Hi folks,

I am currently looking at Fabias as my poor old Felly is getting on a bit.

I've been looking round at 'comfort' and above as I was wanting Air Con, one, for me as it gets feckin' hot in summer sat in traffic. Two, because I sometimes have to transport birds of prey so need to keep 'em cool.

A couple of garages I've spoken to are not over-enamoured with the air con, saying it is prone to leaks as it doesn't get used in winter and that it needs re-gassing every year or two. They've also said they bring with them their own set of problems and generally make the car less reliable.

These are Skoda garages I've talked to so I am taking them a little more seriously than the local grease monkeys.

So, put simply, what have you guys found? Are they a PITA? Do they cost a lot to keep running? Or is it worth having and problems are over-exagerrated?

Bear in mind, any car I have is gonna be doing at least 14-16K a year and sat in traffic queues a heck of a lot, (I work in Manchester, nuff said).

I've seen a couple of cars with about 33,000 on the clock for a decent amount of cash, (i.e. within me budget ), normally 2001 / 2002 models.

Any known problems, things to look for etc? Info on all that stuff also gratefully taken on board.

The Fabia is gonna have to go some to match the Felly, she ain't fast, but after 140,000 she's only failed on me once, blown coil at about 120,000

I may well hold a "leaving party" when she goes. :P

Do these Skoda dealers have some Fabia's without air con to shift by any chance?

FWIW, I would never buy a car without air con now. The Fabia system is clutchless so it is always being driven which helps to protect the seals in the winter months if you decide to switch the a/c button to off. My A/C stays on all year round as it helps dry out the air in the winter months, as well as cooling the car down in the summer months. Main problem with the system seems to be the Evaporator Temperature Sensor which is about £30-40 to replace, but is located under the top of the driver's side dash so the dealers will quote you for removing the entire dash. Our resident Master Tech however, posted a way to do it with the dash in place so it's now a "1 spanner job" In terms of regassing, it should be done every 2 or 3 years and will cost in the region of £60 and is an hour's work - plenty of specialists out there too. MPG-wise you may save 1-2mpg without air con, but I think it's worth the cost to be cool and comfortable

Oh, and try selling a car without a/c in a couple of years time!

Chris

Air con is a god send and once you have it, you won't want to be without it.

I use my air con all year round, not just in the summer months.

IMO, it is an essential item to have these days, whether buying or selling.

Personally i wouldn't be without aircon nowadays. Not only does it keep you cool in the summer it is really usefull in the winter/damp days for demisting the windows!

I've never had a problem with leaks on my old car, 9 year old pug 306 and you know what pugs are like for reliability. Only had it regassed once during that time and it still works fine. The trick is to use it at least once a week to keep the system lubricated and working fine.

Only had the fab since march so cant really comment on the reliability of it long term but had no probs so far and it gets used a heck of a lot and it works very well! Dont really notice and considerable drop in performance or economy when using it either.

Out of interest do the dealers you've been talking to happen to have a couple of models without aircon knocking around that they are trying to sell you?

A couple of garages I've spoken to are not over-enamoured with the air con' date=' saying it is prone to leaks as it doesn't get used in winter and that it needs re-gassing every year or two. They've also said they bring with them their own set of problems and generally make the car less reliable.[/quote']

Regassing is more like very three years - certainly not ever year.

As for problems , well there is something else to go wrong but it's not a major concern and they are generally nice and reliable.

Sounds to me that they have some cars without aircon that they really can't shift in this hot weather so they are trying it on

Air con every time. You will regret it if you don't

Wife had a basic 1.4 mpi classic before the vRS.We made sure we paid for aircon/alloys / black paint as extras.Worth every penny the aircon

3 years of trouble free air conditioned motoring.As above,seems like they want to offload some warm interior cars

Cheers, I've been reading the comments over at

http://www.carsurvey.org/review_66352.html

...and it sounds like a litany of disasters. Kinda making me nervous as the Felly has had sod all but wear and tear replacements over the decade I've had her. Ya know, worn suspension, brakes, exhausts. I know you're more likely to get the folks who are pi**ed off to write up so I'm kinda balancing it.

Got my eye on a silver one, about an hour or so drive away,

http://atsearch.autotrader.co.uk/www/dealerservices_photoad.asp?did=13925&pageid=2&id=200629243646361

That sounds about ok to me, couple of others i've seen on Auto-trader too.

Any more things I should watch for when I go to check them out?

Don't think that silver one has air con does it? Btw, with your mileage, you might want to look at the 1.9 TDI in 100bhp guise

Chris

Any more things I should watch for when I go to check them out?

Depending on the engine fitted, your car may be due for a cambelt change if it is either approaching 60K miles or it's over 4 years since it last had a new cambelt. Since the cambelt service is the expensive one, it will be an additional expense if it hasn't already been done. Maybe a point worth haggling over.

Aircon everytime. BTW check the rear suspension on the silver one. With a tow bar been fitted and that (probably preaching to an expert).

My Fabia 1.4 16V estate is 2 years old now (19000 miles) and it has not had one problem. Great car, nice and comfy, great drive and looks nice too. Still think air con is an essential that most people look for and it's only going to make way for an Octavia, which will have climate control.

What is the major difference between the two by the way - air con and climate control?

Don't think that silver one has air con does it?

Chris

DOH! silly me.

What is the major difference between the two by the way - air con and climate control?

Climate control is inteligent a/c. It controls the amount of air coming into the car in order to keep the interior at a pre-selected temperature. Basic a/c just cools/warms the air and does not control how much air comes into the car.

There are two types of climate control - manual (climatic) and auto (climatronic). The Fabia comes with manual climate which basically adjusts the ratio of hot/cold air pumped into the cabin to try and maintain the set temperature. Unlike climatronic, It has no control over fan speed or which vents are used to achieve the desired temperature. Both can operate with or without A/C but will only be able to cool to the external ambient temperature if a/c is off...

Chris

Delete me.

Do these Skoda dealers have some Fabia's without air con to shift by any chance?

Exactly my thought when I read the first post!

Glad I'm not the only cynical person on here. But I'm a salesman so its allowed - what's your excuse?

i would never buy a car without air con ever again.

Main problem with the system seems to be the Evaporator Temperature Sensor which is about

Any chance of a link to the "one spanner" method and I might try and fix it myself.

I think you found it as I just replied to your post on it!

Chris

Daft question,

Can Air con be fitted "after the fact"? Ya know, if I found a good 'classic' do/can Skoda garages the air con as an 'upgrade' or is it only something that can be fitted at the factory on new cars?

I know on the classic shape Impreza's "factory fit" air con was actually fitted by a specialist company once the car reached the UK. I guess you'd have to approach a dealer and see what they said - it's certainly feasible to do, but whether it is cost effective is another matter - it's probably cheaper in the long run to just buy a car which already has it

Chris

Retrofit sounds like an expensive option but it ought to be possible in principle. That said it may cause some fun with insurance companies, so you're probably better off trying to part-exchange it or flog the car privately instead.

Aircon is on most of the time, although I do drive with windows down, sunroof up (and aircon off) when cruising through towns at 30mph. Anything over 40 mph and the aircon is back on

i would never buy a car without air con ever again.

Ditto!

I have a regassing kit for a/c from Halfords. Have not used it on my Fabia apart from to measure the pressure which was >100psi. Are these DIY gassing kits safe to use on a Fabia?