hi

im looking very closely at a 1.9 tdi sport 08 reg with 25k miles full service history(2 stamps)

the thing is ive got a mini cooper s which the other half mainly drives a 10 mile round trip 5 days a week in peak rush hour traffic,the costs on the mini are getting out of hand 25 mpg but thats on an average of 19mph(computer figures) £220 tax a year £100+ on run flat tyres its all adding up,but its such a nice car to drive and plenty of grin factor

would i be dissapointed in the 1.9 tdi? although i would get a remap to get a bit more bhp

ive been out on a very short test drive in the fabia it dove fine although i thought there was a wheel bearing noise although people do say the 1.9 is not the quietest engine out there

is there anything to look for any common faults? and most importantly what sort of economy would i expect to get based on our criteria?

thanks

nick

Edited 12 February, 201115 yr by speedster40

SWMBO's got one - does a 25-mile round trip daily - average mpg 55-56

and should remap to about 140bhp

and should remap to about 140bhp

would a remap have any effect on mpg?

Wife uses hers locally and in winter in hardly ever gets warmed through but still returns 40mpg rising to 50mpg in summer. When I borrowed it for my old 25 mile round trip commute I'd get 55-60mpg. Only done my new 60 mile round trip commute in it once (Motorway and A roads) and returned 65mpg.

Cheers

Lee

Edited 12 February, 201115 yr by logiclee

I had a 1.9TDI in my Fabia vRS up to 167BHP and I was still getting pretty decent MPG, in the high 50's and in town was still getting about 40-42MPG.

Davy

would a remap have any effect on mpg?

as davey says, not really, not unless you use the full potential all the time, under normal driving the remap won't hurt your mpg...

HI

Have been running 07 1.9 tdi fabia 3 for nearly 9 months now a bargain and thought it was just a bit sluggish standard, very quickly fitted van aaken tuning box worth 20-25 bhp which helps enormously, as far as mpg never goes below 45 in town and easy 55-60 mpg everywhere else, mines doesnt have the sport suspension option -15mm springs and I do find the handing a bit ponderous as it sits a bit high and catches crosswinds but this is due to be fixed with fk sportsprings and shortend gas dampers asap, had a seat leon 1.9 tdi remapped prior to fabia and it was easily 145-150 bhp and massive torque but despite what optimistic mpg computer said it did effect mileage, in no small part because it was hard to not use the effortless performance regularly. a quality tuning box while never being as effective as a remap is removable in 5 mins and undetectable afterwards. good adjustable ones are available second hand on ebay for around £50-£80 but do a bit of research on the internet and stick to quality makes like dragon, van aaken ,steinbauer etc and steer well clear of the cheap resistor types

hope this helps

K2SSE

Edited 15 March, 201115 yr by k2sse

hi

im looking very closely at a 1.9 tdi sport 08 reg with 25k miles full service history(2 stamps)

the thing is ive got a mini cooper s which the other half mainly drives a 10 mile round trip 5 days a week in peak rush hour traffic,the costs on the mini are getting out of hand 25 mpg but thats on an average of 19mph(computer figures) £220 tax a year £100+ on run flat tyres its all adding up,but its such a nice car to drive and plenty of grin factor

would i be dissapointed in the 1.9 tdi? although i would get a remap to get a bit more bhp

ive been out on a very short test drive in the fabia it dove fine although i thought there was a wheel bearing noise although people do say the 1.9 is not the quietest engine out there

is there anything to look for any common faults? and most importantly what sort of economy would i expect to get based on our criteria?

thanks

nick

Hi Speedster, as everyone is saying, the 1.9TDI is a brilliant piece of kit. It's difficult to do better for all round performance and economy. It's actually fun to drive too. You may remember Top Gear pitting the Fabia 1.9TDI against the 1.6 100bhp Cooper not long ago around the track. The Skoda beat the mini, although the mini had slightly better cornering at very high speed with the Skoda outperforming easily in a straight line.

If the one you took out for a test spin seemed to make you think a wheel bearing was on it's way out, I would say that is unlikely, but of course not impossible. However, it is much more likely you would be hearing a tyre or tyres that are almost down to the wear bars. This can make the same noise as a wheel bearing in the early stages of failing when cornering on bends at lower to intermediate speeds. This fools a lot of people into thinking it's a wheel bearing. Just something to check! As you say the engines are not the quietest and do make assorted transmission noises from time to time but these engines are good for anywhere up to 500,000 miles. Any taxi rank can prove that! The car is not noted for any particular intrinsic faults, just make sure you use the correct FULLY SYNTHETIC PD OIL, and you won't have any problems. Like any car, if it's only doing low miles make sure you take if for a good run often to get the oil nice and hot and keep it there for several miles to dry out the condensation that forms in it. Diesels don't warm up quite so fast as petrol engines as you may know. Good luck and keep us all informed as to what you buy and how you are getting on with it. Cheers bud!

Although never owned one, i understand its a bit of a 'legend' in quite a few motoring circles.

Hope you enjoy it should you buy.

hi

im looking very closely at a 1.9 tdi sport 08 reg with 25k miles full service history(2 stamps)

the thing is ive got a mini cooper s which the other half mainly drives a 10 mile round trip 5 days a week in peak rush hour traffic,the costs on the mini are getting out of hand 25 mpg but thats on an average of 19mph(computer figures) £220 tax a year £100+ on run flat tyres its all adding up,but its such a nice car to drive and plenty of grin factor

would i be dissapointed in the 1.9 tdi? although i would get a remap to get a bit more bhp

ive been out on a very short test drive in the fabia it dove fine although i thought there was a wheel bearing noise although people do say the 1.9 is not the quietest engine out there

is there anything to look for any common faults? and most importantly what sort of economy would i expect to get based on our criteria?

thanks

nick

hi i have just part x a 1.9 tdi sport 58 plate done19400 miles full service history (2) had no probs at all 50/60 mpg on forecourt for 8995 claybank you can see on page 7 under heading AT LAST.£90 tax

Edited 16 March, 201115 yr by skoda1982

I have to be honest I dont think a 1.9 TDi Fabia will float your boat. Cooper S (regardless of whether its a 163/170ps supercharged or 175/181hp turbo version) will drive much nicer and will perform in a much more enjoyable fashion.

Dont get me wrong they are a very good little car and the 100ps diesel engine does provide the Fabia with decent pace but it will be very boring by comparison and nowhere near as fast. The Sport was really no different to a standard fabia bar slightly firmer lower suspension settings.

Yes a re-map would sort the power problem to a degree but then the chassis and brakes will begin to struggle (power I must add it was never designed to put down on the road). You'll be wearing everything out at a quicker rate thats for sure.

If you're dead set on diesel I would personally look at a late MK1 Fabia vRS or a late last gen Ibiza FR PD 130, maybe even a Cupra if you can find one. The Ibiza Cupra came with a 160ps version of the 1.9 PD engine and can easily be remapped to nearly 200ps. I know they are capable of 50mpg, have brembo brakes and a decent suspension set up. Even a standard one of those would bring a smile to your face and would probably give the mini a run for its money performance wise, all the while making a nice saving on fuel and tax.

Edited 16 March, 201115 yr by pipsyp

I had a front wheel bearing replaced at 2 years old and 20,000 miles under warranty which i wouldn't have expected so you could be right about the noise you heard.

Wifes 2003 1.9TDI Polo gives a very consistant 56 mpg on longish runs. Even with only 100 bhp it's quite easy to lose your license !