Buying a Superb

[MattGreen]

Hi all.

Due to a yet to arrive new addition to my family, my fabia vrs is going to have to go. Having had a look around at all sorts of cars I've decided I'd quite fancy a Superb II.

My budget isn't huge, up to £7k so I won't be able to get the pick of the crop, but ideally I'd like a 2.0tdi cr se or elegance. Not too fussed if it's 140 or 170 or dsg or manual.

I have a few questions for your wise minds if I may?

What should I be looking out for in terms of signs of a bad buy? Any particular rattles from here, or knocks from there?

Is the manual actually more economical than the dsg (I read that somewhere) and which is likely to be the better option on a higher mileage car? Will the dsg suffer higher maintenance costs?

Does anyone happen to have the car of my dreams waiting on the drive ready to sell?

I test drove a 170 se dsg on Friday and was mightily impressed at the quality feel. It ticked all the boxes apart from the general wear and tear. Alloys were ruined, had a ding in it, hadn't even been cleaned out by the dealer and the steering wheel didn't point in the right direction when going straight so I lost confidence in the dealer and walked.

Any advice would be much appreciated.

Matt.

[silver1011]

At £7,000 you'll probably be looking at either an early model (2008>) or a higher mileage examle.

 

There are loads out there so take your time and wait for the right car to come along.

 

Personally I'd avoid the DSG, not because it isn't good but if they go wrong then they can be expensive to put right without the back-up of a warranty.

 

The Superb is pretty reliable so you just need to be checking out the usual suspects, DMF (Dual Mass Flywheel), DPF (Diesel Particulate Filter), EGR (Exhaust Gas Recirculation) and the turbo.

 

This thread should be of use, an interesting journey!

 

http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/305572-found-a-car-that-will-be-a-no-then/

 

As with all used cars service history is essential. Oil is the life blood of the engine and turbo so the more fresh oil it's hard (regardless of current mileage) is a huge bonus.

[Bristolf2b]

I personally would't buy a DSG.

Check the usual things on a higher mileage, has the cambelt been changed, check for rear disc corrosion, check the drivers seat in partcular for wear etc.

[MattGreen]

Thanks guys.

[MattGreen]

That was one hell of a read. Luckily I have time on my side. There's a fair few in budget on auto trader. Maybe I'll post some I'm interested in up tomorrow.

I'm definitely looking at 2008/09 cars, possibly pd instead of cr.

How are the pd engines?

[MattGreen]

This one looks pretty good for the money and is the sort of car I'm after.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201408076424501/sort/atcustom/postcode/hp218fq/radius/1500/make/skoda/model/superb/price-to/6500/page/1/usedcars?desc=1

Any thoughts?

[Superb170]

Try go for the 170 if possible. They will all be common rail from 08 on as opposed to the 140 which was PD up to 2010. Big difference in refinement versus the 140. Make sure that everything is working especially in higher spec cars as there are a lot of electrics on the elegance for example . Worth getting though if everything works okay (which they should BTW as there should be no reported major issues on electrical).

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Danny 57]

I would go for the manual six speed in as high as spec as you can and have patience.

[silver1011]

Another vote here for getting a CR rather than a PD, even if you have to throw a little more money at one.

 

I own both a PD140 (in an Octavia) and a CR140 in my Superb.

 

Whilst the engine in the Octavia is great, the Superb is simply in another league.

[MattGreen]

How do the cr's cope with high mileage? I know they are more expensive to fix, eg. Injectors.

I guess it's like any other, regular good servicing keeps them going. Bad servicing will kill any engine.

[numskull]

How do the cr's cope with high mileage? I know they are more expensive to fix, eg. Injectors.

I guess it's like any other, regular good servicing keeps them going. Bad servicing will kill any engine.

Quite and that's exactly the reason you have to have FSH, to ensure that the servicing has been undertaken.  

 

If you could push your budget to £9k, as at just now on AutoTrader you have a choice of 14 Elegance with a mileage as low as 62k!

[silver1011]

A Superb here with more than 200,000 miles on it, with a list of costs to date too...

 

http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/363496-pending-high-mileage-big-ticket-expenses/

 

I'm on 80K and cover 30K a year, I'm very much looking forward to the next 200,000 miles of trouble-free motoring!

[MattGreen]

Thanks for the replies so far. I am definitely looking for a good fsh. Good as in I can see they're regular and more than just oil and filters have been changed.

