Skoda Superb

[Firstcall]

Thanks Pal for the info, is that your meter? ave 8.5l/km is good.

do u sprint once a while?

 

BTW are your ECU stock or you have also tuned up to 193bhp?

 

thanks

[King]

is a diesel turbo car

[Gary84]

congrats on getting such a gd ride...me sat on it or rather the Superb taxi last year and i felt it was realli "superb"....very responsive in acceleration...

[Koolaba]

Hi,

 

That picture was not taken from our Superb. Notice that it has some beige plastics (exclusive to the Elegance trim) and that the tachometer redlines at 45000rpm? It is a picture taken from a Czech site to illustrate to you how the average FC meter looks like.

 

Everything on my ride is stock. Think of it again, do you really need so much power in Singapore? Getting more torque at lower rpms will definitely be more useful considering our driving conditions.

[Koolaba]

Yes, it is a 2.5 TDI V6 manual Elegance Superb.

[Koolaba]

Add the Superb into your shopping list when you are shopping for your next ride.

[King]

why u so good life, can drive a v6 diesel

[Koolaba]

Bro,

 

I have extracted the image of the Superb online. This is my current rental ride in Austria. Yes, a in-line 4 cylinder TDI but much smaller than the Superb.

[Gary84]

hahah no shopping list as of now...dare not tink of getting new ride since times quite bad now....at least for me la...

[Jhoo]

The tachometer reads redline from 45 x 100 rpm (4500), max out at 6000 only.

[Skodarr]

You are a funny bro! Haven't reached the "finish line" can't say good hubby yet. haha.

 

But yes, I have been telling her to "chip" the car long long time liao. :-)

 

bless

 

Yo bro, still interested in Chipping ...

[Solar]

test drove the superb yesterday..

got some questions that better check outside than the se..

 

like to check with u guys a few things:

- reliability - so far dun read much about superb owners posting any gripe or complaints.. is it really reliable, or its bcos very little buyers?

- turbo - the se say insurance don't charge extra for the turbo. true?

- maintenance - is it more than jap, but less than other conti? got any 'outside' workshops that is popular (and cheap) and specialise in the car?

- resales sucks, so how much would a dealer take in one, say, 3 yr old superb, 10k above paper, or?

- se quoted me 84888 (after the rebate), omv 27k, delux package. worth? or should i just wait longer for the first 1-2yr old superbs to appear in 2nd hand market? (so far none avail)

- never felt turbo kick in, even tho i heard some faint whistle and that's it (hope its turbo, not wind)..also dun get the 'stick to the seat' feeling.. so is it too weak or its my expectation?

- any issue with the turbo, like reliability or can it be upgraded?

- how much different from the passat other than the badge?

- parts availability? can use passat/audi parts, and that means sky rocket maintenance cost?

 

thanks in advance for your advises.

Edited May 27, 2006 by Solar

[Koolaba]

Hello Solar,

 

Sorry for the slightly delayed response. I have just returned from Europe and am in the midst of settling down.

 

Reliability

The Superb in our family is currently 11 months old with around 15,400km on its odometer. We have been experiencing trouble-free and fuss-free motoring since we have this car. If I may add, it is definitely much more enjoyable than our previous Volvo S40 1.8 ownership.

 

Currently there are about 30-40 Superbs registered in Singapore. You can take the liberty to find out about the reliability of the Superb from the owners whom I know and who are registered with MCF. The name list is arranged according to descending order of the age of the car.

 

- Conned

- Ixus

- Soleution

- Tashi

- Fisheye

- Spindoctor29

 

According to an independent site, Skoda is ranked the most reliable make. This statistic is correlated with the ownership experiences of many Superb owners overseas especially in europe (UK, Austria, Germany).

http://www.reliabilityindex.co.uk/top10.ht...128339010848601

 

Cost of insurance premium

The Superb is classified as a limousine. Hence it does not attract a higher insurance premium compared to sports cars. We are currently paying almost the same premium compared to our previous S40 1.8.

 

Maintenance

I can safely say that Skoda servicings are cheaper compared to VW & Audi (its cousins), Mercedes Benz and BMW. The cost of Skoda servicing is almost on par with Renault. I am not too sure about the comparison with Alfa Romeo, Ford, Fiat and Opel.

 

Assuming that you visit the authorised distributor for regular servicing at the stipulated servicing intervals, the Superb is cheaper to maintain compared to say, a Toyota Camry.

 

Allow me to give you this illustration.

Projected mileage travelled in 3 years: 60,000km

 

Servicing required by the Camry (with estimated cost shown in brackets):

1,000km (Most likely $80 for labour and miscellaneous cost. Material is free.)

5,000km (Most likely $80 for labour and miscellaneous cost. Material is free.)

