billblacoe

I've spent so much time over the past few years getting useful info from the forum, just wanted to put my own recent tuppenceworth down, on the Superb 280 v VRs discussion. I've had 3 VRSs . All estates, DSG and petrol . mk 2,3, and 4 . Between the 3 and 4 we had a Kodiaq 1.5 petrol...for about a month! that tiny engine should never be in that car. one up its passable, but with a full family on holiday, trying to go up hills was hard work!! We went for the Kodiaq as a fancied a change after 6 yrs or so of VRS . Looking back both 2 and 3 were great cars. 3 was definitely a big step up ( if you ignore the horrible headlights !) With 2 yrs to go on the PCP detail on the Mk3 VRS, I just fancied a change and had been looking at 280s for years. I managed to get a deal where it was a straight swap for a Superb 280 hatch in race blue. Only had it for 2 weeks but comparisons/thoughts so far : Mk 4 VRS Good : looks great - I had metallic grey tons of room inside - no real need to anything bigger great engine- Sports mode pointless as just revs too much, but kickdown if required in Normal is instant and very responsive. Effortless/safe overtaking It's not an Audi or a BMW! : ) LSD on the front wheels - definitely less wheel spin than on the mk 3 For what it is, really good on fuel. Mid 40s on a run easily Bad: Infotainment truly awful. regular crashes no proper twiddly knobs for air con. even on the aircon screen, the icon to turn it on and off is tiny Still not that refined. quite a bit of wind/road noise While better than before, still get front tyres scrabbling if trying to exit a junction quickly SUPERB 280 Good : 4wd!! so nice to have . will be even better once I get all weather tyres fitted to it Twiddly knobs! the engine - great once it gets above 3,000 or so rpm . Great fun when out driving on my own : ) comfy and quieter than VRS . Mine doesn't have DCC which I had in my head as a must have . yes, I'm sure it would make the car better, but goes round corners fine and a good mixture of handling and comfort the hatch boot is obviously massive . if I had the choice and the price worked in the future, then I'll go to an estate, just for that extra % of practicality. However family of 4- swallowed everything including kid's body boards with no issue Very comfy cruiser, but loads of power if required Seats are great Bad As someone else mentioned ( along with my wife ), Normal very laggy . Coming out of a roundabout and you'll be doing 30mph and its in 5th! My wife was driving and tried to nip past a cyclist and commented on how slow it was. It is obviously plenty fast but its not so obviously nippy as the VRS . Sports mode too full on for driving with the family onboard First long drive and the coolant ended up very low, to the point of the warning light coming and having to pull over and top up. Known issue? MPG - I knew what to expect and it's not that bad . Got 37 mpg on a long run fully loaded. I don't do much miles so its fine, but more is always better tyres - they are a funny size, not many options and pricey . I still think the Mk 3 VRS on 18 inchers was the best combo Big - noticeably bigger when parking Annoying that no roof rails - I know that I can get thule ones that will fit, but can't help thinking that more likely to damage the car We have it for 2 ys but will start looking around in 18 mths or so. From short experience so far ( given that I like my cars to have a decent main dealer warranty ) : Driving one up - great fun !! will I keep this exact car - probably not - if was sticking with the last of this Mk, then I'd hunt down an estate Will I go for a new model superb - unlikely - far too expensive and the new ones just looking like they've been drawn by a kid . I'm sure hugely competent but just look like a big lump of bland car . A 1 yr old new Superb VRS when it comes out might change my thinking ... : ) Go back to a VRS estate - possibly/maybe/probably - wife uses the car most of the time, and this experiment may get the 280 out of my system . After the comfort of the Superb though, I think DCC on the VRS would be a must Possible perfect compromise - the new Sportline Octavia with 200bhp petrol and 4x4. Same BHP as a VRS a few years ago . Also, with most of the extra BHP becoming evident way up the rev range ( hardly ever used ) , I reckon in real world driving this whole package could be hard to beat ( and even better if with DCC and in Royal Green metallic ) .....and I might get an older 280 as my "sleeper " runabout : )

