I'd disagree there - the Fabia has really poor ride and handling out of the box IMO. Inadequate suspension (out of cheapness one assumes) combined with 16" wheels (a box-ticking 'feature') is the worst of all worlds. The handling is at best predictable - you can predict that you will end up in a hedge if you press on too much.

If it had been me I'd have given it 15" wheels for a touch more comfort and better shocks - leave the lowering to the modders who want to slam their cars.

But then Audi's are often accused of having far too harsh a ride too. You really can't please all of the people.

I shouldn’t have used a capital at the beginning of the sentence you quoted, as I did not mean it to sound a statement, more of an open ended question. Still I wonder how much time and money was spent trying to sort the car before it went into manufacture. I assume they tried similar settings to the ones that you guys often end up with and rejected them for various reasons. I am not against modding, I have spent countless thousands over the years doing so, but sometimes wonder at my wisdom in doing this.

I see Grumps is on the warpath and therefore I would like to retract my earlier question

Hmmmmm.

I have asked this question myself..

If you want a fast car, buy one,

Ditto economical car.

Ditto car that handles superbly.....

Now feck orf and stop irrititating happy Skoda owners ( or even happy BMW owners )

I like Amandas car, but I can't afford one.

I like my car because it's paid for, and it does its job.

my wifes car suits her and she likes it ( today ).

Ho Hum.

Hmmmmm.

I have asked this question myself..

If you want a fast car, buy one,

Ditto economical car.

Ditto car that handles superbly.....

Now feck orf and stop irrititating happy Skoda owners ( or even happy BMW owners )

I like Amandas car, but I can't afford one.

I like my car because it's paid for, and it does its job.

my wifes car suits her and she likes it ( today ).

Ho Hum.

Oi Grumpy B0llox, I was trying to start a stimulating discussion on the subject of modding. Hopefully without everyone becoming very defensive and having a pop. I would love to mod my car but BMW have very clever software and I have a feeling they would easily detect remapping and such like. Personally my number one mod would be to sort out the bl0ddy runflats as they run such stupid high pressure they destroy the ride quality. Ho hum indeed:P

Didn't know you had a diff Gary - you havent mentioned it

I shouldn’t have used a capital at the beginning of the sentence you quoted, as I did not mean it to sound a statement, more of an open ended question. Still I wonder how much time and money was spent trying to sort the car before it went into manufacture. I assume they tried similar settings to the ones that you guys often end up with and rejected them for various reasons. I am not against modding, I have spent countless thousands over the years doing so, but sometimes wonder at my wisdom in doing this.

Was I too direct? I wasn't saying you're wrong, just that I don't think the manufacturers make the best compromise with the customer in mind - not always anyway. And that's not withstanding that from time to time they just make mistakes and really bad cars. Of which the Fabia isn't one, obviously

Was I too direct? I wasn't saying you're wrong, just that I don't think the manufacturers make the best compromise with the customer in mind - not always anyway. And that's not withstanding that from time to time they just make mistakes and really bad cars. Of which the Fabia isn't one, obviously

Not at all, I just realised I hadn’t been too clever with my grammar. Your point is well taken. I don’t know if I have a set view on the matter, but I am curious as to why I and you guys, have modded cars. I have never been sure if I really knew what I was doing. I just thought, ‘oooh that looks good, I’ll do that to my car and it will be better’.

jasc think u maby actually wana look on that site and tell people the whole story, the guy said the strut brace DOES make a bit of a difference and as for the rarb, i have one on mine and it made a difference but hardly anything to right home about, dealer technicians r extremely highly qualified and folk on here get enuf of a slating by them as it is because of people like you!

Well there is that thing of making your car 'yours'. When you chat to someone with a nice car you often ask early on "what you had done to it" (though perhaps with better grammar).

It's true what other people on here have said also, that doing jobs on your own car (tools and talent allowing) makes it feel more your own. I can point to my big brakes and say "I did that"...

"which is why it's wonky".

Well there is that thing of making your car 'yours'. When you chat to someone with a nice car you often ask early on "what you had done to it" (though perhaps with better grammar).

It's true what other people on here have said also, that doing jobs on your own car (tools and talent allowing) makes it feel more your own. I can point to my big brakes and say "I did that"...

"which is why it's wonky".

jasc think u miby actually wana look on that site n tell folk the whole story, the guy said the strut brace DOES make a bit of a difference and as for the rarb, i have one on mine and it made a difference but hardly anything to right home about, dealer technicians r extremely highly qualified and folk on here get enuf of a slating by them as it is because of people like you!

No he said the RARB does nothing which was contradictory to what i'd heard

And he said the Strutbrace made a big improvement which was also contradictory to what i had heard, i heard it did very little if anything.

