2000 Skoda Felicia 1.3 Goes for a Drive 

This is one of the reasons I enjoy your channel much like Hubnut. Given the choice between seeing a review of a Porsche/ Aston Martin or a Skoda Felicia...I'd enjoy the Skoda one more. I like seeing cars that have been ignored/forgotten/undervalued/ridiculed being in the spotlight. 😊👍

Until a week ago, my friend's son had one of these, same year and same colour. He got blinded by an idiot who didn't dip their lights on a dark country lane, and lost control of the car. It hit something on the side, somersaulted, and ended up on it's roof. The poor Skoda is written off of course, but my friend's son got out without so much as a scratch. He's pretty shaken up, but I reckon that car saved his life. Very well engineered, and immensely strong. It even started and drove onto the recovery truck. If you need a cheap but safe car for your children's first car, you couldn't do better than one of these.

Let me correct some mistakes. The drop brace was standard in all models with airbags, i doesn't have anything to do with the engine. The larger VW engines are much heavier so they actually need the brace even more than the light weight 1,3. The 1,3l with Bosch Mono Motronic was produced only until 1996, then they switched to MPI on all markets. The steering wheel was the same as in other models like Golf and Polo as well as Seat, and there is no Volkswagen badge underneath the skoda logo. The buttons are not similar to polo ones. The bottom part of the dashboard is actualy the same as in Favorit, it is only covered with the new curvy top part and in different color. Electric windows were not standard, but you coud get them in Felicia as well as AC, electric mirrors, heated seats, side airbags an many other things. Also the power steering was available in 1,3, but as an extra. The blanking plate was the place where you could have a dashboard computer, however this feature did not come straight out of the factory but was mounted by the dealer. The unusable phone slot is where the electric window buttons and the seat heating controler goes. Thanks for the video and greetings from a Felicia fan from Czechia! :)

I had one of these when I was 18 (8 years ago). People joked - especially the older generations - however the car was brilliant and a hoot. RIP Slowda.

The Czechoslovakians were great engineers and what's less known is that Skoda works is a huge company producing products from Freight Ships to Window Glass, in the middle Zetor Trctors, Jawa and CZ motorcycles, trans and buses amongst others. Most striking in this video is the distinctive roar of that Skoda Engine which is so memorable to those of us who drove the rear engined Skodas. Nice video.

Heated seats were an option in the L&K version. There were different central consoles too. Versions with airbags were made too and not just front airbags. UK didnt get many options. AC, abs, sunroof, trip computer. the range of interior colours. Leather seats, power windows etc. Felicias are still quite common first cars around Czechia and slovakia. Cheap reliable By far my favorite version is the Fun pick up where you "fold away the rear seats"

We had two Favorits, one 1990 carburettor pre VW (and more fun to drive) and two Felicia Estates. They were all brilliant cars and we did well over 100,000 miles in all of them. The estates were fantastic load carriers. The estates are the poor persons Volvo. I won't hear a word against them and we didn't have a single major failure (the worst was a clutch replacement on two of them after 100,000 miles) even though they were beginning to look a bit ropey after ten years. The interior heaters are the best you will find anywhere regardless of price. We drove to Bordeaux and back one summer and the car just lapped it up. All ours had 1/3-2/3 rear seat folding, and you could take the entire rear seat out in less than a minute.

It was a solid, affordable and very decent car.

A really good review of a car I know very well - I had 2 estate versions of them and a Favorit Estate before, all with the 1.3 engines, and drove several hundred thousand miles in them all round the UK and Europe for work and holiday trips between 1996 and 2008. Reliable, economical and cheap to insure, pleasant to drive, solid and very comfortable. btw, that anti-roll bar in the engine really helped reduce roll on corners that the Favorit was so prone to. Though Skoda Felicias are no longer such a common sight on British roads, in the Czech Republic, there are still oodles of Favorits and Felicias (and even earlier models) on the roads, many having been restored and renovated, even customised, for younger less affluent drivers who actually prefer them to more modern cars because they provide practical and highly affordable transport - insurance, parts and servicing being being especially good value there. Sometime, might you review the car that replaced the Felicia and is even better - a bog standard 1.2 Fabia Mk1 from the early noughties for instance? Many of these are surprisingly long lived, 15 year+ old 200,000 mile examples are not uncommon, and the galvanised bodies don't rust badly. They make good first cars for younger drivers.

