jbwrx300

Just about to order a Fabia vRS on company car scheme to replace the outgoing scoob . Worked out a saving of around £300/month in total (most of it will be in fuel)

But my only dilemma, Silver or black?

As I posted last week, I was going to go with an A3 or A4 TDI S/Line but in the end couldnt justify nearly £24k for what is a glorified golf or passatt. After looking at varius VAG cars I very nearly ordered a passatt until I visited Skoda last night and test drove the Fabia vRS.

Crikey, what a car. Fair enough not the most refined in the world but when comparing it to the others I looked at, I could not believe that VW and Audi have the bare faced cheek to ask such a ridiculous premium for their badge - it is truly a scam which I cannot believe they get away with.

Best news of all is that the Fabia should be that cheap to run and own, any money saved after the wedding is paid for will be going towards the new MY07 STI cos i'll have done 60,000m in 2 years time so will be able to ditch the company car!

(and I have had permission for this from her indoors due to sacrificing my current scoob for her )

So all in all not a terribly bad experience - just have to sell my scoob now tho!

Nevetas

black

Vrs150

Good choice, i drive a fabia Vrs and its a brilliant car for the money. Did a 300mile round trip last saturday and got a 52mpg avg and wasn't exactly hanging about on the motorway...can't argue with that

It does make most other vag cars seem like a complete rip off TBH, especially when you look at the suspension/brakes/under the bonnet and every single part has an audi/vw stamp on it!

If you don't know yet: good info on briskoda.net

edit: black is nice but why not get a red one, looks ace and is much less common.

Andy M3

Hello

I also have a Fabia, and i went black because they don't have colour coded door handles / bump strips but do have colour coded bumpers, which looks odd. So thats why i went black.

i am sure you know how good the Fabia is on fuel, but you would be pleased to know that on the track [i.e as bad as it gets] the fabia dropped to a mere 30 mpg !!!

I batter my car lots and lots and achieve 37 mpg.

Good luck with your choice.

p.s order cruise control

jbwrx300

Cheers Andy - I had already printed my order form and had typed out Metallic silver - but I just realised that what you say about colour coding is correct - I just couldnt put my finger on why I was not entirely sold on silver.

I've had cruise control on other cars in the past, and whilst I see the theoretical benefits I have never actually experienced any benefits from using it, and in fact found it distracting so will pass this time.

Have already come to a cosy arrangement with the dealer about fitting eibachs, and apparently I should be able to take delivery in early September as the fleet supplier has loads in stock. I've also already got a set of 17" RS4 replicas which I might put on if the fancy takes me.

Andy M3

only other bits of advice then would be stick to -25mm max for 2 reasons. The weight on the front of the car is quite high for it's size, and once you go beyond -25mm it starts bouncing too much and suffers on ride and handling. The other thing, is the sump is very low and can easily catch if it is -40+mm.

But with 17's it should knock it up a touch and prove to ride spot on.

one other thing. I think IMO custom-code.com is the daddy for VAG remaps at the mo. Nice smooth torque band pushing beyond 300 lb/ft for most of the useable rev range and peaking around 175hp.

Enjoy the car.

Andy

Simon S3

But you`re not comparing like with like, a Fabia doesn`t compete with any Audi, and it certainly doesn`t compete with the Passat................

But you`re right, the Fabia vRS is a cracking little car.....I`d go for silver.

kbsub

Nearly ordered a vRS but found out it won't accept a tow bar , thought the cabin was bit bland but a cracking drive all the same , in the end bought myself an Audi A4 1.9TDI 3 years old and 56k miles and still feels like new and the cabin is a much nicer place to be as well I love it , best car i have ever had

P.S. I would have gone for red

RS Grant

Saw one of these in a supermarket car park the other day... and if I was in the market for a quick wee diesel hatch then I would go for one of these in black with the subtle drop and big wheels. The one I saw even had Xenon Lights?!



They've certainly come a long way!!!


Cheers,
Grant

logiclee

I'm also another ex-scooby and now Skoda owner.

Have a look over on www.briskoda.net

Cheers
Lee

DarkForce

Same here - fantastic car.

Chris

p.s. Heated seats are a bargain at £125

Mossman

Had one for a year and then traded it in with the Westie for the Elise Fab car and really miss it!
However, TT company motor goes shortly and have just ordered a Superb - you would not believe the spec! Heated rear seats, memory electric seats, Zenons etc etc SatNav and leather etc and all standard! Marvellous!

Mossman

matchmaker

Black.

DarkForce

Oh and red looks the best

DavidBrown

Unless you really really love washing your car lots, go for silver.

Petem95

Thats a pretty serious spec, imagine the cost if you bought an Audi and added all those extras to the already high price!!!

As for the Fabia I reckon I'd go for Silver, but black would be a close second. Very smart looking little cars those vRS's.

Reffro

I've just got a silver vRS, my mate has black. Black is a nightmare to keep clean, as so much road muck gets thrown up at the car off the tyres. The rear soon looks filthy and there aren't any mudflaps currently available for rear arches of the vRS.

But I will admit black does look very nice when clean........

