Often, though not always, a long-term test will end with you feeling more positive about the car in question than when it began. In a road test or comparative environment flaws are often brought into sharp focus, but over a longer period of time they can seem less of an issue.
Maybe your rear end becomes more accustomed to the ride quality, or you find a way to drive around that annoying lump in the power curve, or you discover that with practice you can successfully navigate the confusing infotainment – whatever the shortcoming, extended exposure and the human ability to adapt usually means it becomes less of a problem over time.
But what about the reverse? Would a car that impressed mightily on first acquaintance lose its lustre when subjected to the day-to-day grind? In effect, it’s attempting to turn a whirlwind holiday romance into a longer-term relationship, which is seldom a good idea.

The car in question is an RS230 wagon in Moon White, one of two metallic hues that ask for $500 extra. Black is the other, but if it were our money we’d stick with one of the standard colours (red or that weird battleship grey that seems to randomly pop up on VW Group products) and pocket the change.

The automatic tailgate is handy, though anyone with arms wouldn’t miss it, but the Tech Pack is a worthwhile addition, for reasons I will go into in a future update. All up, the Skoda Australia website quotes a driveway price of $50,680 with a five-year extended warranty, though that price could vary slightly from state to state. A sedan in red with only the Tech Pack optioned drops that to a reasonable $46,290.


Liked Performance wagons are cool
Disliked Time already going quickly
Favourite moment Using the light, easy gearshift on an everyday basi
Claimed Combined Consumption: 8.04L/100km Startin KMs: 2718km Duration: 4 months