Anyway, I'm looking for an alternative to the Skoda specialists I've been using for years (change of management) and wondered if anyone had experience of :

Vasstech Garage Services

This tool is not suitable for the boots on the ignition leads fitted to this engine.

I couldn't understand why until I read some of the reviews on Amazon. Basically, the handle is welded to the inside of the functional part of the tool and the metal rod of the handle stops the tool going down far enough for the tooth to engage with the lug on the metal boot. Apparently it works ok on Smart car engines; presumably the boot size is smaller.

I'll post a picture if I can to demonstrate.

Uploading Attachment...

Put in previous post regarding plug and coil failure of my skoda 2019 se technology 1.0 at 23,500 a few days ago. Was serviced by this dealership 2x since I purchased it, last time was January 2024.  Plugs were removed after break down plus 2 coils on 2 cylinders by RAC. The dealer said they would not do plugs/check them at this mileage.  However most reply’s I ve had here are 4yrs/or so many miles change the plugs.  
They will check all the smaller items on tick list, change oil but not plugs?  It’s not part of the service plan I was told.  Surely plugs are anintegral to the running of engine.  Was told car was good when it left them. 
Not happy as could have been dangerous as I limped slowly off the motorway.

I went to this garage as though as a dealership though they would look after my car. 
I am not happy with the service and now worry for other people thinking Skoda Henry’s is looking after their car !!!! 

Firstly, the car details ..... M Sport 118i, BMW Approved Used Stratstone Derby, 13,000 miles, One previous owner, Steptronic. with a 1.5 engine with turbo.

Purchase price ..... FAR too much 

My biggest gripe by far is the road noise. There is a constant drone / rumble on any surface other than smooth roads. This is not really speed related either as it is noticeable at quite low speeds.  @Rooted did try to tell me but I didn't think it would be as bothersome to me as much as it is.

I found my Octavia noisy above 50mph but under that, it was quite acceptable, but that was an 18 year old vehicle with 150,000 miles on it......

Not super impressed with the Steptronic Auto either, but it is ok. This is BMW's name for it's CVT transmission, albeit with a twin clutch (if I have this correct).

It makes it feel a little spongy ..... I believe this utilises belts and pulleys.

( I know it is totally different but I loved the DSG in the octavia. Perfectly matched with the PD engine IMO.)

The stop start in the petrol engine'd cars does not work very well, not smooth at all but I have seen it mentioned that it works well with their diesel engines.

So this gets turned off every time I remember to.

And I hate the fact that even when you have your foot pressing the brake you can feel the engine still trying to pull the car forward ..... no wonder the fuel consumption has been reported to be quite poor.....

And not realising that it's anti collision system was set to max when I first had it, the car almost made an emergency stop because it deemed me too close to the car in front, the one that was turning left a few metres in front of me and had almost left the lane. Turned it down to minimum straight away.

Pretty sure I would hate to be in a self driving vehicle, unless I was unable to drive of course, but then I would still sooner be in a taxi or something driven by a human being.

I may add to this if I think of anything else but yes, although I love the interior and the LED lights are excellent and enable me to see the road very well at night, it is not the premium car that I thought / hoped it was.

Cheers

Original post: MBClub Forum

"Hello all

I just wanted to share my experience with owning my Mercedes C220 estate from 2011 (Facelift) as this is something I would like to have seen when considering buying one of these.

As the final day's approach, I have decided to upgrade to the W205 for the simple reason of the large number of maintenance costs slowly accumulating.

My car has just under 220,000 miles and has generally been flawless, there were a few simple/bigger problems as listed below but generally over the long period I had the car for it has been super reliable.

I bought the car from a Mercedes dealer with 43000 miles back in 2014 and the second I test drove it for the first time I was so easily convinced to buy it. When buying used you always sign up for a big risk of not really knowing how much the previous owner cared for the car and how it was driven, so it's always a good idea to check or ask something about the previous owner and make your own assumptions from that. Buying from a Mercedes dealer seemed out of the question at first due to the price but I did not realise the condition they normally are in, In my case, there were absolutely no scratches and clearly, the car had been run-in and cared for properly by the previous owner as it went on to do many more miles. So I do recommend buying from a Mercedes dealer but just take your time and don't let them push you into anything that you are uncomfortable with like an unreasonably high price.

