Insearchofaskoda

Erm - I suspect that's a trip to a dealership.... My previous car had them as well (BMW).. and that was not adjustable. Usually with halogen fitted cars you there's an adjuster which you used to be able to make fine adjustments with LED I suspect they won't be given they can be lethal to oncoming drivers.

I have a FL230 which has 18's and front parking sensors, it also has a sunroof but very little in terms of other options other than being a DSG. It's a used one I picked up that had very low mileage and in pristine condition. I was also trying to avoid the 19's but after much searching and so few coming up other than for silly prices I almost gave up on "holding out" for my ideal spec. I would have liked heated seats and the canton sound system and would have happily sacrificed FPS for either of those..... but cars with the canton system are gold dust and so far while it's not blowing my socks off... the standard stereo is not as bad as I'd seen implied here.

If it's the facelift model they are LED, if it's pre-fl it's the Xenons. I drive a FL Version and the LED lights are very good.

A few members have posted where they have wrapped these bits with wrap sourced from ebay. Appreciate you say you are not skilled... it did not look like difficult work... just time consuming perhaps. This one is carbon fibre wrap... I would imagine you should be able to source wrap similar to what you need. Here's the link -

Hi Folks, Want to pick up a spare wheel for my car - was going to go with space saver but a chap on ebay has a good condition Gemini which sounds far more appealing. I suspect the 18" Gemini will sit proud of the recess in fact I read one of the guys had one and said it does. It would be great if those folks that have one could take and post a pic of a full size Gemini in the boot so I can see the compromise in the lifted floor please? Oh and I've got a FL 230 - dunno if there were any differences in the spare wheel recess over previous years? Thanks for your help in advance Phil P.s am looking at my username... wondering if I can change it as no longer in search 🙂

I picked up a 230 about 3/4 weeks back. The journey home was the A34 and M40 for about 120 miles - 43 mpg plus was easily attained. I live in the midlands in a large village so everything is a trip on a and b roads. Luckily there's not a great deal of stop start inner city stuff where I imagine fuel might be at a premium but darting around my area on short journeys I'm in the mid to late 30's. If I decide to warm it up and go for a "drive" then lower 30's seems to be where it's at. Saying that there are precious few places you get to rag your car these days. A relaxed 30 minute journey mixed roads will generally get me close to 40mpg. I used to drive a BMW330e and it seems comparable to that when there was no battery charge left.

Thanks - Car is only 2.5 years old and I've now paid a deposit so will keep an eye open for it when I pick it up next week.

Yes and my commute is similar at the moment. Takes less than a minute to get to my study which is why I’m ok with the knock I’ll take on mpg

Ah ok - I'd expect to see upwards of 40Mpg on a motorway trip - though I admit I can be fairly robust with the loud peddle at times myself. Nice extras... finding a car with that many these days in the TSI seems near on impossible....or very very expensive.

It's only done 16k and given my mileage these days it's likely to see a maximum of 8k per annum if that.

Must admit - I only got this suggestion to check after I'd gotten back. I know there was a SatNax "CD cover" which I presume held the sim card. I'll get them to check it's there before I pay for and pick the car up. I'll also have a look into the sunroof threads as suggested. Just noticed from your signature that yours looks very similar to mine (same colour) but you have a raft of extras I see. The only thing other than the colour that's the same is that it has DSG 🙂 I thought I would want the Black pack... but frankly the silver front grill sets off well against the metallic grey. Hmm just checking your fuel consumption.... heavy right foot or reality?

Right - so a quick update. Car had a super clean exterior. Interior surfaces etc were clean but previous owners had kids so seats while still feel new - could stand a bit more cleaning. Car drove like new - I was concerned I'd be looking at something that was just a bit tired.... none of that. Was really nice, very golf like from what I remember of the golf 7 GTD I had back in 2016. Went through my checklist. There are one or two items missing e.g. no umbrella - but to be fair I only looked under driver's seat. The "cellphone holder" that goes into the drinks holder wasn't there (don't really care). Oh and the other missing item weirdly was the wheelspanner which the dealer said he would sort. It has a sunroof and the last car I had with a sunroof was back in 2003 and I've never bothered with them since. It worked really well and the weather on Saturday really helped sell why you might want one. Car drove so well and was so near to new I just couldn't walk away from it so deposit paid - picking it up next week.

Hi Folks Am off to take in a test drive tomorrow and while I have a list I'm wondering if there's things I should be looking out for? Car is a DSG early 2018. Here's my list of things to tick off just so I don't walk away and think... "aahh I should have checked this or that." 1) Ice Scraper in fuel cap 2) Umbrella under seat? 3) Service History - I understand it's electronic? Presume I can see it on the infotainment screen? 4) Cell phone holder/insert ? 5) Check for any signs of previous obvious damage/repair (check boot under carpet - in wheel well.) 6) Inspect wheel rims for damage 7) Check what life left in tyres 😎 It's a 230 - so does it have auto folder mirrors ... expecting it not to 🙂 9) Check all switch gear and radio works 10) Check Aircon works/Heating 11) Examine windscreen for damage 12) Ensure DSG works through the gears and in reverse 13) Check discs and brake pad for life 14) Check lights/indicators all working 15) Vin numbers match V5 16) Suppose I should lift the bonnet and have a look to pretend I know what everything should look like but also as in 5) check for obvious signs of damage. 17) It has a sunroof... tomorrow should be dry so need to test that works. Anything else I should keep my eyes or ears open for? Cheers Phil

Have had one of the chaps approach me already but it was a manual and I don’t feel I could go back to a manual but it’s a good suggestion to place an ad.

