Skoda 120 L

[Guest Elisvk]

Hi, I just wanted to know if my 1980 Skoda 120 L is worth anything. I do know that there are thousands out there but what makes mine special is that it is only driver 800 kilometers (500 miles).

I drove it 480km yesterday because I bought it yesterday and I had to drive it home. So originally it has done only about 320 km which is only 200 miles. Everything is completely original. The paint was a bit rusty so now it is completely rust free and repainted with matte white paint. The outer layer on the seat covers are also a bit torn because they are 31 years old.

If it isn't worth anything I'll just keep it as a daily driver while my 1990 nissan 300zx twin turbo sits in the garage this winter.

[Guest Elisvk]

nobody knows whether this is anything of value?

[MCHinson]

Where are you located? The value is probably greatly influenced by where you are located. If you bought it, hopefully you had some sort of idea about what it was worth to you.

I know nothing about the value as I have never even heard of this car.

I had to do a Google Search to find out anything at all about it.

?koda 120 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Good luck with it.

[CarlLaFong]

Skodas have never been sold, at least in any quantity, in the US. It's value, here, would probably be next to nothing, due to absolutely no parts availability, club activity or nostalgic need to own one. It's simply an oddity.

A kid in my high school, 45 years ago, had a Skoda Felicia roadster. We Called it a Scrotum Fellatio. He was, for some odd reason, unamused

[ply33]

Skodas have never been sold, at least in any quantity, in the US. It's value, here, would probably be next to nothing, due to absolutely no parts availability, club activity or nostalgic need to own one. It's simply an oddity.

Which would make it a perfect car for someone in a local club in my area called the "Arcanes". The less common the car and more unusual the design the more they like them. Arcane Auto Society

[nzcarnerd]

The rear engined Skodas were popular here in NZ - mainly because of their low price - but they seem to now be extinct. My mother ran a 1970 110L for a while in the 1980s. They have little value here either. Life has moved on and as ply33 hinted they are an arcane car. I recently sold an unrestored 1969 Simca 1000 that I had had for many years - another rear -engined car of little value but there is always that odd nut that likes something different.

My feeling is - once a cheap car, always a cheap car.

[Guest Elisvk]

Thanks all for the great answers. I just bought this car for about 1600 $ us dollars because it was in perfect running condition, no rust, brand spanking new tires and it had inspection. Cars in Iceland where I live are just under 2x more expensive than the US. So it'd be about 800 dollars in the US which I paid for the car.

Might post on a forum that is more EU based for for now, it'll be my daily driver till summer comes back around!

[490touring]

There is one museum that would probably like it:

Skoda 1101- 1948 | Cars

Located in Nashville, they have a huge collection of cars we have never heard of here , but they are interesting nonetheless.

[nzcarnerd]

That is an interesting mix of oddballs in that collection. That convertible looks to have Dutch plates on it? There is a 1948 Skoda convertible like that here in Christchurch. I have a 1955 Skoda 1200 - google it - waiting in my shed for some keen person to restore someday. Unfortunately - or fortunately? - it is buried behind other things and too difficult to photograph.

[Dave Mellor NJ]

It's nice to hear from a native Icelander (is that right ?) whatever kind of car you have. I hope you'll come often.

[DavidAU]

I was working in NZ in 1963 and an old workmate brought his first brand new car. A 1963 Skoda Octavia.

I thought it was a POS at the time and still do but I would never have told him that as he was totally delighted with it.

The main feature on the car that he liked so much (apart from it being new) was the fact that if you were on a trip and the windscreen was broken with a flying stone you could pull the back window out and put it in the front as they are both the same. He thought that was ingenious. Probably a good thing as I think spare parts would not have been readily avalible.

Skoda is now owned by VW

[nzcarnerd]

One attraction of the earlier Skodas was that they were very well equipped. My 1200 has a full tool kit and a good jack. The car has independent suspension front and rear, even if it is a transverse leaf at the front and swing axles at the back, so it was always good to drive on poor roads. It also has proper ventilation and both the bonnet/hood and the boot/trunk lid have their release buttons inside the car. It also has a blind that can be pulled over the radiator in cold weather operated from a wheel under the dash. Of course with only 36bhp to pull along a six seater car it is grossly underpowered. Quoted max speed is 105kph. There are disadvantages; it has a weird steering box that requires a special lubricant, it has a backbone chassis with a centre driveshaft bearing buried in it which I know is something that will need to be done if the car gets resurrected. Also the engine is an all alloy block with wet sleeves which require great care in setting up correctly to avoid head gasket leaks.

