Hello everyone. After redundancy I have decided that for my new runaround I shall be purchasing a Fabia vRS, a car i've always coveted but now thanks to circumstance finally makes sense. I shall be taking ownership next tuesday and delighted to get what I consider to be a quite excellent little car for such reasonable money (A 05 plate silver model with 109k miles for just over 2k) so in the mean time I can arrange for insurance and attend to a few thoughts.

 

Firstly, the one thing I will be missing in my new car is Cruise control. I am aware that it is an option and can be retrofitted, where would be the best place to do this? Are the parts still readily available?

 

Secondly. I will also need a bluetooth phone system. Are the stereos you can buy off the shelf ok for fitting in place of the standard vRS stereo? Are any custom fascia plates required?

 

Finally, my car has done over 100k miles, it has had a cambelt change in the last year but is there anything else fundamental you would advise me to check? 

 

I look forward to any advice you guys may have. Really looking forward to getting hold of my new hot hatch.

Edited 7 October, 201411 yr by Colinjb

In no particular order....

 

Console bushes (front arm rear bush)

Door leaks (massive interior rain.... rather than simple condensation...)

Monitor water level in the header tank as that can be an indicator of drips from the radiator area or heater pipes or possibly head gasket issues. More likely to be the rad IMO unless you're a) unlucky or it's been tuned and used.

Ha.... Fuel filler cap closes..... Rear screen washer works.... Boot opens with both the handle and the middle button on the remote.

 

Mods I would recommend....

Cruise control - with the diesel torque it works very well.

A rear anti-roll bar.

Nets or storage options for the boot.

A simple remap to 170bhp.

Cheers for the start point Vindaloo. How easy would these things be to myself, baring in mind that my handiness level is above average. Are there any recommended parts vendors?

Console bushes and the door leak issue are fairly easy (there are threads on here outlining how to,do both)

SWMBO has had three vrs's, one with poly bushes all round, the other two without.

Personally, I prefer the poly-bushes feel, it's slightly tauter and lasts forever (ish)

I'd go for a remap from any of the main players, although read some of the comments on here, as some can have torque spikes which can reduce the life of your clutch /DMF

I'd agree about a RARB, easy to fit yourself, around £185 iirc

Cruise is about £95 for the kit, then you can fit it yourself but would need someone with VagCom to plug it in and activate it (again, check out threads using the search facility; there are members who will do this for you)

Check there aren't any leaks from the turbo hoses, and that all the hoses are connected on nice and tightly, there are many people out there who have had hose 'pop' off.

The rear door seals are a common problem, lift the rear footwell mats and have a good feel of the carpet underneath. Also check the side carpet under the plastic trim of the door sill for any water marks or signs of damp, if the mats are original they will be rubber underneath and white fluffy mould therefore will be happily nestling there if there is much dampness about.

As for the head unit, don't forget that it is a double din size, and as there is already a little shelf underneath I assume you don't want another one, so a new double din unit is what you'd require, lots to choose from and some reasonable prices out there too, pioneer and alpine are my choices but I'm a snob, lots of good quality cheaper makes to be had.

I seem to remember reading about a surrounding trim that is required in order to sit a new double din in nicely, or rather to 'tidy' it up and smooth the surround of it. I cannot remember specifics, put a search into the search function for 'double din' or have a read in the 'ICE' ( in car entertainment) section for some information on replacements.

Welcome to the forum

JRJG

Thanks jrjg, especially for the advice on the head units. Looking around there is a fair amount of choice, should be easy to find one that will allow bluetooth music streaming and hands free phone operation for a reasonable price.

 

Regarding RARB's, they look relatively easy to install, just need to find a friendly garage. 

I have now taken ownership.... First impressions.

The interior is a little dirty. Specifically the light grey cloth. Will need a bit of a clean but am optimistic that it will come up nicely if done properly. Any advice?

The steering is a little biased to the left and the handling feels soggy even compared to my old VW Passat. I'm sensing an issue with the bushes.

The power windows on both sides do not work, but did last week. Hopefully just a fuse issue.

The exterior needs a good polish, a couple of scuffs and scrapes. A sensibly priced body shop in Hampshire would be useful.

The alloy wheels are a disgrace.

The engine and gearbox are utterly sound! God she shifts..... Plus, it already has cruise control which functions perfectly.

Pictures will follow soon.

My suggestion would be a rug doctor with an upholstery tool for the interior mate. Quite a few lads have used them on here with great results I recall. Either that or a steam cleaner. Unfortunately it is just a case of staying on top of it then with it being such a light colour.

Tracking may not have been done for a while. Is there any uneven wear on the front tyres?

Power windows could just be a broken wire in the door loom. I'd start by peeling back the rubber gators in the front door shuts and having a quick inspection for snapped cables. They can go brittle over time but a dead easy fix. I just crimped mine up.

In terms of alloys you might be better off hunting ebay for a set in better condition rather than refurbishing yours?

sent from my Galaxy Note 3

Will check the tyre wear, first priority; Get it home to Hampshire from my overnight base in West Yorkshire. It's booked into the Winchester Skoda dealership for a "free" visual inspection on Thursday afternoon. (Anticipating a large list of jobs, c'est la vie.... In lieu of finding a good independent they will suffice and I have a little budget to play with.)

Will keep an eye out for some more alloys. I hope these can be salvaged though, they seem to have lost surface finish and are quite badly curbed but I hope are salvageable.

Edited 14 October, 201411 yr by Colinjb

These cars are very easy to work on mate and there probably isn't much you couldn't do yourself if you know a spanner from a tea strainer lol.

sent from my Galaxy Note 3

Good to know. This is all a bit of a learning curve after having had company vehicles for the last 7 years.

