OK, I have now driven a Fabia vRS - and I liked it!

[vxh26]

I have now (finally) driven a Fabia vRS for about an hour on back roads and open roads in the country.  The engine and DSG were as I expected an absolute dream - I loved driving the car, it was VERY responsive and I know from personal experience that on country roads it would be great fun

I was very surprised at how much road noise there was and how basic it seemed for an £18,000 car.  The radio is incredibly dated, I accept that you can always spend £625 for the Amundsen unit with DAB, SD card slot, SatNav and telephone interface and directory but I already have a perfectly adequate TomTom and I don't have much need to use the 'phone while driving.  Such things as folding wing mirrors, keyless access, USB memory stick audio and a multi-CD system aren't available as options even though they have been pretty common-place for years with many other manufacturers.

However, none of this is a deal breaker for me.  I will have another test drive in a city environment and will look at the possibility of fitting some other (decent) head unit.

I didn't spend long playing with such things as the radio, MDI, the Maxi-Dot trip computer display, the lights or the air conditioning - I just drove the car.

The brochure refers to a single “Rear fog light” (presumably to meet German laws), is there actually one rear fog light or two?  I know that someone on here has complained that the reversing light is pretty feeble, are there one or two reversing lights?

Can anyone explain what exactly the difference is between the standard air conditioning and “Climate Control”?

How exactly does the Multi Device Interface (MDI) work, is it only actually compatible with the Apple iPod interface or are there cables to work with other MP3 players (e.g. Sansa)? Is it controlled from the Multi Function Steering Wheel (MFSW)?  Can it charge an MP3 player?  Can it be used with a USB memory stick?

The brochure isn't entirely clear as to what the optional spare wheel is (I guess it varies from model to model) and the salesman seemed a bit uncertain about it, is it one of those skinny 50 mph jobs or a proper full-size steel wheel?

As it happens, the salesman didn't seem too familiar with the spec or options of the car, aside from the spare wheel issue he thought that cruise control was a standard feature, knew nothing much about the radio / MDI or the Amundsen SatNav system.  He was adamant that I would not be able to substitute smaller diamater wheels (and appropriate tyres) for the standard 17" wheels even though he said that the low profile tyres were probably what was responsible for the road noise - I accept that using low profile tyres would almost certainly have a negative impact on roadholding.

In conclusion, as I said at the beginning - driving the car was a real pleasure although I do wonder what it would be like on a long journey.

[tweenster]

We've had our vRS for about 3 weeks now and I grab the keys at every opportunity unless dual carriageways and/or motorways are involved, when I will always choose the Mondeo. Why? Because of the road noise issue you mention. It is very noisy and there are a couple of threads about reducing noise inside the car that I will look into when the weather warms up.

[bobnaldo]

Hi,

 

Hopefully answer some of your questions

 

The brochure refers to a single “Rear fog light” (presumably to meet German laws), is there actually one rear fog light or two?  I know that someone on here has complained that the reversing light is pretty feeble, are there one or two reversing lights?

Can anyone explain what exactly the difference is between the standard air conditioning and “Climate Control”?

How exactly does the Multi Device Interface (MDI) work, is it only actually compatible with the Apple iPod interface or are there cables to work with other MP3 players (e.g. Sansa)? Is it controlled from the Multi Function Steering Wheel (MFSW)?  Can it charge an MP3 player?  Can it be used with a USB memory stick?

 

 

• There is just the one reversing and one fog light, however not an issue IMHO as I don't need the visibility the reversing light gives.
• The climate is digital and maintains the car at a set temperature, i.e. 20 degrees. I opted for it as it makes the dash look more high end.
• The MDI either has an apple lead or a USB one, to change tracks on the iPod you need the apple one. Controlled via the steering wheel, charges the player etc. Not tried the memory stick option but don't see why it won't.

 

Agree with the radio, I swopped mine the day I picked it up with a Bolero from a Superb this is the large touchscreen model with 6 disc changer and looks much better. Bought the Bolero off ebay for £150 and sold the Swing for £50, so only £100 for a significant upgrade.