just off a week long holiday trip with the mk4 VRS. Overall ( and lets just accept that the climate controls are rubbish ), car comfy enough/fast enough when full of kids and stuff and bikes on top. One issue, which I guess is common to all higher powered front wheel drive cars, is the torque steer if ever put the foot properly down. I didn't notice this as much on the Mk 2 or 3 VRS, even though the Mk 4 has the fancy diff. I also seems slower to kick down then either of the previous versions, and less "exciting" when it does...or maybe just because its a bit quieter. I think it does emphasise that on this sort of car, which most of the time will be a family holdall, lower down torque to help efforltess A road wafting is more useful than top end revvy power ( even if the latter would be classed as more "sporting" ) . DPF issues aside, I can't help thinking that the diesel 4x4 VRS would be a lovely thing to drive waft-ely fastish

Hi Mark. When its on the normal climate screen, up on the top right is a small circular " Clima on/off" "button"

So am I happy with my Mk 4 VRS? i think so yes ...for the most part . So after buying our Mk 3 VRS at the end of its lease, as not able to get something else due to the chip issue, and failing to source a deal on Superb 280 within any sort of sensible timeframe, then we decided to keep it. ..and then the Mk3 had a minor noise from the steering that Henrys in Glasgow ( excellent service ) managed to look at at very short notice, my wife took it in and there happened to be a gun metal grey standard VRS 245 estate in the showroom . Long story short we got our money back on the Mk 3 after 7y months, and got a good deal on the Mk 4 . I had told myself that there was no way I was getting another VRS due to the infotainment issues, and the fact that my deal breaker was having DCC . I was concerned that it would just feel very tinny and lightweight ( after hankering after a Superb ). I've been pleasantly surprised - feels a lot chunkier and more solid that the Mk 3. - standard suspension is fine. Actually perfectly comfortable most of the time, and a lot smoother than I thought it would have been on 19 inch wheels. came with very good Goodyear Eagle F1 tyres as well - feels very solid to drive, and bigger inside - boot even more massive - makes me think would I ever need anything as big as the Superb - adaptive cruise control very good - recent 3 hr trip to the lakes gave 42 mpg which is perfectly good Niggles - as bigger and more comfortable it somehow doesn't feel as fast or as sporty. I reckon that's just my impression though as it is faster, and with the new diff at the front it will corner better . Only 700 miles on it so haven't really booted it yet . Main thing though is to be a comfortable family car with a bit of ooomph , so satisfies that completely - does slip the front tyres a bit coming out of junctions...but then any 2wd front wheel drive car with more than 200bhp will do that. 4wd would certainly have been nice - Infotainment - in general its just a bit faffy to use and not intuitive. piped in engine noise is annoying, and every time I start up I need to press the central Mode button and then press Invidiual ( set to Normal drive mode, but no piped in noise ) Climate control - there is just no need for this to be fully in the touchscreen, other than the fact that they had the technology to do so . to be honest though I've gotten used to it. Leave it in normal aircon mode with the fan on low. Can then just turn on and off via one "button" on the touchscreen ...but again that "button" is tiny . Simple things that not sure why they weren't picked up during development - SOS Crash - it happened once! Down in the lakes and we lost all mobile signal. My wife's phone crashed as did the cars sats nav. "SOS call garage" etc, and screen just loading . parked it up and seems to have reset itself overnight - doesn't have proper raised roof rails, so not sure if the bike racks will be as secure - road noise on poor surfaces not good - very rumbly on bad bits of motorway. otherwise OK So quick overall view, and I'll update again in a few months time - feels more Superb like to drive than the old VRS, solid and smooth. I still reckon that DCC would be a good addition . Infotainment is a bit pants, but hopefully that was just the one system crash. Still reckon I'll be looking at the new Superb mk 4 when it comes out ( 4wd : ) ) , but overall does everything required of it well PS i never fell in love with the MK3, but after changing it from Bridgestone all weathers, to Goodyear all weathers, it completely changed the ride and feel of the car...and then sold it 3 weeks later

