Fabia 1.9 sdi owners...your views please?

[skoda norm]

Hi everyone,

I'm thinking of buying a Fabia 1.9 SDi as my run about with occasional long'ish journeys. I'll be looking to spend around 2K at most.

I have heard that the sdi engine is pretty much bullet proof and good for a few hundred thousand miles? Can you tell me any "Pro's and Con's" to owning this car, and anything I should watch out for in particular?

I know it's not the quickest, but then I don't drive the fastest :p (driving a 1.0 micra)

Many thanks in advance

Edited 7 October, 2010 by skoda norm

[wcman]

Leaking door carriers also heavy condensation inside even after carriers sealed

[b1ackb1rd]

I've had mine 18 months now and I'm still in love ... I used to run a remapped combi and got bored with that after a few months.

Best mod ? Wider wheels (vrs alloys?) they allow you to carry all that hard-earned speed round corners whereas the standard 165's on 14's understeer like a *****

[grr666]

Me and the Mrs have a vRS and an SDI.

The other half got her SDI first. ( 2 years ago ) 54plate

It was an approved used car from Skoda with 62k on it.

In that time apart from normal servicing we've spent

very little on it until recently. ( Last week to be precise...)

When we bought it the clutch was

worn but functional. 35k later we decided to replace it before it

failed leaving my other half stranded somewhere.

She and I are living in different cities at the moment so she'd be on her own

if it had given up the ghost.

I obtained a sachs clutch kit and a pair of console bushes for £105

all in and my indy charged me £250 to fit them both.

Terrific value when you consider it's not unusual for people

to pay £200 just to have the bushes done. A quick alignment check

and adjustment was another £30 on top.

(There's no DMF to fail on the SDI )

Needless to say this has transformed the way the car drives and the Mrs is

very very happy with it. We've been putting this job off for a while but are glad

to have it done now. At 97k the car still starts every time, very few squeaks and rattles

(Fewer still now the bushes have been done...) Biblical economy, comfortable ride,

decently equipped. We will keep it until it dies.

My vRS in complete contrast has cost bundles. I recently had the same

work carried out on mine, Clutch, DMF, and bushes and on my car the total

bill came in at just shy of £800 plus £30 alignment. Nearly £500 more

Some of those bundles were modding items mind you

In summary if performance isn't important to you then the SDI

is the one to go for IMO. I was so impressed with the general overall

quality of Mrs Grrs car that it prompted me to ditch my VW and buy my own Fabia.

[ap0gee1978]

My mum had one for a couple of years and did Moon-shot mileage in it for work. Only reason she got rid was that she couldn't abide the dealers. I recently posted in another thread what's gone wrong with my and my wife's Fabias (pretty generic issues for the model in general) but I must say I don't recognise the comment about bad condensation AFTER having the door carriers re-sealed - both our cars hsve been fine, although I used the vrStu (http://www.fabia-vrs.com) method rather than the dealer's "straight swap" method...

[AndyPandy]

Leaking door carriers also heavy condensation inside even after carriers sealed

SDi -10 year old car , jobs that have had to be done:-

Tie Rods both sides.

both front wheel bearings(+ one complete hub)

new antiroll bar

One Battery (replaced by Me)

Cam Belt,and Fan Belt replaced

Steering Pump replaced (good seconhand one, replaced by me)

Four New Tyres

reseal rear door carriers (done once by me)

Total Money Spend- £1500 including labour,or £150 per year

I sealed my carriers 4 years ago,not a drop has come through! Carriers have to come off completely ,on a very dry day,and time needs to be spent doing the job properly!

Edited 8 October, 2010 by AndyPandy

[grr666]

Carriers have to come off completely ,on a very dry day,and time needs to be spent doing the job properly!

I'm not sure I agree that that's the only effective way, it just seems a bit long winded.

And more than a bumbling amateur like me would attempt.

I'm sure it's worked for you but I think sealant choice is the most important thing with this job.

Its just that bath sealant type silicone wont stick to the

ancillaries carrier very well particularly if the foam seal is already wet.

Which it almost certainly be with this job.

I think using a sealant that aheres to wet surfaces is a better option.

Preferably something that doesn't completely set. So it can expand and contract

in extremes of temparature without unsettling the seal.

I've just done Bezzys doors for

him today using a bituminous sealant then washed his car giving it a ruddy good

hosing down far more more water than any realistic rainfall.

We didn't see a drop on any of his door rubbers afterwards and his leaks

were pretty bad by all accounts. He had previously tried to seal the rear doors

with clear silicone and it failed mostly because the only thing it stuck to properly was

the paint . It had barely adhered to the ancillaries carrier. So the water just came over the top

of the mastic. The repair still has to stand the test of time but I'm confident it will.

[b1ackb1rd]

For the hell of it, I bought a vRS air intake to fit on my sdi this week - it was £10 off ebay.

I had no idea if it would make any difference, it was a 1am drunken ebay purchase after all

I pleased to say that it now revs more freely, is more tractable at low engine speeds (25mph in 5th!) ... and for the first time in my car blasted up the gradient between junction 2 and 1 of M42 in 5th without losing speed.

I'm not talking remap gains here, but when you have 64hp any help is welcomed !!

[skoda norm]

it was a 1am drunken ebay purchase after all

Love it!

[grr666]

For the hell of it, I bought a vRS air intake to fit on my sdi this week - it was £10 off ebay.

I had no idea if it would make any difference, it was a 1am drunken ebay purchase after all

I pleased to say that it now revs more freely, is more tractable at low engine speeds (25mph in 5th!) ... and for the first time in my car blasted up the gradient between junction 2 and 1 of M42 in 5th without losing speed.

I'm not talking remap gains here, but when you have 64hp any help is welcomed !!

Interesting..... Hmmmm I have a spare one of those somewhere

[viewer]

They're great. Re condensation/water - our 2000 SDI had a drain from the scuttle which used a rubber outlet. This blocked with leaves very easily . The effect is to put lots of water into the incoming air and then start tipping liquid water into the car. Just pulling out the rubber insert leaves a bigger hole and doesn't give any problems. Well worth doing. Our 2004 TDI has a larger outlet with no rubber so they do learn sometimes!

[nigelcm]

If anyone has a VRS intake so I can fit it to my SDi please contact me! I need to help my 64hp, can't afford a Tdi or Vrs at the moment, I'm skint!

I should have added, I have a Skoda Fabia 1.9 Sdi 2000 W Reg. Runs fine, think the economy is suffering a bit now, only averaging 50-52 mpg including town driving. Lond runs I can get about 60-65mpg. It does run on biodiesel which I get for about 30p less a litre than diesel so it's very cheap to run the car. Probably cheaper than an LPG vehicle I'd say. A good car, solid engine, but have to say slightly underpowered, but I'd still recommend it.

Edited 18 October, 2010 by nigelcm

[bygumlad]

Ive got an sdi estate and its a great car for my needs, according to my LCD display my average speed is mostly 18mph due to traffic but it still manages 48mpg minimum, most I have got is 59mpg. I wouldn't call it slow either, its on a par with my old astra 1.7td but without the lag. Motorway driving is fine too and cruises quite effortlessly at motorway speeds. My car has done 96k and starts instantly, you almost just flick the ignition key and it bursts into life. My only gripe is that the tickover speed appears a bit high for me, its about 900rpm, 800rpm would be much better methinks, does anyone know if it can be done?