vRS test drive

[Nemeliza]

Phoned up my local skoda dealership to enquire about skoda finance packages ... now im test driving a vRS this sunday and having my current car valued for a P/E.

But seeing as i have nothing to lose, what should i be looking out for, any niggles?
I'm aware of engine stuttering for >05 vehicles, should i be looking for a certain RPM range for this to happen?

I need to change car in the next few monts due to starting a new job and the SERIOUS mileage i will be doing (hence phoning for finance details), but MAAAAN did that salesman get me good!

[Kerry]

About 1800rpm, or 30mph in 3rd, or 40 in 4th. Ease off and gently re-accelerate - that should do it. Only applies to November '05 BLT engine codes onwards.

[sharkrider]

listen for knocking from the suspension over bumps......

[PEMBO]

Originally Posted by sharkrider

listen for knocking from the suspension over bumps......

Its a tell tale sign that there is someone in the boot

[sotonjoe]

FWIW my impression of Skoda finance was that the typical rates offered were pretty dire. If you have any sort of respectable credit rating, you should be able to secure something better yourself.

[lfc958]

would reccomend looking around on the interweb for the best loan deals, there are some half decent ones around at the moment, a lot better that SUK offer.

As a starter check out these:-

Cheap Loans | car, personal & secured homeowner loans - moneysupermarket UK

Find the cheapest personal loans in the UK

MoneyExpert.com - Cheap personal loans & cheap secured loans in the UK


Otherwise see what your bank can offer.

[ScoobyChris]

Originally Posted by sotonjoe

FWIW my impression of Skoda finance was that the typical rates offered were pretty dire. If you have any sort of respectable credit rating, you should be able to secure something better yourself.

Agreed, the other advantage is that the car is yours so if you need to sell it on for whatever reason, there will be no outstanding finance to worry about turned up by an HPI check!

Chris

[tonto kowalski]

Why look for the stutter?
If it's so bad,surely it will make itself apparent without having to look for it?

[Nemeliza]

Thanks for the advice.

I have been looking at loan deals online, but i wasnt sure what sort of rates SUK offered.
If they cant offer me something competitive then i will seek alternative means.

tonto makes a fair point, but seeing as i'm already aware of it i am already likely to be looking out for it. However thats not to say that it will definitely bother me.

[sotonjoe]

Originally Posted by Nemeliza

Thanks for the advice.

I have been looking at loan deals online, but i wasnt sure what sort of rates SUK offered.
If they cant offer me something competitive then i will seek alternative means.

tonto makes a fair point, but seeing as i'm already aware of it i am already likely to be looking out for it. However thats not to say that it will definitely bother me.

They won't offer you something competitive, trust me. Hire purchase will be approx 8% apr (don't be conned by them trying to quote low 'flat' rates) and the pcp will be approx 10%.

If you have a 'good' credit rating you should be able to secure a personal loan at 6%.

The only way that the Skoda deals will seem competitive is if your credit rating isn't good enough for you to secure one of the better deals from other lenders. Car companies aren't as fussy who they lend to in my experience. However, if this is the case, the lenders might be trying to tell you something.

[Nemeliza]

I have looked at loan rates and i dont have bad credit so i'm not really interested in anything > 6.5%.

Oh well, no harm in test driving the car anyway. Havent driven one before

[TDi Vrs]

ive got an apr of 4.8 with my suk deal which i fort wernt to bad compared to wot loan companys were offering when i was looking around

[Nemeliza]

Originally Posted by TDi Vrs

ive got an apr of 4.8 with my suk deal which i fort wernt to bad compared to wot loan companys were offering when i was looking around

4.8 is good, best i have found for a loan is 6%

Was this after special request or did they just offer it to you?
Also, do you know if this offer was only for new skodas?

[TDi Vrs]

come to think about it i think it might just be for new ones, but i couldnt find a loan company to match it.

[sotonjoe]

Originally Posted by TDi Vrs

ive got an apr of 4.8 with my suk deal which i fort wernt to bad compared to wot loan companys were offering when i was looking around

I would be very interested in seeing confirmation of that. As far as I know, Skoda UK simply don't offer rates as low as 4.8% APR. Are you sure you're not getting confused with the flat rate?

The lowest rates skoda offer are 5.5% which is available on the roomster and octavia vrs currently I think.

There were a few deals on the last few standard vrss that were sitting around a while back but they've long since expired. Do let me know the details of your package!

[Nemeliza]

Had a test drive today, drove a 54 plate vRS so wasn’t any stutter as I was expecting. It was very nice to drive, comfy and goes something - I need that 3rd gear in my life!
The dealer also has a LTD edition vRS which was VERY NICE, and now I have seen it I want it … DOH! The leather seats are very comfy and I love that blue.

As mentioned their finance sucked, the dude said ~7% but I worked it out to be more like 13%APR so we may have had a communicational issue there. Not too much of a problem though I can get finance elsewhere for ~6%APR

Only problem is that the dealers prices seem to be a little on the steep side.
They want:
£9995 for a 54 plate, red, 30k (a bit much?)
£11495 for a 06 plate, black, 26k (were they not 12500 new?!)
£13000 for LTD Edition (fair enough?)

What are your thoughts on this?
& if you don’t mind, what did others pay their vRS? (price, age, mileage)

[Offerman]

I got 0% Interest Free on my 07 Plate Fabia vRS from my Skoda Dealer. I thought that was pretty much commonplace on new Fabia vRS's? Is there no mention or offer of that?

[ScoobyChris]

Originally Posted by Nemeliza

Only problem is that the dealers prices seem to be a little on the steep side.
They want:
£9995 for a 54 plate, red, 30k (a bit much?)
£11495 for a 06 plate, black, 26k (were they not 12500 new?!)
£13000 for LTD Edition (fair enough?)

What are your thoughts on this?
& if you don’t mind, what did others pay their vRS? (price, age, mileage)

Just had a quick look on Autotrader within 40 miles of my house and the first hit was red 54 plater with 33k miles (plus xenons, cruise, Clifford alarm, bluetooth kit) was advertised at £7890. Obviously you never pay the screen price, so see what the best deal they can do you is (if they're flexible it might indicate the price is a little on the optimistic side )

Chris

[P-A]

Originally Posted by Nemeliza

£9995 for a 54 plate, red, 30k (a bit much?)
£11495 for a 06 plate, black, 26k (were they not 12500 new?!)
£13000 for LTD Edition (fair enough?)

What are your thoughts on this?
& if you don’t mind, what did others pay their vRS? (price, age, mileage)

Yup those prices are a little steep! I'd say the 54 plate is worth about £8300, and the 06 plate around £9400. The SE seems fair - the dealer probably won't discount much on this one due to demand.

[sotonjoe]

Just to clear up what some people have been saying about Skoda low-rate finance packages on this thread.

I've done my research and have remembered that there were some deals offered by Skoda in the Spring on the last few remaining ' new' Fabia Vrss sat around. I seem to remember there was a 0% and a 4ish% with various different little perks attached (different deposit levels and free servicing etc). These were only available on the leftover stock of the first gen vrs and weren't applicable to orders for the SE.

I expect some people may have picked up a decent little deal around that time if they weren't interested in the SE. Just to put things in perspective though, the OP's experience is in line with what we would all expect from Skoda and their standard finance packages.

On the prcie front, of course the dealer prices are steep. I paid less for my new 06 VRS than the sticker price on the 06 mentioned. I also got more back on insurance than that when it was written off six months later. Make sure you try to get a good deal, but be aware that they may hold a little firmer than they would have before the model was discontinued.