I think its condensation, as when it happens it ends up on the rear windscreen and the wipers then just take it off . Don't know why its so obvious though, more on any other car that i've had . Must look to cars behind that its smoke

.and after all my back and forth, with the way every other price is going, I think I'm going to hold off for now and keep the mk 3 VRS. Bought and paid for, 3 yrs old, and only 14k on the clock. Final decision time as come, as the Skoda prices go up tomorrow ( the same day that gas bills at home probably double!!! ) . Order times still somewhere around 30 weeks they say, which just feels like a guess . At those sort of times then I'd be getting the car Nov-Dec, and then 6 months later the Superb mk 4 could be out. Feels like I might try and be first in line for one of them. I was looking at second hand prices for the few cars that are out there as well, and at the moment not far off new ( and actually cost more to finance as no £3k contribution, and higher interest rates than on new cars) ..and at the same time as the above, I'm now going to totally contradict myself, in that if a newish car arrived at a local dealer I'd prob drive it, love it and go for it !!

so if you run it in hybrid mode, then you could do a trip of maybe up to 200 miles and you're still using both systems? ie if I went on a long family holiday run, most of the time pootling along, but if I had to put the foot down then you would still have acceleration of both together ? thanks

does it not feel a bit gutless if fully loaded and the battery is flat ? I had a Kodiaq for a while with the 1.4 petrol. Fine when empty, but dreadful when fullto the gunnels and trying to go up a hill!!

So how do the two compare driving wise, especially if fully loaded and need to do an overtake ? I ask as I had a KODIAQ 1.5 petrol which was woeful once had 2 kids and a car full of stuff on it . concerned that once the battery runs down, that you're basically driving a big car with small engine . On the verge of pressing the button on a Superb 280, but with fuel rocketing up, I might have to rethink that strategy!! ... if this is our last go of fossil fuels, then I reckon a VRS diesel 4x4 would also be a lot of fun and might make more real world sense ( ..and in that vein how do you find your Mk4s infotainment? any random emergency braking ? ) thanks

I'd love a V60 but boot a lot smaller than Octavia or Superb. I'd really love a V90 cross country, but as long as a bus...and again boot smaller

Patent, I love the emerald green. I would go for that one in a shot, but unfortunately they stopped doing that in the UK

thanks ChrisCh . What colour, leather, wheels did you go for ? Park assist actually useful?

YEAH, to be honest I'm happy having the car interfering less. One of the reasons that not going for VRS mk 4 is obviously the infotainment, but also comments about it auto braking on the motorway when nothings there....plus of course the "need" for 4wd and 280bhp for the 1 mile school run and then 3 mile drive to work

thanks so far, yes I think I'll go and try and sit in an L&K to check the seats . extra toys on an L&K , not sure if I would actually miss them - park assist, lane assist , rear camera being the main additional ones . pretty rubbish that someone that is now pretty standard like lane assist, isn't standard on the Sportline . got it on the VRS but to be honest rarely use it,

Morning . I know the differences between the two and that subjective, and been done to death a bit ( apologies ). I'm on the verge of plumping for a new Superb 280 estate. been talking myself in and out of it for ages. lead times now getting a bit better, getting a good deal, and will get a good trade in on current VRS. Planning on black, DCC, towbar prep, possibly winter pack and possibly sunroof. I know that won't be as agile as a VRS, but would definitely look like a big VRS . However, taking into account that an L&K already has a good bit of extra kit ( of which DCC is my must have ), a comparable L&K is coming in about £20 a month cheaper! arrggghh! I keep thinking I'm young ( 49 and 11 mths! ) , and that the L&K looks ( and might feel ? ) a bit more like an old man's car. Possibly in black and maybe with 19inch wheels would look more "sporty" ( I know that's not the point of an L&K ) . Or maybe on certain 18 inch wheels still good . Question is, whether 280 or not, has anyone been in the same position, looking at Sportline, then decided to go for an L&K, and glad they did ? I'm a terrible one for "what if" !! thanks

