After 3 years of happy, trouble-free motoring, I have just traded my Fabia for a Toledo. Sorry it's not a Rapid but the deal on this ex demo car suited my budget! The steering feels very direct and it's more eager to turn than the Fabia; the throttle is responsive and the 1.2 tsi 105 revs cleanly and pulls effortlessly from low revs; the 6th gear is great for cruising very economically (indicated 53mpg on the motorway) and the 55 litre tank will help on long trips. I am amazed by the boot and rear legroom; Mum also found the rear seat more reclined and supportive than the Fabia. Some have criticised the Rapid interior on BRISKODA but I find the dash simple and elegant and I like the grain of the plastics. There is less intrusion of the centre console than in the Fabia or even the new Octavia. Personally, I think it looks pretty nice - even classy. I am not sure how I could spend so little (10k) to get so much with any other car. The Fabia lost just 5k from new in 3 years and Skoda Insurance quoted me £75 pounds less to re-insure. Still a happy motorist (Skoda built it, even if it has a SEAT badge!) Worth a look if you need a bit more space than a Fabia? Andy.

Its good that you got one at that price, but it is a shame just how badly SEATs depreciate for those buying new..

OK if buying them as keepers.

The Toledo must have have dropped around £5,000 in 3 months if it was 10k you got it for.

(or do you mean it cost you 10k to Trade Up?)

 

Or are you saying the Fabia dropped 5K and cost 15 K in the first place.

 

They are a class up the same as a Rapid and with the similar prices to get a 105 ps Petrol or Diesel.

& Rather expensive to get an Auto.

 

george

Thanks George. Yes, the Fabia dropped 5k in 3 years and 30k miles from brand new - a pretty good result really, I felt. It cost me 3k to swap. I looked at a new Rapid on Carfile (13k) and SEAT are offering 2.5k discounts. I don't like the strategy of bumping up the list price and searching for a discount, though. In the end, I decided to go for this one at 10k rather than hang onto the Fabia and buy european assistance or extended warranty (and new tyres) and wait for the new Fabia. It seems clean and has 33 months warranty; they did the service deal at £299 for three years too. It drives well and has lots of space. Best wishes, Andy. PS Skoda are now offering a 'special edition' Rapid with sat nav and all for 13k.

The special edition Rapid Sport looks really good especially in the only colour, white.

It totally transforms the look of the car with the 17" alloys and boot spoiler.

The Toledo seems massive inside, I looked at them when I was trying to get a deal on the Ibiza FR but Seat weren't budging on the Toledo price at the time as they hadn't long been out.

Thanks Gazbull. Both special adition Rapids should be great. I looked at a pre-registered Ibiza FR but it was a bit more expensive; very nice car - are you enjoying it? The Toledo has lots of space in the back but is Ibiza underneath at the front so they probably feel similar to drive. Like the way the sat nav is integrated in the new Ibiza FR. Andy.

I love my Monte Tech which I ended up buying due to Seat not being able to get a deal together for the Ibiza. The Toledo had no offers on at the time, was about March/April last year but I was impressed with the space and the interior was miles better than the Ibiza.

I might have to go and have a look at the Rapid Sport SE to see what it looks like in the metal, it's a shame the Rapid Connect only comes with the 86PS TSI engine though.

Yes, the Connect would be great with the 105ps engine. I guess there is not too much difference unless you rev beyond 4k but you lose the 6 speed box. You can find maps of the engines on netcarshow.com at the end of the pics gallery. Andy.