Jonesy92

Due to unfortunate circumstances with my TSI, I've been given a 1.2MPI Rapid as a courtesy car. It's not too bad a bad lump overall, but there a few points to consider. FIrst of all, whilst it's the cheapest of all the engines, it will cost you some £95 more per year to tax than the 86PS 1.2TSI, and will offer slightly poorer fuel economy. I expected it to be gutless too, but it really does haul the Rapid around OK and could easily be worse at climbing hills as you might otherwise expect. The downside is that it's a bit of a rough old lump and screams all through the rev range and it will sit quite high cruising at 60/70mph, to the extent that it does get rather intrusive and annoying. I don't really get why anybody would buy the car with the MPI when for a marginally bigger outlay you can enjoy the excellent and far superior TSI engine.

The Sat Nav itself on the Amundsen is rubbish as far as sat navs go. Handy to have nonetheless, but I got mine purely for the DAB - once you've had DAB, you realise how rubbish FM is. What's also nice are all the media capabilities that go with it, such as an SD card slot and whatnot. Ideally, I wouldn't bother getting the Amundsen but separately buy a Columbus unit.... the problem is, I haven't a clue whether all the wiring will be correct, so perhaps get the Amundsen, then maybe think about upgrading to the Columbus later on, which has a few more capabilities.

Yeah, they're supposed to. I had some on my old Felicia and they worked well on that, but I think on the Rapid they pull the seal away from the window such that it seems to make it worse. :|

Haha no, at least I don't think so. Police came and breathalysed us but I had a bit of a skinful the night before and started to brick it a bit, but luckily it read nil. Yeah I'm all well and good really cheers. Hmm, as far as I'm aware they've committed to repairing it, but I'll be scrutinising it as I don't think I'd like to be shunted again if the back end isn't up to taking the force. Also, I quite fancy a 1.4 TSI, but beggars can't be choosers

Yeah, I thought it was a bit mad repairing it rather than writing it off, but I suppose I'm better off money-wise if they repair it. I was fine really, the lady who went into the back of us was a bit worse for wear. Unfortunately for me, I've been given a new Corsa as a courtesy car and it's a vile little car (not being ungrateful though!). I hate everything about it, but needs must. That report also said that the car wasn't in a roadworthy state, yet I'd been driving it about for 3 weeks before they even took a look at it.

Stanley Skoda is in the car hospital after being violated in the rear end! Market Value of £11k, nearly £6k to put right :wonder: Gutted, but all will be well (I hope!).

Got some Team Heko ones on mine and they definitely look the part - good quality also. However, because they pull the seal away from the windscreen, I seemed to notice a considerable increase in wind noise, which was a bit annoying, but hey they look handsome!

dirty second hand

must to save

Some are. I was paid a day rate, so I would get the same every day regardless of what I delivered/collected. My round was about 200 miles all round. I left with a full load and most days brought a full load of pallets back from industrial estate collections. Hence, after about £80 per day in diesel, and about £20 per day for insurance/van hire, I came away with about £50 take home per day for a 14 hour shift and have never been so stressed in all my life. Had the daily workload been halved, it wouldve been a decent job.

disgruntled binmen, who

ARGHGHGHGHGHGHGHOGHEGOHWEARGAOWERHGOREVNSKVWBKPQG!$~%!!!!!!!!!!!! Tapping the indicator stalk is the easiest thing in the World. It takes so little effort, burns so little energy and requires an absolute minimum in cognitive effort, so why people use them so bloody inoften!?

I worked (very briefly) for CityLink on a self-employed basis. There was that much work piled on us that I would leave anything, anywhere. I would lob boxes over tall garden fences, leave some items in plain public view, occasionally signing for things myself just to get rid of em. There was simply no time to fanny on knocking on various neighbours doors if a customer wasn't home. If I didn't get rid of something that day, it would be there again the next day... and the next day... and the next day. Often my van was that full, I'd trample on top of other parcels to find what I was looking for, crushing boxes, lobbing things about mindlessly. I found myself driving like a lunatic, and all just to try and get home at a reasonable time, which never happened anyway. Occasionally, I would 'card' deliveries on the scanner that I didn't have time to do, if there were even slightly out of the way. Needless to say, most of these courier companies are the same and I lasted a month at CityLink before the stupidly long shifts and p*ss-poor take-home pay made me throw in the towel, albeit on good terms with everybody (including my boss(Yup, my boss - even though I was self-employed, I answered to a boss who outsourced to CityLink)).

