Hi there, I have a 2004 Mk1 vrs, standard other than a forge DV.

 

I bought her from a Skoda dealer in 2009 at 32k miles, she had one owner prior to me and had Skoda FSH. Since I've owned her, I did maybe 50k miles up to 2011 which were on the motorway until I had much shorter commutes to work. She is now on 104700 miles, and still has FSH from Skoda and Independent garages. I have dropped the oil every 5k miles since owning her and she has had the gearbox oil, cambelt, waterpump and oil pickup changed.

 

I am conscious she needs money spending on her: the suspension is seriously soggy only having front arms changed last year that I know of. Cosmetically there are maybe 3 minor scuffs and 3 of the alloys could do with a refurb. She has a sticky rear wiper motor, a rusting wiper arm and needs a good valet. I am replacing breather pipes at the moment.

 

I may be emigrating in early 2015, these cars are not worth a lot now. Is it worth shelling out on pro-sport coilovers, droplinks, top mounts, rear bump stops, rear beam bushes and a tidy up etc to sell it? I guess what I am getting at is she is on high miles and would somebody buy her?

Edited 13 March, 201412 yr by thebrasso

It's really up to you to decide. Do you want to keep the car for a while?

If so the investment in making it right is worth it, and probably cheaper than moving to a newer car, which might have its own issues.

Plus you'll get the benefit of a more fun, safer handling car.

You won't get back your investment when you sell it, that's the reality with cars, especially older ones.

 

If you are going to be emigrating and just need the car the be reliable until then I'd do the minimum cost repairs to keep the car safe and maintained.

You're not going to get a lot for it either way.

Well, my '51 plate is on 135,000 miles now, and here's what I did back at around 100k:

 

New, OEM Skoda shocks and springs (after faffing about with aftermarket stuff which just made the car harsh and crashy over bumps) which cost me about £400 from a main dealer, and £0 to fit on my driveway.

 

The bushes all round were / are still in good condition, so with just a suspension re-fresh with stock stuff, the car was tightened up nicely, without feeling like some ridiculous road racer.

 

 

My wheels could also 'do' with a re-furb...but to be honest, when they're clean and had a layer of wax, plus some Meguires on the tyres - they look ok, and so far, I've still put off the £300-odd cost of a refurb, because they scrub up ok. I reckon that if I WAS going to sell my car, that it would sell ok without spending on a wheel refurb.

 

 

Mine also has a few 'minor scuffs' - but again, after a proper wash, polish and wax - they don't look so bad, and again I would probably try to sell with them, just pointing them out in the advert. I did ask a SMART repair place how much to sort them out, and got a quote of £295. If I did advertise the car and it put off a few buyers, then maybe I would spend the money.

 

 

Rear wiper - a new arm from Skoda can't be more than what - 20 or 30 quid? Or even a used one from Ebay? And with regard to the sticky motor - this is an easy fix, even for an amateur - I did mine a few years ago. Basically, the washer fluid runs through the middle of the motor (a ridiculous design) and eventually leaks fluid all inside the motor mechanism.

 

So, it's easy to remove the motor, pop it apart, and clean out all the rusty crap inside, all over the gear cogs. Then re-build with copious amounts of grease, re-fit....and never use the rear window washer again! I've certainly never felt the need to use mine, and as we are 4 years down the line from when I stripped and re-built it, the wiper motor is still going strong, without hesitating or being sluggish.

 

 

Hence, I think you could get away with spending very little to re-fresh your car, and get it to a very useable, sellable condition - without going bananas. Coupled with your nice service history, she should then sell for a fairly decent price, and give her new owner a nice, solid vehicle going forwards, no?!

Thanks for the replies. My car is due an MOT in Aug 2014 and I will be honest I think the suspension may cause issues.

 

I think from reading, my cheapest option might be pro sport coilovers, mercedes vito drop links, new front top mounts, probably ball joints, bolts, and rear bump stops and rear beam bushes parts wise for about £450.00, then get some help fitting them. Maybe a few other bushes as well and a rear anti roll bar.

 

The over side of it is at the moment it handles like poo, and can't put the power down like it should.

FSH is everything these days - folk are keeping their cars longer and will buy a decent used motor with full history. I'd make minimum investment to keep it solid on the road and cruise through MOT

Mine made it to 201000 before being rebuilt and as Rob mentioned above it's probably still better than moving to a newer car as you know it's history - that was my outcome rather than bin a good vehicle (I've every nut and washer receipted since new)

You could still rebuild the suspension to stock for less which may aid a swift sale when the time comes. Good luck either way.