The mighty Skoda Citigo Monte Carlo
Discussion
So after a year of driving about in a boring diesel crossover (
) I decided that enough was enough and sod the negative equity in it I'm going to get something fun! Trouble is, I've got an accident on my record for another 3 years from when I crashed my 125 (didn't even claim mind you, but that's another story), so even something like a Fiesta ZS Ecoboost was ridiculously expensive to insure. I needed something incredibly cheap to insure but still enjoyable to drive, and so I decided on this little terror:
For those who don't know, it's based on the VW Up! (Which I hate) and has a 1.0 N/A 59bhp 3 pot. The Monte Carlo has lower and stiffer suspension than standard, and this cracking paint job. Yes, it's slow and there's no getting around that but honestly I've never had more fun behind the wheel of a car (and I've driven rentals "properly"). Above 4000 rpm the noise it makes is fantastic and to top it all off I've yet to see less than 45mpg even when pressing on. I've had it 4 days and I'm already in love, this one will certainly be a keeper until that accident is no longer on my record and I'll get something with a bit more poke....
) I decided that enough was enough and sod the negative equity in it I'm going to get something fun! Trouble is, I've got an accident on my record for another 3 years from when I crashed my 125 (didn't even claim mind you, but that's another story), so even something like a Fiesta ZS Ecoboost was ridiculously expensive to insure. I needed something incredibly cheap to insure but still enjoyable to drive, and so I decided on this little terror:For those who don't know, it's based on the VW Up! (Which I hate) and has a 1.0 N/A 59bhp 3 pot. The Monte Carlo has lower and stiffer suspension than standard, and this cracking paint job. Yes, it's slow and there's no getting around that but honestly I've never had more fun behind the wheel of a car (and I've driven rentals "properly"). Above 4000 rpm the noise it makes is fantastic and to top it all off I've yet to see less than 45mpg even when pressing on. I've had it 4 days and I'm already in love, this one will certainly be a keeper until that accident is no longer on my record and I'll get something with a bit more poke....
xjay1337 said:
I really like the Up Exclamation Point, I can't see why you hate it. They are great little things.
Maybe hate is a strong word, it's mainly the looks that put me off. I don't see why I would want to buy one if I could have this (the exact same car but better looking imo) for less money. I'm generally not a big fan of VW for the same reasons, I always have preferred Skoda. Not that I'm knocking anyone who buys a VW, they're generally not for me (with a few exceptions...)I've got a Black Edition with the same 60bhp engine. There is a lot of space inside, I'm 6'6" and I fit no problem, most of the other similar size cars I tried (500/Panda, 108/C1/Aygo, i10) don't come in my size 
.
Things to do, if they're not already done as yours is a new one with the LEDs in the headlights, mine's a ye olde 64 reg...:
Rear arch liners. Without the liners, when its wet, the back of the car sounds like its raining on a tin roof.
Split boot floor. Useful to keep the crap out of the way. Rubber boot tray under the split floor helps keep things quieter too.
.Things to do, if they're not already done as yours is a new one with the LEDs in the headlights, mine's a ye olde 64 reg...:
Rear arch liners. Without the liners, when its wet, the back of the car sounds like its raining on a tin roof.
Split boot floor. Useful to keep the crap out of the way. Rubber boot tray under the split floor helps keep things quieter too.
ajprice said:
I've got a Black Edition with the same 60bhp engine. There is a lot of space inside, I'm 6'6" and I fit no problem, most of the other similar size cars I tried (500/Panda, 108/C1/Aygo, i10) don't come in my size .
Things to do, if they're not already done as yours is a new one with the LEDs in the headlights, mine's a ye olde 64 reg...:
Rear arch liners. Without the liners, when its wet, the back of the car sounds like its raining on a tin roof.
Split boot floor. Useful to keep the crap out of the way. Rubber boot tray under the split floor helps keep things quieter too.
I'll definitely consider the rear arch liners, as you say it sounds like the car is being pelted by rocks when its wet. Boot floor might be something to look at in the future .Things to do, if they're not already done as yours is a new one with the LEDs in the headlights, mine's a ye olde 64 reg...:
Rear arch liners. Without the liners, when its wet, the back of the car sounds like its raining on a tin roof.
