Skoda Roomster Engine Opinions

Leonard Hofstadter

My neighbour has a 08 reg 1.4 petrol one of these.

She wants to buy a new one next year (and forget about suggesting anything else) but she's not sure of what engine to buy.

Obviously the 1.2 three cyl petrol is not an option (since she bought the more powerful 1.4 last time), so it's either the 1.2 TSI with 85 bhp or the 1.2 TDI with 75 bhp.

I wanted her to get the diesel because all the data shows that people are simply not buying petrol engines these days so she will be married to it, but she says that the garage recommend the new 1.2 TSI because of the cost and the fact that it is in tax band B.

Having checked it out, it does indeed turn out that the garage are not lying and the 1.2 TSI is indeed in band B. The 1.2 TDI is in band A.

FWIW she does about 15k km a year.

The 1.2 TSI (85 bhp) Style is €16,640.
The 1.2 TDI (75 bhp) Style is €18,965.

I know diesel has the potential for lots of things to go wrong, however the petrol engine is a turbo and direct injection and so it is complex enough as well, though less likely to cause trouble than the diesel. Either way she changes every three years so any problems with the diesel or petrol will not occur till after her ownership, so it's not a factor really.

The advantages I see of the petrol engine is that it is around €2,300 cheaper, is still in a low tax band and is a four cylinder engine(the diesel is three cyl), and I'm told the 1.2 TDI is quite unrefined, and this will not go down well as my neighbour has always driven petrol and has the old fashioned view on the refinement of diesel engines.

However, I think the added initial cost of the diesel will be balanced out by the trade in value down the road, the lower cost of diesel, much lower fuel consumption and the marginal savings in road tax.

Given all the above, which engine would you choose?

Pkiernan

€2300 in savings will buy her a lot of petrol - approx 1750 litres.

At say 35 mpg thats about enough petrol for 21000 km, or her first year and a half.

Esel

captainspeed wrote: »

I think the added cost of the diesel will be balanced out by the trade in value down the road, the lower cost of diesel and the marginal savings in road tax.

I agree. Three years down the road, given the current economic climate, the diesel will be a much more attractive trade-in / secondhand purchase for the next owner. If she does go for the diesel, be sure to educate her about the very different torque curve.

EPM

Personally I'd convince her to bite the bullet and plump for an octavia. Roomster is unloved really and as such residuals will be low no matter which engine is in it. A diesel Fabia estate might also be a better option

Leonard Hofstadter

What did I say about not suggesting anything else:D?

I agree that it is unloved secondhand but she's delighted with the car(it really does live up to its name and I know she likes small cars so an Octavia is not an option really, a Fabia Estate doesn't have anything like the space of the Roomster either) and just wants a newer one as she changes every three years and of course it has been facelifted now too, making it an even more attractive proposition. It's even slightly less ugly than before:D!

I'm glad people think the diesel is the better option; has anyone any experience of the new VW Group 1.2 TDI?

I've heard the four cylinder 1.6 TDI is quite noisy in some applications (like the VW Polo which of course shares its platform with this car) so I'm not getting my hopes up about a three cylinder engine.

hairyman

Its just my opinion, but I cant help but feel that opting to use a 3 cylinder lump in a diesel defeats the whole purpose.

Diesel engines should provide their torque and pulling power from low down in the rev range and therefore should also provide the user with comfortable cruising ability's and good pulling power.
Three cylinder engines by their very nature are fizzy and thrive on high revs to access their power bands, Im not sure its a good pairing.

Some people think that the Roomster is ugly, I however do not, More so when you consider what it is competing against.

Just a few examples,
1 - Citroen Berlingo Multyspace = ugly and poorly built.

2 - Peogeot Partner Combi = As above.

3 - Fiat Fiorino = Looks like something you would buy in Smiths toy store.

Take into account that nearly all(if not all) of its rivals were an aftermarket money maker based on commercial vehicles that simply will not be able to compete in terms of refinement and build quality.

Its a hell of a lot of car for the money and I think the four cylinder turbo charged petrol would probably suit the car better.