Bored with my SDi

[Lycanthrope]

Probably gonna just get laughed at here but gonna give it a shot anyways....

Currently driving a 2001 Fabia SDi and bored of it, can be nippy at times but at other times it seems so slow :(

Would really like a VRS but can really only afford a max of £2000, can't seem to find anything in that budget, looked for Golf GT TDI's and no success there either, '99-01, was really wanting something a bit newer, 2003ish or better.

Been looking at 330d/530d aswell but they seem to be out of budget aswell, moon mileage :(

Anyone have any ideas/suggestions ? Obvious answer seems to be save up a bigger budget, but ofcourse thats not what I want to hear

['daiking']

306

[PastyBoy]

Rereading your post it looks like your after an economical diesel with big power and tiny costs.

Unfortunately such a thing is hard to come by! The current economic climate has people valuing economy as much as performance which is why Fabia VRS's are holding their money so well.

and thinsg like your suggested beemers are out of reach even with intergalactic mileage.

If it HAS to be diesel and you can stretch your budget little a bit an early mk4 Ibiza TDI PD130 would be an option and is essentially a Fabia VRS in a Spanish disguise

like this one

or this one

of course if you can start buying from the green pump rather than the black one your options for more power and speed become my broader but the economical side narrows considerably!

[MoggyTech]

If budget is tight, stick with what is cheap and reliable to rum mate. SDi is a cracking car for economy and reliability. Think insurance and tyres, it soon adds up, as do speeding tickets.

[Lycanthrope]

Thankyou everyone

'daiking' - Thanks, I've looked at them but not really what I'm after, I've already owned 3 peugeots (205D 406Exec Turbo and 406DT) and also a Citroen ZXDT and since then I've had the Fabia, My Dads also moved onto the spanish volkswagen from peugeots so I was really looking for something a bit Germanish :p

PastyBoy - you are right, I am really looking for a cheap exciting diesel VRS would be perfect, had not looked at the Ibiza but it baffles me why what is virtually the same car is half the price of a similar VRS.

Moggytech - Yep its great for economy and reliability but after owning for 2years I'm just a little bored and fancy a change :p Plus my work journey is 6miles on backroads and it never really gets chance to show its economical peaks, long journeys of 60-70mpg have been achieved though

[PastyBoy]

PastyBoy - you are right, I am really looking for a cheap exciting diesel VRS would be perfect, had not looked at the Ibiza but it baffles me why what is virtually the same car is half the price of a similar VRS.

I had an Ibiza PD130 before my VRS and it is exactly the same car.

The Ibiza was released earlier so some of the cheapest cars (like the 2 i linked to) are on 02/52 plates where as the earliest VRS's arrived on 03/53 plates.

It's also these earliest cars that have the higest mileage Although even at 100k+ the PD engines are barely run in.

As of to why an early high mileage VRS is £4000 where an early high mileage Ibiza is £2000 i'm as baffled as anyone.

If one comes up locally i'll be replacing my petrol drinking Beezer in a heartbeat!

It might also be looking at the mk3 Ibiza TDI Sport.

Chassis wise it was basically a mk2 with new body panels but the 110bhp engine (while not a PD) is strong and economical

They are also dirt cheap!!

Summin like this one

or this one

Or if absolute power isn't the be all and end all mk4 Ibizas with lowever powered PD engines (90bhp,100bhp) also seem cheap

As do Fabia TDI's that aren't VRSs

[Lycanthrope]

found this http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/SKODA-FABIA-VRS-TDI-PD-130-Late-2004-BLACK-/290648790002?pt=Automobiles_UK&hash=item43ac0493f2

which is a reasonable looking car, apart from the back lights :p but the mileage is a bit much, up to 130k would be fine but 200k+ is a bit much

[PastyBoy]

found this http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/SKODA-FABIA-VRS-TDI-PD-130-Late-2004-BLACK-/290648790002?pt=Automobiles_UK&hash=item43ac0493f2

which is a reasonable looking car, apart from the back lights :p but the mileage is a bit much, up to 130k would be fine but 200k+ is a bit much

yeah it is but that said he says he's changed pretty mcuh everything consumable "new bushes, cambelt at 185,000, turbo, pads, discs etc, recent front pads, pollen filter and track rod end"

no reason if well maintained that it isn't a bargain

However as said above everyone wants a VRS. They are holding their money.

Mine has just turned over 115k and i'd still want £4k for it!

[lordrobs]

Plus my work journey is 6miles on backroads and it never really gets chance to show its economical peaks,

Sounds like you'd be best off filling up at the green pump.

I had an SDi mk4 Golf as a courtesy car the other day... wow! I know they are slow but damn! Unrefined, noisy, slow and 3500RPM at 70, that is more than my petrol! Surely they can't be that economical seeing that you have to accelerate with your foot pinned to the carpet and when you do hit cruising speed the engine is within spitting distance of its peak BHP point!

[Phil-E]

I know out of your budget but I picked up my Cordoba (same as Ibiza but with a boot) for £2800. An earlier one will be a bit less and might be in budget.

As said above the same underpinnings, engine and geabox as a Fabia vRS (the PD 130 that is).

You mention you have had some french cars before. Have you looked at the newere (PH 3) Pug 306 with the 2.0 HDi engine in? These are a common rail engine and actually pretty good. 90 hp and 167 lb/ft of torque but plenty of go. If you go for the Meridian spec you get half leather seats, A/C, rain sensing wipers, alloys, remote locking, electric windows etc etc.