Split boot floor. Useful to keep the crap out of the way. Rubber boot tray under the split floor helps keep things quieter too.
My wife's on her second one of these, although strictly speaking the first was an Up we bought a Skoda this time thanks to their £750 'free fuel' offer.
I really didn't want to like it because of the size, but the moment I drove it I realised how well they ride (no weight, so they don't have to have rock hard damping) and a wheel in each corner makes for a surprising amount of cross-country pace.
First one was utterly reliable and in the wife's hands on the 10 mile school-run and assorted friend/shopping trips it sees 60mpg.
With the sat-nav thing attached it even gets Bluetooth. Amazing value these things.
I really didn't want to like it because of the size, but the moment I drove it I realised how well they ride (no weight, so they don't have to have rock hard damping) and a wheel in each corner makes for a surprising amount of cross-country pace.
First one was utterly reliable and in the wife's hands on the 10 mile school-run and assorted friend/shopping trips it sees 60mpg.
With the sat-nav thing attached it even gets Bluetooth. Amazing value these things.
Another fan here.
I dont own one but i have driven an Up (several times at work) and a Citigo (sister in laws car) and i'm totally with the consensus here, very good to drive, very spacious for the size, just...really good all round.
SWMBO has a 107 which i'd say (due to being more firm) is probably slightly better/sharper handling....but the Citigo beats it overall by just being more composed all round, as well as bit more refined, bigger boot etc.
Great little cars and i too would choose the Citigo of the three.
I've only driven the 60bhp model but to me it didn't seem slow. Obviously not fast but it went very well for 60bhp and does indeed make a good noise as you say.
In fact i recommended one to my cousin and now she has a SEL with heated seats, don't you know!
I dont own one but i have driven an Up (several times at work) and a Citigo (sister in laws car) and i'm totally with the consensus here, very good to drive, very spacious for the size, just...really good all round.
SWMBO has a 107 which i'd say (due to being more firm) is probably slightly better/sharper handling....but the Citigo beats it overall by just being more composed all round, as well as bit more refined, bigger boot etc.
Great little cars and i too would choose the Citigo of the three.
I've only driven the 60bhp model but to me it didn't seem slow. Obviously not fast but it went very well for 60bhp and does indeed make a good noise as you say.
In fact i recommended one to my cousin and now she has a SEL with heated seats, don't you know!
Cracking little motors, we have a Club UP! and I often use it instead of our "big" car as they are just so much fun to hoon about in. They can be driven at 10 tenths everywhere and you learn to carry speed rather than just rely on acceleration.
I've always been a small car driver, having had Cinquecentos Sportings, a few classic minis, Panda 100HP and a few MINIs, I can honestly say I love these more. We've gone for the 75bhp one and it rocks.
Next year might see it sold, but only for the new UP Gti ;-)
BTW, gotta see if I can get that front splitter on the UP!
I've always been a small car driver, having had Cinquecentos Sportings, a few classic minis, Panda 100HP and a few MINIs, I can honestly say I love these more. We've gone for the 75bhp one and it rocks.
Next year might see it sold, but only for the new UP Gti ;-)
BTW, gotta see if I can get that front splitter on the UP!
k out of it, averaged 84 mpg. Golgarth said:
Cracking little motors, we have a Club UP! and I often use it instead of our "big" car as they are just so much fun to hoon about in. They can be driven at 10 tenths everywhere and you learn to carry speed rather than just rely on acceleration.
I've always been a small car driver, having had Cinquecentos Sportings, a few classic minis, Panda 100HP and a few MINIs, I can honestly say I love these more. We've gone for the 75bhp one and it rocks.
Next year might see it sold, but only for the new UP Gti ;-)
BTW, gotta see if I can get that front splitter on the UP!