I intend to keep this car as standard as possible looks wise but am open to modifications if they do not adversely effect reliability.

I commute 150 miles a day in mine mate so longevity and reliability is top of my list along with fuel economy!

I've got eibach pro springs which offer decent ride quality but get rid of the 4x4 look of the standard springs.

The standard boost pipes have nearly all been replaced with after market items as they offer much better connections and are less prone to boost leaks.

Egr delete and oil catch can to try and keep the boost circuit and inlet clean.

I've also got a shark stage 1 remap which has improved my fuel economy believe it or not and has made the car totally different to drive (in a good way).

sent from my Galaxy Note 3

I did get a quote from a remapper in Southampton, £250 for increased torque, 163 or so BHP and a 10% mpg increase.

How much did the suspension set you back?

First things first though, sort out the soggy handling. Get the basics right before beautification/enhancement.

Edited 14 October, 201411 yr by Colinjb

Got the springs second hand off eBay for £70. I think they are £130 new off the shelf. They do pop up on ebay every so often so keep your eye out mate.

And yes sorting the basics, I totally agree. I've poly bushed the rear beam, poly front anti roll bar bushes, new ball joints and track rod ends, poly lower engine mount bush, heavy duty drop links, new drive shaft etc.

sent from my Galaxy Note 3

As promised, a few pictures.

 

 

The car. I've christened her Svetlana (yes, yes, I know....)

 

 

First hiccough, some stone chippage on the bonnet, including this corroded little bugger.

 

 

The rear bumper is also not especially well fitting.

 

 

And the wheels are bad, see the loss of surface finish here. Some also have bobbling (corrosion i'm guessing....)

 

 

There is a rather significant dent/deformation on the sill behind the passenger door. Hopefully not too pricey to put right.

Edited 16 October, 201411 yr by Colinjb

Onto the interior:

 

 

The glove box lid is badly scratched, surely easy to replace.

 

 

The air bag cover on the steering wheel is also tatty, the badge has suffered some discolouration and it's losing it's surface finish. Alongside the steering wheel not sitting perfectly central when going in a straight line (biased to the left) it provides a poor first impression on the road.

 

 

This is after my first go with some interior shampoo. Not perfect but better (Should I be expecting a pristine white or slightly off white/grey?

Edited 16 October, 201411 yr by Colinjb

Any sever stone chips I've tackled with a dab of this kurust liquid that comes in like an eye liner tube and then either touch up paint or hammerite smooth silver! Lol

Had exactly the same issue with my rear bumper. The bonding had come unstuck at either end where it had been scraped and mine had had some dodgy smart repair job done on it by available car. I ended up buying a new bumper off eBay which was solid and just getting it resprayed.

My glovebox lid has also been replaced. Bloody expensive to get a new one though, think mine was £65.

Your seats will come up cleaner with a wet vac. I've always found you get water marks when trying to do it by hand.

sent from my Galaxy Note 3

Is that a standard exhaust? It looks like it is protruding from the bumper a bit far? Could just be the angle of the photo though.

sent from my Galaxy Note 3

That rear bumper: It'll attract "crud" between the top part "liner" and the bottom part - the VRS extension. Either get it cleaned out and rebonded or fit rear mudflaps to help hold it together.

 

I don't like the look of the ding to the back of the front wheelarch. At the least I think it'd stop you fitting OEM mudflaps. The front ones actually provide a purpose in helping stop sprays of crud up the (usually passenger side) doors in winter months.
 Whatever else it needs looking at, stop rust and undersealing to hell and gone.

Vindaloo. Any recommendations for bonding compounds? 

 

The mudflaps will be done, just getting some quotes for the wheel arch panel.

 

In the mean time, Svetlana is currently in surgery, Console bushes and other suspension bushes are being replaced..... as is a front wishbone which was bent out of shape! No wonder she handled like a damp sponge.

Poor girl! Good to see she has an interested new owner.

Bet the bent wishbone was on the N/S ? Looks like that wheels had a hefty wack back thats whats possibly dented the wing?

 

The wing would need straightening by a body shop at least.

 

Little bit of time and love will see it looking as good as new. Wheel refurb will fix all the wheel issues,

Bet the bent wishbone was on the N/S ? Looks like that wheels had a hefty wack back thats whats possibly dented the wing?

 

The wing would need straightening by a body shop at least.

 

Little bit of time and love will see it looking as good as new. Wheel refurb will fix all the wheel issues,

 

Bingo. 

 

I had already had chance to clay bar the paintwork and she looked so much better for the little TLC, there must have a been a lifetime of built up cr@p accumulated on the surface. Was intending to polish her today but her needed surgery will put that on the back burner. Really looking forward to seeing how a Fabia vRS should actually handle. The power was already addictive enough.

Vindaloo. Any recommendations for bonding compounds? 

 

The mudflaps will be done, just getting some quotes for the wheel arch panel.

 

In the mean time, Svetlana is currently in surgery, Console bushes and other suspension bushes are being replaced..... as is a front wishbone which was bent out of shape! No wonder she handled like a damp sponge.

 

Not a clue I'm afraid.

Bet the bent wishbone was on the N/S ? Looks like that wheels had a hefty wack back thats whats possibly dented the wing?

The wing would need straightening by a body shop at least.

Little bit of time and love will see it looking as good as new. Wheel refurb will fix all the wheel issues,

What typical price is it for wheel refurb? Looking at their corroded state it seems some companies will not touch them.... New vRS wheels seem to be 170 pounds each new.