Hi

I am toying with the idea of buying a 1.9 TDi Roomster to replace my Fabia.  Need more space.  Is the Roomster based on the Fabia I or the Fabia II?  Does it have the same front suspension weaknesses that my Fabia I has, is what I really want to establish.  Anything else worth knowing about the car if you are looking to keep it for very long?

Thanks 

Up to the B pillar is the same as Fabia MK II. The second half of the car is based on Octavia MK I. That's why the car is narrow at front and wide at back. That weird combination gives great room for rear passengers, a vast trunk and great handling. I owned both Octavia MK I and Fabia MK I (both hatches) and I can assure you that Roomster is something else. And yes I do intent to keep it as long as it can live.

Edited 29 October, 201312 yr by stratosg

^^^ what he said. Get a RARB to give even better handling and some coilovers if that's your thing.

If you need more space, then the Roomster is your oyster. Its an amazing little bus, the useable space inside is suprising. The car itself, although a bit of a hybrid, as people have mentioned, is excellent on road holding and comfort. Cheap to run and reliable. I would seriously look at a roomie as replacement. The only thing thats criminal is Skodas lack of support for this car and I really dont know why. Its that good

Thanks guys. So it sounds like you won't have the front suspension issue that is so typical of the MK 1 Fabia.  This is good, just as much as I love my MK1 Fabia the extra cost I had on front suspension components wasn't overly welcome.  Do you guys think the panoramic sunroof will run the risk of leaking after 10 years or so?  I don't think it can actually open so perhaps that's a good thing in terms of keeping it water tight...

I will probably only consider a 1.9 TDi because I know it's a solid engine, but does anyone have any knowledge / experience with the 1.4 TDi?  Is that a good little engine or is it more problematic?   And do we know much about the newer 1.2 TDi in the greenline, or is it still too early to know anything about this engine?  I guess you will have bluemotion Polo's with some decent miles on by now.  

Cheers  

The roof is fixed as you say, so is far, far less likely to leak than an opening roof that has seals to go hard and drain holes to block...

As about the roof... Try to find one with roof rails. More practical and more beautiful.

1.4tdi is a very good engine with no known problems, I have just reached 50,000 miles on mine and never had an issue wiyh it, 55-60 mpg as long as you dont go above 70 mph. Pulls and performs very well for its size.

Edited 31 October, 201312 yr by freelanderman

Roomster 1.4 TDI is a 3 cylinder engine and has lots of design faults and the oil pump chain will snap at some point - checking the dipstick will not show up any problems!! gearbox design fault with 2nd gear will damage the box and necessitate replacement - water gets in the doors and shorts out the e/window motors cos they are not sealed from water ingress - Skoda know about this but do not recognise these problems - my relative has had a real ding-dong with them and the local dealer who sold him the car which is now scrapped (57 plate !!) due to OP chain failure.

What front suspension issues with the MK1 fabia do you speak of?? The MK2 & Roomster (pre facelift) are essentially a MK1 fabia with a skin job.

I've had a couple of new droplinks on my front suspension, but I live in an arae infested with speed humps. Apart from that, its been one of the best cars I've had. I shall miss it when my new Octavia arrives.

Hi

Jonny5ive I've read elsewhere on another forum that the Fabia 1 is known for front suspension issues and I've later discovered for myself after I spent ~£1000 on drive shafts etc.  It is over 10 years old with 136k on the clock to be fair, but still unnecessary cost in my opinion for that mileage.  1.9SDi engine, gearbox and clutch will make any other car green with envy though.  Muso listening to you the 1.4 is out of the question and it sounds like there could be door leakage as well.  The latter is also an issue I have with my rear doors.  Also something I read elsewhere to be an known issue.  But it does sound like most people are happy with the roomster.  And I recon the 1.9 should be solid.  Or should I keep mine for a while and go for a 1.6 CR Rapid?  Mmmm.....