Supose i'll have to get them myself then i can have my own opinion

in my eyes the guy had a valid point as it made hardly any difference to my fabia, he also said it made a small difference not big dont twist the guys words when hes not here to stick up for himselves, i find the guys at the local dealer very helpfull and with alot of knowledge, something not be shunned i feel.

I have the ARB and can say that the drive home after it was fitted was the most fun I'd had in the car since I bought it 3 years previously. But what do I know - I'm not a Dlr t3knishun.

it seems this guy also owns a fabia so to him maybe they do handle great if hes not a trackday warrior, we aint all boyracers

in my eyes the guy had a valid point as it made hardly any difference to my fabia, he also said it made a small difference not big dont twist the guys words when hes not here to stick up for himselves, i find the guys at the local dealer very helpfull and with alot of knowledge, something not be shunned i feel.

Okay, words were not twisted were copied directly from the thread. Which whichever way you look at it does clash with the consensus around here and general opinions to the RARB. Was just checking guys thoughts on here of the RARB and the opinions do seem to clash.

But i supose the only way for me to find out is to experience it for myself, be it in my car or a run / go in another.

Guys say here the RARB helps with the snap off understeer - which sounds fun

Eibachs reduce body dive - fact, and quite significantly so

Koni FSDs improve the damping very significantly whilst maintaining good comfort, better than standard by a LONG distance - fact.

Rear arb changes the behaviour rather significantly and makes the car corner more 'flat' - absolutely and very noticably so. However you have to watch it as the lots of understeer thing goes & if you overcook it you're got some trouble.

16" wheels - I would agree, mostly for looks and I dont rate them that highly.

Why isnt it fitted standard - probably as the car 'off-factory' is a good compromise to get a fair performance/price/comfort/handling trade-off. That said, stuff can be improved very significantly.

With the right tyres the handling is decent but not great as standard. And having gone through the same changes again with the estate, believe me the difference is not only noticable, it is rather a big difference (and a positive one) with the handling improved beyond recognition compared to standard.

The comments about lowering and camber etc are however extremely valid. If you could get progressively wound springs that were not lowering, they'd be a good alternative too.

The front strut brace does tighten up handling a smidgen, but that's not as noticable as the rear ARB (or the rear strut brace for that matter).

And if he wants to know about diff's he can ask Gary

Has Gary got a new diff? Actually now I think about it, he may have mentioned it in passing

Chris

WTF!!!! I spent £220 and never noticed the Jabba Rear ARB was Shxxte.

Seriously take this youngsters comments with a pinch of salt, the rear ARB is worth every penny. The Fabia is now on par with a Peugeot 306. (I have both)

Has Gary got a new diff? Actually now I think about it, he may have mentioned it in passing

Chris

And there was me thinking i was special being the only one who knew

oh well just dont see the point of slagging off some1 on here, do it to his face not behind his back it just gives the site a badlook!! the rarb made a small improvement on mine but nothing to shout about. Thats my opinion and its different to many others on here, is that an reason to attack me though just because my opinion is different? i think not.

oh well just dont see the point of slagging off some1 on here, do it to his face not behind his back it just gives the site a badlook!! the rarb made a small improvement on mine but nothing to shout about. Thats my opinion and its different to many others on here, is that an reason to attack me though just because my opinion is different? i think not.

B044acks.

The rear ARB makes a massive improvement. End of. Troll

Guys say here the RARB helps with the snap off understeer - which sounds fun

That doesn't sound fun at all :eek:

That doesn't sound fun at all :eek:

Hmm maybe not when your going through a hedge back-wards but sounds better than understeering into a hedge forwards :rofl:

the rarb made a small improvement on mine but nothing to shout about.

Really? I mean, everyone has their own opinion and experiences will vary, but having spent the money doesn't it puzzle you as to why your experience seems different?

What tyres do you have, and have you really tried stuffing it into corners fast - enough to try and force understeer? (I'm not suggesting you drive like a maniac, just that it's when pushing that the changes become most noticable )

*wonders if he's feeding a troll*

Having been out in a vRS with and without a RARB, I can say imho it makes a very big difference. The car sits much flatter through corners and feels much more composed. OTOH, the front strut brace makes next to no difference and I'd not waste my money on one again.

The big difference the springs and dampers make (aside from making the car look less like an offroader!) are that they control the pitching and diving which allows better traction under acceleration and braking.

JMTPW

Chris

to be honest i aint bothered really, its got pirelli's on it, thatl prob start another war:P

everyones got different opinions, i thought thats wot this site was about? not slaggin folk for having a different opinion, i dont think it made a huge difference but i aint saying anyones talking b00locks!