The reliability has been really good with only the common faults really being an issue for me:

1 Fuel injector gave in and stopped partially working putting the car in limp mode.
1 water pump
1 radiator
1 master brake cylinder
4/ALL front suspension arms
1 Suspension coil
Rear brake lines rusted through starting a leak and a slow loss of brake pressure
2 O2 sensors
Rear Diff Boot started to leak but nothing major
Oil pan snapped when an oil change was occurring as they are made out of plastic
Some sort of power steering valve partially failed to cause occasional loss of power steering
The spinning function of the rotary controller for the Sat-Nav (more info below)

Things to watch out for:
Timing chains on the OM651 engine can be an expensive issue if not treated early, Luckily on my car that was never a problem. It can be easily self-diagnosed by listening to a cold start best with the bonnet open for a rattling sound for around 2-3 seconds after start.
On early facelift cars (2011/2012), the fuel injectors can cause an issue but this was later rectified by Mercedes. (unsure how pre-facelift cars were affected)
The water pump can easily start a leak so check for any coolant splattered in the front of the engine bay.

Personal experience:
Make sure that if you have a tow bar fitted that the electrical connector is properly sealed and tucked away as water gets in and causes the indicator and some electrical equipment to go haywire (only temporary until water is cleared out and dried).
The boot struts were rusted through so have a look at that, they can be easily and cheaply replaced by yourself.
The rotary controller for the Sat-Nav/radio stopped working due to a plastic shaft on the inside braking. This makes the Garmin map pilot useless as it relies on the rotary controller and not the up/down left/right input of the rotary controller. The up/down left/right input still works and if you have the upgraded Mercedes Sat-Nav (Command I think) then this should work regardless if the rotary function works. All other functions still work regardless of Map Pilot or Comand as they can use the up/down left/right input.
The front door kickplates Will fall off as they are really lightly wedged on unless you know magic to keep them in place.
The original 7 spoke rims are so bad if you do lots of miles in adverse weather conditions, all 4 of mine the protective layer started to peel everywhere and caused many water pockets underneath the foil and this makes them look really bad and corroded, Structurally fine but not cosmetically.
The passenger seat mat was faulty and caused the Airbag symbol to light up (Which would cause an MOT to fail).

I always did my services on time and as Mercedes said, this I feel is very important in the durability department as good care for the engine pays off in the end,

Some real positives were:
The battery was still fully functional at nearly 10 years old.
Economy on A roads (which I mainly did) was around 55mpg and when on the motorway could easily get above 60. on long journeys we did we could get around 750 miles (1200 km) on 1 tank so the economy was amazing.
The intelligent light system I think is really something to go for as not only does it illuminate the road really well but it also makes the car look so much better, also they last longer as they have a mix of Bi-Xenon lights and LED's. There are still a few old halogen (I think) lights scattered around the car but none of these ever broke.
The car technically never let me stranded anywhere in terms of a breakdown and the things that broke always left the car still drivable.

Sorry about the long post but I wanted to share my experience with the car for new buyers, also please correct me with anything that I have said that is wrong. Please feel free to ask anything if you have any questions.

Thank you also for all the help I have received over the last year on here👍"

Hope this helps anyone looking into getting one of these.

Because it had a good service history and low mileage I decided to use RRG Skoda in Bolton to service my car and I took out a two year service plan, which worked well for me, the dealership were very helpful and I was so satisfied that in August  this year I signed up for another two year deal.

As a pensioner on a fixed income I started to pay monthly and booked an annual service for December.

Disaster struck at the end of November whilst driving on the M60 in Manchester when two cars piled into the back of mine and the insurance wrote off my car.

As you would expect I got less than the cost of a replacement for my low mileage FSH, almost perfect car.

I decided to buy another superb this time getting the 140 powered version, higher mileage but 2 years younger, still a mark2 but a face lift.

I contacted my Skoda dealership to tell them about the change in car, cancel the pre booked service and asked them to transfer my service plan to the new car, no dice!!

VW financial services who administer the plan refused to transfer the plan and also refused me a refund of my payments to date,  they did say I could transfer the plan to the scrapyard the Insurers had sent my car to.

So a warning to anyone before they take out such a plan, if anyone steals your car and you don't get it back or you write off your vehicle VWFS will try and steal your payments.

After a great deal of fruitless complaining to VWFS I wrote a  review on Trustpilot, within a week VWFS contacted me and offered a refund as a goodwill gesture.

Anyone in this situation should try this approach, a victory for the little person up against a very large business

Is this good value? Have any other members used this warranty or have experience of other warranties?

thanks in advance

I have been advised the Kit I require is ZGBBOM247SK  which has a 16" wheel and the 16” version is compatible with Octavia Mk3 with the 17” wheels I have. I suspect the reason for using the 16" wheel is in order for it to sit within the boot and not be proud.

