Went for a job interview today, if successful will have to use a car to commute (50 mile round trip) now I love my fabia vrs to bits but at the moment have a work vehicle so it's kept nice low miles in a garage. Thing is (if successful) I don't know wether to commute in the fab, get a monte diesel fab, get a octy diesel vrs or keep the fab rs as my nice neat car and get a cheap run about. I just don't like idea of cranking up the miles on the car, what everyone reckon?

I actually swopped TO a fabia as my commute had increased. If the car is looked after (serviced etc) i cant see why it would be a problem.

Is a fabia really worth keeping as a luxury/fun car? Surely not..? Use the fabia and get yourself a lotus or something for the weekend fun

Mine's a company car, so gets used almost exclusively for commuting. Minimum 100 miles per day normally. Makes for a happy commute!

Cars like to be used...."D" for the commute, "S" or manual for the weekend

Agreed , 50 miles isn't that much , I'd keep the fab

Cars like to be used...."D" for the commute, "S" or manual for the weekend

Although "S" or manual can be used at any time so when D gets boring on the commute, just take control

BTW I used to have an 80 mile a day round trip to work, the biggest issue you will have is keeping the speeds legal. The vRS is a fun car to drive, difficult to replace with something that provides as much fun for the price and versatility.

Thanks for the comments so far, I struggle to get good mpg. Not the cars fault but because its too god dam fun to drive :-/ I wouldn't like to get rid or have to swap, just don't like the idea of ramming the miles up. Suppose that's what I bought it for, to drive.

I actually swopped TO a fabia as my commute had increased. If the car is looked after (serviced etc) i cant see why it would be a problem.

Is a fabia really worth keeping as a luxury/fun car? Surely not..? Use the fabia and get yourself a lotus or something for the weekend fun

A lotus? Lol. Hmmm maybe a R6

I do 1500-2000 in a Leon cupra dsg at the moment and switched to the fab which is due in 2weeks, cupra ain't great on fuel so the fab for me is going to be a big saver :-), keep the fab and learn self control when it comes to the warp pedal lol

Doing that sorta milage in my fabia Monte and personally if i could aford the petrol insurance and finance on a VRS id be using the VRS

Why. Cos they nice to cruise in fun when you want but most of all can be used to **** of those ****s in exec saloons

Ie insignia bmw mercs and audis lol

Haha yes I'm liking!

Overtook a Fabia II vRS last night; must have been in commute mode as I was in our Yeti 4x4 110 which takes twice as long to get to 60

TP

Edited 25 January, 201313 yr by The Plumber

My commute mode is "outside lane upsetting exec wagons"

Haha excited now hope I get the job!

The other up side is that a 25 mile journey each way will also get the engine fully up to temperature (water and oil) which is all good. Lots of cold starts and short journeys doesn't do them any favours.

A 50 mile round trip isn't bad and is better for it rather than shorter journeys. For me to ever go back to diesel I'd have to be doing well over 20k a year and even then I'd have to have a very good think about it. Been looking at job further afield myself and if it happened I'd go for a cheaper diesel (under 5k) for commuting and using everyday then have something fun in the garage.

A 50 mile round trip isn't bad and is better for it rather than shorter journeys. For me to ever go back to diesel I'd have to be doing well over 20k a year and even then I'd have to have a very good think about it. Been looking at job further afield myself and if it happened I'd go for a cheaper diesel (under 5k) for commuting and using everyday then have something fun in the garage.

I know what you mean. Previously I commuted 80 miles a day to work, then they moved our office and I now take the train (2.5 hours each way) and a 8 mile round trip to the station.

But everything is about to change, I have a new job :) with no stupid train commute, but it will be 50 mile each way drive. So what do I do, keep the vRS and run it into the ground (already done 30k miles) or chop it in for a diesel? I own the vRS outright but if I buy a new car I will need to take out a loan. Then what to raplace it with that could even potentially come close to satisfying my inner boy racer? An Octy vRS is almost unavailable, and there will not be a new one for some months, but then it will be damn expensive (increase over existing list price of £2k and no zero vat) putting it into baby premium brands (Mercedes/Audi/BMW). So for the time being I think I will see how the vRS goes because deep down, I do still love to drive it.

