Hi All, I bought my first Vrs back in the summer and am generally really pleased with it, but I have a few questions that I hope some other owners will be able to help me with?

1. I get a very bouncy, almost out of control sometimes when pushed ride from the front end when going quickly, especially on the motorway above 70mph (obviously only travelling this fast for test purposes !). if I hit a compression in the road the front jumps up in the air and takes a while to regain control. It sounds like worn dampers but I can see absolutely no signs of wear or oil leakage, is this just something that Vrs do?

2. While the (petrol) engine runs really smoothly I do notice that it has a pretty loud tapping noise like an older engine needing its tappets adjusting, is this normal?

3. I am using about 1 litre of oil roughly every 4k miles is this ok?

4. The fuel consumption has dropped a fair bit, it does need a service but I was getting 35-37mpg and am now getting 27-30, any ideas, seems like auto choke issues/getting stuck?

5. Anyone recommend a good, knowledgeable and fair dealer in the Tunbridge Wells area, I am going to need a cambelt change soon?

Sorry to bombard you with loads of questions, but any help is really appreciated.

Hi All, I bought my first Vrs back in the summer and am generally really pleased with it, but I have a few questions that I hope some other owners will be able to help me with?

1. I get a very bouncy, almost out of control sometimes when pushed ride from the front end when going quickly, especially on the motorway above 70mph (obviously only travelling this fast for test purposes !). if I hit a compression in the road the front jumps up in the air and takes a while to regain control. It sounds like worn dampers but I can see absolutely no signs of wear or oil leakage, is this just something that Vrs do?

2. While the (petrol) engine runs really smoothly I do notice that it has a pretty loud tapping noise like an older engine needing its tappets adjusting, is this normal?

3. I am using about 1 litre of oil roughly every 4k miles is this ok?

4. The fuel consumption has dropped a fair bit, it does need a service but I was getting 35-37mpg and am now getting 27-30, any ideas, seems like auto choke issues/getting stuck?

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First off..............I'm no mechanic!

My vRS was deisel.

Bouncy front end points to shockers. You don't say how many miles it has under it's belt but mine lasted in excess of 100k.

You don't always see leaking fluid from shocks that are past there best. Internal seals can fail giving the same effect. Also, shocks may have been replaced prior to your purchase with the wrong type.

A quick test is to press hard down on the front wing in quick succesion. The car should pop back up and resume it's normal ride height immediately. If it continues to bounce slightly, suspect shockers.

Engine tap could be a number of things. from something simple as valve clearance adjustment to piston slap, etc. Hopefully not the latter, although that could be tied in with your excessive oil and fuel useage due to loss of compression.

You do appear to use a lot of oil for a petrol. That's more like a deisel consumption. Someone with a petrol can advise whether your fuel return is about right.

I would defintely get your front suspesion checked asap. It is a safety issue.

Hope all works out well for you and maybe a more technically competant member can give you some insight into your problem.

that's the strange thing, at low speeds and doing the bounce test the rebound is OK, seems to me like the high speed rebound in the dampers is just rubbish???

Car has done 60k so not too sure if dampers should have worn out but i don't know.

I'm not sure the tapping is anything as serious as piston slap, but it does seem a little worse when cold at the moment, but that is probably not surprising given the temperature.

Mines a diesel so a bit heaver over the front wheels but I've never noticed any "bouncing" at speed unless the road is undulating... Stable as anything which is what I would expect from a modern car...

Hmm, does sound like some new front shocks/dampers are needed.

Anyone got any recommendations or best to stick with originals. I'm not wanting anything that lowers the car, i struggle enough on speed bumps as it is

Are you sure its not just a loudish ticking? Mine has done it from new and its the injectors

For a local Indy in Tunbridge Wells, try Joe's Garage on Woodbury Park Road. They look after all our work vehicles and mine and my boss's private cars and he really knows VAG. They did a cambelt and water pump change for less than £350 inc vat back in the summer on our old 1.9 pd. and swapped a gearbox in SWMBO's audi A2 for a few hundred notes. Don't be put off by the number of "kids" he has working there, they really know their stuff! Very highly recommended!

Cheers for the garage recommendation, I'll give them a try.

How loud are the injectors, rattly tappets loud?

Cheers for the garage recommendation, I'll give them a try.

How loud are the injectors, rattly tappets loud?

Well i wouldnt say its that loud but it is noticeable, I can't really describe it - it's just like a hollow tick