Hi all,

After owning my 04 vRS for just over a week now I feel I can comment on various things regarding it's ownership, specifically in comparison to my last car (and the 10 before that.

The swmbo is getting sick of me changing cars after owning the Fiesta 1.1 L, the Peugeot 405 1.9 GLD, the Cavalier 1.8 L, the MKII Honda CRX, the Peugeot 405 GLX 1.9 TD, the MKI Toyota MR2, the Peugeot 306 HDi Dturbo, the BMW E30 316i, the BMW E36 320i, the Citroen Xantia LX 1.9 TD, the BMW E36 318iS and now finally this all within 8 years.

But as this one ticks so many boxes, I doubt I'll be getting rid of it in a hurry, as opposed to all the previous cars that were always fundamentally flawed and annoyed me in one way or another.

Good points:

1. The power. After coming from a piddly 1.8 16v BMW this thing feels very muscular. Ok, on long straights sometimes I miss high revs but otherwise it's more than adequate. Hills/ sliproads are effortless and swapping lanes on a motorway is no longer a scary cog swapping affair.

Putting it down is not a problem either....I've not so far overwhelmed the Avons and made the traction control light flash.....yet.

2. The mpg. It's not quite as high as I'd expected but I'm getting about 46mpg using the brim method (390 miles from 38 litres). That's a mixture of going to work at 70mph and the odd bit of town driving and B road blatting thrown in. I think in summer this will improve as it currently takes about 7 motorway miles for the engine to warm up..... :eek:

3. The comfort. The seats are nice (albeit a tad delicate, colour wise) and there's more than enough toys (all bar an arm rest which it's crying out for). The Beemer came with next to nothing as standard but this thing has enough to keep me satisfied. Even the A/C is a godsend.

There's loads of little cubby holes for my tat, and I like the fact that the heater turns onto recirculate when you put it in reverse...silly things like that which they've thought of make me smile.

4. The handling. I was expecting far worse but this thing's not bad at all. Ok, when pushed hard it wallows a bit but for normal day to day driving it's more than good enough to keep up with most other cars. I wasn't expecting a go kart TBH....I've owned them before and they're tiring to drive.

5. The looks. I don't really like the normal Fabia.....looks a little boring for me, but this I do like. Looks agressive without being too loud. Mean yet subtle. Basically means it's sporty without the numpty up ye backside knowing who they're messing with.

6. Running costs. So far saving

Good review.

I must admit the engine noise/tyre noise isn't so much of a worry for me. I crank up my MP3 player if it gets too much, but I love listening to the engine to be honest.

Nice write up!

I've yet to try it but this might help your engine noise woes - http://www.briskoda.net/forums/fabia/sound-proofing-mod/29220/

The ride quality was something I found, and also something that plagues the Octy vRS. I think the problem lies with the dampers abilities which makes the car jarring. I'm sure some Koni FSD's would sort it though

Chris

Nice write up!

I've yet to try it but this might help your engine noise woes - http://www.briskoda.net/forums/fabia/sound-proofing-mod/29220/

Hmm...might try that. If it makes a difference to injector knock it would be good.

Only available from Seat dealers is it?

As for the dampers, most of the time it's ok, but on certain roads it's horrible.

There's a specific road between J41 of the M1 and a little village called Kirhamgate that I have to do about 15mph down as it's that bad. Other drivers plough up and down it but I'm afraid my car will fall apart if I do. :(

Probably doesn't help the already poor CD player from jumping around.

The wheels are closer to each corner too than they were in the BM and so this probably makes things slightly worse somehow....perhaps.

There are full interior soundproofing kits available for the fabia - suppose it would be a nice upgrade if noise bothers you

2. The ride. Once again, pretty bad. This things is so jarring on rough roads, of which the UK has plenty. :thumbdwn: I end up crawling down some of them so as not to lose my teeth, or my dinner. The last car had caravan tyres on (205 55 16's) but these rubber bands in addition to fairly stiff suspension have amounted to a pretty harsh ride.