Keep yours and run it into the ground... Get finance on a lotus exige

As I've just said in another thread I ordered my vRS before I got my current job. Had spent ages saving for it then the day I picked my car up I was handing my notice in for my current job. Current job pays more but isn't enough so looking for something better. I'm glad I've bought it for the reasons you did plus I wouldn't have done a Brisky track day without it. But the sensible person in me is saying to cool down, grow up, sell up and get a house. Hindsight being what it is there's a good chance I'd have never bought the car if I'd have known I was getting a better job but I don't regret it at all. I'd say keep it until something goes wrong and then change. The cost to change will be more and would you get it back? Not only that there's the predicament of not knowing what to buy next. I honestly don't. My changes daily.

Keep yours and run it into the ground... Get finance on a lotus exige

This!

If I didn't have a fishing kayak an Exige was easily in reach. Saw a really nice one in budget before I ordered on an 07 plate. Bought the car for it and I've only been on the kayak 3 times since. My cousin now hints about selling them and buying a boat that he'll tow

Evil, Martyn, thanks for your replies and more or less what I had come round to thinking as well. My thought of a change had initially come about because of the trials and tribulations of the engine replacement so was thinking of looking for something else, but when I went back to work a few weeks ago I was lucky enough to get one of those phone calls saying that I was getting fed up where I was and wondered if I fancied a change? Thats when the dark thoughts of running a diesel came into my head. In reality, and you guys have just confirmed it, I will probably be better off keeping the vRS for now and consider a change in a couple of years time when it has done 80k plus (if it lasts that long).

I really like the idea of the Exige though, but I don't think I will be able to get it passed the wife :( The money will have to be spent on the mortgage unfortunately.

BTW, had the Monte serviced this morning so had a chat with the sales manager, he told me the bottom has fallen out of the Fabia vRS market. Asked him if he knew why but he said he didn't apart from the fact it is now 3 years since it was first introduced. At this point I became convinced I had to keep it as the resale value had just plummeted.

Interesting this. I was running a Fabia vRS estate as my work car; took a new role several months ago so now largely office based with a 20 mile round trip commute to the office. Before had a company car as was having to drive all over the UK with lots of router/switch/firewall equipment in the car which I didnt want to do with my own. Car was at the end of its lease just as I took the new job so gave it up and took on the Fabia (was the wifes).

The car was alot of fun, engine and gearbox were fantastic and was amusing blasting past people and seeing that WTF look on their faces. Sadly I never got on with the way the car drove; handling and brakes werent fantastic and its lack of traction in the wet really got on my nerves. Just didnt think that for a car with its level of performance it was well enough sorted. Also having come from a Golf MK6 it was a bit tough getting used to the limited refinement the Fabia offered.

The final straw for me was the fuel economy.....it rarely bettered 30mpg on the commute, was having to fill it after approx 250 miles....I have a fuel card but foresaw a huge spend going on it and consequently a huge tax bill in April.

I therefore took the plunge and traded it for an Octavia Blackline DSG estate. i can honestly say I do not regret it one bit. Its a vastly superior car and whilst its not quite as fast as the Fabia its still a rocketship and beats the car in pretty much every other area.

110 mile trip to Sussex last night, car barely done 100 miles returned 43mpg and did approx 160 miles to a quarter tank; the fabia would rarely better 80.

I regularly get 35+ on my commute Rochdale To Huddersfield...

But if I have to go south Manc for any reason I have had 45 average and that isn't at 60mph in the inside lane...

My economy isn't that good but for the performance on tap isn't bad. Just look at my fuelly. On a run it will do over 45mpg but it's a struggle to. The norm is around 33mpg round town and less if I want to make progress. Going to work last week when it started snowing again and there was a lot of traffic, over 7 miles I did 15mpg

pipsyp,

out of interest please let us know what the MPG on the 20 mile round commute turns out to be now with the Octy, that the Fabia gave only around 30mpg on.?

just as a comparison,

as the 110 mile trip really does not give an indication on the short commute from cold.

&

then there is the 45 to 55 litre tank difference, and the possibly more linear fuel gauge on the Octavia.

A 1/4 tank if that is 3 gallons & 160 miles will be getting you 53 mpg.

But your car was showing 43 mpg for 110 miles. (same as many a Fabia vRS does)

so maybe more than 55 litres (12 gallons)in, or the Fuel gauge is no more accurate than a Fabia one for the first quarter.

george