Saw this on the old bay

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2005-SKODA-SUPERB-ELEGANCE-V6-TDI-GREY-/280826120225?pt=Automobiles_UK&hash=item41628a8821

Saw this on the old bay http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2005-SKODA-SUPERB-ELEGANCE-V6-TDI-GREY-/280826120225?pt=Automobiles_UK&hash=item41628a8821

I've made a couple of offers on it and they've both been automatically rejected, can't afford to raise the offer any further at the moment.

Are the automatics any good? Spotted one within budget on autotrader not far from me, 150k on the clock and auto.

Are the automatics any good? Spotted one within budget on autotrader not far from me, 150k on the clock and auto.

I love mine, done 10,000 miles in it since getting it in October. The park unlock button on the lever can be troublesome - mine is a little bit loose, some people have had to replace them. Change is lovely and smooth, and on good runs I'm getting pretty good economy if I drive it carefully.

I don't know about high mileage though - mine only had 40,000 on it when I bought and will have 50,000 soon. People talk about having the transmission fluid renewed and this apparently extends the life of the gearbox. I'm still debating in my mind when / if to do it. They are supposed to be sealed for life (though in many cases it seems that by "life" VAG don't mean very long!!!)...

Off to look at it on Sat morning.

I'll see if there are any guides on doing a gearbox oil change, I know what a pain it is on other cars... involves dropping cross members/sub frames under the engine and taking the oilpan sump tray off... because for some reason they don't think autos need a drain plug.

Off to look at it on Sat morning. I'll see if there are any guides on doing a gearbox oil change, I know what a pain it is on other cars... involves dropping cross members/sub frames under the engine and taking the oilpan sump tray off... because for some reason they don't think autos need a drain plug.

I think it is mechanically not too awkward on these (I think the pan is exposed?) but you do need a diagnostics setup to read the fluid temperature when you refill. But I'm no mechanical whizz so I'd never do it myself. A local Audi independent do it for £120+VAT, so I guess it can't be a huge amount of work.

Basically the ATF is around £15 a litre and you need 6 litres. Plus filter around 10-20 quid. Rest labour. £120 sounds cheap. But that's how much I paid at a main dealer as they cocked up the pricing quote, and only charged for parts, free labour! Owned up to it, and did not want to charge me more as part of their customer service charter. Very fair and square, and highly unusual for a main dealer (Milton Keynes - top guys).

Dont worry about auto boxes, the 5 speed in my audi has done 175,000 miles on the original fluid (audi say its sealed for life) and is still lovely and smooth with no problems.

Off to look at the car in the morning... fingers crossed it's as good as advertised.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201208451687968/sort/locasc/usedcars/maximum-age/up_to_10_years_old/fuel-type/diesel/price-to/4000/model/superb/make/skoda/page/1/radius/1500/postcode/nn100bg/keywords/leather?logcode=p

Well, this is what I've just bought.. for £1700

It's not perfect by any means, but the engine is sweet and the gearbox feels good. I've left a deposit and they're gonna deliver it on Monday.

The bad points are

Missing front trim on bumper on passenger side (where fogs would sit).

One of the centre air vents has broken flaps

glove box handle is broken

rear air vents are broken

2 very small rust bubbles on the rear arch between door and wheel arch, and a couple of bits where it's flaked in the inner edge of the wheel arch.

Paint flake on the front bumper drivers corner.

As far as I can tell every thing works correctly, a couple of blown bulbs but I've read that's not uncommon.

It's in need of a service, and I'll get the autobox oil changed at the same time I think.

4 good tyres, but some scuffing to the rims... I'm not fussed about minor blemishes like that, so long as the mechanics are decent.

The test drive was on a major A route and through some twisty hilly bits, I heard no unusual klunks or knocks, engine didn't smoke on start up, nor when I used the kickdown from 40-70mph

Interior is in good condition, leather is virtually unmarked, the heated front seats worked fine as do both electric seats... The rear heated seats I put on number 2... but not sure if they need a person sat in them, or even the seatbelt done up to work. Boot is in mint condition, the CD changer was present as was the cartridge but untested (although radio works fine and the sound system sounds good).