kamikazekid I'm stuck in the quandry between the 280 petrol and the 190 petrol. only do short mileages . 190 I'm sure might be fine, but might always wish i'd got a 280. at the same time most of the extra power of the 280 is at the top end, and with kids in the car will very rarely use it. Coming off a mk 3 petrol VRS . In theory a Mk4 would do all I need and more, but very wary of infotainment glitches, safety ( or not ) of having to faff with a touchscreen for air con, and road noise

You're a tough audience! I agree indeed that £420k a mth is too much....although £420 a month is a good bit less than PCP on second hand cars at the moment . I totally agree that it's just a toy, but kids nursery fees come to an end, I have a big birthday next year, and I could do a few grand deposit plus the £400 month, and put the £20k back in the bank that I spent on buying the end of lease car. I loved my Mk 2 VRs, but just haven;t fallen in love with my Mk 3 . on the Mk 2 I had proper summer and winter tyres. On the Mk3 I have Bridgestone all weathers . Did all the research on them but don't give much confidence, spin very easily , and can feel them sliding in the wet going round a roundabout ( not quickly ) ...which is why IF I was going to change ( for £420k a mth ), the 4x4 diesel would be good fun, or maybe the new fancy diff on the petrol would do the trick . Another reason for changing is that under the Mk 3 is basically the Mk 2 bodyshell, so safety is 10 years old for young kids in the car. I know I;m just making reasons for getting a new toy . or just the 280...and round and round we go : )

Hi sashagrace, any thoughts now that you've had your Superb diesel 4x4 for a while? Not that much heavier than a VRS, and still thinking about putting in a contract hire order and just accept the long wait . Superb 280 would be the preference . I only only 7k miles a year, but do wonder if watching the petrol needle tick down while driving around town would become annoying once the novelty wore off. Currently on my second petrol VRS, and do feel getting another pettrol FWD car would just feel very similar. With the miles I do, as I would be getting it from new, i reckon I could get away without DPF issues for 3 years...which brings me back to the 4x4. Thinking that a Superb or even VRS 4x4 diesel ( latter with DCC ), would feel like a diff car to drive than another FWD petrol, 4x4 would be nice to have, and enough poke to not ever feel slow and plenty for overtaking . Superb only 80kg heavier I think, so overall get up and go prob similar . Just looking at lease costs and 4x4 VRS with sunroof and diesel could be add for £420k a month ( Superb similar, although no longer do it in Sportline spec, so would prob be Se l ) , whereas Superb 280 more like £500 . thanks

I'm in a similar situation and currently have a VRS estate. Just come to the end of it's lease so have currently bought it due to the chip issue. Options of keeping it, looking out for nearly new PCP where someone else has paid for the depreciation, or a new contract hire with spec I want, DCC, towbar, sunroof ( but 6 mths waiting list ) . this is my second VRS as it;s very hard to beat as an overall package. Not too big round town and parking, but more space than pretty much anything other than a Superb. Looking for a change and fancy the Superb Sportline, but wife thinks too big as it mostly just does the school run. Some very nice karoq Sportlines up at Henrys in Glasgow. tempted to go for a test drive, but even looking through the windows, less room in the back, boot will be smaller. gets closer if have the variable seats where can slide them forward, but then less leg room. For internal space, external size, price, pace...I just keep coming back to the VRS estate...although just fancy a change. I drove a Peugeot 508 a few weeks back. very nice, and can be had nearly new for sensible PCP prices . It was the 180 bhp though and noticeably much slower than the VRS . they do do a 240 bhp ish thought Arteon looks great, but it;s even longer than a Superb, 190 bhp petrol so might not be great fully loaded

