SKODA ESTELLE 136 Rapid 2dr (1988)

Skoda Estelle - A budget car with a heart.

I had a Skoda Estelle for nearly a decade and it served me pretty well throughout this time. No idea why Skoda have such a bad reputation. Just because they were built in the Eastern Bloc it doesn't mean that they were any worse than other cars. My Estelle was pretty reliable - I had to had all the electrics done and a few other bits and bobs but it was a budget car so what do you expect?

In terms of performance it kept up with everything on the road without problems, it handled fairly nicely, quite responsive and controlled. It's not the best looking car, I admit. And it's not built in the most high-quality way but it's always felt pretty sturdy to me.

Overall I'd say that the Skoda Estelle is obviously a budget car, but that's not to say that it's completely tacky and useless - it's good value for money and it's more reliable than you might think. I had a few problems starting her towards the end and I had to sell her for peanuts but she served me well.