 

Agreed that the road noise can be an issue, however it's a hot hatch so refinement will never be great, it's almost perfect for me though. I use mine to drive to work in heavy traffic where the DSG is great and then blast around country roads on the weekend where the engine comes into its own. Also worth noting that it easy to get 40mpg out of it, very few sub 7 second to 60 cars can do that.

 

However saying that I'm not sure its an £18k car, I paid £14.5k for my brand new well spec'd one 11 months ago, £18k can get you into a brand new Leon FR albeit with a slower engine or a 1 Series. If I was in your shoes and wanted one I'd get one of the many low mileage ones off Autotrader. There are a few pre reg ones knocking about for £14.5k.

[vrskeith]

Bargain buy Demo at Westgate Skoda Grimsby- 1500 miles priced at £11999 reduced by £2k in a month. 

 

Think it's still on the Skoda website.

[adam1985]

How exactly does the Multi Device Interface (MDI) work, is it only actually compatible with the Apple iPod interface or are there cables to work with other MP3 players (e.g. Sansa)? Is it controlled from the Multi Function Steering Wheel (MFSW)? Can it charge an MP3 player? Can it be used with a USB memory stick?

The brochure isn't entirely clear as to what the optional spare wheel is (I guess it varies from model to model) and the salesman seemed a bit uncertain about it, is it one of those skinny 50 mph jobs or a proper full-size steel wheel?

Just to let you know the mdi can use a memory stick or a usb powered hard drive as long as formatted in fat32 i have a 250gb hard drive plugged in with loads of music. You can control changing tracks etc from either the headunit or the wheel controls. If you plug in an mp3 player such as a sansa it does charge and can be controlled the same as a hard drive.

The spare is a full size steel wheel but statea on it that you should still only go 50mph i think, not sure the reasoning behind this, perhaps as it is a different rolling radius to the alloys?!

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk

[XK140]

The spare is I95 55 15 which is almost identical in rolling radius to the 205 40 17 tyres fitted.

It is stickered as 50 mph max but personally whilst I would take it easy cornering I can' t see why it shouldn't proceed safely at 60/70 on a straight road....insurance will think otherwise if they got the chance.

No big deal,how many cars now have "proper" spares,very few I would think.

[Brin]

I think the spare wheel has a lower speed rating,  probably for cost?

[PhilTheGeek]

You are correct that the spare has a lower speed rating. The normal tyres are W rated (186mph).  The spare (on mine) is H rated (130mph).

[Big S]

My vRS is just fine on a long journey. Very comfortable seats, plenty of power to keep up on hills and motorways. I've happily driven it 1000 miles across Europe in just 2 days. And your sales guy clearly doesn't know his cars. As said, the spare is 195 55 R15, and that is also the recommended size for winter tyres. So 15in wheels do indeed fit. I have them on mine, with goodyear vector 4seasons on which are WAY quieter than the original conti sc2 and smoother over the potholed country lanes where i live - once i had worked out what pressures made sense.

[philhoward]

The temperature control for the cabin isn't up to modern standards - I have to tweak the temperature knob on mine on a regular basis if the outside temperature changes by more than a couple of degrees during a journey (I've got manual aircon).  In hindsight, I should have gone for climate.control.

 

Road noise is a mixture of things and can get quite noisy on some surfaces although tyre choice can make a difference I believe.

 

MDI can accept USB drives (as mentioned above), not just Apple devices (and even then, I think only those with the 30-pin connector).

 

I've done nearly 54,000 in mine, a lot of it driving to Germany and apart from some noisy roads in Belgium, not really had anything to complain about (apart from the temperature control).  It's a boon around town too, being an auto.

 

I retrofitted bluetooth to mine - mainly for the phone but can also stream my iPod over bluetooth at the same time (have 2 devices connected - phone and media player).  I've got the SWING unit though.

 

If you go for parking sensors, factory fit brings up a radar display on the head unit - dealer fit ones are audible only..

