Hi there,

You are quite right — the old 100hp 1.6-litre engine would indeed be, in general, more reliable than the 1.8-litre turbo, which was something of a troublesome engine. However, your budget of €10,000 will get you into something better altogether — the 1.2 TSI turbo petrol, in a circa 2013-2014 model Octavia. Smooth, reasonably powerful, very economical and very refined, it’s the engine of choice if you’re buying an Octavia and not doing a lot of motorway mileage.