The start of a very Good thing. The value for money is excellent but I think it is also the more restrained character of the cars. No stupid racing crap on the VRs models for instance. Some of us like that, I don't want to shout about what's under the bonnet too loudly. Also, on the very few occasions that I have visited Skoda dealers, the staff have been really nice, helpful, and polite people. Not always the case in some more "premium" showrooms. Nice one , thanks.

6:22 that blanking plate. Optional extra in some markets. It was a trip computer. Would tell you your fuel economy etc

I cannot listen to this being as VW orientated as is made out. The steering wheel is VW, but the column stalks were Felicia specific, and the instrument panel was identical to the Favprit, save for a rounder font and orange needles on the dials. The central switches that were blanked off were for heated seats, the air con switch (which I've only ever seen once) is a round button on the heater panel. Electric window switches were by the handbrake in Peugeot 106/Saxo style. There was also a trip computer available in the big blanking plate above the fog lamp panel. (not so interesting, the headlight switch on LHD models was where the fog lamp switches are and the fog lamp switches were in the centre). This was almost entirely just a facelifted 136 (Favorit). Really uninteresting, ABS was an option & traction control and limited slip differentials were available in some markets. Bore over.

I drove a 1998 Felicia Estate 1.6 many years ago. It was a lot smoother than the old Skoda OHV unit which dated back until the 1960s, but only had about 7 bhp more than the top 68 bhp Skoda engine... Only the Felicia Magic Special Edition got electric windows in this country, as far as I remember. The old engine actually kept going (badged as a 1.4) in the Fabia until 2003 as a value option.

My parents very kindly helped me buy a brand new Škoda Felicia L in 1999, after I switched to Škoda from my first love a Lada Riva, the Lada brand sadly was no longer imported to the UK, it was the same colour as this one, (ralye red), I loved that car, owned it for 6 years without any mechanical problems, in fact all it required during that time was a new battery, I replaced it with a new first generation Fabia in 2005, then another, and another, until my present 2018 Fabia Monte Carlo in race blue.

Still have a V reg LXi, unlike the test car it has power steering, electric mirrors and split rear seats, the seats remove really easy giving a huge boot space. Over 20 years old and only one 20p size spot of rust on the car, has passed every MOT.

Great review. I think the 90s was a great era for cars. Reliability was strong so cars were dependable but not yet laced with driver aids that distance you from the fun. I have to say that working at a Skoda dealership was a real eye opening experience as the cars were genuinely decent and customer satisfaction very high. I ended up having two Fabias after i left and both were brilliant. If you ever get the chance to visit the factory it is amazing. It feels like an office with a production line casually going past in the background

My dad had one of these for years. It was a very good reliable car.

@furiousdriving; Yes, the strut brace was available on the 1.6 Felicia. The reason was nothing to do with the road car itself - what is was, was the 1.6 GLXi (specifically) was the basis for the WRC homologation in Group A S1600 class, and thus the strut brace was factory-fitted to these 1.6's. The 1300s competed in the 'up to 1300cc' class, as well as having the cars built for Skoda's own domestic rally trophy series in various countries; so the strut brace was factory fitted to those as well. The homologation docs are still available online, on the FIA's own website. :)

I have a soft spot for these and the Favorit. I've had a pd100 MK1 Fabia and a MK2 Fabia Monte Carlo. Both lightly modified them to make them look and handle better. You can pick these up dirt cheap but they're getting rare due to people thinking they're scrap

I had a 1998 1.6mpi with 75hp until a year ago. Had 78.000km when I bought it. It served me really well and the glovebox position is great. :)

It's not the first time the Germans took control of the Skoda factory. I love the look of the 60s - 70s version of the 110 coupe it has aged very well. I thought about getting one when they were still plentiful, but would have gone for another even loonier vehicle like usual. If I could find a good one now at a sensible price I'd like one.

Last year I attended a tour of the Skoda museum and factory, very interesting and worth a visit if in the Czech Republic. It’s worth noting apparently how much design and engineering work Skoda now do for the rest of VAG. Our guide of the afternoon looked quite horrified when I told her that I own a Skoda Roomster…

This is why this channel is so good, engaging & entertaining videos filmed with passion regardless of the greatness (or lack off) of the cars!

