use as many big words as you like but its basic and bland

but the dash is the nicest bit of a Fabia.... mind you im not fan of the toyota dash or most Jap interiors tbh.. was the weak point of my prev Honda's. BMW and Merc seem to do dashboards better than anyone else.

i agree about that and i never said my mazda had the best dash in the wrold and my octavia is hardly any better at all than the fabia. but i didn't buy it for the dash

i agree about that and i never said my mazda had the best dash in the wrold and my octavia is hardly any better at all than the fabia. but i didn't buy it for the dash

i'm only taking the pi$$;)get it fixed:thumbup:

i know that mate

i can't wait to get the thing fixed, so i can break it again :D:D

with a mk 2 octavia you have no room to talk,the only car i've ever owned that i could fall asleep in..........whilst driving it,

Tell me about it.... I'm a "retro 90's" kind of a guy.......

> Goes off to find Oasis album

hell yes oasis,awesome,much better than those couse has beens:D

IMO the Skoda dash is better. I dislike these new fangled dashes which try to appear 'modern'. In my opinion, this is the sort of thing that will age very quickly. I think the Skoda dash is understated, functional and, above all, sophisticated. The black is the finishing touch and, when combined with the interior roof colour, really gives the whole thing a classy feel.

the mk1 Focus dash was part of Ford's new fangled new edge design wotsit, and that's still looking better than the Fabia dash at 10 years old.

the mk1 Focus dash was part of Ford's new fangled new edge design wotsit, and that's still looking better than the Fabia dash at 10 years old.

now you really are taking the p1ss, no way no how does any 10 year old ford dash look in any way even half decent,we take the p1ss out of my sister in laws 04 focus derv because it really is aweful,and next to mine even they agree it looks and feels cheap,its more like our suzuki swift dash in terms of quality,which on a 7k swift is acceptable,but on a 13k car is not.

I was always dubious about the Fabia's interior before I bought one.....saw pictures and thought "hmmm".....

But when I actually sat in mine at the dealers I didn't think it was that bad really. It's bland but chunky and fairly solid. The Jap interiors I've had in the past have been very plasticy and flimsy if a bit more interesting. The best of the bunch was my CRX dash as it had a furry feel to it, like felt.

My MR2 dash was cr4p though.

In terms of friends Jap cars I've been in, the 1998 Impreza STi dash was crap (really cheap and flimsy and it rattled a lot) and the CTR EP3 interior didn't impress either. Sure, mounting the gear **** on the dash is nice from an ergonomic perspective but the lack of a central tunnel in the floor made it feel too open. I like the cosy feel personally which is why RWD cars with a prop shaft going down the middle always feel a bit nicer to be in IMO as they usually come with a nice fat central tunnel. That's where the MR2 was nice....you could rest your arm on it.

1996 Supra dash felt uber bland considering it was such a nice car otherwise. 1999 Mazda 626 dash is bloody awful too.

To be honest I think it's one of the areas the Japs could do with improving on and where the Germans normally get it bang on. Splattering fake brushed aluminium and walnut everywhere in an attempt to make it nicer just ends up making it feel tacky and cheap.

Personally Audi is my favourite I'd say.

In terns of the Fabia dash, it's around about the level I'd expect from VAG at this price range. If I were paying 20k for an EP3 Civic I'd expect a better dash than what they came with personally and you can see Honda have tried to address this with the new one by making it very space age.

But, is it better? Opinions seem to differ.....

Not sure about the Auris dash judging by that picture, It would depend strongly on the quality of the plastics as they tend to be very cheap in Toyota's - well, in all 4 Toyotas I've driven they were. Perhaps this has been addressed in the more recent models?

Out of the 3 cars in the list at the beginning of this 'debate' I'd say it depends on budget and requirements. If I could afford to fuel and tax (band F!!!) the Civic I'd probably own one, but the lack of rear doors or folding seats with a memory does put me off a little as my last car was a coupe and a pain for passengers.

The Golfs are still too much money IMO for what you get. Sure, the dash is nice etc but I found they all had starship mileage when I was looking a year ago for the money I had (9k) but I was looking at PD's. Again, if you're looking at petrols, you're into more money to fuel them if your mileage is above average, and taxing them will inevitably be more.

is that a mk2 though gary?

personally i don't like the mk2 dash but the mk1 and facelift is much nicer than that of the fabia, the plastics might be a bit harder but how often do you caress your dash board? :P

Dashboards:confused::confused::confused:

how often do you caress your dash board? :P

Daily.....why?

is that a mk2 though gary?

personally i don't like the mk2 dash but the mk1 and facelift is much nicer than that of the fabia, the plastics might be a bit harder but how often do you caress your dash board? :P

true,and i think it would be a mk 2,i'm no focus expert,and its not bad,but it is no where near quality.