Phil

[richardsfavorit]

I have been considering a diesel - but for the points you mention its very difficult on a limited budget! My journey to work is only 11 miles, however its all back roads, and some major hills. I have borrowed a couple of SDI's when mine has been in the garage and they make my car feel quick! I can understand having an SDI although I would miss the power. For any diesel which is decent and has a turbo I think you have got to be ready to shell out.

Therefore Im sticking with a petrol 1.6 atm!

[TriggerFish]

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201149434643632/sort/priceasc/usedcars/fuel-type/diesel/model/lupo/make/volkswagen/page/1/radius/1500/postcode/hp217hn?logcode=p

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201150436016658/sort/priceasc/usedcars/fuel-type/diesel/model/arosa/make/seat/postcode/hp217hn/radius/1500/page/1?logcode=p

110ish bhp with a remap I think. Pretty light too, shove on some coilovers and I imagine it would handle brilliantly!

I've just got a Golf GT TDi - I'm mostly bored of it already after a week. The only 'fun' thing is getting the turbo spool noise (never had a turbo before). Could be as I've stepped down from an RX-8, but it feels numb, lifeless and boring. Cheap to run though.

[sharkrider]

I know out of your budget but I picked up my Cordoba (same as Ibiza but with a boot) for £2800. An earlier one will be a bit less and might be in budget.

As said above the same underpinnings, engine and geabox as a Fabia vRS (the PD 130 that is).

You mention you have had some french cars before. Have you looked at the newere (PH 3) Pug 306 with the 2.0 HDi engine in? These are a common rail engine and actually pretty good. 90 hp and 167 lb/ft of torque but plenty of go. If you go for the Meridian spec you get half leather seats, A/C, rain sensing wipers, alloys, remote locking, electric windows etc etc.

Phil

and Phils goes alright, I've followed him in convoy

I agree with pasty, if you want a vRS for £2000 why not go for the ibiza?

[io1901]

I had a SDI Polo - it used to do 60mpg but would take forever to get to 70mph. I didn't dare try to overtake anything faster than a bicycle

I got bored of it quite quickly - but it was cheap to run.

Edited 23 December, 2011 by io1901

[Sonner]

PLenty of lowish mileage Ass shaking Megane's with 120bhp diesel's. they will handle well and be good fun.

just expect a few niggly issues with things like electric windows, central locking etc etc

you could always slowly upgrade the chassis with R26.R parts to make it outhandle any VAG front driver product

[Phil-E]

and Phils goes alright, I've followed him in convoy

I agree with pasty, if you want a vRS for £2000 why not go for the ibiza?

Even with my big A**!!

Would definitely recomend it. You get an awful lot of car and go for your money. It's the surprise on the Audi drivers faces that get me the most when they realise that you have the exact same engine as them and are sticking with them Insurance group 7 I believe and we have seen high 50's mpg on fast Autobahn cruises.

[Lycanthrope]

Thankyou everyone for all your ideas and advice

I have discovered pistonheads classifieds thanks to PastyBoy and seems there might be hope of a vrs afterall as I found a 2004,110k for 2500 and a 90k one for 2700, still a little bit too high but they are quite a bit lower than ebay

I am also going to look at Seats too

Not a fan of Renaults though

Edited 23 December, 2011 by Lycanthrope

[Ross Chapman]

I had a SDI Polo - it used to do 60mpg but would take forever to get to 70mph. I didn't dare try to overtake anything faster than a bicycle

I got bored of it quite quickly - but it was cheap to run.

I`ve got the saloon one with a remap from a guy the in US - goes well enough to keep up with a TDi 90 but then its still no rocket ship. The Polo wagon has a 1.6 engine and feels nipper but not massively now the saloon has been mapped.

[greenstripe]

I used to have a 54 reg Nissan Micra 1.5 dCi 82 -It was a riot to drive and was very nippy. Me and other half used to drive it really hard for the fun of it and it would still do 60mpg, I'm sure it would have done much better if we'd calmed down a bit. I bought it new and ran it for just under 60k miles. The only problem I had was the windscreen wiper linkage, which was replaced under warranty.

I still miss it, she's since bought another Micra -57 reg but 1.2 petrol -lame gutless engine and very uninspiring to drive.

[VRS2012]

Hi There,

Just another suggestion in case you hadn't thought about it. VW BORA Tdi. Great value used, there are a load on ebay and autotrader in your price range. Very underrated car.

[slider]

Plus my work journey is 6miles on backroads and it never really gets chance to show its economical peaks, long journeys of 60-70mpg have been achieved though

If thats the sort of journey's you make them the economics of driving a diesel don't stack up TBH and you would get more for your money by buying a poof powered car!

[cjb]

How about a less powerful Ibiza and a remap, or a Fabia TDI and a remap?

[Nigel R Slack]

Don't know why people find SDis too slow. I did 501 miles from Skye to home during the day yesterday. Just two cars passed me and I re-passed one of them. The other left the motorway about 200 yards ahead of me about 20 miles later. I overtook plenty of cars on the Highland roads. It's low running costs and lasts well (I'm on 326k miles now).

[lordrobs]

I must retract my SDi comment to some degree. It turns out that the speedo in the rental that I have UNDER reads by 10% Therefore it is actually a bit quicker than I first envisaged.

[Lycanthrope]

Thanks for all your advice guys

I have bought a vRS in Black, 2006. Pickup Friday