One of the last cars to have old fashioned windscreen rubber fixtures instead of glueing

Officer: Can you explain why you were swerving violently down the road? Me: Of course, I was eating soup out of my glovebox. Officer: What kind of soup?

They missed the perfect ad slogan, Buy Felicia!

Terrific cars, as are all modern Skoda's in my view. My fifteen year old Fabia with 150K on the clock still drives as sweetly as the day I bought it....with 16K on the clock.

Another car that was generally viewed as rather naff and very much the poverty choice at the time, but was actually really rather good. They made good rally cars and the diesels, very much in the vein of older VW diesels, weren't fast but they'd go on for ever, far beyond most people's boredom threshold. And, of course, they were the last Skoda Skoda. I spent a while thrashing around in a 1600 SLXi estate, maybe the only one sold in the UK with factory air conditioning, it had done star ship miles but it flatly refused to break and would return fuel consumption you just wouldn't credit while you were driving the big ends off it. I would have happily kept that car until it turned its' toes up, but it wasn't mine, just a loaner...

My dad bought it in metallic green when I was born. We had it for 16 years and we never had more reliable car. Just oil, filters and brakes. But the rust killed it. Ah memories!

I had 1.3 1999 with power steering, ABS, 2 airbags, electric mirrors and electric sunroof. My father has (we still keep it to move junk around in LOL) 98 1.6 L&K with heated leather seats and leather interrior, but that one does not have power steering. Some models also had powered windows, but those are extremely rare.

Bullet proof that old Pushrod engine is even with a blown head gasket my one always got me from A to B

Had to get a look at this video as I saw it pop up this morning. The 1996 version of this car, pre-airbag and the Octavia style grille, was the first car I purchased. I had it for just over a year and I absolutely loved it. Only problems I had were that the central locking regulator failed, leaving the left rear door locked (a common problem everyone I knew that had one experienced) and I had to change the ECU box because the original design allowed water to seep in during heavy rain. Thanks for the memories, Matt!

The most likely reason for the cigarette lighter or USB charger adaptor not remaining secured in the socket is that there are usually three or four little flexible metal tabs inside the socket, that are bent slightly outward (with a little lip on them) & should help to hold the lighter or USB charger adaptor firmly inside - over time, and with repeated insertion / removal of said items, these tabs get bent inward and can no longer do their job properly - I had the same issue in my car, aggravated by the lighter socket being angled slightly downward as well - and using a small flat-blade screwdriver, I managed to bend the metal tabs back out slightly so that they now work as intended again.

When Skoda replaced the Favorit with this, things improved massively and because the public could see the good side, even more people wanted a Skoda because of the VW Group's reliability / quality.

Another great video of another great car. I prefer the 94-97 model Felicia, the nose is much better

Good morning from Slovenia. My father owned one from 1996 to 2009 but it was the 1.6i model. Never an issue with it.

6:30 In the left hand drive models, the six button in the middle where (from left to right) Heated Rear Window, Front Fog Lights, Rear Fog Lights, Hazzard Lights, Blank, Blank and on the side of the steering wheel (on the left) were the Sidelights and Dipped Headlights. Much more "normal" layout. 7:28 The blank buttons, at least in left-hand drive form, here in Greece, where the A/C button (a snowflake) and the Recycle Air button for the A/C system The electic window switches were behind the gear knob

Many thanks Matt. I've said elsewhere that I never understood the Skoda jokes. My S110 was a wonderful car I so wish I still had it. That little Felicia is a gem.

