Still debating the purchase of a vRS or 4x4 on the 0% finance route. Pointed this way by TaviaRS and Flat4x4 on the Scoobynet board!

My current transport is a Subaru Legacy Turbo (Standard) and have been informed that a chipped vRS or 4x4 would keep up with or exceed it's performance.

A few questions:

Chipping: Which ones do NOT invalidate the skoda warrenty?

220bhp: Torque Steer on the FWD vRS??? I'd have thought the 4x4 would be more suited to this kind of power.

Anyone want to give me a demo of these chipped beasties?

Cheers

Steven

Sounds like a job for Des. Was a passenger in his yesterday and I must say that I was impressed with the Jabbasport chip he now has especially in combination with the Milltek exhaust, so much so that mine will be getting a chip one soon but I think retaining the original exhaust. The difference between standard and the chip is hard to describe and needs to be experienced.

Steven

Firstly , welcome to Briskoda! About your questions , AFAIK in this country there are *no* chip upgrades that will allow you to keep your warranty , unlike the enlightened dealers on mainland Europe , who do a factory aproved chip from Oettinger (just ask Dutch 4x4!) However you may be luck and find a dealer who will 'overlook' the fact you have a chip when it comes to warranty issues...it would pay to ask around when you are car shopping! (and maybe others on here closer to you could list a suitable dealer!) As my RS is still standard (altho is in line for a 225 ish BHP Jabbasport custom remap...my dealer wont bother about it , in fact i bet half of 'em will be away up the road in it!..but by the time i get it done i will have less than 1 yr on the warranty) I cant vouch for how much tourque steer you get , but its not that bad on a stock one , thats 4 sure. You will be inundated with people on this thread extolling the virtues of either the RS or the 4x4 , but the best thing to do , if u can , is to drive a chipped vesion of each , and then make up ur mind! BTW if you are buying new , the 4x4 now only comes in estate for as the hatchback has been deleted from the UK market. (The RS still availible as hatch or estate) Let us know how you get on!!

Steve, welcome... Another (about to be ex?) Subaru owner showing interest in our modest little marque! I used to be on your side too

As Duncan rightly states, there have been numerous debates here on the pros and cons of the vRS vs. 4x4 - with fanaticism only curbed by the lighthearted self-awareness that we are all Skoda fans - so I will try to steer clear of my personal preference (and that of others) and give you as a newbie an unbiased rundown of considerations. Others may chip in with their equally unbiased thoughts too

Oh, won't touch the hatch vs. estate issue either, as there's also a vRS Estate available now.

Why a vRS?

- lighter than a 4x4

- bigger boot (528 vs. 448)

- sporty looks (spoilers, 17" wheels, sports interior)

- low rideheight

- more fuel-efficient

- will cost less to modify (already has the sporty looks and lower rideheight, also there are more and cheaper aftermarket mods available for FWD Golf-based cars)

Why a 4x4?

- better handling through corners (less understeer, unless you spend your cash on a trick suspension for the vRS)

- better traction for clean getaways (no TC cut-in)

- better stealth effect

- will get you out of the mud when parked on a grass field outside a major British motor racing event!

(These were three - okay, four! - very good reasons for me, plus in Holland the 4x4 is actually a fair bit cheaper, which seems to be a unique situation in Europe.)

They share the same engine - the 4x4 engine is electronically downtuned from the vRS engine - so chip results will be practically the same.

I'm not familiar with UK spec, so perhaps someone can tell the differences spec-wise. Insurance - ditto.

Oh, you can't miss either way. But why get rid of a great car such as the Legacy Turbo? Is it getting too old and ragged?

Just a (non confirmed) quote from my dealer regarding the 4X4 hatch:

"Although Skoda UK have de-listed it, if anyone really wants one they will do a special order if pushed"

Graham

Steve - I drove TaviaRS's chipped vRS yesterday - didn't notice ANY torque steer. There isn't any on my chipped SLX either (200 bhp).

Welcome, and hope this helps. :wave:

Tallsteve

Glad you made it over here after all I still have a photo of the Legacy Turbo

tallsteve

Welcome to Briskoda.

vRS or 4X4? - both are surprisingly good models in their own right. Nuff said.

Steve, nice to see you made it over here. OK so you are in SE London. I'll take you out in mine if you want. OK its one of the slower chipped RSs (for about another 2 weeks), but it'll give you some idea of what its like. At the moment its about on a par with what a chipped 4x4 will give you. If you don't mind waiting 'til after the 7th, well lets just say it'll be a little bit quicker

As to the warranty bit, there are dealers out there who will chip your car for you and help you maintain the warranty. A fair few also turn a blind eye to mods. Having said that, mine has had a particularly hard life and I haven't needed to use the warranty yet.

Originally posted by TaviaRS in this post

"mine has had a particularly hard life"

That HAS to be the understatement of the decade !!!

Graham:D

On the other hand, mine has not seen the, umm, "use" that Jon's has, but has seen quite a lot of warranty work.

(it could be said mine has is used fairly hard tho )

Oh, you can't miss either way. But why get rid of a great car such as the Legacy Turbo? Is it getting too old and ragged? [/b]

Dutch4x4, nope the Legacy Turbo is a '93 L with just under 80 thou on the clock. No mods aside for 16" rims and a MDLP headunit!! Not ragged either, I warm it up and cool it down without fail after a "spirited drive"....

Was looking for something with looow servicing costs and similar performance and a bit easier on juice. Only thing now is to work out if I can justify the expenditure!

Will give TaviaRS a mail if/when I need to check out the performance - should be fun!

Steve, if you have a look in the reviews section of the site, there are some reviews of the 4x4 and the RS.

RS one

4x4 ones

Hope they help. I know the RS one has the service costs in 'cos I wrote it