I was disappointed with the one I tested as it had a service every 10k miles which was promising but there were little bits that I could see I would have fixed if I cared about my car. No confidence in it.

I'm trying to decide between spending all of my budget on a high mileage cr 170 if I can find a good one, or saving a bit of money from the budget and getting a pd with less miles (and maybe remapping it if it proves reliable for a few months) I'll carrying on pondering it as I search the interwebs.

I think I could forgive the pd engine if the car is in good enough nick with the right mileage. I've driven the 170 cr at least so I can easily compare.

I had an audi a4 1.9tdi a few years back with 115bhp and that was OK I guess. Big change from the 1.4 twin charger I have now though.

Do you think it's worth considering the 1.8 tsi at all? Are they thirsty?

Edited 14 September, 2015 by MattGreen

[silver1011]

Not necessarily thirsty but suspect reliability when it comes to oil consumption...

 

http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/266114-18tsi-and-20tsi-engine-failures/

[MattGreen]

Woah I thought the 1.4 had a bad rep...

Thanks for the heads up.

[Hudson01]

Interesting post as i have been lurking around and looking at either an Elegance or an L&K, Prob a 2009/2010, with the CR engine.... but i do want DSG.

[dustrat]

My previous car was Superb Elegance 140 bhp DSG with all the bells and whistles. Could not fault it. I had it regularly serviced and only minor problem was reversing sensors and I had front suspension links changed at 90,000 miles. Apart from general wear and tare  service items, nothing major.Changing gearbox box oil and filter is recommended every 40,000 miles, not a DIY job as has to filled from underneath. It never missed a beat in 120,000miles I did  until my brother in law borrowed it. Some how he managed to put in reverse gear whilst in forward motion, don't ask me how. It was an expensive repair down to driver error but that should not put you off buying one.I have now downsized and have an Octavia with DSG and would not go back to manual change again. I live in a hilly area and mpg  in local area was not fantastic about 28 mpg but on open roads near 55mpg to 60mpg keeping with in speed limits. The Octavia being a lighter car does a lot better. Would I recommend buying a Superb, yes , but with full service history. Do I miss my Superb, yes very much so. Buying on Ebay always remember 'buyer be where'. Better off buying from dealer making sure you get guarantee . 

[MattGreen]

Thanks for all the info guys, it's all very much appreciated.

It was dawning on me that finding the right superb for the right price would turn into a bit of a journey. I had a look around on auto trader and saw a local car. I went to see it last night, put a deposit down and pick it up on Monday. Happy days.

It's in good nick, full service history, passed an mot on Friday with no advisories and has done 96k miles.

It's a BMW 325d touring m sport. Who'd have thought?

[100andthirty]

Good luck, hope you don't live to regret the comparative lack of space

[silver1011]

It's a BMW 325d touring m sport. Who'd have thought?

 

 

No more using the indicators from Monday then!

[MattGreen]

Haha. Nope.

No more letting people out at junctions and a reasonable cruising distance behind someone on the motorway can now be measured in hair widths.

I used to have an e46 330d and loved it. So after a test drive it wasn't a hard sell for the guy.

[silver1011]

Just kidding, enjoy!

 

Is the 325d a four or six cylinder?

 

BMW make absolutely stonking 6 cylinder diesels.

 

I used to have an E46 320d and really wish I'd gone for the 330d.

 

[MattGreen]

The e91 325d is a turbo straight 6. It's actually a detuned 3 litre and I believe is an updated version of the e46 3 litre diesel. I'm hoping with the solid nature of that engine and the low stress nature of it being detuned it should run forever.

It has got less space and may not be quite as efficient but they are just a dream to drive. 200bhp and over 300 ftlb torque. If I really throw caution to the wind and remap it, it maps to the same power as a mapped 330d I think.

I drove my old 330d all the way up to about 35 mph and into 5th gear once without touching the accelerator. Just clutch and idling torque!

[Bristolf2b]

I had an E46 330d touring. Great drivetrain and steering, disapointing space and quality of interior build compared to the equivalent Audi I replaced it with. I sold it to my partners brother after a year. They ran it for another 8 years and an additional 140k miles with no major troubles ( apart from it's appetite for tyres)

Edited 16 September, 2015 by Bristolf2b

[silver1011]

I suffered with the (now common knowledge) swirl flap issue on my 320d. Ruined the engine.

It kind of soured my brief BMW experience, another reason I should have gone for the 330d!