Going for an older Fabia

[guineapig]

Hi all,

 

Been a lurking member for years now, but could really do with some advice.

 

I currently have a 2015 1.4TDi Fabia (new model shape)  on PCP and it’s coming up soon towards the end of the lease April/May next year. To be perfectly honest, it’s not been the most pleasurable car to own, it’s had a few bits replaced / fixed under warranty amongst other things and  the DPF has a nasty habit of regenerating every 150 miles or so.

 

I’ve been offered a very good price on a 2011/2012 registered Fabia 1.2 TSI, which is in quite good condition and I’m suspecting that in the current climate, any trade in value over and above the guaranteed final value / final payment of the 1.4TDi isn’t going to be that great and I’m not going to get much return from it. 

 

So, I’m thinking of cutting my losses (if any) and trading down to the cheaper petrol option as the car is only really used to do a round trip of around 50or so miles to work 3 or 4 days a week and if this summer is anything to go by, it’ll only get used once a week as I’ll bike to work the rest of the week.

 

i did have a 2009 Fabia before getting the new one and kind of regret getting rid as I felt the old style MK2 Fabia was built hell of a lot better than the latest one and didn’t feel like the bonnet or roof was flexing when I washed it!

 

So, after a lot of back story, my question is:

 

Is there anything I need to look out for on the older Fabia? As far as I know, it’s the standard 1.2 TSI 84 Bhp (Elegance model), so not aware of any problems with them, but any advice or knowledge would be gratefully received.

 

The fuel and road tax costs are going to be higher, but cost wise it’s going to be cheaper and I presume it will be maintenance wise as well (have a good independent Garage / mechanic that knows Skoda inside out).

 

Cheers!

[Rooted]

You are going to have to gen up on Turbo Shim and Timing Chain Tensioner and see when there was Service Campaigns, TPI's or Upgrades applied and if the 1.2 TSI you are looking at was affected and any possibly issue rectified.

Briskoda Search function should help with that.

[LeeSaunders]

While we're on the topic, don't know if you'd be interested in a Fabia Special Edition Hatch 1.2v 69hp Petrol Manual 5 door 64 reg. It has 14350 miles on the clock currently and is full main dealer service history with one service still in hand I believe from a service contract. It's in very clean condition as would be expected from such a low mileage vehicle. Anyone interested let me know and I'll email photos. I live in North Essex.

I'll be asking 5950.00 for it. The car's never missed a beat and my wife and I have been really pleased with it, only selling as we want to go over to an automatic, but will still be sticking with Skoda Fabia

Lee

[sleeper77]

When I had my 2008 Mk II Fabia, the most common issue I encountered was the steering alignment. It needed more maintenance & adjusting than other cars I have owned. I spoke to a mechanic & he confirmed to me that Fabias & VW Polos have this a common recurring issue since they both share identical parts. Maybe better uprated bushes would solve this. When going for a test drive, pay attention to the steering input, direction & any unusual play. 

Also the steering angle sensor had a fault just when I was about to trade it in. Don't know how common of a fault this is, & whether the steering alignment issues played a role. 

A wheel bearing needed replacing which made a slight grinding noise when taking corners.

After I got my old Fabia, when checking the service history I found out that it had the engine changed. I can't remember for what reason stated, although would not surprise me if it were to do with the oil consumption issues. Mine was a 1.6 petrol & it was replaced maybe three years after the original owner bought it from new. 

Apart from that, my old Mk II Fabia was a solid car even though it had low mileage, maybe about 36000 miles before I part exchanged it.