10,000km (Most likely $80 for labour and miscellaneous cost. Material is free if you choose the mineral engine oil package. Otherwise $200 or more if you choose the synthetic engine oil package)

20,000km ($250 - $400 for synthetic engine oil package)

30,000km ($300 - $550 for synthetic engine oil package)

40,000km ($250 - $400 for synthetic engine oil package)

50,000km ($350 - $600 for synthetic engine oil package)

60,000km ($400 - $800 for synthetic engine oil package)

 

Servicing required by the Superb (with estimated cost shown in brackets):

15,000km ($230; only synthetic engine oil package available)

30,000km ($300 - $400; only synthetic engine oil package available)

45,000km ($250 - $350; only synthetic engine oil package available)

60,000km ($400 - $600; only synthetic engine oil package available)

 

From the illustration above, it is not true to say the servicing a Skoda is more expensive compared to the mainstream Japanese cars.

 

There are other workshops which specialise in servicing cars from the Volkswagen Automotive Group (VAG).

- CAG

- Eurohaus

- Servotronic

 

You can find relevant information in the folders here or at http://www.vagsg.com

 

Resale value

In the current market, the resale value of the car is essentially the residual PARF value + residual COE value + body value. When you buy certain makes of cars, the dealer can assure you 100% paper value or similar conditions, but the new car price is marked up accordingly. To less discerning car buyers, such promises of 100% paper value are very enticing. There are even some distributors which offer up to $8k on body value of used car. Simply put there is no free lunch.

 

The saying that certain makes are able to fetch better resale value do not hold water in the current car market. One example is Toyota. I have friends who bought the G9 Corolla with the mindset that the car is able to fetch better resale value. When it is time for them to sell the car, they have to come to terms that the body value can fetch at best $3k.

 

From another perspective, I would rather not buy a car if I am purely looking at the purported resale value of a car before deciding what to get. This is precisely the mindset the majority of our car buyers have and it helps to explain the homonogeneous preference for a certain brand, year in, year out.

 

Getting a new Superb or getting a used one?

Those Superb owners whom I know will not be letting go of their rides in anytime soon. It is one car which you will not want to part with.

 

As for the deal you have received from SE, is it valid for a 2004 or 2005 production model? The current list price is $86,888.

 

Turbo

The 1.8T powerplant is mated with a light pressure turbocharger (LPT), similar to the Volvo 2.0T, 2.5T powerplants. The turbocharger will activate from approx. 1500 rpm to 4600 rpm. This explains the maximum torque of 210Nm from 1750 rpm to 4600 rpm achievable by the Superb.

 

The "stuck-in-the-seat" feeling can only be achieved by high pressure turbocharger. The faint whistle signals the actuation of the turbocharger.

 

The VAG 1.8T engine plant presents several possibilities for upgrades, flashing,chipping. There are some Passat and Superb owners who have managed to extract more power and/or torque out from their 1.8T engines.

 

In Europe, the most popular form of upgade is to retrofit a KKK K04S turbocharger to replace the existing stock KKK K03S turbocharger. The K04 is able to achieve higher boost compared to the smaller K03.

 

The turbocharger will not fail if you observe proper maintenance routines. For exapmle, observe a ~ 2min idle period with all accessories turned off (a/c, lights, audio system) after hard driving to ensure that the turbocharger is properly cooled before switching the engine off. (This is mentioned in the owners' manual).

 

My advise: enjoy the stock setup first before splurging on upgrades.

 

Difference from B5.x Passat

The Superb is mechanically identical to the Passat B5.x. Besides cosmetic difference, the Superb has a longer wheelbase by 10cm which translates to more room in the rear.

 

The Superb includes the following features which the Passat may not have:

- White LED illuminated door handles

- Dimmed red LED CatVision illumination for the centre console

- rear a/c vents (the 2001 Passats do not have this feature)

 

Spare parts and expendibles

VAG parts are readily available. The prices are reasonable compared to the likes of the BMW and Mercedes. The prices of Skoda parts are very similar to Renault, which are in turn similar to Japanese spare parts.

 

Hope this answers your queries.

Edited May 28, 2006 by Koolaba

[Tacheron]

Hi Solar, I was also with this dilemma on whether to buy the Superb or a Japanese car recently. In my capacity as an international consultant, I would like to share some thoughts I have. I had the privilege of sitting in the Superb in various European countries during my consulting stints and I must say the ride in this car is very comfortable. However 1 thing about the Singapore model irritates me is that the interior seems to be of moulded plastics which look cheap.

 

As for the independent site on reliability, or for the matter of fact any so-called fair and authoritative ranking, I would advise you to take sure statistics with a pinch of salt. In my work, I constantly come across such compilation of data in my course of work and whatever data applies to one region may be drastically different from another region. I have encountered many European cars sold locally that has different problems to those experienced by the same model sold in European countries. One common problem is the rubber components. Some firms I have consulted for have shown me statistics that suggest the rubber parts used in the original design are not entirely suitable for use in the tropical region.

 

As for running costs, I would also like to highlight for every 1 user in this forum there are at least another 100 who does not benefit from such discussions. I do agree that a large number of workshops out there still practise discriminatory pricing (if you do not know of which recommended ones to go to). There was once I helped my friend about 2 years back to change a set of 4 tyres on his Nissan and about 1 week later, I brought my own Bora for the same tyre replacement too. We wanted the same Michelin tyres but can you believe it, I was quoted an addition $20 for each piece of tyre and when I queried further, the mechanic admitted they usually charge higher for European makes. In this light, I believe costs of ownership for European cars have came down quite a bit but do some homework or you will be at a disadvantage.