The fabia dash is bland,boring and not exactly laden with style,but it has a quality feel to it,and once the dealer re fits it,is well built ,but if you look around at all the vag dashes they are all a bit bland,dark and uninteresting,i have never claimed the fabia is the be all and end all,but i do take exception to blatent fabia bashing for the sake of it,my car is cheap,well built, performs well and is cheap to run,and for the price of a skyline turbo,map and service i have achieved a very good spec in a short space of time,i know it will never be fast in the same way as any of my jdm cars were,but i honestly believe that when i am finished it will be a match for most other cars,with the exception of anything silly,and it is a point i am willing to put to the test.

will beat anything that isn't silly eh? how about a white estate with towbar?

trax it is my friend!! :P

The worst thing about the standard Fabia interior is the seats.....god what a stupid idea putting white cloth seats in a car. Not that I care any more as leather is so much nicer.

German dashboards = Plain and functional with a generally chunky solid feel to them

Japanese dashboard = Snazzier and full of buttons and lights yet cheap feeling (and looking) and you try making them go back together if you're unlucky enough to pull them apart.....

Ford dashboards: Hit and miss. I hated the MKI Focus dash....it was all over the place and felt so cheap, yet the last Mondeo was very nice inside and the new one is lovely. If only they could be consistent.

French dashboards = Rattly flimsy things that are held together with monkey spit. You spend half your time thumping them as you drive down the road trying to make them stop buzzing...

will beat anything that isn't silly eh? how about a white estate with towbar?

trax it is my friend!! :P

I will say this only once,i will beat you,maybe not this year,time is ticking too fast to have it done by trax 08,but next year you are going down,a plan is in motion,and the car that my se is becoming is somthing you definatly will not have seen before in the uk,it requires to much work to do apparently:rolleyes:

i honestly believe that when i am finished it will be a match for most other cars,with the exception of anything silly,and it is a point i am willing to put to the test.

but its silly quotes like this that feed the "put down" merchants.... it wont beat most stuff it will beat other small hatchbacks with inferior power/torque to weight ratios.

it certainly wont beat remapped 1.8t /2.0tfsi or larger remapped diesels. or bmws / mercs / hondas / RS's / etc etc etc

as with bengie if you need a practical demonstration I have an old mans automatic diesel peugeot that will politly remodel your fabia 4rse and hand it to you on a polished platter...

that doesnt mean its a bad car but the continual "hyping" (and you are by no means the "ring" leader here....) gets a little tiresome.

but its silly quotes like this that feed the "put down" merchants.... it wont beat most stuff it will beat other small hatchbacks with inferior power/torque to weight ratios.

it certainly wont beat remapped 1.8t /2.0tfsi or larger remapped diesels. or bmws / mercs / hondas / RS's / etc etc etc

as with bengie if you need a practical demonstration I have an old mans automatic diesel peugeot that will politly remodel your fabia 4rse and hand it to you on a polished platter...

that doesnt mean its a bad car but the continual "hyping" (and you are by no means the "ring" leader here....) gets a little tiresome.

if you can't beat em join em;)and even if i don't go down the 1.8t route a 300bhp 1.9 WILL blow away MOST cars i meet on the road.

oooohhh, short of a 1.8T it ain't happening mate and i hope to god you do a 1.8T conversion as that would be awesome

oooohhh, short of a 1.8T it ain't happening mate and i hope to god you do a 1.8T conversion as that would be awesome

it may have crossed my mind:D

i do think its a much easier way to beat 300bhp, seeing as there are tried and tested methods of getting double this power

i do think its a much easier way to beat 300bhp, seeing as there are tried and tested methods of getting double this power

and the fabia in question may just be a saloon:eek:

but thats all i'm saying

Just been out in my fabia, and guess what i had a "run in" with....... A CTR .

And guess what it pulled away. But not much considering i only have 130bhp this week :(

id like to see the look on the guys face when he races me next week

Talking of dashboards, ive probably dismantled every cars dashboard at some stage or another, and the jap dashboars always uses phillips head screws to bolt everything togother..... makes a nice simple design whihc wont rattle.

french cars favour the plastic clips which always break and never go back together..

New volkswagens are poorly designed but the older stuff ie pre mk4 golf are pretty solid.

The best dashs to work on i hate to admit are the bmw stuff. Clips dont break, (apart from end clip on the E36 above radio trims which always fall appart) You always know its going to go back together perfectly.

Unfortunatly the same cant be said for the new new mini. cheap horrid plastics and poorly designed clips, they just fall appart and it takes agers to build them back up.

Was it on t'bypass?

There's a CTR round here (black one) with a HUGE can on the back. Sounds totally plop, ala Nova with cherry bomb, and the driver is a complete tit.

Was it on t'bypass?

There's a CTR round here (black one) with a HUGE can on the back. Sounds totally plop, ala Nova with cherry bomb, and the driver is a complete tit.

thats the one, massive 19inch muiltispokes, I know the guy and he is a tit,

hes gone through so many cars its unreal, 172 clio, imprezza, supra. can go on and on

Edit, no not on bypass, was coming out of wake on donny road. Just been to drop our lass off in town