What are the implications to me in terms of ride quality or is this effectively the same as a space saver limited to 50mph. I feel this is a fudge/compromise in order to fit the tyre/wheel into the base of the car so the floor fits level.

Can anyone share their experience of this and offer any advice

As said here, I had the chance to replace someone who could not go to Le Mans Classic last week-end.

We were there from 10:30 AM to 6:40 PM. 12km walking and roughly 430 pics ! I had the chance to access to paddocks (but not to the pit lane), and sincerely, what a day ! 

The show was so tremendous, that I can't resist to share you some of my pics. 

DKW Monza 1957 / 3 cyl 1000cm3

To keep on with German cars: Porsche 904

Porsche 550 being repaired / tuned ? No less than 2 mechanics under the engine / gearbox!

Porsche 356 (in concours conditions , all was like brand new!)

And this version with a special fairing for Endurance races had nothing to envy the previous one:

A 911 2.0

A Porsche 917 driving to the pre-grid, a former Le Mans winner

A Mercedes 300SL 1954 with seagull doors , which was a former Le Mans and also Carrera Panamericana racer:

Let's have a look to American cars now. One of the numerous Ford GT40:

Another one here, close to a recent Ford GT :

Two of the numerous AC Cobra too:

Some British ones now, starting with one of the many Jaguar E-Type 3,8l which made the trip to this event:

Have a look to the rudimentary cabin venting system!

Also a fantastic Jaguar D-Type with its shark fin:

A small nod to moviegoers  by the way:

More recent, the Ferrari 2023 edition winner, with its multitude of carbon appendages

After race cars, some 'normal' cars:

Among them, this amazing and very worked Delage

The Mc Laren corner (I wasn't able to count all the £Millions lined up ) !!!

Among them, this Mc Laren F1 GTR whose cockpit has nothing to envy the aircraft industry (especially with all its connectors):

Some French ones anyway: R8 Gordini

or Alpine Berlinette (with their descendants, contemporary A110s in the background)

One of the 8-10 Pantera De Tomaso in the event:

A quick look on the pre-grid for the 20s-30s category race, which was almost a one-type race and even a one-brand race, so numerous were the Bentleys!

This one in the background had a very thin worked radiator cap, but I wasn't able to define what it represented for sure (a contortionist?).

I didn't have the opportunity to see other races but these Bentley drivers were not playing at all, they were real competitors "with a knife between teeth" (suction, intimidation to overtake in the curve interior in the braking zones. Fantastic show!) 
On one hand astounding to see the 'fights' given the price of these cars (we said to ourselves: How sick they are, did they forget the price of these cars ?) and on the other hand, so exciting to see how they simply make them "live" by driving them the way they should be !
Thinking about it, I wonder whether I finally prefer to see them like that, rather than in a museum remaining parked ...

Some Porsche 911 from all generations as far as eye can see!

A  1974 BMW 3,0 CSL which raced at Le Mans :

A rare BMW Z8 and another magnificent 3,0 CSL in the background:

A Maserati Sebring (escorted by 2 Ghibli) absolutely splendid in concours condition. Really stunning, including the dashboard and the interior.

One can also notice this 3200 GT in the background with its beautiful "boomerang"-like rear lights, which had to be quickly replaced by much more common rear lights to meet approval requirements of the US authorities... 

The sacred beast: Aston Martin DB5! Needless to say it's ultra classy! I'm really a big fan   

More exotic, there was a "Hot rods" corner. This one was probably the most exuberant: 

At least, you can't miss the gas pedal  !

A rare Chevrolet Corvette C2 in split Window version (only on MY 1964!)  

An equally rare Chevrolet Corvette C1 '61, which had something really special: a Corvette C2 back end! 

I really thank the owner, who kindly hold the bonnet when he saw that I was taking a picture of the engine. Happiness of being among enthusiasts, glad to share !

A Jaguar E-Type coupé, with convertible roof. An option I had never seen. Fantastic!

A Facel Vega HK500, also in concours condition. A french car, which had nothing to envy its contemporary Italian or British cars.

Too bad, the brand did not survive...  Fortunately, this British owner keeps it in amazing conditions.  

Sorry I can't share all my pics, but you have here a nice panel  !

Firstly I just want to say how great the car is, it brings a smile to my face every time. 

If you are in the market for this kind of car then go for it, it give the perfect balance between keeping the wife happy ("it's a family car") and keeping you happy with the great engine and good performance.

If you can go for the facelift then I would as it brings the upgraded head unit with android auto and apple car play which was a dealbreaker for me and it glad I went for the facelift. 