I recently bought a Felicia Van Plus (basically a Combi with GRP High-roof) with the 1.9D (note: it's the old Whrilchamber from the late 80s, not the SDI one used in the Polo 6n) engine, also has the strut in the engine bay and the "luxury" equipment on it is "no" unless you count the Brake Booster - no ABS, no power steering. It's from 2000 I didn't even look for a car for myself when I stumbled over it on a listings site. I bookmarked it because I've never seen one of those before. While I was reading up about it, the seller dropped the price to 50€ because nobody wanted it and he needs the space. Now, to be clear: It's just a hobby / project for me and there will likely be some work involved before the thing would be street legal... but regular Felicias in good condition don't sell for much either (here in Germany at least). I think the impressive thing about the Felicia - especially from a 2020 perspective - is that it's build to function. Imagine having a snow storm and having to get in a freezing cold car with thick gloves on: Not only will the felicia start, you can also use the buttons and so on as intended. (Sidenote: It's obviously not ideal to drive with thick gloves, it's just an example.) The "soft suspension" might seem weird at first, but it's a relatively light car and build for eastern european road conditions of the 90s, in many rural areas it's even a stretch to call them roads. The "bumpyness" kinda results from making them "pothole proof" (at lower speeds, anyway) without raising the ride height. Obviously the Felicia has it's flaws (mainly rust), but I like it's simplicity... even if something breaks, you don't have to take the whole thing apart. What really surprised me tough, was the negative image Skoda has/had in the UK, considering UK cars being regarded as unreliable by almost everyone including the Brits.

A really distinctive look with the grille up front. The Favorit was a decent care that was wonderful value in the early 90s. It evolved into the Felicia with VW help and was still great value. I've said it before but, if Rover had been patient and priced the Cityrover more closely to its fit and finish, they could have evolved it into a much better, more Rover like little car which would undoubtedly have held loyal customers. VW has made a fortune through Skoda since they invested in the company.

Hi! I just came across your video, though it is now mor than 6 months since you di it. I'm from Czech Republic, the country it came from :) Felicia was (and still) is my firtst car (though I now have 5 cars :D) back in 2010 as I was 18, when I got the 1,3 liter from 1995, so with the Bosch SPi Mono Motronic fuel injection and 68 HP. I even visited London with it back in 2012 :) And I'm glad you see the qualities of the car. Just a few more info on what was or wasn't available. The car originally was designed for the light 1,3 liter nor just aluminium block, but also head and light engine, so when VW stuck in their heavy 1,6 and 1,9D engines, that were almost 40kg heavier than the 1,3, it was found that the body was sor of sucking itself to the inside, so that's why the ting between the upper schock mountings was introduced, to stop the body rolling. It was not standard on 1,3 (I don't have it), but many people stuck in there anyway, cause it made the body more rigid in the corners. 1,6 and 1,9 had it as standard. The base engine was the 1,3 liter SPi that came from the Favorit, and later, in early 1996, it was upgraded to the MPi Simos 2P fuel injection. The dashboard and the instruments are not from VW, maybe just design, but the machanical aprt is all Czechoslovakian, from PAL company and were produced in Prague and are simillar to those from the Favorit. The only thing from VW is the digital clock in those that had revcounter, cause for the 54HP version of the 1,3, there was a large analog clock as standard (like the Favorit, or the Peugeot 106). This four spike steering wheel indeed is straight out from a VW, but there were also non airbag two spiked versions built in Czech republic too. Also the turn signals/wiper controls are not from VW, in fact, it is a British Lucas license bought by the Czechoslovakia in the mid 80s for the Favorit. The power steering was available for the 1,3, but only as an option sice mid 1995, so not really anybody selected it since they were used to not have it and it was not necessary in the 1,3. It was standard for the 1,9 and 1,6, but there are som early 1995 1,6 that don't have it and then it's hard work. The car could have aircon, electric mirrors (and heated) and front windows, sunroof, ABS, up to four airbags (the Safe Line model) and so many things, but people did not buy it in our country mostly cause they did not have the money. I enjoyed your video, thank you for it and I give you a like :)

I had the 1.6 and did have the Strut brace too. It was a great little car and much better performance with the OHC 1.6 .It also had good fuel economy with less maintenance due to no Valve clearance adjustment thanks to hydraulic lifters. I now have a mk1 Octavia Estate 1.9 TDI with 177000 a still going strong.

I still remember times driving one of these 120mph (~190kmh) on a slight downhill regularly. Felt like breaking a land speed record. But was fun. And taking it on the B roads was the best fun ever... Unless you needed to accelerate uphill.

