After a yr of owning a ibiza 1.4 petrol and getting a pitiful 27mpg and no performance I really want a diesel. preferably a Fabia vRS of course.

I have found one in my price range and am going to have a look and a drive tommorow but here is my conundrum ....

its got 88000 on the clock compared to my Ibiza's 8000, its an 04 therefore out of warranty and has to have Mot's (the ibiza's an 06) "white" seats (i have 2 kids!) I only have 2 yrs ncb and the vRS is group 9 insurance (compared to 4)

I know it looks like i'm talking myself out of it. but I know the good points too- better mpg, 55 more bhp, torque-o-rama and the ability to overtake without gearing down and the engine screaming!

I'd just like a few opinions. cheers guys.

Go for a bit of a compromise, and perhaps a newer 1.9 TDi PD100 Elegance with less mileage? More kid friendly interior, could be remapped to about 135-140bhp? Lower insurance bracket etc.

Might be worth considering. What's your budget?

Steve

well, basically I owe 6700 to the finance company and could probably get about that for my car (seat offered me 6000 to take it off me- if I went for another brand but 6700 if I stuck with Seat - ie. fr tdi/tdi sport) the vRS is 5995. basically around 6-7k budget.

Just make sure it's a tidy and genuine car.

Be prepared for a couple of the common faults such as leaking rear door carriers, sticking flap motors and front ARB bushes.

If you have VAG-COM take it with you and check it out, you can read off the mileage as well.

mmm, the condition of the vRS has to be the cruncher... when I sold mine it had 78,000 miles on it.... at that point it needed:

1)Cambelt service (a major service, (brake fluid change too) and cambelt change

If you can try and stretch to a lower milage VRS.

Its just the handling that lets it down for me.

That can always be improved you know

Eibachs, and preferably some uprated dampers, will improve things quite a bit. Then add in the Jabba rear ARB

Steve

Test drove the vRS yesterday and was amazed by the punchyness and the "torquey" pull it has!

Mucho rapidness! the suspension felt similar to mine and the layout inside was much the same so i felt quite at home until i put my foot down.

Very tempted, If the guy had offered a decent amount for my Ibiza i probably would have taken it.

It was well looked after - a fleet car with one owner and always serviced. No vibrating gearstick or funny noises that i could hear.

If a Fabia is still in this condition at almost 90k then if i can find one with lower mileage i'll have no worries for a good few years (hopefully)

Get rid of your finance, get a bank loan, and buy a slightly newer vRS, with lower monthly payments.

A VRS is a decent choice but I'd try and look for a lower mileage car if I was you.

They do seem to hold up well but I'd be happier with a car that's less likely to need expensive servicing work on it.

I have looked into that Snoopie.

I can't seem to get a loan that beats the monthly payments on my finance as its a PCP where i only have to pay half for 3 yrs then a lump sum at the end. basically im just paying off 4k over 3 yrs where as if i got a loan it would have to be for 8k to sort out finance sell ibiza and fund vRS.

hmmm i just confused myself.

A VRS is a decent choice but I'd try and look for a lower mileage car if I was you.

They do seem to hold up well but I'd be happier with a car that's less likely to need expensive servicing work on it.

I went to the local VW garage and enquired about a lower mileage Bora or Golf but they are way out of my price range (dealers prices of course) I'm still on the hunt!

I should really get a bigger car anyway as i have the kids and all the shopping etc. Octavia 1.9 mbe?

Have you thought about a Mk1 Octavia?

You can get them with a PD130 engine same as the fabia VRS from an 03 plate in Elegance trim or 54 plate in Ambiente SE.

Decent performance (though obviously the extra weight will make it a bit slower than the furby) and good economy with plenty of room.

The easy way to tell them apart from the older design TDI 110bhp is the gerabox. All the PD130s have a six speed gearbox instead of the five

personaly i think the Fab is crap as far as a TDI goes. It runs 100% the same as my old 1.8astra. I know the fab has a huge turbo and is 130bhp(well 140bhp really according to awesome-gti rolling road day) I just expected more MPG than my older astra.

And if i was you id want a lower mileage car, my dad passat(same engine as the VRS i believe) sounds GOD awful but runs 100%, And its never been booted and its got a service history as long as your arm.

Also each cars different, so if it drove well and sounds well, and has the service history go for it.

TBH

In retrospect (we've a Fabia vRS) I wish I'd perhaps gone for a 1.9 PD Fabia and then remapped it. Why - the suspension / tyre combo.

90% of the time it is fine but the 10% is the really rough roads - and then the Fabia vRS is really uncomfortable, bangy crashy.

Part of this, obviously, is the more sporty setup - part is the low profile tyres.

Personally, not being a 'cornering' freak, I'd sacrifice some grip / flex in the sidewalls for the comfort from a higher profile tyre.

The rest of the car is brill - build quality, grin factor etc.

An ideal combination for us (again in retrospect) would be a Fabia Combi remapped (+ for an 'estate' I think they look brill). For a family one of these would do - but then again an Octy 130PD would be very similar, less harsh - suspension wise, and have an enormous boot.

Have some more test drives, try some rough roads, think of boot space.............

That can always be improved you know

Eibachs, and preferably some uprated dampers, will improve things quite a bit. Then add in the Jabba rear ARB

Steve

So Ive read. Reason I havnt done it yet is I wanted it to remain standard as possible so the insurance doesnt jump up.

But I am tempted!!