That's exactly why I love it, you can use all the revs all the time! Last night I took it for a blast down some twisty stuff in the rain and it was brilliant, keep it around 4000rpm and it never feels sluggish, absolutely brilliant car. Despite me not liking the UP, a GTI would be a shout (especially as I don't imagine a Citigo VRS to be coming ever), I love tiny cars with power, hell I love tiny cars with no power too!I've always been a small car driver, having had Cinquecentos Sportings, a few classic minis, Panda 100HP and a few MINIs, I can honestly say I love these more. We've gone for the 75bhp one and it rocks.
Next year might see it sold, but only for the new UP Gti ;-)
BTW, gotta see if I can get that front splitter on the UP!
The front splitter looks great too, I don't see why it wouldn't fit an UP
Jbeale96 said:
Despite me not liking the UP, a GTI would be a shout (especially as I don't imagine a Citigo VRS to be coming ever), I love tiny cars with power, hell I love tiny cars with no power too!
Id just hope they keep an NA motor in there (which isnt happening, i know), keeping an NA lump revving alone is just a bit more magical then doing the same with a turbo lump.
Here is mine - http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=152...
After 18 months of ownership and just over 16k on the clock, a update might give balance to the love for the citigo.
My experience with this little car is best described as a bit meh! A year and a half and loads of "niggles" that the dealer will not acknowledge or falls into "wear and tear".
The first "niggle" was when I checked the oil level after the fist thousand miles, to my surprise, it was on minimum, topped it up, checked another 1k later, it was on half. Spoke to the dealer, the car was put on a "oil consumption test" which lasted 1k miles. It had consumed oil but not above the specs, seemed a little strange to me, the dealer stated "it's got a low oil warning light for a reason" so we agreed that that light will be the oil checker between services from now on
Next, the clutch. Since the day we got it, no matter how we pull away from a incline, we always smell clutch. Fine on level ground but the slightest hill, the clutch smells. Initially we thought, its a new car, needs "bedding in" but it's still there. Again, dealer stated, no issue.
Now the wear and tear. The car is on a 3 year PCP deal and apart from servicing and maybe front tyres, I was not expecting any bills. It has developed a shake under down hill braking and all 4 tyres are near the limit. I reckon new boots all round and a set of discs and pads will equate to 6 months of the PCP payments.
Final grumble is the mpg. The PID display shows our long term average at 47.1mpg, not horrendous but not as good as we were expecting.
So maybe it's me being naive but the whole point of this car was 3 years of no hassle and no bills. Half way through the term, it's been back to the dealers 3 times and I have got to dig into my wallet.
After 18 months of ownership and just over 16k on the clock, a update might give balance to the love for the citigo.
My experience with this little car is best described as a bit meh! A year and a half and loads of "niggles" that the dealer will not acknowledge or falls into "wear and tear".
The first "niggle" was when I checked the oil level after the fist thousand miles, to my surprise, it was on minimum, topped it up, checked another 1k later, it was on half. Spoke to the dealer, the car was put on a "oil consumption test" which lasted 1k miles. It had consumed oil but not above the specs, seemed a little strange to me, the dealer stated "it's got a low oil warning light for a reason" so we agreed that that light will be the oil checker between services from now on
Next, the clutch. Since the day we got it, no matter how we pull away from a incline, we always smell clutch. Fine on level ground but the slightest hill, the clutch smells. Initially we thought, its a new car, needs "bedding in" but it's still there. Again, dealer stated, no issue.
Now the wear and tear. The car is on a 3 year PCP deal and apart from servicing and maybe front tyres, I was not expecting any bills. It has developed a shake under down hill braking and all 4 tyres are near the limit. I reckon new boots all round and a set of discs and pads will equate to 6 months of the PCP payments.
Final grumble is the mpg. The PID display shows our long term average at 47.1mpg, not horrendous but not as good as we were expecting.
So maybe it's me being naive but the whole point of this car was 3 years of no hassle and no bills. Half way through the term, it's been back to the dealers 3 times and I have got to dig into my wallet.
motormadfrosty said:
Here is mine - http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=152...
After 18 months of ownership and just over 16k on the clock, a update might give balance to the love for the citigo.
My experience with this little car is best described as a bit meh! A year and a half and loads of "niggles" that the dealer will not acknowledge or falls into "wear and tear".