I wonder if there are any Skoda Rapids left in the UK (the rear engined 80s coupe). These sold poorly here across the channel, and are now extinct but I remember you Brits liked them so much you had a fancy convertible version. This Felicia could use some paint buffing compound, it's gone pink. I would do that and rebadge it "Felicia Day", my favourite redheaded actress. ;)

In the LHD model (my family in Portugal has a '97 pre face-lift model, owned from new!) the sidelight/dipped beam are on the smaller button cluster, and the fog light controls on the larger one. Also, I seem to remember from reading the owners manual that the two blanking plates on the larger button cluster was for heated seats, and the seemingly useless blanking plate above the smaller button cluster had an outside temperature display (which ours didn't have, even being a higher spec GLXi model). Good car, even if most of the electrics were quite dodgy...

Great to see an old Skoda being reviewed ! I have had several Felicias over the years, and still own one a Felicia "fun" limited addition pickup. The bright yellow one with the pull out cabriolet rear seat !! Your quite right once u own a Skoda and know what great value fun motoring they are not to mention reliable ! U will end up with more ! I currently have three a daily favorit estate, and a Skoda Estelle 120L still undergoing restoration but nearly at the end now !

The car I spent my childhood in :). My dad got one back in '97 in basic equipment. 1.3 MPi as well. The blanked off part to the right off the steering wheel had a simple computer with consumption, battery voltage :). The best we could do back in '97! :D

My viewing of this video has been interrupted by advertisements for brand new BMW. What a contrast in quality and value! Skodas are so much better quality.

Best car ever. Changing both rear bearings at home. Done in 3 hours. Costs 20€

VW did have quite a bit of input into the MK2 Favorit as well, as far as I know. Love these cars.

This bring back memories, I remember well servicing these cars! The garage I worked for was a VAG specialist, and these Felicia's where popular at the time. Very simple and well built car. Too bad you don't see them anymore... Enjoyed it Matt, thanks!

I owned one of these! It was immaculate, the engine bay was completely untouched from factory. 61k fantastic car. W894 UFH mine was. I do miss it

I used to clean a blue 1.3 Felicia every week for mum's friend and every had to be careful round the wheel arches because they were rusty and bits of it would come off when drying it. It was reliable though.

My brother-in-law sold his deeply unreliable '92 Jag XJ6 and replaced it with one of these. He loved it and when the Fabia came out, he traded in his Felicia for it. His Fabia used the same Skoda 1.3 OHV engine too. He kept it for 12 years when rust killed it. But he had done 220K miles in it with tick tock reliability.

VW did take a lot of credit for things that they had no input into, and the "Look what a difference we've made" advertising helped perpetuate the image that the previous models were bad, forgetting the excellent rallying record and fantastic customer loyalty. The alloy engines were robust, capable of high milages and excellent MPG, they even found themselves into some VW models! Skoda today produces the VW range of alloy engines, showing that the engineering improvements were not all one-way. I think it would be good if you could test drive an old 136 Rapid, a 100% Skoda vehicle and most comparable to this in terms of price and spec. Thank you for the review! Gordon :-)

My father owned one, from 1997. Looked exactly like this one, except it was a light green colour. Neat little car. Worked really well. Lots of nice childhood memories.

The blank spot on the dash is for MFA/Onboard computer, which was fairly clever. The brace was standard on 1.6l and 1.9l. There was an optional power steering on 1.3l. And optional power/heated mirrors and windows with switches from VW. Rare MTX version was morphed into a cabrio, Fun version had unique seat arrangement and Laureta had enlarged, almost insane wheelbase for commercial purposes. (and of course the VR6 and/or Golden Prague version, which never seen a production)

Friend had one of these. Strange mix of VW and Skoda bits. Wasn't a huge fan but it was torquey. My memories of it are rust, the oil filler cap not fitting properly and it being very softly sprung and boaty in the bends.

Good little video. As a colour, standard red always seems to fade worse than other standard colours. I had two red Honda Jazzes.... great cars but they faded dreadfully with age.

My 1.6 99 Skoda felicia Combi had that bar over the engine as well. I really liked that car. It was quite fun to drive after all, and had quite a personality and good economy. The main reason that we sold it was that it lacked AC, and also a bit of rust and problems with the locks.

i prefer watching "mondane" car reviews rather than Supercar reviews. Regular old cars always get my attention 💪 Nice review as always!

Great reliable car,I bought a 2 year old glxi in 1999 with only 11k miles,sunroof alloys,front fogs but no power steering....had it for 6 years and never let me down....