[1939_Buick]

I was working in NZ in 1963 and an old workmate brought his first brand new car. A 1963 Skoda Octavia.

And do not forget the NZ Trekka

http://www.trekka.co.nz/

NZ Trekka Review - mister-cars.com

, the Trekka hides an intriguing history and was New Zealand’s only mass-produced vehicle. Sort of. It’s not all Kiwi. Just the steel body and the canvas or fibreglass canopy. The power train and chassis is pure Skoda - Skoda Octavia Combi, a vehicle produced in communist Czechoslovakia in the late 1950s.

The Trekka hardly set the NZ motoring scene alight - about 2500 were sold in seven or eight years although the vehicle was also exported to Australia and Indonesia. Some 46 made it across the ditch to Australia before sales flopped.

I have a farmer cousin in south Canterbury with one still sitting under pine trees. Absolute POS Edited November 8, 2011 by 1939_buick (see edit history)

[R Walling]

Hi, I just wanted to know if my 1980 Skoda 120 L is worth anything.

If it is anything like a Yugo, you can double the value of it by filling the tank.

(The devil made me say it!)

[Guest Elisvk]

One attraction of the earlier Skodas was that they were very well equipped. My 1200 has a full tool kit and a good jack. The car has independent suspension front and rear, even if it is a transverse leaf at the front and swing axles at the back, so it was always good to drive on poor roads. It also has proper ventilation and both the bonnet/hood and the boot/trunk lid have their release buttons inside the car. It also has a blind that can be pulled over the radiator in cold weather operated from a wheel under the dash. Of course with only 36bhp to pull along a six seater car it is grossly underpowered. Quoted max speed is 105kph. There are disadvantages; it has a weird steering box that requires a special lubricant, it has a backbone chassis with a centre driveshaft bearing buried in it which I know is something that will need to be done if the car gets resurrected. Also the engine is an all alloy block with wet sleeves which require great care in setting up correctly to avoid head gasket leaks.

Sorry but you have my skoda mixed up with another. The engine in my car has no driveshaft (rwd and engine in the back). It is 49hp and only 4 seat not 6. Also, the engine lid release button is found by opening the left back door, it's right next to the lock.

[nzcarnerd]

Yes, I am aware of which model you have, a few of them were sold here in NZ. The 120 was about the last variant of the rear engien models that first appeared in the mid 1960s. As I mentioned in my earlier post we had a 1970 110L. I was prompted to write about the 1200 by DavidAU's post.

[nzcarnerd]

And do not forget the NZ Trekka

TrekkaWorld - Welcome to the home of the Trekka in New Zealand

NZ Trekka Review - mister-cars.com

I have a farmer cousin in south Canterbury with one still sitting under pine trees. Absolute POS

The only reason they were a POS was that people expected too much of them. They were only two wheel drive and were quite light. It was unfortunate they they bore a passing resemblance to a Landrover and people expected them to do the same job - which of course they could not do. Remember that the basic mechanical setup of them dated back to pre WW2.

[Guest Al Brass]

Farmers usually only expected them to do what they were told they would do. They were simply oversold by the various agents throughout the country who claimed they would almost go anywhere a Landrover would. That was partially true but you had to drive the hell out of them to do it.

Al

[roysboystoys]

I have a brass and porcelin badge that I had listed for sale as

a drivers club badge, but the discussion is it's a body builders

badge that included Skoda. Probably some of you fellows contributing

to the discussion.Check it out under for sale and I would

appreciate feedback like this. I have had it 30 years or so

and I'm cleaning out the collection

Thanks Roy

[Guest Elisvk]

Yes, I am aware of which model you have, a few of them were sold here in NZ. The 120 was about the last variant of the rear engien models that first appeared in the mid 1960s. As I mentioned in my earlier post we had a 1970 110L. I was prompted to write about the 1200 by DavidAU's post.

Ah i see. Simple misunderstanding.

