Roomster 1.6 Tip

[Johnwg]

Hi, my Dad is currently weighing up if he should stick with his 3 year old VW Touran 2.0TDI DSG and shell out for an extanded warrenty or maybe look to swap it for a new Roomster...

He's impressed with the looks of the Roomster, however the only problem is he requires an auto box and the only option is the 1.6 Tip. Now considering he's currently got a 2.0TDI he's conserned about a) the drop in performance and b) the drop in mpg....

Any members on here care to share thier views on the 1.6 Tip in terms of both performance and mpg?

I'd imagine that he'll be looking to test drive one soon, but would appreciate any feedback so he has more of an idea of what he should expect

[lrddth]

It's not such a good idea to get a car with less power than your previous one, imho.
I got a 1.6 Fabia mk2 with a manual gearbox. It's pretty fast, but 105bhp are not enough. If the car would've been heavier (as the Roomster), those 105bhp are nothing.
My advice is to extend the warranty or swap for a new Touran with the same engine or a more powerful one. In my country the Touran comes with the 2.0TDI 140bhp and the 2.0TDI 170bhp. If yours is equipped with the 1st one, then the 2nd one would be a nice increase in power, even if the mpg drops a little.

[skodayouth]

Originally Posted by Johnwg

Hi, my Dad is currently weighing up if he should stick with his 3 year old VW Touran 2.0TDI DSG and shell out for an extanded warrenty or maybe look to swap it for a new Roomster...

He's impressed with the looks of the Roomster, however the only problem is he requires an auto box and the only option is the 1.6 Tip. Now considering he's currently got a 2.0TDI he's conserned about a) the drop in performance and b) the drop in mpg....

Any members on here care to share thier views on the 1.6 Tip in terms of both performance and mpg?

I'd imagine that he'll be looking to test drive one soon, but would appreciate any feedback so he has more of an idea of what he should expect

Iv'e got the 1.6 Tiptronic, the old fabia 1.4 auto was poor but they really got it right this time.

I doubt you will find a better autobox in this class of car, goes quite well and fuel economy is good (30-34) if you go easy. Makes a nice noise too!

I beleive it's one of these: AISIN AW CO.,LTD./For FWD Vehicle AT

So good stuff!

Edit: Just not as good as a touran though, I'd keep the Touran!

[Johnwg]

Originally Posted by lrddth

My advice is to extend the warranty or swap for a new Touran with the same engine or a more powerful one. In my country the Touran comes with the 2.0TDI 140bhp and the 2.0TDI 170bhp. If yours is equipped with the 1st one, then the 2nd one would be a nice increase in power, even if the mpg drops a little.

Problem is he only has his Touran plus a few £k to play with so an upgrade to a similar speced 170bhp TDI Touran isn't an option

My parents are in their 60's so this is a classic down-size case

[Decron]

You won't really have any issues with the power. It will be a bit of the pace of the Touran but it will also be a lot more chuckable and will probably handle a lot better

It is a downsize situation but I doubt he will be disapointed. Best get a test drive booked!

[Johnwg]

Originally Posted by Decron

You won't really have any issues with the power. It will be a bit of the pace of the Touran but it will also be a lot more chuckable and will probably handle a lot better

Only thing is mate, said Touran has been tweeked

I suppose the key question is, would a 1.6 Tip be able to deliver 40mpg on a motorway run of 200 miles + ???

Like you say the best route foward is a test drive....

[Decron]

Originally Posted by Johnwg

Only thing is mate, said Touran has been tweeked

It won't compete then. I am not sure of the tuning options for ther 1.6 but I doubt there many.

Originally Posted by Johnwg

I suppose the key question is, would a 1.6 Tip be able to deliver 40mpg on a motorway run of 200 miles + ???

Thats possible. It also uses a far cheaper fuel now which given it's sometimes 10p pl cheaper in some places then it will make a big difference to running costs

[OctaviaT81]

Originally Posted by Johnwg

Only thing is mate, said Touran has been tweeked

I suppose the key question is, would a 1.6 Tip be able to deliver 40mpg on a motorway run of 200 miles + ???

My Roomster 1.6 manual gets around 40 on a motorway run, and although autos often use more fuel, the Roomster one is 6 speed so I suppose should cruise at slightly lower revs than the manual?

[Johnwg]

Originally Posted by Decron

Thats possible. It also uses a far cheaper fuel now which given it's sometimes 10p pl cheaper in some places then it will make a big difference to running costs

That was what I was thinking, however sure I've seen posts on here claiming that the 1.6 would require 98+ ron to gain max benefits

[Johnwg]

Originally Posted by Decron

It won't compete then. I am not sure of the tuning options for ther 1.6 but I doubt there many.

Can't see many bar a K&N that would be worth it in terms of bhp gained per £

[skodayouth]

Originally Posted by Johnwg

That was what I was thinking, however sure I've seen posts on here claiming that the 1.6 would require 98+ ron to gain max benefits

Thats the 1.6FSI, the 105BHP 1.6 in the Fabia is just a normal MPI unit and uses bog standard 95 octane

[Johnwg]

Originally Posted by skodayouth

Thats the 1.6FSI, the 105BHP 1.6 in the Fabia is just a normal MPI unit and uses bog standard 95 octane

Right, I assumed the current 1.6 in the Fabia II and Roomster was the FSI unit

[skodayouth]

Originally Posted by Johnwg

Right, I assumed the current 1.6 in the Fabia II and Roomster was the FSI unit

No, I would have hoped that too, an extra 10BHP would be useful!

