover glass was replaced, so not a major issue.

Some light bulbs were gone later.

Leak in the heating caused coolant loss.

Some wires in the back were not connected properly after the paint job, which caused some difficulties with backlights and rear screen heating. Was fixed later in an another service with the serviceman saying: "I'd broke the arms of the guy, who made that."

Some minor parts on the dashboard replaced. Recently the low fuel light has gone. I have to be careful not to run out of fuel.

Also think, that some chassis parts like dampers are nearly gone.

Probably I'll need to replace the exhaust system as rust is taking its business.

General Comments:

As you see, it's not a trouble free car, but after more than 15 years and my nearly zero maintenance it's a bit surprising for me.

I reached maximum of nearly 150 km/h, but it was downhill. Over 120 km/h it's very noisy, so stay under this limit.

The car is best used around the city, however longer journeys are also possible. The traveling comfort is acceptable. I made some long journeys with the car and 4 or 5 persons. Seats are soft a bit. Forget about holding your body in curves & corners.

The boot is really spacey, but I'd like to have some more luggage space. The interior is brown. Honestly, it's terrible. But the newer models with black interior look better.

Car performance is quite good when empty. Full of people and luggage it takes ages to get up to speed. Cornering ability is perfect, but you have to be very sensitive on slippery surfaces. Be prepared to correct some under-steering. It's not very stable, but you have to force it to leave the road.

Maintenance is very easy here, as Skoda are very common cars in Slovakia. Every mechanic can fix it and the spare parts are mostly easy to get, but sometimes surprisingly expensive.

Starting in cold could be a problem. If you leave it on the street for a few days, then expect a longer starting or no starting at all. If you have a garage, use it. If not, be prepared to recharge the battery after a few weeks.

Heating is working quite well, specially now after fixing the leak. But the rear window heating is very slow, nearly useless.

Dunno, if the export models were better build, but it seems so. If you'll be looking for Favorit here, try to find a garaged one. Also look for some newer exemplars, like 1993 or newer. They were much better built.

The pedals are harder than in modern cars. And there's no power steering, so sometimes it's hard work when parking. Brakes work well for me.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 21st February, 2005