Used test – efficient estates: Ford Focus vs Skoda Octavia
What will they cost?
At the moment, the Focus is fractionally more expensive than the Octavia to buy used, but the differences are so small as to be negligible. That said, the greater ubiquity of the Focus makes the chances of haggling a better deal ever so slightly better, although again, there’s barely any difference.
There’s even less to split these cars in terms of fuel consumption or tax costs. Both recorded identical official average economy figures of 67.3mpg when they were new, and as fuel economy is linked to carbon dioxide emissions, it comes as no surprise that both kick out the same amount of CO2, landing them in the same tax bracket.
In terms of reliability, the picture is a little more muddy. The Focus hasn’t yet been given a score in the What Car? Reliability Index, but the previous-generation model had a very impressive reliability rating. Meanwhile, the Octavia’s score isn’t bad at all.
In the latest JD Power Vehicle Dependability Survey, Skoda finished first out of 24 manufacturers, and by quite some margin; Ford finished in a still very respectable 7th place. So, how reliable either of these cars will be is probably going to depend largely on how well its previous owner has looked after it.
When it comes to servicing, the Ford does work out slightly cheaper; the same is true of repair costs, and for that reason the Focus noses ahead here.