I've got the 19" Xtrem Alloy Wheels and they look amazing and if you car good a reading the road then they should not be so much of an issue interns of comfort but if they are not a dealbreaker go for the 18"s as they are just better day to day.

If you are looking for a Digital Drivers display they were only introduced for the end of production models from around Feb/March 2019 so no luck if you want this on an earlier model. obviously these can be retrofitted. 

Do note the front sensors are not standard (rears are standard)

another good feature to look for is the electronically heated windscreen which I would definitely love on mine

Please service your DSG every 40k miles and not the recommended 80k and don't forget the VAQ diff if you have it, this cost me £450 for both. (note that Skoda doesn't normally replace the filter for the DSG so find someone who will do that and do the job properly.)

I think creaking front and rear suspension is normal as I have read so this is nothing to worry about on you test drive, please do correct me if wrong.

If you drive about 55-60mph you will get 50mpg from the car which is not that bad for this kind of car, at 70mph it is about 45 which is still very good. in town though its not great, i've had and average mpg of 23 from a whole fuel tank basically driving just in town. 

Don't worry about foggy headlights as they do allow a bit of moisture in especially after it rains or you clean the car. This should disappear after a day of being dry.

The undoubtably absolute best thing about the car is the ice scraper, umbrella and torch that it comes with. they are so useful and convenient. Love it!!!

I know it's a small thing but the wipers overlap enough so that tiny little triangle is not missed near the end of the wipers. it drives me crazy seeing it on older VAG cars.

The VRS models do not come with a spare tyre so check there is something to help out in An emergency like a emergency tyre sealant.

In comparison to a W205 C-Class estate (only car I can really compare size to as we have both) the size is no match for the Mercedes, so much more rear leg room and the boot is considerably bigger. Doing long journeys in the back of the Merc was painful and in the back of the Skoda is so much more room and personally feels more comfortable.

Basic sound system I think will be enough for most people, I love my music and I love it loud and i'm more than happy with the standard system

Petty things I really don't like about the car:

When you start a journey in the rain, the automatic wipers do not start automatically even if they are set to on, you have to turn them off and on again (I know, first world problems)

PIANO BLACK PLASIC!!!

Placement of the window switches as I always always roll down the rear windows by accident when trying to roll down the front ones

I can't seem to see a way to see if my headlights are on when they are in automatic mode

Why do Skoda use that weird strap/handle thing to close the boot, a cut out or grove looks so much less tacky 

Occasionally when on a hill and driving off and lifting of the break the car tries to find the 'bitting point' when to release the breaks and it can take up to 5 sec and in that time you start wondering if the car is even in drive or not...

Defiantly go for the car if you are up for servicing it. Remeber if you look after the car, the car will look after you.

It was the second cheapest option, the cheapest being a Picanto which I did not think would be quite large enough for our two sizable suitcases and carry-on luggage but they fitted in the Corsa comfortably.

The Hertz guy offered to upgrade us to a more economical Toyota Hybrid, which I was quite keen to do until I realised he expected us to pay an extra 20 pounds a day for the privilege... so I declined.

First impressions were not positive, Visibility from the driver's seat was not good, I was bobbing my head around the obstructions presented by the rear view mirror and the A pillars like a Cockatoo on a perch as we made our way out to the M25 during peak evening traffic.

The 1.2L 3 pot engine seemed gutless and coarse under acceleration and the projected mileage on a full tank was only 422 miles, however by the time I had got to Essex the projected distance has risen to 495 miles despite having covered 60 miles, so at least it could be economical.

Handling was average and the steering provided little feedback, the ride was comfortable enough most of the time but did not like sharp bumps and all the windows were like portholes compared to our Octavia wagon and Toyota Echo back home and awful for sight-seeing people like us.

The lack of performance turned out to be my fault as both our owned cars have relatively sensitive throttles, the Toyota with little pedal travel and the Octavia pedal only needing to depressed to the point where the turbo cuts in and it takes on a life of its own. 

The Corsa just needed more and more throttle as the revs rose and then it could attain its official 13 second dash  to 60 mph. The other thing for me to adjust to was that that kph displays increases a lot quicker than mph (doh!)  . The engine still felt coarse when under any pressure but was ok when cruising

However the car proved to be very economical achieving 60mpg overall and 65mpg on a run ( I stuck to all the speed limits which few others did) and even got about 40 mpg in peak time Outer London traffic.

As there was no manual it took me a while to work out how to access and reset the trip meters but when I did I found that over  the last 6500 miles the car had averaged 22mpg averaging 18 mph and I have no idea how they got that. I did a 30 mile return journey using the North Circular to Hampstead Heath with the return leg entering peak period traffic and averaged 60mpg at 21mph.

