I`m looking to buy a Fabia for my wife.@ the moment i am having trouble in which 1 to buy. We have narrowed it down to a 1.4 tdi or a 1.2 petro 54bhp or 64bhp model. She only requires it for pottering around in and now and again for myself for airport runs which is around 32 miles round trip. Any info would be appreciated.

Moved too fabia1

Depends what you're looking for. The 1.2 petrol will feel slow and not be all that refined, it will be loud on motorways but good for "nipping" around town and deliver a reasonable fuel economy.

The 1.4TDi will feel far more refined and deliver better motorway MPG but not be as good around town (heavier nose and louder engine at low revs)... it all depends what you're looking for, if your wife will be using it only for town use then i'd go for the petrol, if not then go for the diesel.

HTH

-Duggie.

We have an '04 Polo (essentially the same car) with the 1.4TDI engine. Sounds like a sewing machine at idle (although it gives a surprisingly pleasing thrum when hoofing it:rofl:), but is very nippy for a 1.4, and is extremely economical-my dad averages 58mpg combined. Put it this way, he never mentions going off to fill it up

We have also hired a 1.2 Fabia, which, although quicker than my old 1.4MPI (sorry Duggie! ), was quite slow and somewhat raucous, which doesn't help fatigue on longer journeys. That said, it too is economical, and surprisingly torquey for such a small-capacity petrol engine, certainly more so than the 1.2 Fiestas, Corsas and Clios I regularly drive at work.

I suppose it would come down to if you have any preferences towards either petrol or diesel in terms of driving characteristics. Personally, I prefer the diesel, but each to their own! If you really can't make your mind up, then you can't really go wrong by test-driving both.

Good luck with your search!

SWMBO has an elegance, she wouldn't really care about the engine as long as she has a warm bum. They are the best I've ever sat on!

Had 1.4TDI for 105K no problems (touches forehead) MPG overall 70+, but lower when cold and stop start. The torque and acceleration are very useful in town. Wouldn't hesitate to get another. HTH

SWMBO's got a 1.2 (54hp) Classic. It really depends on what you want it for and how you want to drive it. As a second car for pottering round town it makes a lot of sense. Cheap to tax and insure so you don't get too big an overhead if you're only doing a few miles. It's perfectly happy on the motorway as well. The only complaint that I've had with it is trying to overtake Sunday afternoon drivers on back roads - I forgot I wasn't in my vRS and gave myself a nasty brown trouser moment when I hoofed it at forty and didn't get the response I expected:rofl:.

I reckon the petrol model will be cheaper to buy , and unless you do plenty of miles you wont get your money back on the TDi unless you keep it for years!