 

There is one last point I would like to highlight from my experience is the difference in company goals. The Japanese are extremely particular about delievering their promise to their customers and over the past years, the recalls for various makes tells you this. Trade officials from various regions have the same sentiments about Japanese being a picky lot. As long as 1 complain comes in from a customer, the Japanese firms will get their engineers to carry out failure analysis ASAP and if it is a lot issue, they will not be hesistant to order a recall to recitfy the issue no matter if it is a big or small one. As for European firms, personally I have a view that they have a more relaxed attitude especially when it comes to resolving customer complaints from region with lower volume of sales. I was in Germany in this December and some trade officials told me of some electronics issues and complains with the new Passat. Technically, they felt it was a strong enough reason for a major recall to replace or rectify the issue. However, even they were puzzled why VW did not order it. From my experience, if the same issue were to happen to Toyota or Nissan, there will be no doubt the recall will be ordered.

 

These are some points I would just like to highlight. Don't get me wrong, the Superb is really a pretty decent and value buy in many sense. However, personally I went for a Subaru Legacy because I felt it was a "safer" buy in that sense and the points highlighted are for your reference and given to the best of my knowledge and professional capacity. I guess you have to get a car that you feel most comfortable with parting your money and enjoy the ride! Cheers!

[Odyssey02]

althought its only a LPT turbo but i can feel the surge in power in a passat compared to a normal NA car lehh.

[Koolaba]

Hi Tacheron,

 

I am sure your professional career as an international consultant does provide you with interesting insights into the aspirations and goals of many companies. Whilst these information are undoubtedly true, they may not give you the whole picture.

 

In the B6 VW Passat issue, do you know exactly and precisely what electronic problems the B6 Passat has faced and whether such problems affect the operation and functionality of the car? How sure are you to comment that VW is not going to rectify this problem (as opposed to the fact that Japanese car manufacturers will organise a recall without question)? Pardon me, but I feel that this statement is a bit partial.

 

I would not like to spell the details openly in this open forum. If you are keen to find out more about the problems of the new B6 Passat and the corrective actions, drop me a PM. VAG is one of my company's major customers in automotive electronics. This issue has made us slogged for months while seeking a solution for it.

 

Your experience with the mechanic which charges differential pricing for tyres is definitely unfortunate. It may be high time for you to look elsewhere. At least, I do not experience such unfair practices when I engaged a reputable tyre shop to perform tyre rotation on our Superb. Neither was the price different when my friend (a Cefiro owner) and I enquired on the pricing of a particular 16" tyre on 2 separate occasions.

 

Could you share with us which moulded plastic components in the Superb feel particularly cheap? This comment conflicts with the general remarks penned by German and Austrian motoring journalists which give regular thumbs-up for the top quality materials used.

 

For interest, the following review in http://www.driveandtravel.de/tests/t_202.htm carries a statement "Die verwendeten Materialien sind hochwertig verarbeitet ..." Translated, it means that the materials which are used in the interior of the Superb (verwendeten Materialien) are of high quality (hochwertig verarbeitet).

 

Last but not least, thanks for your inputs, though I would have thought this reply was meant for Solar and not for me.

[Tashi]

hi bro

Was going to inlaws just now (Sun, around 6pm) to enjoy her mum's dumplings, and wifey and I discussed how few Superbs we have seen on the roads, although I assured her that there are around 50 Superbs in Singapore.

 

Then we stopped at a junction (somewhere between Potong Pasir and Hougang), and as if by divine intervention, a red SGE XXX X red superb, gleaming new, was beside us (we were on the right turn lane 1), and a white Superb cab was on lane 3!

 

It would have been a great photo opportunity if I was standing in front of all 3 Superbs! The red Superb driver looks like an elderly and respectable gentleman in long sleeve work shirt.

 

keep bless

tashi

[Tacheron]

Hi,

Sorry if I made a statement that was too sweeping. But the comment from the officials if my memory doesn't fail me is that it has been about 3 to 4 months since the complains came in. From the personal prespective of the officials, they felt that a recall, that is similar to the standards of the Japanese should have been made.

 

I have no exact insight of the problem but from the trade officials and my experience and knowledge of Japanese practise. I made that statement, might have been a bit too sweeping but I remember reading another post by another person, Clement, who is aware of such practices too.

 

I am just highlighting that at times, the low volume sales of any product in a region may result in less attention by the manufacturer. In my years as a consultant, I have seen a lot of European makers ranging from cars, aerospace to electronics industry having a more laid back attitude. In contrast, the Japanese are not afraid to "put their name to shame" in that sense to order recall or openly admit any mistakes as their number 1 aim is delivering promises to customers.

 

As for the material, its a personal comment that it looks cheap but I have no insight as to whether if its top grade. I have seen some of the interiors of BMWs, Mercs and even Japanese cars like Cefiro or Lexus which I feel gives more plush feeling. So its totally aesthetics for me.

 

Lastly, no worries I am just sharing my experiences and hopefully it gives us more views as references when buying cars or for that matter of fact, any purchasing decision. Cheers!