Hi Everyone,

I am basically looking into getting a relatively quick car, which doesn't have the insurance premium on top of it.. and after looking around and getting quotes, I got a quote on a VRS that was £30 more a year than my corsa, so you can probably see where this is going..

what are they like for reliability? I've been looking through posts on here and have seen that people have quite a few problems, is this because they have been tuned or not looked after properly etc? If so, what can I do to avoid major problems or should I just avoid the VRS if I don't want big bills to pay?

Thanks

If buying, you need one under main dealer warranty IMO as the engine has a high percentage of failures where it uses too much oil.

I personally would not touch one out of warranty because I'd always be worrying if I'm going to be left will a huge bill for a new engine.

The failures are not down to a lack of care or tuning. 180bhp stock from a twin charged 1.4 4 pot engine is a lot.

The Fabia vRS is a very good car but in my opinion it does have a few downsides.

Handling and Brakes - chassis wise its barely any different from a sport suspended normal Fabia and sticking 180hp through it IMO does overwhelm the suspension and brakes when used keeny. Overly light electric power steering with no feedback doesnt help matters.

MPG - whilst cheap to buy, tax and insure I found mine rarely got near its official MPG (35-37mpg driven v sensibly much less - low mid high 20s if driven as nature intended. Also theyll happily run on 95RON but 98 is recommended so be prepared to be feeding it alot of super unleaded.

Oil use - mine didnt have a problem but would still burn a litre every 4 to 5k so they can also have a thirst for oil. Also any car using a silly amount of oil will generally require an engine replacement.

Mine had to have a fair amount of warranty work done to it; never failed me mechanically but lots of people on here have had mechanical (engine issues).

Personally if you were looking to buy brand new on the VAT free offer and keep for 3 years or extend the warranty id say go for it; buying used can prove a risky business though....i certainly wouldnt want to own one outside of warranty; too many expensive things to go wrong (engine replacement on one of these would amount to several k by th way).

If buying, you need one under main dealer warranty IMO as the engine has a high percentage of failures where it uses too much oil.

I personally would not touch one out of warranty because I'd always be worrying if I'm going to be left will a huge bill for a new engine.

The failures are not down to a lack of care or tuning. 180bhp stock from a twin charged 1.4 4 pot engine is a lot.

A high percentage of failures is misleading. There have been many using high amounts of oil, but not many that have 'failed'

A high percentage of failures is misleading. There have been many using high amounts of oil, but not many that have 'failed'

True enough but the final fix for most of them has been a new engine which to me amounts to more or less the same thing

Edited 19 April, 201313 yr by pipsyp

A high percentage of failures is misleading. There have been many using high amounts of oil, but not many that have 'failed'

OK, substitue "failure" for "engine replacement".

Compared to the average car there have been a high percentage of replacement engines fitted due to oil drinking issues.

I still wouldn't touch one with a bargepole out of warranty an buying 2nd hand with no idea of the car's history.

No Richard "engine failures" is about the best description IMO , although I'm just biased

Mine was an engine failure (valve) - shame as it didn't have a particular thirst for oil either...

Which camp does that go in, then?

Meh - look on the bright side; it's not an RX-8...

imo i think there are a lot of good ones out there, and saying this engine has all these problem cant be true to the all the cars they have sold, im having some oil problem at the moment and have had plugs go on me, but i have now found out that there was the wrong software, so problems arose, but i love the car it does what it says on the can, i would like to know what car i would go for next, without any problems.

where in the north west are you, sharkrider has/will be part ex'ing his non oil using car and mine might be going soon enough so at least 2 cars there that you can have a full and comprehensive history of, mines had a replacement engine

both under warranty

i agree with above posts though, you need a warranty with these just to be sure, lots of things to go wrong but i have to say when they go well they do bloody go

as for the car itself, i find the handling good enough for me, fuel consumption is easily in the 40's, brakes not as good as id like but work fine

all in all you try finding a better car, same age, for anywhere near the same money

Hey everyone, just Wondered if the Monte Carlo Has any of the issue the Vrs seems too ie oil issue etc thanks

No! Monte is fine. Different engine.

Thanks Estate man, just wanted to make sure before I get mine