The car had a fairly high level of accessories, including very necessary reversing cameras and front and rear sensors, which is ridiculous in a small town orientated car.

The interface with my Android phone was absolutely seamless as soon as I plugged in, and the Google maps guidance brilliant...most of time, but sometimes 'she was well off her game' and I would get conflicting instructions from her and my wife acting as back up navigator which got hilarious at times.

Overall, it did what we wanted at a reasonable price and with good economy. I would have preferred a Fabia 1.0tsi but that would have cost  more than twice as much to rent.

Importing cars from the UK is expensive, second hand cars on the island are expensive, so a cheap new one was the way ahead. 

After researching the market in the Canaries, it seemed the likely choices were old stock i20 or Ibiza, or brand new C3 or Sandero. Having driven 3 of them already we tried the Sandero Stepway at our local UK Renault dealer. 

First thoughts it's a nice car, though the demo was the top of the range one. Modern inside and out, well equipped, and a good drive. The 1.0 triple is gruffer sounding than VWs, but seems to have better torque than my 110TSI. It's also a big car, 4 inches wider, longer and higher than a C3. Roomier than the other choices, and the interior matches SEAT/Skoda for quality and comfort, whist being much nicer than the 2020 Citroen/Hyundais. So, Mrs Spyyder chose the Sandero, but shortly afterwards I found out about the 5/6 month wait for one 😮 so I wasnt hopeful.

Luckily, and unlike any UK dealers, the Tenerife/Gran Canaria agent had about a dozen in stock, so instead of ordering the lower spec one we were aiming for (and waiting forever), we spent a little more and grabbed a stock vehicle which was delivered 7 days later.

Our bi-fuel car has an LPG system which improves the engine from OK to very nice. Smoother, quicker, cheaper to run and greener. In the UK theres no price premium for it either, so I wonder why anyone is buying the petrol .

Is it really still cheap?

Well the stripped out and slow 65PS Access was £7995 but Dacia UK have binned it. The range entry is now £8995, but again its only 65PS. You have to have the 90 or 100PS engine really so the Sandero in mid-spec now is more like a 10.5k car. The SUV-look Stepway is another 1k on top, but most seem to be buying the higher Comfort or Prestige models of that one, which whilst loaded can get up towards £15k. Ours is middle of the Stepway range, and only lacks blindspot warning and satnav options from the highest spec (but has Carplay/Android Auto so who needs integral nav?).  These prices are for possibly the biggest supermini on the market, nearly the size of a Golf,  and the price competition are mostly tiny citycars, or very basic editions of comparable hatches.

It's still real value for money whatever you choose, but no longer old tech, this is based on the current Clio/Juke platform and is genuinely a modern car. I can see why its #1 in European sales, and I'm glad we beat the rush, as stocks in Spain are dwindling now too.

http://www.drivelife.co.nz/2018/10/2018-lexus-nx-300-f-sport-car-review-the-luxury-small-suv/

http://www.drivelife.co.nz/2018/04/2018-hyundai-kona-elite-car-review-intrepid-adventures/

Drove OK but traction poor unless in power limiting eco mode. Roomy, but very high sill so loading the boot for runs to the dump was difficult.

Felt quicker than my 1.0TSI Toledo and better mpg too, surprisingly averaging over 50mpg right across the M62 and back (the SEAT does mid 40s on the same trip)

The Nissan has all the gadgets, but ergonomics are poor- switches all over and less logical system operation than on VAG vehicles. 

I wouldn't buy one. The confused cockpit is something I remember from sister company Renault and I don't like it at all.

i don’t think that anything I say will be groundbreaking for people who come here, but you might enjoy it (or not 🙄).

link is here should you want to take a look

It was okay

https://www.drivelife.co.nz/2018/08/2018-seat-ateca-fr-car-review-sporty-spaniard/

ADAC Motorwelt 08/1995 has published a crash-test of the cute Fela (as nicknamed in Pl;))

and I'm in a serious need of the disturbing details about the rear seat belt issues they

found... Does anybody have the text?! English translations available on the Web only

mention the problem w/o explaining. Was it solved in the facelifted model? (Wiki says

there were some safety imporvrmrnts...)

I know asking for safety features of an 18yr old car does sound hm, interesting.. but apart from practising I need it to carry my family sometimes and it does make some difference, anyway!