The first "niggle" was when I checked the oil level after the fist thousand miles, to my surprise, it was on minimum, topped it up, checked another 1k later, it was on half. Spoke to the dealer, the car was put on a "oil consumption test" which lasted 1k miles. It had consumed oil but not above the specs, seemed a little strange to me, the dealer stated "it's got a low oil warning light for a reason" so we agreed that that light will be the oil checker between services from now on
Next, the clutch. Since the day we got it, no matter how we pull away from a incline, we always smell clutch. Fine on level ground but the slightest hill, the clutch smells. Initially we thought, its a new car, needs "bedding in" but it's still there. Again, dealer stated, no issue.
Now the wear and tear. The car is on a 3 year PCP deal and apart from servicing and maybe front tyres, I was not expecting any bills. It has developed a shake under down hill braking and all 4 tyres are near the limit. I reckon new boots all round and a set of discs and pads will equate to 6 months of the PCP payments.
Final grumble is the mpg. The PID display shows our long term average at 47.1mpg, not horrendous but not as good as we were expecting.
So maybe it's me being naive but the whole point of this car was 3 years of no hassle and no bills. Half way through the term, it's been back to the dealers 3 times and I have got to dig into my wallet.
Ah that's not good, my clutch stinks up hills too...I thought that was because of it being new so I'll keep an eye on it. I guess I'll just hope they've fixed all the problems with yours for the new model year, won't get my hopes up though!After 18 months of ownership and just over 16k on the clock, a update might give balance to the love for the citigo.
My experience with this little car is best described as a bit meh! A year and a half and loads of "niggles" that the dealer will not acknowledge or falls into "wear and tear".
The first "niggle" was when I checked the oil level after the fist thousand miles, to my surprise, it was on minimum, topped it up, checked another 1k later, it was on half. Spoke to the dealer, the car was put on a "oil consumption test" which lasted 1k miles. It had consumed oil but not above the specs, seemed a little strange to me, the dealer stated "it's got a low oil warning light for a reason" so we agreed that that light will be the oil checker between services from now on
Next, the clutch. Since the day we got it, no matter how we pull away from a incline, we always smell clutch. Fine on level ground but the slightest hill, the clutch smells. Initially we thought, its a new car, needs "bedding in" but it's still there. Again, dealer stated, no issue.
Now the wear and tear. The car is on a 3 year PCP deal and apart from servicing and maybe front tyres, I was not expecting any bills. It has developed a shake under down hill braking and all 4 tyres are near the limit. I reckon new boots all round and a set of discs and pads will equate to 6 months of the PCP payments.
Final grumble is the mpg. The PID display shows our long term average at 47.1mpg, not horrendous but not as good as we were expecting.
So maybe it's me being naive but the whole point of this car was 3 years of no hassle and no bills. Half way through the term, it's been back to the dealers 3 times and I have got to dig into my wallet.
Shame it didnt work for you. I guess some cars are Friday cars. Made me just go out and check the oil and hasnt moved in 2k miles since the last check thankfully.
I have read of clutch issues on some, but we havent had any smells etc.
As for dealers, ours currently as they stand are rubbish. They changed the centre caps as corroded from nasty car cleaner TFR all dealers use and guess head office have the same arrangement for staff cars. It ate the chrome off the badges, so the local dealer fitted bright green ones. Very pretty, not. Also washed it again with TFR and marred all the paint that I had polished and removed all the wax too even though I said do not wash my car in emails and phonecalls. Its going in on Saturday to have the correct ones fitted and I will hold the keys so it doesnt get washed.
I have read of clutch issues on some, but we havent had any smells etc.
As for dealers, ours currently as they stand are rubbish. They changed the centre caps as corroded from nasty car cleaner TFR all dealers use and guess head office have the same arrangement for staff cars. It ate the chrome off the badges, so the local dealer fitted bright green ones. Very pretty, not. Also washed it again with TFR and marred all the paint that I had polished and removed all the wax too even though I said do not wash my car in emails and phonecalls. Its going in on Saturday to have the correct ones fitted and I will hold the keys so it doesnt get washed.
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