Hello

We are about to change our 2001 1.4 skoda hatchback for either a fabia 1.2 tsi 105 hatchback or estate and are dithering! We know we prefer the petrol engine having tested both diesel and petrol, and we only do about 6000 miles a year.

Firstly, what is the 1.2 Tsi 105 engine like for towing? - we tow a fairly small folding caravan and our current car is OK for this, but could do with a bit more power.

Also, mostly the hatchback is perfect size for us, but for the odd camping or ikea trip an estate might be best. Does the estate drive much differently to the hatchback?

Would really appreciate replies as we only have a couple more days to take advantage of the no VAT offer!

Thanks

I'm a Fabia estate owner with the 1.4TDi Engine and I love mine.

The only reason why I bought the estate was due to having a MPV before for my mountain bikes, and I thought the hatch was just a bit small for our liking, so I would point you towards a estate as it's ample enough for five people and has a big boot , I've already filled it with plants down at our garden centre, from what I gather the engine your looking at is very good.

Hi Old Skodonian,

Glad you are staying with the brand. As a diesel freak, even I liked the TSI engines. Although, I cannot properly advise you about the towing issue, but I suspect the 1.2TSI will be fine. I might suggest you will need to keep the revs slighty higher for moving off under load with the caravan, due to some turbo lag that was noticeable with the car I tested and with it loaded. The 85bhp version also seemed to suffer this but less so. However, once you have learned the technique I suspect it won't be a problem and others who own this engine will be able to tell you a bit more I'm sure. It may have been the newness of the engines causing the turbo lag on the test cars to be more pronounced.

I have the 1.4TDI estate. I find the luggage capacity is enormous compared to the hatch. It also seems to ride better with less body roll and pitching. Because of the longer shape body the top speed is higher by just a tad according to Skoda's blurb. This is due to better aero dynamics at speed.

Do please keep posting to let us all know how your are getting on with the order and of course, how it is going especially towing, when you get it.

The 105 is a great little engine, although as said before Turbo lag can be a bit of an issue as it suddenly comes on boost around 2,000 rpm and can be quite violent with it if you are being anything other than gentle with the throttle.

Other than that I would like its an OK car to tow with, not a much torque as the diesel version but more than the older 1.4 I believe and i think you have a few more bhp too.

I`ve got the 105 estate and think it will tick all your boxes. I used to be a caravanner and know whats required towing wise and I would have no qualms with this outfit. Yes it has got turbo lag but experience teaches you how to deal with it. The 105 engine delivers some real power and performance.I bought the estate because of looks and I thought the back of the hatch looked a bit unfinished to be honest , but wouldnt be without it now. Its very versatile and if going camping, the few extra quid will be money well spent IMHO. But whichever one you buy your going to get a budget Audi thats well screwed together and reliable.

All in all many pluses and cant think of any real minuses but I prefer the estate..

Thanks very much for replying - this forum is great!

It's really helpful to get some advice and opinions from owners rather than trailing through the scant reviews and Skoda's own website. There don't seem to be many reviews of the new engines yet.

By the way, one thing I just noticed when looking out the paperwork for my old Fabia is that in 2001 Skoda offered new cars with 3 years warranty and breakdown cover rather than the very short 2 years they offer now!

it should still be 3 years warranty and breakdown i think that has not changed !!!!!

Unless I`m mistook..its 3 years warranty and breakdown cover now

I see now. My mistake! In the brochure it states 2 years, but website states a third year of warranty up to 60,000 miles. That's great for us!

Hi

if you've towed with the 1.4 (85bhp) you'll have no problem with the 1.2 tsi 105. The really significant advantage is the extra torque (97lbs in your 1.4, 129 lbs in the 1.2 105.) what's more, I believe it's available at lower revs so you'll access the pulling power more easily so should help towing.

To be fair, I've only experienced this engine in the considerably heavier Yeti, but it was more than sufficient in this.

Edited 28 September, 201015 yr by helix

I switched from a Fabia II hatch to an estate. Estate is so much more practical and does not feel any different to drive.

Hatch boot is excellent for the class but as soon as we put our folded double pram there was no room for anything else. With the Estate the pram fits no bother and loads of room for other things. We also have a Passat Estate and I am not tgat convinced it offers a significant amount of extra practical space than the Fabia! The Fabia has a really deep boot which makes it great for just chucking stuff into!

Thanks for replies.

Reading these comments makes me realise we've made the right choice. I ordered a bright red Fabia SE estate this morning and I'm really looking forward to getting it.

When we go camping with our hatchback, our daughter is squashed up in one corner, surrounded by stuff so we'll really appreciate the extra space.

I'm looking forward to towing with it too - I'm sure the slightly higher driving position will make this easier as well.

I was interested to hear Black's comment about the Passat as when we bought our Fabia hatch we'd already looked at a VW (I think it was a Golf) and it felt more cramped inside. Skoda garage was just down the road so we wandered down there..and were hooked!

Thanks for replies.

Reading these comments makes me realise we've made the right choice. I ordered a bright red Fabia SE estate this morning and I'm really looking forward to getting it.

When we go camping with our hatchback, our daughter is squashed up in one corner, surrounded by stuff so we'll really appreciate the extra space.

I'm looking forward to towing with it too - I'm sure the slightly higher driving position will make this easier as well.

I was interested to hear Black's comment about the Passat as when we bought our Fabia hatch we'd already looked at a VW (I think it was a Golf) and it felt more cramped inside. Skoda garage was just down the road so we wandered down there..and were hooked!

Congratulations, have they given any date as to when it will be built, I ordered a Fabia Elegance Estate 1.2 TSI DSG on 31 Aug, and have been given a build date of week 3 (17th Jan) . If yours is the standard engine you may get it quicker as there are large orders for the DSG version.

I was told end of Dec or first weeks of Jan, probably a bit earlier as it's a manual gearbox. Quite a long time to wait!

Congrats mate.

Dont fret about the long dates, a scout here & you will see Octy & Furby delivery dates are long, due to the high number of cars ordered.

My Octy will be just on 16 weeks from order to delivery.

Edited 29 September, 201015 yr by lfc958