[whitep]

Now go drive an Octavia....

[vrskeith]

We've had our vRS for about 3 weeks now and I grab the keys at every opportunity unless dual carriageways and/or motorways are involved, when I will always choose the Mondeo. Why? Because of the road noise issue you mention. It is very noisy and there are a couple of threads about reducing noise inside the car that I will look into when the weather warms up.

Enthusiastic to grab the keys!??

 

What are the actual circumstances that  would prevail for you to take the vRS  over the Mondeo   then , as you only appear to have A,B and C roads left, all presumably littered with potholes at present.

So I guess Mrs T has the keys 95% of the time. 

[pearce_jj]

Did I miss something... Is this now the Mondeo worship forum??

[vrskeith]

Has vxh26 made up his /her mind yet?

[logiclee]

The temperature control for the cabin isn't up to modern standards - I have to tweak the temperature knob on mine on a regular basis if the outside temperature changes by more than a couple of degrees during a journey (I've got manual aircon).  In hindsight, I should have gone for climate.control.

 

 

 

That was a big backward step in the 2010 facelift.

 

Our two earlier Fabia's had a "Climatic" system, you still got the three manual dials and chose your own direction and fan speed but the temperature dial set the actual temperature you wanted in the cabin and it modulated the temperature to try and achieve that.

 

In 2010 they ditched that in favour of a fully manual setup.

 

Cheers

Lee

[Ootohere]

I hope he does not let that salesperson that showed him the car get the commission on a sale.

 

& i am not really believing the same tyre with a 205 width with a aspect/profile of 40 is actually noisier than a 205 width tyre on a 16" rim

if it is with a 45 aspect profile tyre, & if they were of the same tread and brand.

 

Now a narrower tyre might be less noisy, but then thats not about profile.

 

The narrow Spare Tyre fitted will hopefully have the driver slow down untill changed back to one that matches the other 3 tyres.

Regardless of Load or Speed rating.

Some cars may also have directional tyres fitted, so even with a matching size spare of the same tyre,

there is a 50/50 chance of it being the correct sided one you put on if required to be fitted untill your puncture is fixed or tyre replaced..

 

PS

the spare is not an Option with a vRS,

it comes as a Standard item. No extra cost.

[vxh26]

I hope he does not let that salesperson that showed him the car get the commission on a sale.

Probably outside my control except that I will probably not use the dealership in question.  I have been away from home with a broken laptop for a couple of weeks so haven't had a chance to check back on this thread.  Good news on the MDI and USB powered hard drive.

 

I would be intrigued to hear how you managed to negotiate the price down to £14.5k for a brand new well spec'd vRS bobnaldo?  I am trying to get £2k off and getting nowhere.

 

Thanks for the reference to the soundproofing guide tweenster this is the LINK.  The whole thing looks to be a non-trivial exercise but the guide seems pretty detailed and I guess that it could help a lot.

[BossFox]

That was a big backward step in the 2010 facelift.

 

Our two earlier Fabia's had a "Climatic" system, you still got the three manual dials and chose your own direction and fan speed but the temperature dial set the actual temperature you wanted in the cabin and it modulated the temperature to try and achieve that.

 

In 2010 they ditched that in favour of a fully manual setup.

 

Cheers

Lee

 

I would always add the Climatronic to any decent spec new Fabia.

Not only is it an effective system it makes the dash look far better too by removing the three highly placed cheap plastic dials.

[newbie69]

I would always add the Climatronic to any decent spec new Fabia.

Not only is it an effective system it makes the dash look far better too by removing the three highly placed cheap plastic dials.

 

+1

 

One of the few dash highlights and such a nice set-and-forget system. I saw another vRS's dash with the manual aircon the other day and it didn't compare at all.

[philhoward]

My Scirocco had the Climatronic system - manual aircon control, fan and direction control but "calibrated" temperature dial.  I think aside from some occasional defrosting, I set at 22 degrees on day 1 and left it there for 70,000 miles..

