Anyone switched from a MKIII Diesel VRS to a petrol?

[purephotoni]

For the last year or so I have had a 2015 diesel VRS, really liked the car but this was the first diesel I have owned and while I liked the lower running costs I hated the diesel taxi noise.

 

So anyway yesterday I found this for sale and have decided to trade in my car and go for this instead. 

 

 

It's a 2018 245bhp.

 

As well as getting me into a petrol which I prefer, the radio/entertainment system is a lot better than the basic one that was in my old car, small thing I know but I really liked the larger screen. It also has 19's were as my old car had 18's. I also like the new seats as well. My old car was also black and I much prefer the Meteor Grey.

 

 

The car is already bought and will hopefully pick it up tomorrow evening. Is there anything I should look out for in the petrol version that wouldn't have been a common issue with the diesel?

 

 

 

 

[Kenai]

7 minutes ago, purephotoni said:

Is there anything I should look out for in the petrol version that wouldn't have been a common issue with the diesel?

 

Speed Cameras 😀

 

(Joking in case any diesel fans get upset!)

 

Looks a nice car, whether you realised it or not when buying, it looks to be the original spec 245, so gets a few extra toys as standard such as the electric memory seats, power fold mirrors, front park sensors etc. You'll also find Sports dials in the infotainment system with it being the original 245.

 

There's not a lot that causes issues with the petrols, waterpump/thermostat leaking is relatively commonplace so keep an eye on your coolant levels from time to time but otherwise mine has been fantastic.

[MATT0693]

I have been looking at switching from my diesel to a petrol, I miss the refinement of a petrol car.
I do around 15-18k a year though, not sure I could cope with the fuel bill with half the economy.

 

Plus, the petrol models tune very easily.... the diesel doesn't so was a wise choice for me.

 

 

[purephotoni]

1 hour ago, Kenai said:

Speed Cameras 😀

 

(Joking in case any diesel fans get upset!)

 

Looks a nice car, whether you realised it or not when buying, it looks to be the original spec 245, so gets a few extra toys as standard such as the electric memory seats, power fold mirrors, front park sensors etc. You'll also find Sports dials in the infotainment system with it being the original 245.

 

There's not a lot that causes issues with the petrols, waterpump/thermostat leaking is relatively commonplace so keep an eye on your coolant levels from time to time but otherwise mine has been fantastic.

 

Yes, I had noticed those extra's I had assumed that all the newer cars had them, happy days! The sports dials with the boost gauge etc. are pretty cool.

 

I will keep an eye on the coolant as you suggested, thanks.

[ahenners]

6 hours ago, MATT0693 said:

I have been looking at switching from my diesel to a petrol, I miss the refinement of a petrol car.
I do around 15-18k a year though, not sure I could cope with the fuel bill with half the economy.

 

Plus, the petrol models tune very easily.... the diesel doesn't so was a wise choice for me.

 

 

 

I bought my petrol VRS doing 15k a year. My long term average was close to 40mpg, with mid 40s achievable on my commute. I'd expect the diesel to be 10-15 mpg better under the same circumstances, but it's nowhere near double.

[MATT0693]

That's not bad going! If I knew I could average 35-40mpg i would make the switch. I just know I'd spend money on tuning.

 

I've averaged 57mpg over the last 2.5k, It will return mid-high 60s on a run.

 

Swapping to the diesel dropped my fuel bill by nearly £2k, based on my last car getting 28mpg.

[purephotoni]

33 minutes ago, ahenners said:

 

I bought my petrol VRS doing 15k a year. My long term average was close to 40mpg, with mid 40s achievable on my commute. I'd expect the diesel to be 10-15 mpg better under the same circumstances, but it's nowhere near double.

 

That seems pretty good.

 

My diesel VRS on longer journeys could do just over 65mpg I was expecting around 30 odd with the petrol. I guess we will see should be picking it up tomorrow evening, can't wait, like a kid at Christmas!

[VRS_White_Hatch]

My diesels were never that economical anyway, last one was BSR stage 2 tuned, if you drive enthusiastically they aren't brilliant.

 

I've had the vRS just over 2 years now and my MPG is showing as 30 long term. mainly short trips and I like to use the power, it has benefitted from a superchips +55bhp and a pipercross panel filter, so a shade over 300. I wouldn't buy it if your concern for economy is greater than your driving enthusiasm. It's been faultless so far, tyres swapped to Dunlop Sport Maxx made it much quieter road noise wise. Servicing is easy if you don't mind getting under the car yourself. 

