AlleyCat`

The 1.5 i'd bite their arm off if it could be had with the DSG. Was sad to see it wasn't available. I'm not sure i want to go back to a Manual now. I'm a bit iffy about the 1.0 on such a big car.

Does come off easily and it's not too difficult to clean with a pin but if you don't use it regularly it just gums up again very quickly. Dealer appears aware of it as an "issue" and blames it on the type of screenwash in use (which hasn't bothered any other VW/Skoda/Seat i've owned). Smacks of a poor design / part quality.

First result in Mr (or Mrs) Google.... https://www.simpsonsskoda.co.uk/pch-offers/se-tech-offer/ Something i need to consider as i'm no longer doing the mileage to justify having a Diesel anymore (it's probably detrimental to the car as well).

Mine is somewhat down on MPG as well. I was blaming the service in late October but i suspect it might be the switch to winter diesel & colder weather that's the real culprit?

Yep mine does it from cold as well. Took it to the dealers and, as is typical, it refused to make a single noise when on a test drive. It seems to improve once "warmed up" so not a huge surprise but annoying none the less. I also had my friendly mechanic look at it and he couldn't find anything particularly wrong with the springs, shocks or bushes at a visual level. I suspect it's some sort of design issue but the local dealer isn't interested at all (no surprise) and due to the way it manifests it's almost impossible to prove.

Usually C although when it's late at night i'll often avoid going home until it finishes as the fan run on is noisy and it'd probably pee my neighbours off.

If you're going nearly new i'd say the 1.6 (because there are loads to choose from and the price reflects it). The 1.4 petrol nearly new is rarer and actually holds price better (so is harder to haggle on and less of a bargain). If new then i'd go for the 1.4 petrol. The reverse of the above applies to the 1.6d (price loss after 1 year is catastrophic). I personally didn't see the massive benefit of the 2.0d unless you intend to haul a lot of heavy stuff around all the time as the other engine choices are punchy enough, cheaper to buy, insure, tax and also do equivalent or better mpg.

To be fair i was looking at exactly the same car but couldn't find a petrol which would be more suitable for what i do / distances, etc. (DPF). I've had the diesel a year now and it's not put a foot wrong and seems to happily regen on its own with no issues. I'm more worried about the DSG lasting than the engine

Even with a good deal i can't see how buying new makes sense? The 1st year depreciation is horrific based on what i paid for a 1 year old elegance DSG (with 10K on the clock). List was something like 22.5K and i paid 13.9K for it. My maths isn't brilliant but it would appear the car lost a third of value in a year (and probably explains why so many pcp deals are in negative value). The car isn't ragged as i had a mechanic friend check it over. Couple of stone chips and a minor scuff that buffed out. The interior was pristine. It even has a spare. You can get a 1.6 Diesel elegance for under 13K in manual on a 2015 plate (10K on the clock) - Quick Autotrader check.

It was still Benfield when i got mine (just). Oddly enough i had to deal with a guy in Newcastle to haggle the price down. The gent in Harrogate was nice enough but seemed to have very little say in anything. I was intending, originally, to buy from Rainworth but they were trying to lift my legs on my trade in and the numbers didn't work.

Some people do, some don't. My company cars always bent back in very good condition. It still would show up as a fleet rental with the associated registration.

That's the same place i got mine from. Price and mileage are similar (i managed to haggle a bit more off). Same model too. Only difference is the colour.

I use a Mobius ActionCam (and have for a couple of years). It was the first one i saw "on test" that actually worked properly on an evening / at night that wasn't in the multi hundreds of pounds bracket. There is a pretty decent write up about it here: http://www.techmoan.com/blog/2013/7/8/the-mobius-camera-the-do-it-all-mount-anywhere-1080p-micro-c.html

I've already had the "don't know what you're talking about" with regards to the seals. Didn't surprise me much. It seems to be common across all dealerships of any make/model that any car with an issue is the first they've ever heard about. It must be "service department" training 101. Edit: Oddly i only have the "boot wash" issue on the passenger front door. The rest are fine. My Better Half is a huge fan...

Sorry i didn't see this at the time. It's a metallic Grey. As it happens i ended up using a company called carpaintwizard. The colour match was perfect and, although i'm somewhat ham fisted, it did a lovely job. Used it on a stone chip on the nose as well.