Thanks in advance,

Silgrin

http://www.drivelife.co.nz/2017/11/2017-skoda-octavia-rs-wagon-car-review-rapid-skoda/

For a start it's ugly outside and in. In fact the committee that designed the inside clearly weren't talking to each other as no part of it matches the rest. They also used unbelievably cheap materials in a brand still perceived in the UK as "quality" . The VTEC 1.2 is not a patch on any TSI 1.2, it's gutless on main roads and motorways with very little torque. Equipment levels are poor too lacking cruise alloys or fogs for a start.

£14k plus for this is a joke. Unless one is an OAP with more cash than sense I suppose.

http://drivelife.co.nz/2017/09/2017-honda-civic-rs-sport-hatch-car-review-type-r-wannabe/

For those of you that are interested, as requested and promised, this is a comparison of my 2017 (a 2017MY) Skoda Fabia SE Hatchback 1.2TSI 110ps DSG automatic, vs the 2018 (2019MY) Citroen C3 Flair Hatchback 1.2 PureTech 110ps EAT6 automatic. These are my views based upon ownership and experience with both cars. Others may have differing views, and of course that’s ok. It’s always a bit of a subjective thing when working out what you like and dislike about a car and we are all different in what we like.

As many of you know, due to issues with both of my brand new Fabia DSG’s over the last 17 months, I decided to cut my losses and go for another brand of car. This meant NOT looking at any other VAG range of cars as they all use the same engines and gearboxes, my main source of problems! So this time it was the Citroen brand, a never before visited car area (for me). I should say however that Citroen has been in my family in one way or another for the last decade or more and they have served family members well. It is what I learned about them as a brand that encouraged me to try the brand new C3, investigate them from every angle, and eventually to buy one.

So for starters, I’m not bashing the Skoda brand. My bad experience with two brand new cars is unquestionably a rare event. However, it did colour my view of Skoda and in particular VAG cars in general, due to various things that happened along the way when sorting out the problems. But I’m not going to go into all that here. It’s just a comparison that I’m making here so that anyone that is interested can see how your Fabia stacks up against some of the competition. That’s competition that I hadn’t looked at for over 12 years. Blinkered or what! Note that I’m not going to make a direct comparison to the 1.0TSI engined cars. But they are similar to the 1.2TSI. I haven’t owned a 1.0TSI but have driven several of the estate cars over the last year on lengthy runs and I actually believe the 1.0TSI is probably a better engine unit than the 1.2TSI. It isn’t as quick or punchy, but it’s not far off. The 1.2TSI easily beats it on fuel economy though in real life driving.

THE FABIA Mk3

The Skoda Fabia hatch is a great car, it’s near the top of it’s game in Mk3 format. The DSG gearbox is a wonder and is the icing on the cake for me. Leaving aside the engine and transmission issues that I had, it’s truly a wondrous thing to drive. IMPORTANT NOTE: Most folks don’t get any issues with their engines or DSG gearboxes or clutches, so if you have one, I wouldn’t worry. In spite of what one or two others on here say, it’s very limited in the number affected. Those that are affected will have their cars fixed, eventually!

What I loved about my Fabia/s

1. It’s power. It went so well, I dyno’ed it at 113.2ps @5400rpm (best of 2 runs). Torque was 176nm at 1450rpm. Mileage for these runs was just at 5,000 miles and tested in ambient temps of 22c. This is fairly typical of VAG engines to be slightly over the factory quoted figures once they have a few miles on the clock. Great! Note: it’s a good idea to follow the factory recommendations on running in if you want to achieve a good performing powerful engine that will last a long time. Most sales people will tell you it doesn’t need running in. Actually, they all do. Follow the book on this. It doesn’t mean you have to drive slowly, just follow some simple rules. It pays dividends.

2. I loved the fuel economy. The car regularly returned 60+mpg on a run with no real concessions being made to economy. 200 miles on mostly motorways, dual carriageways, and ‘A’ roads produced 63mpg, with considerable traffic ‘fencing’ with me at 70mph for much of the time on the motorways. Yes, I kid you not, it was that economical. It just sipped the fuel instead of guzzling it. This was I’m sure in no small way down to the DSG box. It’s way smarter than most of us at selecting the right gear and is the reason why it gives better fuel economy figures over the manual versions both on paper and in real driving.

3. I generally liked the way the car handled at speed on country roads, it’s overall quietness, and the ability to cruise tirelessly on motorways at any speed you want.

4. I sort of liked it looks to start with finding them pleasing to the eye. Although I did grow to dislike the looks after all the problems I was having. 

5. It was fairly comfortable and roomy.

6. Loved the storage space around the cabin.

7. Found the infotainment centre with touch screen to be superb, especially with my phone plugged in to use sat nav. Sound from the speakers was pretty good too!

