Hello, after owning a 2005 manual Fabia for almost 20 years, it felt like time(!) to get an upgrade and I settled on the 1.5 TSI manual Karoq. The car was exactly one years old with only 2,500 miles on the clock and feels almost new :) Overall, I've been delighted with it, however, there are a couple of things quite different to my Fabia that I wanted to check about on here:

(1) I assumed I would change gears at roughly the same speed moments as my Fabia, but notice the Karoq prefers (by the sound of the revs and dash-display) to change up gears more quickly. I also notice on my parents automatic car, the gears change up quicker so maybe that is how newer engines are tuned (i.e. to improve economy)?

(2) The clutch pedal has a greater arc of movement compared to my Fabia, meaning (a) I need to push it further to change gears and (b) when the clutch isn't engaged it sits higher, making it more uncomfortable to rest my left foot on it with heel on the mat. Also (c) the clutch feels considerably stiffer compared to my Fabia.

As a result, with the quicker gear changes and stiffer clutch pedal I haven't enjoyed driving it as much as I hoped, certainly in the city. On the motorway the car sings and I've greatly enjoyed the higher view point, more comfy seats and all new gadgets in a modern car but, I do wonder if I would have been better getting an automatic (DSG). Could anyone who faced similar issues with a manual Karoq let me know how they have got on over time? Is the stiff/high clutch pedal something you've got used to and is there anything you did to help (i.e. get the pedal dynamics altered, change seating position)?

Thanks very much for any advice/help, Nick

Hello Nick, unless I'm misunderstanding you, you should never rest your foot on the clutch pedal - at the very least, doing so will cause unnecessary wear on the release bearing.

The earlier gear changes will most likely be because the turbo comes onto full boost from around 1500 rpm.

We have both a Fabia and Karoq and the seat to pedal position is quite different, the Fabia is typical small car whereas the Karoq is an SUV with a more upright seating position so maybe raising the seat height may improve the leg to clutch position. Both our cars are DSG, but the DSG is a bit “marmite” - I like Marmite and the DSG!

Hi both, thanks for replies. First of all Warrioir193, you are correct, I know I shouldn't rest my foot on the clutch pedal and once I'm up to speed I settle it to the left of the clutch etc. However, in the city with slow traffic and lights, when changing up and down gears regularly, I guess my left foot stays (lightly) on the clutch pedal in anticipation of the next gear shift? In my Fabia, this was fine but in my Karoq, with the higher clutch pedal, my left foot is bent at a tighter angle, which isn't as comfortable. I have tried changing seat positions (backwards/forwards, up and down) and will keep experimenting. I would be interested to hear from anyone else with a manual Karoq and how they find it? Maybe it's something folk get used to?

Thanks again, Nick

Edited 20 September, 202520 Sep by NickGreen

Assuming this was a recent dealer purchase, I'd make a prompt enquiry about the possibility of changing to DSG. I'm biased because I last bought a manual in 1988 & really don't know why they still exist. But if you're struggling for comfort now, that's unlikely to improve.

3 hours ago, Rbz5416 said:

Assuming this was a recent dealer purchase, I'd make a prompt enquiry about the possibility of changing to DSG. I'm biased because I last bought a manual in 1988 & really don't know why they still exist. But if you're struggling for comfort now, that's unlikely to improve.

Thety exist because they are cheaper, easier to fix if anything goes wrong, and are not appropriate for people like my wife who is terrified by the perceived lackof control without a clutch pedal. And automatics tend to beless invilving to drive. Granted, the issue of increased fuel consumption with automatics is largely a thing of the past.

On 19/09/2025 at 20:10, NickGreen said:

Hello, after owning a 2005 manual Fabia for almost 20 years, it felt like time(!) to get an upgrade and I settled on the 1.5 TSI manual Karoq. The car was exactly one years old with only 2,500 miles on the clock and feels almost new :) Overall, I've been delighted with it, however, there are a couple of things quite different to my Fabia that I wanted to check about on here:

(1) I assumed I would change gears at roughly the same speed moments as my Fabia, but notice the Karoq prefers (by the sound of the revs and dash-display) to change up gears more quickly. I also notice on my parents automatic car, the gears change up quicker so maybe that is how newer engines are tuned (i.e. to improve economy)?

(2) The clutch pedal has a greater arc of movement compared to my Fabia, meaning (a) I need to push it further to change gears and (b) when the clutch isn't engaged it sits higher, making it more uncomfortable to rest my left foot on it with heel on the mat. Also (c) the clutch feels considerably stiffer compared to my Fabia.