 

I buy another in a flash if they didn't have so many glitches with the latest model. Last petrol car before the voltage takeover??

[roaddetective]

Here is an example of my petrol VRS fuel economy. I took a photo of it the other day after a drive on a variety of roads from Oxfordshire to west London. Not too bad, although it was a steady morning run. Hit heavy traffic on the M25, so that dropped mpg a little. I do drive around 18k miles a year, but my "personal" choice will always be petrol, regardless of the extra cost. Of course, if I start to really enjoy a drive, it does drop down somewhat. 

[ahenners]

1 hour ago, purephotoni said:

 

That seems pretty good.

 

My diesel VRS on longer journeys could do just over 65mpg I was expecting around 30 odd with the petrol. I guess we will see should be picking it up tomorrow evening, can't wait, like a kid at Christmas!

 

I've hit 50 on longer runs in my TSI, which again probably ties in with my previous guess of up to 15mpg more in the diesel. I think you may be pleasantly surprised. The refinement and enjoyment for me far outweighs the marginal fuel cost difference.

 

New car pick up is always a good day, enjoy and post back with your thoughts!

 

[purephotoni]

Does anyone know which version of the infotainment system will be in a 2018 245 VRS?

 

 

[ahenners]

38 minutes ago, purephotoni said:

Does anyone know which version of the infotainment system will be in a 2018 245 VRS?

 

 

 

It will be MIB2.5 either Columbus or Amundsen. If it's the interior pic you posted earlier in the thread then it's the Amundsen.

 

Edited 10 September, 2021 by ahenners

[purephotoni]

I picked up the car yesterday afternoon. I was driving up to pick up the new car and drop of my old one and I felt a slight bit of buyers remorse. The diesel was such a great car, that only lasted about 2 minutes though. As soon as I started heading home in the new car and found an open road I had a huge smile on my face. Very happy with the change back to a petrol car. All the little things that have been "changed/upgraded" from going from a 2015 diesel to a 2018 petrol are nice improvements. The driving experience is very different and is of course the biggest change, Took the "scenic" route home and took so much time my missus phoned to find out where I was. 🤣 

 

The new car is an absolutely mint condition for a used car. I looked at quite a few other cars before making my mind up on going for this one. A petrol VRS is quite rare in Northern Ireland, there was any amount of diesel versions for sale but in the whole of N.I there was only 2 MKIII petrol cars for sale. The other one was a 230 in rally green but I probably couldn't have lived with the colour of that one, although I did take it for a test drive etc. it only had 12k miles on it, but wasn't in as good a condition as this one. Just small things really it had a few tiny car park dings, the wheels needed a refurb, it also looked very used inside. The dealer I got this one from said the previous owner was very fussy and it really shows, it really is just like a brand new car.

 

Before deciding to stick with Skoda, I looked at E class and C class Mercedes, 3 & 4 series B.M.W's, Golf R's and a few Audi A5's and A6's but I just preferred the Skoda. The Golf R was great to drive but just didn't have the same practicality as the Skoda. Also took a Focus ST3 and a Audi S3 for a drive as well but they were both too much like boy racer cars for me and at my age I just thought I would look silly driving either. 

 

I wanted a car that had decent performance but also needed some practicality I use the car for work as well and have a lot of camera equipment to carry around and this one ticks all the boxes for me, although I did seriously contemplate a BMW 330i which was also good in terms of performance/practicality  but I have never had much luck with pervious B.M.W cars I have owned and maybe I am weird but I also preferred how the Skoda looks, especially the interior, seats etc. even though the B.M.W was full leather. I would have loved an M3 and found an absolute cracker with red leather etc. but it was well over my budget and while I could have stretched once I had taken this car for a test drive my mind was made up.

 

The  colour of the new car is proving to be a bit polarising with some people not liking it at all, I really like it though. I let my brother take it for a quick spin yesterday evening and even he was impressed which is a bit of a feat as he is used to driving much higher spec cars and changes his cars like other people change their socks, he currently has a BMW I8 and a Lamborghini Gallardo.

 

 

Edited 11 September, 2021 by purephotoni