I had the opportunity to test the Octavia G-TEC, which burns CNG – compressed natural gas, i.e. a fuel that is becoming a decent competitor for the even more widespread LPG.
The white metallic in combination with the black roof suits the Octavia, I like the distinctive castles of the third generation a lot more than the second generation after the facelift.
Drive
A comfortable place behind the wheel can be easily found thanks to the height- and longitudinally adjustable steering wheel and the electronically adjustable seat – it also has a memory and the ability to assign a different position to each key.
The engine is a turbocharged 1.4 with 81 kW, the engine is almost inaudible up to some 3,000 revolutions, the power is sufficient in a wide range of revolutions and the car can be driven briskly. The consumption was around 3.6 kg of CNG, and with economical driving it was possible to reach the indicated value of 3.4 kg.
The seven-speed DSG gearbox has high efficiency thanks to dry clutches (the indicated consumption is comparable to a manual one), it is possible to shift gears both under the steering wheel and with the gear lever, shifting is fast and smooth. However, what worked best for me was letting it work in automatic D mode, which shifts smoothly and doesn’t rev the engine like S mode.
The chassis is tuned just right, McPherson suspension in the front and Multi-link in the back in combination with 17″ wheels absorb bumps well and sit great.
The adaptive cruise control works great on the highway and in a queue in the city, especially in combination with an automatic transmission, with which it can stop completely and then start at the set speed (however, if the stop is longer than a few seconds, the cruise control is deactivated and it must be started again) . Unfortunately, it does not work very reliably on winding roads and it happens that it does not “see” the car in front of it.
Lane Assist keeps the car in the lane only if there are clearly visible lines on both sides, it is functional independently for approximately 15 seconds, after which it alerts the driver and deactivates.
Park Assist parks quite slowly for my taste, it’s still faster to park manually. On the other hand, the parking sensors are useful, but they could leave a slightly smaller margin.
Interior
There is plenty of space on both the front and rear seats (980mm from the seat to the ceiling), there are plenty of storage spaces, and the interesting thing is the 230 V socket, which can supply up to 150 W. Sunroof
Infotainment
The large 8″ display is well controlled, although it requires a little more attention to hit what you want, but it also offers the option of voice control. In addition to classic functions such as vehicle information, navigation and radios, it also offers connection to a mobile phone using Android Auto or CarPlay, while the SmartGate function sends information about the car to a mobile phone or tablet. I like the connection with Maxi Dot, which, in combination with the steering wheel controller, allows you to control some of the functions without having to look at the radio display. I find it a little strange that the controls on the steering wheel do not work with the ignition off, for example the volume has to be controlled directly on the radio. Connectivity is excellent, we can find USB, AUX, Bluetooth, WiFi and two memory card slots here.
What about CNG?
During normal operation, fuel costs were around CZK 1 per kilometer. CNG is used first and then it switches to petrol, there is no switch for the fuel used.
The return on investment in CNG instead of a gasoline car is around 25 thousand. km, as shown in the following graph, I based the purchase prices on CZK 395,900 for the 1.0 TSI and CZK 448,900 on the G-TEC, the consumption is shown combined, i.e. 4.51 l of gasoline and 3.4 kg of CNG, prices of CZK 29 per liter and 25 CZK per kilogram, other TCO split items are not included.
Tanks need to be revised once every two years and pressure tested every 5 years. On the other hand, the advantage is exemption from road tax.
There are over 120 filling stations throughout the country, one can be found in almost every major city. I would be very interested in what the ratio of CNG cars and filling stations is in Prague (especially when we take into account the longer refueling time and higher average mileage).
The biggest problem associated with CNG is parking in underground garages, somewhere there are spaces reserved for gas cars on the roof or in front of the building, in any case, you need to think about this and count on less parking.
Conclusion
The Octavia in the G-TEC version is a great choice for those who drive a lot and want a liftback, where I couldn’t find an alternative. Among the competitors we can include, for example, the Seat Leon, which is available in the hatchback version for CZK 484,900 with the Style equipment and in the estate version for CZK 477,600 with the Reference equipment.
If you often drive on the highway, I definitely recommend the adaptive cruise control with front assist for 17,000 CZK, especially if you want to invest even 50,000. to the automatic transmission. On the contrary, I would prefer to avoid the parking assistant (22 thousand), the parking sensors and mirrors suited me much better.
Basic price liftback (G-TEC): CZK 448,900
Basic price of a station wagon: CZK 481,900
Price of the tested car: 929,400 CZK