I love the chunky VW steering wheel

My Dad had a Felicia 1.6 SLXi. It had a few extras over this one including electric windows front and back, walnut effect dashboard accents, tiny alloy wheels and both driver and passenger airbags, albeit at the expense of any kind of glove box! Good solid little car though, although it never felt particularly quick for a 1.6.

I have one Felicie after my Grandfather. Its also 1,3 MPi but this one is Lx version, witch dont even have middle bar with cupholders or space to put your phone in,. Yet I still say its the best car I have ever driven. After years since my Grandfather bought it only big replacement was change of Alternator, otherwise its very relaible car. It has only 130 000km on tachometer, but my grandfather did not drived it much in past years untill I got it.

My parents used to have one. I was too young to remember anything about it but I know for sure one thing, these cars were considered as luxury reserved for the most successful people from freshly formed upper-middle class in many Eastern European countries.

The basic Škoda Felicia models seem to be the most popular. But there were models which also had AC, heated seats, leather, electric windows, central locking and a trip computer. The RPM meter was also actually an extra bit of trim.

"Last of the real Skodas" released just after vw bought it with a vw engine, gearbox, interior, switches, steering wheel, seats, guages etc. but it's a true Skoda, not like the rebadged vws. Haha

I remember dodgey Skoda/vw electrics very well. Our fabia door locks used to activate/deactive on bumps in the road, CEL was always on, heated seats were intermittent.. great great car though. Loved it. That 1.4 16v was a peach.

The Fabia did have Skoda engine the 1.4 8v mpi

6:20 you could have factory fitted onboard computer there (mpg, range, temperature... etc.)

These were good cars and a cheap quality alternative to French cars. The estate versions were popular too and another thing that came off directly from the period VW Polo was the bootlid handle.

Just because it's Skoda doesn't mean it couldn't get nice things! :) I drive a 1998 Skoda Felicia and it has electric windows and side mirrors! 😂

I really like these - I’ve always liked the understated image, sharp styling, and what I think for the time was a really nicely resolved interior. Tried to buy one a few years ago when I needed an inexpensive runabout - ended up with a Volvo 440 instead.

Hi Matt,nice review on the Skoda Felicia,the body work could do a clean but seems fine.

A friend’s dad had one of these in the same colour and trim. The paint also faded to the pinkish hue seen in this video, but by all accounts it was a good, reliable car even though it became quite rusty towards the end. I always used to think the 1.3 engine sounded quite tappety from the outside, even when these were new.

my brother still owns a felicia and he put about 980000 km on the odometer still super reliable

A cute design for a small car and would imagine easy to live with.

My first car, a 1.9d van version which funny enough, had the same rear doors as the passenger version, door cards and all!! My dad still has it to go fishing, it has 360k and apart from electrical issues (sometimes the lights go off at night), it still is economical and reliable as ever 😉

Great video! Funny as I always thought that the Felicia was based on the mk3 Golf. This looks like a fun car

Cracking review as always, and totally agree with you about the cars being endearing, on my third Fabia now and it's always my come back car after I have driven another marque for a while, realible, great value does what it says on the tin. Not so keen on the current look of the current Fabia Mark3 facelift but more than likely will have another one on the drive in a years time. Our current one is only the 1.0mpi in estate body but coming from a 1.6 daily it is like a little go kart

My first car before Ive got an mk1 vRS. I had a ton of fun owning it, it never let me down and was really easy to work on. 1.3 isnt a powerful engine, but with a rear muffler delete and a sport air filter it pops nice and has a very metallic, almost honda like induction noise, and the throttle response is pretty good. I had a ton of fun booting it about, and even when driving it hard It would still give me 30mpg. Was very sad when I had to sell it because I had no space and money to keep it alongside the vrs.

In my opinion, you could have done a lot worse than a Skoda Felicia at the turn of the millennium. I remember having one as a hire car in the late 1990s for almost two weeks, and while that is hardly the same as owning one, I must say that it made a great account of itself. It was certainly a cheap car and built to a price, but this felt more small VW than traditional eastern bloc cheap car. It was comfortable, drove well, and quality was more than acceptable. It was actually fun on Welsh roads and also smooth and relatively relaxed on the motorway. It did everything we asked as we drove around the UK - I quite liked it.