[Larry Schramm]

I drove past the Skoda plant is in Pilzen, Chech Republic in the 1980's. The brand was obtained by Volkswagen after the fall of the iron curtain.

[earl e rizer]

I was in London England a few weeks ago and a Skoda Octavia with a diesel engine was one of the cabs we took. The driver said it was 10 yrs old and still running great.

[Guest Elisvk]

I was in London England a few weeks ago and a Skoda Octavia with a diesel engine was one of the cabs we took. The driver said it was 10 yrs old and still running great.

How is this relevant to anything?

[Guest okimar]

On 11/5/2011 at 10:50 PM, Elisvk said:

Hi, I just wanted to know if my 1980 Skoda 120 L is worth anything. I do know that there are thousands out there but what makes mine special is that it is only driver 800 kilometers (500 miles).

I drove it 480km yesterday because I bought it yesterday and I had to drive it home. So originally it has done only about 320 km which is only 200 miles. Everything is completely original. The paint was a bit rusty so now it is completely rust free and repainted with matte white paint. The outer layer on the seat covers are also a bit torn because they are 31 years old.

If it isn't worth anything I'll just keep it as a daily driver while my 1990 nissan 300zx twin turbo sits in the garage this winter.

Do you still have this car? My wife grew up in the Czech Republic and her dad had a 120L. I would love to find one for her to have.

[C Carl]

Hi okimar ! If you click on the Icelander's profile , you will see that he was active only for 9 days in 2011. His birthday is there , 3/13/93. It is possible that you might be very lucky with a private message to him. Also , almost all of the other participants in this topic are still quite active here. I would send p.m.s to all of them , since they all have Skoda awareness. This is an extremely knowledgeable  bunch of car people. The forum is very well engineered , very mature , and constantly tended. The search engine draws from a vast base , and the accumulated postings over the many years cover most automotivedom. Welcome ! Stay with us here , it is good to see this revived by you. I missed it first time around !   - Carl

[Roger Zimmermann]

Carl, don't you find illogic from a person living in Iceland to ask in a US forum the value of a car made in the former East block?

[C Carl]

? Thanks for the first belly laugh of the day , Roger ! I was in Iceland about 50 years ago. It seemed so incredibly different to me , having been to only Canada and Mexico , our neighbors. This was so strange that it just didn't compute as a culture. I was only 24 at the time , but I did realize that I had no framework, no cultural perspective, no way to integrate what I was seeing and hearing. It was far more foreign to me than Mexico. Next stop was England , which seemed like going home. Denmark followed , and fortunately, I got stuck there. Over several months time , I began to get some realization of why Iceland was so different. Anyone who has spent significant time in Scandinavian countries will know what I mean. Those who have not , will not.   - Carl ?

[Roger Zimmermann]

At least, my message let somebody laugh ! I do confess that I was maybe 2 days in Sweeden and no desire to go there again...

[C Carl]

If you had been in Sweden when I was in Sweden , you might never have left !   - Carl

[Roger Zimmermann]

Who knows...I was there for GM, a stupid training and it was maybe 1996 or 1997. In short: I saw really noting from Sweeden!

[Guest okimar]

4 hours ago, C Carl said:

Hi okimar ! If you click on the Icelander's profile , you will see that he was active only for 9 days in 2011. His birthday is there , 3/13/93. It is possible that you might be very lucky with a private message to him. Also , almost all of the other participants in this topic are still quite active here. I would send p.m.s to all of them , since they all have Skoda awareness. This is an extremely knowledgeable  bunch of car people. The forum is very well engineered , very mature , and constantly tended. The search engine draws from a vast base , and the accumulated postings over the many years cover most automotivedom. Welcome ! Stay with us here , it is good to see this revived by you. I missed it first time around !   - Carl

Carl,

 

Thank you for your reply

 

I know everyone looks at the Skoda thru the lens of it being a Communist block car, but the reality is the Czech people were given to the Nazis and then to the Communist as a bargaining chip to hopefully appease them so they wouldn't bother their own countries.

 

This car was an awesome car for the masses. It was much more reliable, spacious and capable than the VW beetle and I would love to have one, so I will eventually PM them, as you suggested.

 

I like what I've seen of this site so far and appreciate your taking the time to welcome me aboard.