boneman

Hi Groaver, there's no substitute for power! I went from Impreza to Octavia vRS and now Lexus IS 300h, however. Sounds like a great car there, happy motoring.

Enjoy your new car.

The DSG is a fast gear change but these are controlled by software. From experience, from a standstill there is a small delay from pressing accelerator and car moving and this is noticeable particularly when joining busy roundabouts and it's slower than a manual and an eCVT. On the move you can pretend you're an F1 driver and have fast changes using flappy paddles or lever, great when overtaking or pressing on, I would have loved it on my Scooby. The eCVT is constantly variable and when you want to overtake the engine revs increase to get more power and away you go albeit not as punchy acceleration as the DSG diesel.

Hi, The auto in the Lexus is a constantly variable system eCVT which works differently to DSG. I find the DSG is a bit slow to respond with initial throttle opening when pulling away into traffic so need to get the power on a bit earlier than manual gearbox or eCVT. In comparison the eCVT responds instantly and is very smooth and this is really good in town and traffic jams. When you halt, the petrol engine stops and the car is completely silent, when you move away the initial getaway is silent electric power (EV) with the petrol engine seamlessly starting almost straight away. When you floor it the engine revs and holds its revs as the car accelerates then the revs drop away and at 70mph may be only 1500 - 1700rpm. The car doesn't have the same torque as the diesel but it has the same 0-60 time. I would recommend test driving and get it on the motorway to see if you like it. Lexus dealers very happy to let you test drive, I had at least half a dozen test drives at different dealers around the country. I actually bought mine from Lexus Carlisle 300 miles north of me, well worth the trip for the spec and the price. I've advertised my vRS in the FOR SALE section if anyone is interested if no response in a week it's going to Webuyanycar.

Time for a change. Had the Octavia vRS for five years and now and it's being replaced by this so it needs a new owner! Lexus is 300h F Sport. 2.5litre petrol hybrid, It's a real smooth operator.

+1 for the Pagid discs and pads got mine from https://www.carparts4less.co.uk/, and they come with silver coating for anticorrosion, make sure to get the correct diameter discs as there are different sizes available. @FatblokeVRS: Do the steel wheels help with comfort/ride etc as the lead weight neptunes are really heavy?

OP did you make any progress with your steering deadzone etc. I have std MK11 VRS TDI with AS2's and I too notice this deadness in the steering in straight ahead position on motorways and was wondering if solid console bushes would improve things. The main problem though seems to be the inability of suspension to cope with the bumps and unevenness of British motorways and I notice as a passenger it feels worse as no steering wheel to hold. I have to say having driven an Impreza WR1 for many years prior to the Skoda if I could get the same planted feel for fast mway I'd be a lot happier.

If you need a second opinion for reassurance I'm sure these guys would help, they're very helpful...https://www.akstuning.co.uk/ and near you

225 miles and 5 hrs of driving M25 and M27 yesterday!! The 1" foam has provided a firmer support but i needed to raise seat height which, as I'm sure you all know, tilts seat forward and hence reduces the pressure under thighs, also needed to apply a little lumbar adjustment which complemented the overall feel, so I think it's an improvement. Do the seats in the mkIII have separate tilt and height adjustment? Hope this may be some help although it was a sledgehammer to crack a nut.

WTF

vladRS - It may be worth having a treatment with chiropractor, if so choose one who practices Diversified technique. Also look into mobility stretches for your spine and pelvis as maintenance. I have noticed the poor seat back design allows me to slump in the seat but my shoulders are supported which aggravates the posture. You could also try some foam to see if this helps and go from there. Incidentally I tested a Hyundai Ioniq hybrid a couple of weeks ago, very impressed with comfort and road noise etc, made my 2012 vrs feel like a museum piece.

................................. Now I've seen the insides of the seats and the reason for my displeasure of the saggy backs I will put this on the list of negatives aspects of the VRS, along with pathetic halogen dip lights (now Xenons so ok), over servoed brakes, rubbish suspension, lead weight wheels, needless to say I won't be rushing to buy another any time soon. I can see too why the drivers RH seat bolster collapses, its because every time you enter or exit the bolster is crushed onto the plastic surrounding the seat, seems like a design fault. This may also be the reason why the bolster causes pain in the right posterior thigh. I cured my pain by sitting on folded up towel which raised me up about an inch and hence relieved pressure on the leg. The good thing is you can get loads of stuff into back esp with seats down which is a lot better than many German cars. So if I change the seats, the wheels, the suspension, ah done the lights, get rid of electric power steering..... now I'm just dreaming...... In the first pic I pushed down the plastic grid which simulates turning lumbar knob clockwise and second pic its straight. Further to my ramblings re lumbar support, its recommended when sitting to get your bottom back into your seat/chair which increases lordosis of the lumbar spine. Now when you're in the car and adjust the lumbar to get more support it's actually too low down the spine and tries to push the pelvis forward, or anteriorly in chiropractic speak, I think you're better off winding the lumbar support fully anticlock and this may allow bum to tuck back into the seat a little more. In my humble opinion the vrs seats can't achieve what the human body requires, we would be better off with a solid back approximating to the curves of our spines.

I've been driving 2012 MK11 TDI VRS for three years and been unhappy with the saggy back seats, so today I stripped off the seat cover and inserted a 11" square piece of 1" thick foam into the seat back which seems to have provided more mid back support. Tomorrow I will be driving 200+ miles so will report back with more data. I must say, considering the complexity of a seat the actual seat back structure is pathetically feeble and nonsupporting and lumbar support too low, like most cars I've owned. Will write more later.

My suggestion if you have time, get the new springs take along to Skoda main stealer and compare with genuine part for your car

I'll be interesting to hear more of your thoughts on ride improvement after the spring/damper change. I have similar car and not too happy with the rear suspension which is too firm and joggly on our uneven motorways and was wondering if setup like yours would provide a more stable and compliant ride.