These things made it a good car.

What I didn’t like about my Fabia/s

1. The terribly noisy engines at start up, especially in cold weather. As an engineer I can’t see why it’s like that. It’s easy to avoid noise like this at the design stage. It applied to both my new Mk3’s and affected it whether the engine was hot or cold. Modern lightweight pistons will rattle at cold start up but should stop very quickly. Mine didn’t. My first Mk 3 knocked considerably on start up in hot weather or cold which was a main reason I rejected the car. It was the most horrendous knocking noise and lasted for several seconds (up to 5 or 6 seconds on occasions). It spent weeks in the dealers trying to be fixed. People in the street would turn and look when it made this noise and passengers would ask what the noise was! It turned out to be oil drain back causing the issue and it couldn’t be fixed apparently in spite of my dealer fitting new parts! My second car was much much better but still way too noisy on cold starts, but that’s just normal for the 1.2TSI.

2. I didn’t like the noisy mechatronics unit that controlled the clutches and changed the gears. No other dual clutch cars that I’ve driven made so much noise so why do the Fabia’s? It should be state of the art by now. I’ve driven a shed load of 1.2TSI DSG’s and they were nearly all the same. My neighbours new i30 with DCT (dsg) auto box does not make any noise at all. Mine was getting noisier and noisier as the miles went on the car. I didn’t like the way the clutches had to be replaced at very low miles due to slipping on one of the cars.

3. Although I generally like the handling of the car, I grew to disliked the way the car crashed through and over bumps. The ride over level crossings of which I have many in my area was bone jarringly bad in my opinion. My Mk2 estates didn’t do this and were way more comfortable in that respect.

4. Many things on the car were difficult to get to for maintenance and unnecessarily so. Just bad design. And I’m used to tech’ing, had a lifetime of it.

5. Didn’t like the way the headlights filled up with water every time it rained hard on a long run, and when I washed the car. Absolutely ridiculous and that’s normal apparently says the dealer. It is, I checked and it’s absurd as the silvering on my reflectors on one car were already going bad due to water ingress after just 6 months. It’s again poor design and cost saving.

6. I didn’t like the cars susceptibility to misting up inside on the windscreen and side windows. Worst car I’ve ever had for that.

7. I didn’t like the constant creaks and rattles from the car interior. These just became worse and worse as the miles went on the car and I got fed up of fixing them. Fix one and another develops.

Thus ends my main dislikes...there are others, but much more trivial and not worth mentioning here.

THE CITROEN C3

Ok, so I’ve had the car for two months now. It’s a slightly different sort of car to the Fabia. It’s the sort of car you buy if you want a very modern, very stylish car with all the tech, but want that very comfy ride. It’s a softer ride than a Fabia or Fiesta and it represents Citroen's trademark ride for which they are famous. It takes the bumps, potholes and level crossings in a way I’ve never experienced before in any car. You hardly notice them. Yet, body roll is still minimal but more than the Fabia. It’s easy to get used to though and you can still hustle the car around twisty country lanes and road with no issues. I like! The ride is helped by 16” alloys shod with 205/55 Michelin tyres.

Only done 1500 miles so far but already my wife and I have bonded with it. It’s a brilliant all rounder car. When we went to collect the car from the dealer my wife was presented with a nice bunch of flowers, and we both received new Citroen umbrellas! One for each of us! This made me think maybe it would leak rain into the cabin! Actually, it doesn’t. But the dealer was great, getting the car in record time for us and doing a great deal.

The car is noticeably bigger than the Fabia. It has a striking presence on the road with it’s high wide front end. In fact, it’s 100mm wider, 20mm taller, 6mm longer, and has a wheelbase that is around 80mm longer than the Fabia. It’s about the biggest 5 door ‘B’ segment car you can buy. Not all of that extra size translates to more interior space though. The front cabin is wondrously spacious with more than enough room for very big folks who are 6.6” tall or more (yes really). Loads of adjustment for steering and seat both rake, height and every other way. But in the back, although there is plenty of room for 3 average size adults to sit side by side, the legroom is just a tad less than the Fabia in my opinion. Still more than adequate for most though. Boot space is good at 300litres with seats up, but that’s slightly less than the Fabia. Seats down and it’s almost as good as the Fabia. Internal cabin storage for trinkets is not quite as good as the Fabia. 