 

Certainly was an oversight not adding it to the spec when I ordered mine..and not making that mistake again!  Luckily its replacment (Octavia Elegance) has dual zone climate, so also solves the issue with SWMBO wanting the car a couple of degrees warmer than I do.

[bobnaldo]

The £14,500 was the drive the deal price last year.

I got mine from Martin at Doncaster Skoda, might be worth giving him a bell? It was a trek to go and get it but worth it.

 

If you don't need 5 doors, you can get a brand new Seat Cupra Ibiza for £14,800 albeit with no options however it comes well specced as standard.

Edited 18 March, 2014 by bobnaldo

[bobnaldo]

Edited

Edited 18 March, 2014 by bobnaldo

[bobnaldo]

Here's the climatronic with a Bolero and Brodit mount

 

Edited 18 March, 2014 by bobnaldo

[pipsyp]

I have now (finally) driven a Fabia vRS for about an hour on back roads and open roads in the country. The engine and DSG were as I expected an absolute dream - I loved driving the car, it was VERY responsive and I know from personal experience that on country roads it would be great fun

I was very surprised at how much road noise there was and how basic it seemed for an £18,000 car. The radio is incredibly dated, I accept that you can always spend £625 for the Amundsen unit with DAB, SD card slot, SatNav and telephone interface and directory but I already have a perfectly adequate TomTom and I don't have much need to use the 'phone while driving. Such things as folding wing mirrors, keyless access, USB memory stick audio and a multi-CD system aren't available as options even though they have been pretty common-place for years with many other manufacturers.

However, none of this is a deal breaker for me. I will have another test drive in a city environment and will look at the possibility of fitting some other (decent) head unit.

I didn't spend long playing with such things as the radio, MDI, the Maxi-Dot trip computer display, the lights or the air conditioning - I just drove the car.

The brochure refers to a single “Rear fog light” (presumably to meet German laws), is there actually one rear fog light or two? I know that someone on here has complained that the reversing light is pretty feeble, are there one or two reversing lights?

Can anyone explain what exactly the difference is between the standard air conditioning and “Climate Control”?

How exactly does the Multi Device Interface (MDI) work, is it only actually compatible with the Apple iPod interface or are there cables to work with other MP3 players (e.g. Sansa)? Is it controlled from the Multi Function Steering Wheel (MFSW)? Can it charge an MP3 player? Can it be used with a USB memory stick?

The brochure isn't entirely clear as to what the optional spare wheel is (I guess it varies from model to model) and the salesman seemed a bit uncertain about it, is it one of those skinny 50 mph jobs or a proper full-size steel wheel?

As it happens, the salesman didn't seem too familiar with the spec or options of the car, aside from the spare wheel issue he thought that cruise control was a standard feature, knew nothing much about the radio / MDI or the Amundsen SatNav system. He was adamant that I would not be able to substitute smaller diamater wheels (and appropriate tyres) for the standard 17" wheels even though he said that the low profile tyres were probably what was responsible for the road noise - I accept that using low profile tyres would almost certainly have a negative impact on roadholding.

In conclusion, as I said at the beginning - driving the car was a real pleasure although I do wonder what it would be like on a long journey.

Its an excellent car as long as you recognise it has some minor flaws; in other words a corking engine and gearbox in a now slightly dated car thats also not the best dynamically out of the box.

Pound for pound I still think you'd struggle to get more well built and equipped bang for your buck.

Sometimes wish id held onto mine and just beefed up the brakes and done sonething with the suspension....after some very basic mods its as good if not better than the Polo GTi equivalent.

[vrskeith]

Plenty of demos around with more than £2k off. You don't have to have all the bells and whistle to enjoy the Fabia vRS.

 

Remember it is phasing out in the next 12 months or so why pump loads of extra cash into it.

 

As previously mentioned Demo In Westgate Grimsby is a good example of vfm- £11990 may be even £11500 with a bit of negotiation.

 

That is a bargain motor!