IDIOT'S REVIEW OF THE SKODA YETI

Where do you begin with the Skoda Yeti? This after all is the car that drove through a building on fire while ensuring Jeremy was comfortable and air conditioned! (and most importantly making sure his ice cream didn't melt!). Not to mention the helicopter landing on it's roof. The Yeti is a purely versatile vehicle which offers a lot for what you pay. You can pick up one of these on Autotrader for as little as £4k, with the better specced ones coming in at around £7-8k (which is still a bargain).

This specific Yeti is a family car which has been in the family from new in 2011. In those 7-8 years of ownership it has racked up a respectable 101,000 miles and still runs like new. This tends to be the case with most diesel Skoda's (and yes this one is a diesel). This can be seen in Car Throttle's time with their 400,000 plus mile diesel Skoda Octvavia (I would recommend you check this out! - link at end).

Excuse the filthy engine bay!

Excuse the filthy engine bay!

As you may or may not be able to tell. This Yeti is the 2.0 L diesel 4x4 variant which in basic terms is it has a diesel engine and can go offroad. To be brutally honest, this car has never seen any offroad action during it's time as it's main use is the school run and a workhorse to get the family from A - B safely and efficiently. However, this Yeti has had it's fair share of long trips such as it's countless journey's to Frankfurt (this has helped it put on the miles) and not once have we encountered an issue with this car.

With this being the base model 2011 Yeti that does mean you are fairly limited in terms of tech etc. I mean the radio works fine but turn it above volume 9 and you will experience some crackles and lack of low end (but perhaps that's just me being a bit of an Audiophile!). The basic cloth seats are surprising comfortable actually, I would describe them to being similar to the base Volkswagen Golf retro style cloth seats. Which isn't much of a surprise! And before you comment on the stained seats, remember that this car has been used to transport numerous kids over the years so there have been juices spilled!

In terms of running costs, the Yeti is very cheap to run compared to a Range Rover for example (but then again, most cars are!). It's about £70 ish to fill up the tank from absolutely empty and that will easily last about 2 weeks with the car averaging roughly about 250 miles a week (I don't think this is bad going). This truly is better for a family with a lower budget who want reliability and a sense of style! It has been like a family member (if that's not too weird!).

The driving experience is smooth as you would expect. In fact I learned to drive in this very car! Being a diesel it was far easier to learn in than any petrol hatchback. The fact that you are high up but not too much means you don't feel intimidated on the road but also don't feel so high up that you would run over a Fiesta. However, the one issue that stands out to me is once the metal key part of the key snapped off meaning we couldn't start the car.. Yeah that was pretty bad. Apart from this however, it's been a smooth ownership experience!

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The boot space is fantastic. Definitely enough to fit all our suitcases in, several dogs or even bikes (not at the same time!). With my mother running a dog walking business, having a large boot with space for the dogs is a real bonus! Since it isn't a Range Rover with a plush leather interior we don't need to worry about it getting damaged or too scruffy back there! It is the perfect car.

Yes, I know I need to fix the number plate

Yes, I know I need to fix the number plate

In terms of looks, the Skoda Yeti isn't an ugly looking car but i feel that the earlier ones like this one are a bit bulbous as if they're swollen in places. However, the newer, post face lift ones look great and slightly more aggressive than before. I am a real fan!

I would love to know what you think is the best family car, let me know in the comments!

Car Throttle's Skoda Octavia -