I checked the passenger footwell and I think it felt a little damp, but not enough to transfer to fingers... that may or not be a problem, but couldn't exactly pull the carpet to check... so I'll need to inspect further when it gets here.

I did however realise when I got home, that I'd not tested the sunroof or checked for the front headlight washers.

I left a deposit, and they're delivering it on Monday... Looking forward to it.

Nice car, congratulations, may she serve you well

You gotta lose those mud flaps though. My first mod, and the car looked better straightaway but a matter of personal taste. That paint peel and rust should be sorted at any little paint shop for not a lot of money.

One more little niggle... the ashtray on the centre console won't close.

Did a vehicle status report, and it all came back clean... So that's a relief too.

Edited 25 February, 201214 yr by Heckler

Congrats, that's a lot of car for the money and sounds like it is in decent nick for the age and mileage.

Just be sure to seal the pollen filter and remove the bulkhead drain plugs as soon as you get chance if they haven't been done already, it'll save you a lot of ballache.

That said after 155k miles I would have thought that the water ingress would have manifested itself by now.

There are a pair of those fog grilles on 'bay at the moment

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/GENUINE-SKODA-O-S-F-RIGHT-FRONT-BUMPER-GRILLE-COVER-TRIM-3U0853666B41-/380408971700?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&fits=Model%3ASuperb&hash=item58922441b4

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/GENUINE-SKODA-N-S-F-LEFT-FRONT-BUMPER-GRILLE-COVER-TRIM-3U0853665B41-/320843221186?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&fits=Model%3ASuperb&hash=item4ab3bf08c2#ht_1477wt_1250

Cheers Jimbo, saved the seller for future reference... I think servicing and stuff is the important thing first, then start getting those bits and bobs.

One more little niggle... the ashtray on the centre console won't close.

Did a vehicle status report, and it all came back clean... So that's a relief too.

My ashtray was the same. There's a bit of a gap around the edges and it sometimes came open until I applied sticky-backed velcro to it in true 'here's one I did earlier' Blue Peter style. Now it stays shut and I never use it anyway so job done.

I think it wasn't refitted properly when the console was removed to do wiring work for the previous owner.

Good luck with the new car and keep us updated with pics and thoughts

Nice looking motor

Just out of curiosity... is the water ingress more likely depending on the slope the car is parked on... If I was to park it nose down on the drive, would it be more or less likely to leak?

You are in trouble both ways:

"Nose up" - water collects in both upper and lower plenum areas.

"Nose down" - you need to check sunroof hose drain ends (pinched rubbers on a-pillar when you open front doors), front bumper water collects inside, just in front of rad (I drilled small hole on underside of bumper to allow this to drain out), worst of all, open the boot and you'll see your hinges submerged in two puddles of water - they will rust and seize the boot, best you can do is grease them right up to try and keep the water away from the moving parts.

I go for nose down, lesser of the evils.

TBH your budget is not enough to get you into a half decent PD130 Elegance (do not under ANY circumstances be tempted with a 2.0 PD140 as they eat oil pump drives for breakfast and will cost you as much again to repair!)

Although this one comes close:

2004 SKODA Superb 1.9 TDi PD 130 Elegance

FWIW the Superb is miles better than the Passat it is based upon.

Just gone through the thead

looks like this one is still there(prev post was feb) has the price droped.

If you need folding rear seats, you need a model year '05> vehicle - 10th digit of the VIN gives the model year.

The rear seats don't fold properly but given the very small boot opening of the B5.5, this feature is valuable for carrying long items or extra luggage. I wouldn't buy one of these cars with a fixed rear bulkhead.

It's essential to fully fix the water ingress problem including replacement of the pollen filter housing outer seal with mastic strip. The PD 1.9/130 is really the only engine worth having in this car (the 2.0 PD is not fit for purpose) and I would avoid the auto transmissions unless you have to have one.

I'm still very impressed by the performance/economy ratio of the 1.9 AWX engine - it will manage a genuine 60 mpg at a steady 70 mph on a motorway. I have found there is a worthwhile improvement in economy if you increase the rear tyre pressures to 36 psi.

rotodiesel.