Fabia VRS 1.9 - 2004 model

[Trillock]

Well, my beloved Passat 1.9Tdi (51 plate) 2002 saloon is going to a new home, and will be exchanged for a 2004 Fabia VRS 1.9Tdi.
So I am moving out of the Passat B5 section, to find a home in this section. :D

So gentle folks, is there anything I should be worrying about with the soon to be mine (Sat. 16th) ?
The dealer seems ok, I have taken it out for a quick spin and all seems ok, and they are giving it an MoT + service before I pick it up and leave behind my Passat in exchange.
I have also got them to fit a new battery - just in case.

The only thing that sort of concerned me was the brakes, as after driving the Passat (which has good brakes) the brakes felt rather soft, and need a lot more foot power to slow it down, or stop it. So a little concerned that if I have to do an emergency stop for some reason, there might be an unwanted outcome. :Blush2:
However, I did ask the chap to have the brakes checked, as it may just be normal for the car.

That's the trouble with moving from one car (which has served me well for about 8 years) and getting into a different one.

[Trillock]

As it happens, the dealer also fitted new brake pads.
So, after using it now for a while this is what I think of it.

Good:
For me, it is a pocket rocket, with good acceleration, and pulls well in 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th once the revs get to about 1500 rpm.
Very much easier to park than the Passat, so I can now get into littler spaces now.
Reasonably comfortable.
Pretty nimble, which is nice for the twisty roads here on my Island.
Excellent fuel economy, even booting it about going somewhere.
I has a 4 star rating in the crash test ratings.
There doesn't seem to be too many VRs models that I have seen on the road, just two so far. Thousands of Skodas about, and one or two Skoda Octavias that I have seen.
So I quite like the 'rareness' of this car.
My Road Tax has come down from £15.75/month for the Passat, to £12.78 for the Skoda.
I doesn't leak around doors and windows in a car wash or rain, which is nice.

No so good:
The drivers seat squeaks a bit if I move my fat carcass about, but no so noticeably when driving.
A bit more noisy inside, but it is not irritating. Whether it would be on a motor way run, I don't know, but no wind noise helps.
Normal A/C and not the Climate Control that I have been used to, so a bit more fiddling required to get nice cooling inside during the current hot weather, but it works.
I do miss the Climatronic of the Passat....set and forget.
The front pillars are quite wide, and can block out most of the world at some junctions looking left/right, so a bit of leaning about to see what's coming is required, but I need the exercise.
My car Insurance is paid quarterly by DD (due for renewal in November) and was about £59, and when I phoned Saga to change to this car, they wanted an extra £35 on top for the May and August payments....£93 !!
I shall be doing the usual hunting around for quotes nearer the time.
So, Road Tax goes down and Insurance goes up, even though I thought this car was in a lower Insurance bracket than the Passat.
The seats being black with a center grey panel, could get a bit mucky over time.

Faults so far:
The turbo pipe disconnected itself, so I was laying down a smoke screen behind me, that a WWII Destroyer would be proud of.
But quickly fixed by a chap when I limped into my local garage, by squeezing the spring clip to get it to grip, and no further trouble since.

But, for all her little niggles, I rather like this little car, and can live with them, and don't regret buying it - so far.:D

Extras that I have had done:
Had a cam belt and water pump changed (just in case, even though the belt had been changed by the previous owner some years ago, so not desperately needed) and all for £280................another garage quoted about £500 !!

Just thought you would like to know all this....:D

So these Fabia VRs's seem to be a bit rare, since no one on here seems to have one. :D