I'm test driving a Fabia Vrs mk1 next friday. It looks like i've got a really good chance to trade in my Octavia Vrs mk2 for the Fabia! I'm changing cars mainly due to running cost of the Octavia Vrs. What are the Fabia Vrs like to drive? I'm looking forward to Friday Wish me luck.

Quickish but very nose heavy but will see 45-55 mpg all day long!

I love my Fabia but I'm toying with the idea of going back to a Octy Vrs as I now only have a 4 mile journey to work when I use the car and don't need a diesel and to be perfectly honest I miss the bigger car as I had a mk1 and mk2 both petrol before the fabia.

Have u thought about a diesel octy Vrs

Regards whoosh

Having owned a MK2 Octy and a MK1 Fabia the interior is a nicer place to spend time in the Octy, the Fabia is a little dated in that respect. Handling and ride aren't that different on the diesels but you'll notice it more coming from a petrol. The power delivery through the rev range is quite different obviously, but once you learn to adapt it's not a bad thing at all.

As you mention economy is the main consideration then have you worked out what your existing car is costing you per mile?

A lot of people wrongly just look at the mpg figure which makes the difference look great. My own Fabia does 41mpg on petrol, a diesel can do 55-65mpg, petrol is cheaper so in reality that difference is only 2-3p per mile or £20-30 per 1,000. Carefully consider how many miles you do, if your average drive is less than 15 miles then when it's cold you won't hit 90c on the thermostat, if the engine can't reach it's optimum temp you won't get anything like 55mpg so that cost per mile will be even closer.

You have a DMF, turbo, clutch and slightly more expensive servicing to pay out for, tyres/discs/pads will wear more quickly, some see 130k+ from a turbo, others have seen two turbo's fail in less than half of that. You also have a timing belt every 60k/4 years that'll cost you £2-400 depending on who you use inc pump.

I'm not saying don't buy a Fabia, they're decent cars for the money and if you are lucky you can make some reasonable savings but nothing like the amount some people seem to think and potentially it could cost you more than you're paying now, just in a different way. I've seen a lot of people switch to a VAG diesel who do low mileage and will never, ever make it pay (4 in the family at the last count) but still think they're paying less because the mpg is better.

Is your Octy vRS a petrol or diesel?