I'm keen to hear about this as well. Might have to expand my thinking beyond petrol due to the current shortages in cars, and do think 4x4 would be good and diesel prob plenty real world quick enough . I had a few Merc leased diesels a few years ago, before there was any chat about DPFs, although they had DPFs fitted . low mileage but leased from new with no DPF issues. I reckon the DPF could be fine if newish, and would prob get away with it for a short lease Still think whether petrol or diesel, each would benefit from DCC. That's the one option I'm holding out for

I know that this is a 220 thread so apologies for a bit of hijacking, but anyone have e any experience of how the new 190 petrol compares to it in real world driving, especially when it's full of the family and stuff ? I've driven one just myself and felt fine...but that was the same with a 1.4 Kodiaq, which turned out to hopeless when full up. Coming off a 230 petrol VRS, looking at Superbs, and don't think I can really justify a 280. thanks ..also, any idea why they changed the engine from 220 to 190 ? Just for economy?

thanks pagan image . I;ll show your comment to my wife!! : )

thanks Ivan8192. The superb at the moment doesn't have DCC. I've driven a 190 diesel and a 190 petrol without it, and still felt more comfortable than the VRS . I know that the Superb is prob daft to have for school runs...although VRS poss the same . I drove and old Volvo S60 T5 to work. Now 20 yrs old . If it ever goes pop,then the missus will get a little school run about and I get the big new car : )....but the Volvo will live forever . Size of the car is mainly coming from my wife for said school run . Re DCC I've looked at second hand L&K, but say a 2018 one at £25-27k ish, will still come in north of £400 pm on PCP . Basically same cost of new lease car . I also think that the Superb SE L is about £40 cheaper a month...but that just feels a bit too grown up. "Only" 49 so not properly grown up yet . Only do c 7k a miles so fuel consumption not a major issue . VRS has been very good though. Get 40+ on a run . thought about 190 Superb...but the first time it wheelspins I'll wish it was 4x4 !

morning all, so lease of the VRS mk 3 coming to an end. Even though only 11k miles on it, we've made the decision not to buy it. main thing is additional safety for the family of new cars . if it just happens to be nice and shiny and nippy then all the better. Seems like we can extend the lease for 6 mths and it;'s flexible and can come out earlier if required. Also, option to extend further if ordered a car through VWFS ( which I think we're going to do and just accept the long lead time ). Henrys in Glasgow have been excellent and keen to stay with them. So for the same £3k deposit, can get a VRS petrol DSG estate with DCC for about £370 a month. Down to c £340 without DCC, but I think that would make the car much better. If went this route then would prob add on sunroof as well ( nice change ) and this takes it to £403. ...or can get a Superb 272/280 for £475 a month. Assuming DCC on the VRS is a must-have, then it's £370 v £475. The Boss in the house makes the annoying logical point that this car is only used mainly for the school run so within reason we should just get the cheapest ( we drove a Pug 508 estate last week 180..and she commented that too slow for overtaking.....there is a 225 bhp one but can't find one to test drive ...very pretty, but less space in side for kids "stuff" ) . If did some make believe accounting then deposit of £4k on the Superb , brings monthly payments down to £447. Still feels an awful lot when current lease is £298 . Any thoughts . Anyone happy with their Mk 4 VRS ? For those with the Superb, is the size of it a pain in town ( as that;s where it;ll be for 90% of the time ) thanks

THANKS ALL . sounds like I might get away with it and might not . Sounds like petrol the sensible option. re getting a small or older car for the school trip, this will also be the main family car for weekends/hols etc . I already run a "classic", Volvo S60 T5 . 20 years old, never misses a beat, and cost me £2.5k 10 years ago....but the wife won't drive it and it will never die...and won't be replaced until it does ..or the dolphins insist on it .