Edited 31 October, 201312 yr by 5cylinerdiesel

Interesting. I owned my Mk1 Fabia vRS from 17,000 miles up until she had 153,000 on the clock, and have heard in the last 24hrs that it's now over 165k without any suspension problems.

Hello all, I've recently traded 1.4tdi PD '04 Fabia Mk 1 hatch at 90k miles, for '57 Roomster 1.9tdi PD in "2" trim at 57k miles, I had Fabia remapped to 99bhp, front suspension lower arm rear bushes both needed replacing, as steering felt bit wandery, it's a known fault, replacements were far stiffer (more rubber, less air) but made for very vibratory action below 2000rpm. Also cat de-gutted helps boost to come in sooner. 70--77mpg.

 

Roomster also feels bit wandery, but am told the front "console" bushes will last awhile. Had Roomster c 5 weeks, has needed new OSF window motor & regulator (£100 DMK to diagnose, £210 local garage to supply & fit; both front windows had ceased working.)

OSR (disc) handbrake assembly needed freeing up £50, and aircon needed a £29 "refresh" at DMK. Presently 54--59mpg, using Millers fuel additive, Green Cotton air filter, will switch it to Millers oil at next service, have had to change fuel filter. BTW This is a Variable Nozzle Turbo engine, does mpg benefit from a remap? Could a remap lower tickover which feels too fast? Hopefully would reduce fuel wastage in slow traffic.

 

Also awaiting fitment of two low-noise and low-rolling-resistance Goodyears to replace rears.  Both engines require cambelt change sooner not later; Roomster service book says 120,000kilometres, about 74k miles, am at 60k miles so will get it done within a year. DMK trying to persuade folk to do it at 4yrs/40k miles, presumably to keep their workshop busy!

 

I would second the advice to find a Roomster with factory-fitted roof rails, as retro-fitting them (see elsewhere in Briskoda) expensive, and is only way to enable roofbars usage. I try to avoid cars with big holes in the roof, living in a climate that does cold and wet; the giant "panoramic" roof is not my cup of tea, but try one and see....

 

Headlights on mine are feeble, awaiting pair of Philips x-treme vision H7 bulbs to perk things up, £29. Again, see discussions elsewhere in the Forum.

 

Overall, I like the Roomster, an oddball choice, very few about, versatile, nice comfy and easy drive.

And mine came with a towbar and electrics which I don't need; anyone interested? (Still on car!)

Richard

I ran a Mk1 Fabia for 135k, then passed it on to my elder daughter who took it to 210k.  I had front suspension problems (probably due to speed humps) one side was fixed under guarantee (that was under the 3 years unlimited scheme) the other side I had to pay for, but it was't too bad.  It didn't have any other significant problems in all of that time.

 

My Roomster is a 1.4TDi which is just coming up to 75k (of which I have done 60k) with a panoramic roof but without roof rails.  I have had no real problems with it.  Do you really need roof rails?  I can get my bike inside quite easily and it certainly holds a lot of stuff.  The roof rails will probably have some effect on fuel economy.  If you do have them, it'll be a bit of a lift to get things up!

 

I have averaged about 52mpg overall, we have a lot of hills in Cornwall which really don't help.  On a touring holiday to North Wales It returned about 59mpg overall.  I do tend to cruise at around the 60 mark as that seems to be the sweet spot for economy.  Going to 70 increases it by around 15%.  For the journeys I routinely make a slightly lower speed is not an issue, the increase in journey time is not that much.  If you are looking for a Motorway cruiser then something like an Octy estate will probably save you fuel

 

The Roomster may not be perfect, but from my standpoint it's less imperfect than the competition.

I haven't had to change the suspension yet, but the front console bushes needed replacing at 60k

No roof rails on mine, will be getting them retrofitted sooner or later, but I can't see them impacting fuel efficiency. if you're not carry a roofbox and take off the crossbars, the rails are in line with the vehicle and I would think any fuel consumption increase would be negligible.

If the gearbox design fault mentioned is the second gear crunch issue, it has been cured for quite a few people including me with a simple gearbox oil change.