Sound advice guys... I’ll see if I can bide my time for a month or 2

Thanks... it’s tough with an empty rectangular space on my driveway chipping away at my resolve. I could probably wait till sept given I’m easily able to work from home. Is that the anniversary of when the 245 was launched?

Thanks, nice to hear from someone who has compromised. While I came to the forum for viewpoints... I was beginning to feel as if anything other than the very best was not good enough. I've stated time and again that I have a budget yet I feel like I'm almost getting the "hard sell" though I appreciate people are trying to impart their experience and I'm taking that advice and using it in my investigations... even if it means I compromise with eyes open about the compromise. I don't need electric seats... never have seen the point of a car that's driven by only one person. Ok - I'd like the Winter pack and the Canton... but frankly they aren't a deal breaker for me either... this car is already a set of compromises.... these I'm willing to compromise. Do I need the diff..... Well I had a Golf GTD for 2 years and that was great fun. It just had the XDS system... which is what these 230's have and although I found that a little nose heavy (diesel lump and lack of clever diff) I was sorry when it went back. So I can live without the diff. Someone here put it perfectly...."I'm willing to compromise extras for condition and low mileage." If I can find one with a few bells and whistles... great but I don't want to pay over the odds and there are a lot of cars out there that are well over the odds.

Thanks - but well outside my budget - even over 10 years 🙂

Thanks - So while I said I didn't get it, it is what I suspected. So again perhaps I need to spend more time looking into this and perhaps I'm naive but this seems to skate on thin ice. If I was in the market for a new car with new car inducements and prepared to "salvage" or settle a PCP deal then for me that would only be by displacing that with a personal loan. I can't see me bringing one of these types of deals into 17K final value territory. However, I'll look into it to see how it might work. Thanks for the explanation.

Yeah - I'm sorry but I don't get this. If I was on a PCP deal I'd be there for affordability. If I was to cancel, I presume there would be cancellation fees involved and they would be added to the debt. I'd then need to finance (loan) the repayment which will be higher per month as the loan it aimed at settling the debt whereas PCP is not. As I'm not one of those folks lucky enough to have the odd 15 or 20K lying around I have to deal with the finance constructs that are available i.e. PCP (lowish cost monthly but you never own the car) or HP which is what looks to be a high interest way of paying off what could be a Personal loan which is generally available at lower interest rates. Where I am currently lucky is that I do receive a car allowance... and before you say "great - just do a private lease or PCP" I'm fed up "renting" a car.. I would like to have something to show for the money I'm spending each month even if it is a very small amount ... I won't get that from a lease/PCP deal.

Good morning, Plan is not to use HP or PCP, but you are right. If I use a private loan I'm paying as much or more for the car each month as a new one. I've been on a company car scheme for the last 20 years where I've paid out for a lease where the cars I've had I've never owned and now that scheme is closed... I'm left either jumping back on that bandwagon again (PCP) or simply keeping a car with a view to owning it rather than giving it back. The PCP approach from what I can determine is "cheap" but I get the impression it's inflexible and in these trying times I don't want to be left with the headache of a financial arrangement that leaves me with problems should the worst happen. Appreciate I'm treading carefully but all things are about finding your balance.

So is yours without the electro machanical diff? (Is this what the Golf GTD and GTI had - the XDS?) Looks like you have a 2017 230 but that could be a pre or post facelift from what I can tell. I'm by no means a traffic light warrior. For the last 4 years I've driven a 248 Bhp BMW 330e and what I like about that was the effortlessness. The auto gearbox and the ability to never have to worry if you could.... blend with traffic.... perform an overtake.... and of course chuck it down a quiet B-Road having a little fun. However, there's a point where having so much power and capability robs you of that fun as well when the car is too capable that you have to break the law many times over before you extract any fun and also from my perspective.. you need skills not in evidence or experience. The reason for looking at a VRS is to find some of that... without breaking the bank. I'm treading a fine balance of affordability here. If I'm paying full fat 245 money.. there are other cars swimming in the same budget pool that I could and would then be looking at. None of these are a preference but the Golf GTI and R are two. The other side of the fuel fence is a BMW330D which in estate form would also suite my power and flexibility needs. So how many people own the 220 or 30 without the diff... think that they are missing out?

Aaahh - of course the ever present smart roadworks for a system proven to dangerous to anyone who breaks down. I spent 4 years going up the M6 to a client while the roadworks were on and whilst it was great for fuel economy... it was murderous doing that trip each week watching the roadworks get longer and longer.....

No petrols near me - so if am travelling.. may as well be for the one I'm interested in I suppose.

Would be the weekend so perhaps not so bad from a traffic perspective though it looks like rain so that will add to the fun.