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New Skoda Fabia vs used Volkswagen T-Roc: costs
The Fabia is a great small car, but for similar money, you could pick up a used T-Roc SUV. So, which is the better buy?...
Buying and owning
Costs, equipment, reliability, safety and security
Buy a Skoda Fabia through our online New Car Buying service at the Target Price and you'll pay £19,013 (for one in our test car's 1.0 TSI 95 SE Comfort specification). Meanwhile, a two-year-old Volkswagen T-Roc 1.0 TSI 110 Life will set you back around £19,000 – down from £25,810 when new.
Alternatively, if you buy on PCP finance, the Fabia will set you back £225 per month as part of a 42-month contract that also involves a £2958 deposit and an 10,000-mile annual limit. If you'd like to keep the car at the end of the contract, that'll be an extra £8014.
As for the T-Roc, we were quoted £278 under the same terms. The final payment was £6935.
Over the next three years, our data suggests the Fabia will lose £10,120 of its value, while the T-Roc will lose £4900.
The Fabia is slightly better on fuel, returning an average of 45.7mpg during testing. The T-Roc averaged 44.7mpg. It's a similar story in regards to insurance, with the Fabia, in insurance group 10, costing you around £399. The T-Roc, in group 11, should set you back around £417.
Skoda will sell you a service for £220. For a two-service plan of the T-Roc, we were quoted £492 via Volkswagen.
For peace of mind, every Fabia comes with a three-year warranty that has unlimited mileage for the first two years and then a cap of 60,000 miles in the final year. You'll have one year left of the T-Roc's three-year warranty (limited to 60,000 miles). You can purchase a VW extended warranty for £140 per year.
The Fabia has air-con and electric front windows, but SE Comfort trim isn't available with electric rear windows, keyless entry or start, or LED headlights. Cruise control is £510. The T-Roc is better equipped: it got cruise control and electric rear windows as standard, as well as LED headlights and climate control. Keyless entry and start was a £375 option from new.
In our 2023 What Car? Reliability Survey, the Fabia was absent due to being too new. The T-Roc came 14th out of 22 cars in the small SUV class. Its reliability score was a confidence-inspiring 95.0%. As car brands, VW placed 22nd out of 32 manufacturers, while Skoda ranked 16th.
During safety testing conducted by the independent experts at Euro NCAP, both cars received the maximum five-star rating.
Alternatives
New rivals, used rivals
The Renault Clio has been recently facelifted and it features a smart interior. The Clio is also fun to drive without sacrificing much in the way of comfort over the Fabia, plus it's packed with kit yet available for similar money.
For around a grand more than our T-Roc costs, you could have a three-year-old BMW X2 20i. It has more power (192bhp) and handles well. On the other hand, its ride is on the firm side, especially in M Sport trim, and it's not the most practical small SUV.
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