Too be honest, it's not that slow. Ill try and post up a 0-60 or 50-70 vid for you when I'm next down a private road

If you sit in traffic then the economy is nothing special but you can get near 40MPG on long runs!

[StuartBell]

Going from a 2 litre TDI to a 1.6 petrol, the big difference isn't only power, but torque. Much as I like my 1.9TDI Roomster, if he needs an Auto, I'd suggest he looks for a Diesel Auto, even if it can't be a Roomster.

I get 53-54 on long runs, and 50 driving pretty briskly. Having gone petrol - diesel - petrol - diesel in the last 15 years, I wouldn't go back to petrol until I'm 80+ and only doing 5K a year!

Stuart

[d96em]

I got my 1.6 auto Fabia about a month and a half ago, have put around 1700 miles on the clock to date, and I'm very pleased with it so far. Previous car was a SAAB 9-3 with a 205 bhp turbo-charged engine, which obviously packed a slightly greater punch than the one in the Fabia.. but that came with a price (seldom got it under 9 l/100 km, which google says is about 26 mpg). I don't really miss the extra power now, just modified my driving pattern a bit to better suit the conditions. This means less overtakings and a generally less stressed drive, but to be honest, the difference in power and torque is not really that noticeable. Most of my driving wouldn't make use of all that power anyway. I have to say the Fabia handles really well around town and is quiet and comfy enough for longer stretches too (although so far I've yet to take it on a longer one than around 80 miles, I feel confident that it will be just as nice a drive down to my parents some 200 miles from here in the Fabia as it ever was in the SAAB).

At last fillup I had gotten about 34 mpg, or 570 km in 39.5 liters of gas. That was mostly cruising at 70-90 km/h (45-55 mph), with perhaps 10% of the stretch being in small town and big city traffic, and an extra 5% at motorway speed (70 mph). It's freezing cold here now, and the studded tyres also add to the consumption, so all in all I'm quite happy with it. I've cut my fuel costs by a considerable amount since the switch from SAAB to Skoda.

As for the diesel vs. petrol discussion, right now and right here diesel is around 5% more expensive than petrol (although most often it's the other way around). I might have considered a diesel engine anyway, if it could be coupled with the auto gear box, but swedish tax rules force you to drive at least around 15-20 k miles a year before the better fuel consumption compensates for the huge tax. I drive maybe half of that distance, so for me a diesel is simply not economical.

All in all, I'm pleased. The only thing I really miss from my SAAB is the "night panel" button (turning off all but the speedometer, really nice when driving at night). But I'll get used to the bright lights of the Fabia too, I guess.
Make sure your father at least takes the Roomster on a long, good, overnight test drive. He may be pleasantly surprised.

[Johnwg]

Originally Posted by d96em

I got my 1.6 auto Fabia about a month and a half ago, have put around 1700 miles on the clock to date, and I'm very pleased with it so far. Previous car was a SAAB 9-3 with a 205 bhp turbo-charged engine, which obviously packed a slightly greater punch than the one in the Fabia.. but that came with a price (seldom got it under 9 l/100 km, which google says is about 26 mpg). I don't really miss the extra power now, just modified my driving pattern a bit to better suit the conditions. This means less overtakings and a generally less stressed drive, but to be honest, the difference in power and torque is not really that noticeable. Most of my driving wouldn't make use of all that power anyway. I have to say the Fabia handles really well around town and is quiet and comfy enough for longer stretches too (although so far I've yet to take it on a longer one than around 80 miles, I feel confident that it will be just as nice a drive down to my parents some 200 miles from here in the Fabia as it ever was in the SAAB).

At last fillup I had gotten about 34 mpg, or 570 km in 39.5 liters of gas. That was mostly cruising at 70-90 km/h (45-55 mph), with perhaps 10% of the stretch being in small town and big city traffic, and an extra 5% at motorway speed (70 mph). It's freezing cold here now, and the studded tyres also add to the consumption, so all in all I'm quite happy with it. I've cut my fuel costs by a considerable amount since the switch from SAAB to Skoda.

As for the diesel vs. petrol discussion, right now and right here diesel is around 5% more expensive than petrol (although most often it's the other way around). I might have considered a diesel engine anyway, if it could be coupled with the auto gear box, but swedish tax rules force you to drive at least around 15-20 k miles a year before the better fuel consumption compensates for the huge tax. I drive maybe half of that distance, so for me a diesel is simply not economical.

All in all, I'm pleased. The only thing I really miss from my SAAB is the "night panel" button (turning off all but the speedometer, really nice when driving at night). But I'll get used to the bright lights of the Fabia too, I guess.
Make sure your father at least takes the Roomster on a long, good, overnight test drive. He may be pleasantly surprised.

Your comments are very intresting... prior to his Touran my Dad had a Saab 95 2.0t (MY 2002) estate.... I will make sure he reads your post !!!