As a result, with the quicker gear changes and stiffer clutch pedal I haven't enjoyed driving it as much as I hoped, certainly in the city. On the motorway the car sings and I've greatly enjoyed the higher view point, more comfy seats and all new gadgets in a modern car but, I do wonder if I would have been better getting an automatic (DSG). Could anyone who faced similar issues with a manual Karoq let me know how they have got on over time? Is the stiff/high clutch pedal something you've got used to and is there anything you did to help (i.e. get the pedal dynamics altered, change seating position)?

Thanks very much for any advice/help, Nick

Hi Nick

Difficulty driving a 2024 manual 1.5 TSi smoothly (and occasionally stalling at inopportune moments) were the primary drivers behind a switch to a DSG car.

More here: https://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/521243-15-tsi-power-cutting-out/

Whilst the DSG car is an improvement over the manual we continue to find hesitation from low speed a frustration.

Hi All,

Thanks very much for your replies and suggestions. So, after giving it some further thought, I checked and noticed that the brake pedal is as high as the clutch on my Karoq and even if I switched to a DSG, this would probably still be an issue. This led to another internet search and a post on this forum came up - DSG brake pedal height (DSG brake pedal height - Skoda Karoq - BRISKODA).

In that post a forum member had the solution to use some carpet cut-outs placed under the official Skoda mat, thereby raising their feet higher (and the car pedals correspondingly lower). Intrigued, I bought some carpet off-cut and set to work copying the design and this has made a big difference 🙂 The pedals now feel a similar height to what I remember in my Fabia and, whilst the clutch is still stiffer, the drive is much more comfortable. I thought I'd post the update and link here in case anyone else has a similar issue.

10 hours ago, NickGreen said:

Hi All,

Thanks very much for your replies and suggestions. So, after giving it some further thought, I checked and noticed that the brake pedal is as high as the clutch on my Karoq and even if I switched to a DSG, this would probably still be an issue. This led to another internet search and a post on this forum came up - DSG brake pedal height (DSG brake pedal height - Skoda Karoq - BRISKODA).

In that post a forum member had the solution to use some carpet cut-outs placed under the official Skoda mat, thereby raising their feet higher (and the car pedals correspondingly lower). Intrigued, I bought some carpet off-cut and set to work copying the design and this has made a big difference 🙂 The pedals now feel a similar height to what I remember in my Fabia and, whilst the clutch is still stiffer, the drive is much more comfortable. I thought I'd post the update and link here in case anyone else has a similar issue.

Glad you found a solution 👍

On 24/09/2025 at 21:08, NickGreen said:

Hi All,

Thanks very much for your replies and suggestions. So, after giving it some further thought, I checked and noticed that the brake pedal is as high as the clutch on my Karoq and even if I switched to a DSG, this would probably still be an issue. This led to another internet search and a post on this forum came up - DSG brake pedal height (DSG brake pedal height - Skoda Karoq - BRISKODA).

In that post a forum member had the solution to use some carpet cut-outs placed under the official Skoda mat, thereby raising their feet higher (and the car pedals correspondingly lower). Intrigued, I bought some carpet off-cut and set to work copying the design and this has made a big difference 🙂 The pedals now feel a similar height to what I remember in my Fabia and, whilst the clutch is still stiffer, the drive is much more comfortable. I thought I'd post the update and link here in case anyone else has a similar issue.

Obviously make sure there's absolutely no way it could ever foul the pedals, or could be MOT issues, but great solution 😁

Whilst on the topic of manual v automatic gearboxes, has anyone else noted the lack of tractability with the 1.5tsi engine/manual gearbox? If you don't like frequent gear changes, then this isn't the car for you. I'm of the old school that prefers the more intimate connection with the engine afforded by a manual box, but my wife does rather complain about all the gear changes.

Typically, my Karoq will negotiate a large roundabout in 3rd, of 6, gears whereas my wife's 1.0 3 cylinder B-max can even manage it in 5th, of 5, gears. The Karoq demands significantly more attention to gear changes.

I agree with your comments StEdmund (and was something I was trying to explain in point 1 of my original post). With my 2005 manual Fabia I don't think I was changing gears as much in the city and, with the stiffer and higher clutch and break pedals in the Karoq, was finding it tiresome in the new car - certainly enough to make me notice and question my decision not to go for a DSG. The solution I found with the carpet off-cuts has made a big difference in terns of using the manual pedals but there still remains the increased number of gear changes in the city. Overall, I think I'm happy enough with the difference to stick with the manual Karoq. Like my Fabia (that I ran for 19+ years), I'm keen to keep it as long as possible so thought manual offered a better chance without more costly repairs down the line. However, I'm not sure if today's cars are built to last as long..?!