Oh and cruise control is a good idea, the car gathers speed easily with the slightest flex of a toe, it can be a struggle to hold a constant speed.

Jamescsti

I'd go for black.
I've seen yellow one's too, not my cup of tea though

jbwrx300

Fortunately the cleaning issue on a black one is not too much of a problem for me. I drive over 400 miles per week to work over country roads, so find it only pays to wash a car once per week irrespective of the colour.

At weekends I dont really venture out much so a wash on a Friday night on way home from work should do the trick.

Just read the Autocar long term test, and I am really genuinely looking forward to owning one now. I dont think I've ever read a more positive review. I've also scoured t'internet for reviews and all are very complimentary.

dtriggs

I'm another ex scooby vRS driver. I bought Silver and havent cleaned it in 3 months....still looks good !!!

I got a remap the other day from Revo - not a great fan of modifying to be totally honest but this actually made the drive much smoother, power just keeps coming all the way through the rev range, and consumption has actually improved a touch, which is strange. Came with a switch to revert to standard map too, to avoid difficult questions at the dealer.

Overall I love the car and am very pleased. Hoping to compliment it with an Ariel Atom in the winter, but that's another story...

Fabioso

I've got a Fab and I think its great. I've owned alot of faster cars in the past and after a while the running costs and tw@ts wanting to key it got me down. The Fabia is only a little hatch, it isn't particulrly beautiful but the shape grows on u. The drive is excellent, it isn't quick by fast car standards but it makes you feel like you are going quick.....the in gear acceleration onto a motorway for example is excellent. I have never driven a car thats as economical and fun as this is. The quality in the cabin is really good imho, I haven't heard any squeeks or rattles in just over 3500 miles.

For the money its fantastic, its a pratical, economic hatchback without feeling like you've had to totally compromise on quality or making progress.

I can imagine that eibachs, a brake conversion and chip would make the car sublime. I would urge anyone who is curious to have a test drive and see for yourselves just why alot of people are so positive about this car.

Mossman

Well said Fabioso!

dtriggs

Well said Fabioso - the car is not designed to be a ***** out racing hatch - but it's pretty fast, handles reasonably, and is very well built and solid, with wonderful economy. It's great for those of us who have compromised on comfort, economy and build quality for so long in the quest for ultimate speed.

Having said that now mine is remapped it is really quite quick.

jbwrx300

As this is going to be a company car, i've managed to get the nod on springs and wheels but not too sure I will get away with a remap - despite really wanting to get it done after all the great things i've heard. Never heard about switchable between maps before- wonder if I could get away with this?

How much was it - as i am very interested, as I will have to own the car for at least 60k, it will certainly liven things up somewhat.

streetbeats

Another here

Sold my modded UK300 yesterday and picked up a brand new BM Fab vRS

ahhhh fuel economy

streetbeats

still gutted tho

matchmaker

My Octavia vRS has a switchable remap by Star Performance - you get a module that plugs into the OBD port. A bit of button pressing and within 2-3 minutes you're back to stock or vice versa. Unplug the module and thats that. Cost me £499 but its now £599.

For the Furby vRS its £575.

Several tuners do this. Star are at Star

dtriggs

My Remap was from REVO - which is the most popular switchable one. It does cost £700 though, and comes with a similar switch that plugs into the OBD port. I have been very impressed. The new code is added to the ECU, leaving the standard map as well. The switch then tells the ECU what code to use. Accordingly totally undetectable. I have told my insurance company anyway as they only wanted £50 extra for the year.

Over 60k you would really appreciate the extra urge. Makes driving the car more easy as the power is available lower down. Also has helped my economy.

Stu_WRX

I too an am ex Scooby now two VRS owner.

Done a few mods on mine, including a tweak in with ECU courtesy of the nice people at Jabba. Audi TT 312mm Front brakes, Seat PD160 Intake, MOMO SeatSport Strut Brace and I've just finished fitting the Eibachs today.

I've organised a Rolling Road day on 28th Augs if anyone wants to drop by and see what they can do.

http://www.briskoda.net/forums/t3290...e-rollers.html

Mat Mc

Count me in!

Traded my 02 WRX in for a brand new Silver vRS in March 05 and really couldn't be happier. I personally think the build quality of the Skoda is better than the Subaru (flame suit on). Only in the sense of general feel, shutting the doors etc. The paint on the Subaru was so thin it would break my heart everytime I washed it and found another scratch or chip.

Saving in fuel, don't get me started! I look forward to fill ups so I can work out how much I have saved. From new I have'nt dropped out of the high 40mpg's. Even with the rising cost of Diesel I'm still happy. 260 miles to 50 litres of fuel vs 410 miles to 40 litres of fuel!

The Fabia really is a genuinly fast car. The 0 - 60 time doesn't really do it justice. It feels faster than the Impreza because the torque is so low down it just takes off in any gear. Cruising at high speeds on the motorway is also a pleasure with 70mph at around 2000rpm in 6th.

I really do recommend going for the Silver as IMHO it is the best colour, don't know why but it reminds me of the silver Audi TT's? It will also hide chips and scratches better.

Enjoy your new car, you will always be a Scooby driver at heart!