I guess it depends what you are used to. After my R32, the vRS is positively comfortable!

I'll try the engine foam type stuff for now I think. Hopefully will help.

As for the ride, I can live with it, it's just a little jarring.

The BMW before was a tad soggy but the big bouncy tyres soaked up many more of the roads imperfections. This thing lets you feel them. A bit more sporty but also more uncomfortable.

I take it an R32 is a bit rough also?

Nice review.True about the mpg.I just don't know how people on here get high 40's.

As for storage,have you found the cubby under the passenger seat too? And the one in the glovebox ?(false floor).Very useful

Me neither. The fuel gauge drops faster than I would like it to even with fairly careful driving. I've yet to try pressing the button in the filler neck to squeeze some more in the tank and increase my range.

As for the cubby hole under the seat, very handy! I'll shove half of her cr4p in there like gloves and stuff that she insists on keeping in the door. And the one in the glovebox is good too......handy for extra space and hiding certain things too.

Funny you comment that the suspension is hard , most people reckon is too wallowy, and opt for a change .

As fo rthe stereo, you havent got the auto volume set have you ? ( this is a setting that highers / lowers the radis volume depending on internal noise. I had to switch mine off within a week of getting it and adjust usual Bass/treble, balance F&R + L&R . Otherwise I found the HU is good for the car

Tyre noise - just swapped Michelin fronts for Hankook Vertus (can't say anything about grip etc as they are too new and weather too dicy) and the tyre noise and rumble has dropped - considerably ( admittedly, this may partially be due to the Michelins being so worn).

Hard ride - we've some pretty bad roads locally and I find the ride firmer than the old car but not harsh. Have you tried mucking about with the tyre pressures ?

MPG - I wish. First two fillups were 39mpg, third was 42.5 - but then again we only do small trips at the moment.

Engine noise - I like a bit of feedback + am using Miller's Diesel Powerplus which always quietens diesels a little.

As fo rthe stereo, you havent got the auto volume set have you ? ( this is a setting that highers / lowers the radis volume depending on internal noise. I had to switch mine off within a week of getting it and adjust usual Bass/treble, balance F&R + L&R . Otherwise I found the HU is good for the car

How do you do this? I might have accidentally turned it on whilst trying to turn TP off.

I've not touched the tyre pressures yet. Might check them to see if they're too hard.

Don't want to harm the old mpg though. :thumbdwn:

Nice review.True about the mpg.I just don't know how people on here get high 40's.

i've got a very light right foot 631 miles to a tank the other week , filled up with 53.3 litres using vent release nipple , works out at about 53.73 mpg

Ensure tyres are inflated to the correct pressure too much and they will wear in the middle of the tyre too little and they will wear on the edges either way will be far more costly than saving a fraction in fuel.

How do you do this? I might have accidentally turned it on whilst trying to turn TP off.

I've not touched the tyre pressures yet. Might check them to see if they're too hard.

Don't want to harm the old mpg though. :thumbdwn:

Best read your manual!

But there is a setting which increases volume of stereo depending on speed. Maybe this?

"I await summer to come where I can drive down the road and not mucky up the back end, in addition to improved mpg and an opportunity to use the novelty A/C. "

Hi, Good write up glad you like your Vrs.

Its best if you use the air con during the winter as well, or at least 5 mins each week.

Thanks

Tony

I found (in my PD100) that the aircon is very good for clearing the windscreen if it mists.

Handling wise the Koni FSDs are an excellent upgrade, you can leave the rest standard but it really helps (admittedly I also have Eibach Pro springs fitted which works very nicely as a combination with the Konis).

I soundproofed my car (soundkiller) - I felt it was worth it for me as it does reduce the road noise etc quite notably. Tyre noise will remain but is a little more muted I suppose

Warming up - it's a pain, takes a bit of doing on these PDs - generally I try to clear the windows and then pretty much set off asap to get some load on the turbo & heat in the engine.

Glad you like the car, you can make it go faster etc but then your insurance goes up again I suppose