The 1.2 110ps/205nm's of torque 3 cylinder Engine & Auto EAT6 Gearbox

It’s state of the art, both engine and gearbox. Frankly, it's way ahead of the Fabia. It’s an award winning engine and the gearbox is the latest generation 6 spd torque converter box. The engine and box was designed for use right across the Citroen and Peugeot range of cars and SUVs. It’s a long stroke engine revving to only 5,500rpm (that’s where the redline is) and is available in 82, 110, 118, 130 and 160ps versions. It has a brilliant ‘Offset Crankshaft’ design offering better power and less engine wear on the power stroke. This means also, better fuel economy. The cylinders and piston rings are coated with a mineral coating to reduce friction and wear. It’s a great engine and very strong. It’s been out now for 5 years and has earned an enviable reputation. The engine is very quiet when you start it up from cold or hot. It doesn’t knock, rattle or chatter. You just get a nice swooshing rustling sound like engines used to make. During hard acceleration (0.62 in 9.8secs) the engine makes this lovely noise but overall you get little sensation of speed. At 90mph it feels the same as my Fabia did at 70mph. Not saying I go up to 90mph on purpose, it just did on one occasion because I was careless watching my speed. It’s rather quick, quiet and smooth, and so very comfortable you just don't notice how fast you are going! That engine, it’s engineering heaven for me.

The automatic gearbox doesn’t whine like most Fabia’s do when they are hot whilst driving at 30-40 mph. It’s totally silent. How do I know this? Not only is mine very quiet but I’ve driven C3 automatics with 14k and 20K on the clock respectively and they were totally silent. The gearbox is responsive changing up and down and when needed. It has never been confused about what gear to be in and in sport mode just takes off like a rocket. It has manual mode too which again has a nice feel to it. In fact the gearbox was designed by Citroen with Aisin of Japan jointly to compete with DSG but without the issues that some DSG/DCT boxes are suffering. There are no clutches for example, it being torque converter type. They’ve done a good job and overall it’s very smooth, but not as smooth as a DSG when going from 1^st to 2^nd gear. If you want smooth you must actually hit the gas hard or go very gently during acceleration after move off. It's ok in every other gear though. You can however just get in a plant your big foot on the gas pedal and it takes off like a scalded cat should you need to do so without any jerkiness often associated with DSG when used in that way.

The engine in my C3 produces 110ps and 205nm of torque at 1500rpm, in part helped by the offset crank design. It’s this torque that makes the car so nice to drive. I’ll dyno it when it’s done more miles, it will probably be way up on 110ps I suspect. The engine has no exhaust manifold bolted on, it’s all built into the cylinder head for fast warm up. It also causes the engine to make a very nice noise under hard acceleration.

What I like about my C3

1. The engine. It’s brilliant and very lively, silent, and punchy, economical. Easily does 60mpg and it’s not yet fully conformed. Tireless ability to cruise at any speed you want in any conditions.

2. The gearbox. Smooth & silent gearchanges, very responsive, fully featured latest generation computer controlled torque converter type with 6 spds. Aisin who builds this box also designed and built the excellent VAG torque converter 6 spd tiptronic unit in the Fabia Mk2’s, Golfs etc etc.

3. The handling and ride comfort, very low noise levels, and less than the Fabia in the cabin from engine and road. No rattles or creaking from the car interior. At two months old my first Mk3 Fabia was rattling and creaking all the time.

4. I like the way the headlights do not fill up with water when it rains.

5. The build quality of the car. Frankly, other manufacturers could learn a thing or two about how to design and build a car. The finish on the car is totally amazing with everything finished off to a very high standard inside and out, including underneath the car. That also includes stuff under the bonnet. The whole car is designed for easy maintenance. All bulbs including headlights, foglights, running lights, rear lights etc can be accessed easily from inside the engine bay or boot without having to jack up the car, take off wheels etc like on some Fabias and other brands of car.

I’ve already sat in on a full service on a C3 carried out by a Citroen master tech. It couldn’t be easier. Parts are cheap too. They have some cars with this engine in that have covered over 190,000 miles without any issues. I’m promised a viewing of the first strip down they do. Can’t wait.

6. The tech inside the car. It has a built in Dash Cam that talks to your mobile phone. It produces it’s own wifi signal hotspot with gps. Mine is the Flair model which is top of the range. It has way too much tech in to mention here but has some very useful features such as speed limit recognition, of course cruise and speed limiter, lane departure warning and all round one touch electric windows. The external mirrors are heated, electrically adjustable and of course power folding. As I say, there is way more stuff and it again trounces the Fabia SEL model in most areas. 

7. The infotainment centre. Muched liked and which is second only to the best in class Bose system in the new Micra with the C3’s system a close second. It sounds amazing.

In conclusion, it’s a nice car to drive and own.