What with all this throttle-by-wire gadgetry these days, I think that if you have your foot down far enough, then the computer assumes you're after brisk acceleration and will not tell you to change up until later. It's when you feather the throttle and aren't accelerating too harshly (or cruising) that the computer seems to suggest early (or due) gearchanges, which I've always done anyway. This is what I gather, anyway.

Hullo folks, Just selling these on behalf of my Mum who bought these for her 2003 Fabia (which she has now just sold): Mintex discs and pads (front), 'F1 Automotive' O/S/F coil spring and also 4x Bosch spark plugs for the AQW 1.4 MPI petrol engine. All these items are brand new and still in the original packaging. £50 o.v.n.o - plus P&P. Cheers, JJ

Given that the Rapid has a pretty big boot, it would've been the icing on the cake to have a completely flat floor - shame. That said, I went to Wickes yesterday and managed to fit two 2-metre interior doors in the car with me and my sister sat in the front... pretty impressed to say the least!

Hmm, well if you can't get comfortable you can't get comfortable I suppose. I am probably average in build and stature, but I was impressed at the adjustability of both the seat and the steering wheel which can be adjusted endless amounts of ways; such that I thought it would be possible for practically anybody of any size to find a good seating position. I must say, however, that for a car in this segment, the rear leg and knee room is objectively extremely generous and spacious. Even with the front seats right back, theres still ample leg and knee room in the back.

Mine definitely does this! I have the climatronic and even with the 'Max' windscreen button pressed and the AC on, it indeed takes a good few minutes to clear. For some reason, the rear screen always mists up about five minutes into any journey - odd.

I think it to be a bit of a shame to rid the Rapid of the sport seats option. Perhaps they are reserving it solely for the Sport version? Also, mine are red-flecked which gives the interior a tiny splash of colour, which to be honest, I think it needs...

Mine is called Stanley - Stanley Skoda!

Admittedly I'm more accustomed to diesels, but having driven a 1.2 (N/A) petrol renault clio, and two 1.6 Felicias, I cannot believe how the Rapid shifts in first and second gear and what a hellish sound it makes too!

I did a brief write-up on here a few months back, and now I've had much more time to get to know the Rapid, here are some more mature opinions. Also, when I say TSI, I refer to the 1.2 Likes: + Very spacious cabin + Enormous boot + Comfortable seats and all-round seat and steering wheel adjustment + Perky and dare I say 'sporty' TSI engine, returning reasonable economy + Remarkably safe + Eager and reassuring brakes + Very easy to drive (though not too engaging) + Whisper quiet around town and pleasant at speed + Crisp and precise gear change + Informative Maxi-Dot + Usual VAG build quality, if somewhat cheap-looking materials abound + Stacks of rear leg and knee room + Handy cubbies dotted about the cabin + Windows that wind all the way down + Logical and functional dashboard layout + Auto-locking doors + Excellent set of headlights for night driving (obviously) + Little in the way of body roll + £30 tax pa and a very low insurance group, plus decent economy = a very cheap to run car. Gripes: - Door/Boot locking take a while to work out, although it is in the end a very secure setup - Dashboard is a bit... well, black - Terrible rear visibility - Door mirror switch awkward to operate and feels flimsy - One shot down windows for driver's side window only - no one shot up - Amundsen Sat Nav (option) has a few bugs and some minor UI issues - Handbrake awkward to use with armrest in the down position - Remote audio controls not fitted due to lesser spec, despite paying £500 for the Amundsen - 5 speed TSI fine for around town, but I imagine is far better mated with the 6-speed for out of town driving, mainly for economy - Performance marginally on the flat side under 1,500 revs with the TSI engine This is all I can think of at the moment, but so far, I've never looked back, I absolutely love this car!

Gotta say, after the first few weeks driving the Rapid, I really wished I'd gone for parking sensors. That said, afte driving a jumbo panel van for City Link for a month, it put things into perspective, and in the end, you do get used to it and often develop a bit of a sixth sense when reversing with it.

I'll take my any former criticism I had beforehand - I think looking ahead, this may be the car to replace Stanley - my current Rapid. Pretty sexy and pretty sleek.

Oh dear, so the Christian Conservative Club disapprove. The Rapid is not immune to criticism, but to condemn it as severely as they have with what I genuinely suspect to be the epitomy of toff snobbery. Their odious opinion is totally unfounded, undeserved, ill-considered and objectively false. (Also, no offence to any christians/conservatives here )