I almost bought the estate version with the diesel engine as my first car. In my country the diesel was available with driver airbag, abs and original air conditioning. If I remember correctly, two electric windows were also included. As far as I remember (more than 10 years passed), the 1.6 was also available with the same equipment. I really think that this was the best era of Skoda, the mk1 Octavia for example, was a robust car, especially with the diesel engine (1.9 TDI). I still see many of them, after servicing as a taxi, they are still functioning great.

Really good video mate , keep up.

This looks like the exact same spec (exterior at least) as the one the head master of my primary school had for the first half or more of my time there. He changed for a silver 3 door Vitara maybe a couple of years before I left. I generally have a poor memory for things, but the cars driven by half of the teachers of my primary school when I was there sticks with me for some reason. There's one I can't remember the name of, or even what class she taught, either P1 or P2, with no knowledge of what happened in either of those first 2 years at that school, but what car did she drive, that's easy, a white BMW 1 Series. :)

Power steering was availble, we had 1.3 on a "V" plate that had it. Car was like a tank my 19yr daughter could not destroy the poor car no matter what she did to it.

I had a 10 year old one of these in about 2007. I thought it was fantastic. I used to go to work down some country lanes and used to be able to throw it around like a good un.

Why does Red always fade so noticeably compared to other colours?

The redisign was already under Volkswagen. Until 1998, it was made in house, by Škoda, interior and exterior, except the Siemens electronics for the ECU and the Pierburg neutral thottle regulator. I have the 1997 year Felicia, this is really the LAST PROPER Škoda. The brace over the engine was not a standard, my car has a 1.3 and doesnt have it, also others dont have it, as far as Ive seen. The MPI which had 67 BHP was multi-point by Siemens, not a Bosch monopoint. Also I have to say, the engine compression ratio in this engine was massive, going over 10:1, and in the last engine before the redisign by some reports to 11:1, and with some tweaks ( bigger and polished intake, light alluminum wheels, semi-slick road tires, and tossing out any excess weight out) my Felicia manages to pull 0 to 60 in about 10 seconds, so it is not as slow as anyone (including me) thought. Still a great video though. Greeting from a Škoda owner. :)

Love the under dog,alway full of amazing surprises

Brilliant cars, I had 2,a 1.3 and a 1.6 which incidentally did have the strut brace and an anti roll bar. 1.3 was my favourite as it handled better. Good memories. Oh and my 1.3 did have power steering.

Traded up from VW facelift favrit glx estate to Felicia glxi 1.6....remeber the removable center console box with handle that slotted into tray in front of gear lever. Later had the fabia estate with Skoda engine 1.4...any chance of doing fabia review?...thanks for the reviews really enjoy them.its not about the speed,more about the experience as you imply

I could add to your introductory remarks "and this is the most interesting youtube motoring video you will watch this week". Particularly because Hubnut is not doing some crazy stunt involving motorways and thunderstorms in a ropey Invacar😅.

In a lot of cases Skoda's are still sold through the old fashioned family run type of dealership that with corporate cars like Fords, GM and so on disappeared in the 80's. Mt neighbour and his whole family have them and are on 1st name terms with the sales and service departments.......remember when your dealership was like a local hardware shop and not B&Q so the actually cared about the relationship ? He even talked another neighbour into replacing her UP! with a CitiGo !!!!!!!

Very fun first car for me it was, i had the same 1.3 and it felt so fast but in reality was very slow LOL , eventually the head gasket went and the car magically kept working for another year until it exploded literally lol not bad for a 300 quid car

I did my driving licence test in a Felicia. Driving, or to be more precise, limping in congested city traffic in the midst of summer, the engine overheated due to a faulty thermostat. With the engine overheating to 120°C, it was "fun" to drive.

This brace, or strut bar, was a must have for diesel version - lot of people were adding them as an optional or aftermarket accessory to 1.9 diesel models. The main reason was the weight of this engine, which was too much for front chassis, causing bends and deformations. But I think at some point it became factory default for those engines, as well as heavier 1.6 petrol ones. For 1.3 petrol engines it was not neccessary, but in your case someone probably decided to add it anyway.

I had one about 10 years ago. I remember it being a decent run about. I swapped it for an old Ford Escort. I can't remember why I did that or even where I got the skoda from! I probably picked it up from the auto trader for £200 knowing me :)

Good morning! Couldn't sleep...