2011 Ibiza 1.2 TSI sportrider longterm review

loonymoon

Full Member
2011 (61) SEAT Ibiza 1.2 TSI Sportrider long-term review

I have been the proud owner of a 2011 model (pre-facelift mk5 – or Mk4 depending where you read) SEAT Ibiza since it was received brand new in October 2011.

Now over 5 years and 76,000 miles later I thought I’d share my long-term thoughts about this car and hopefully it may help some people considering a second hand one.
To sum up – It’s been brilliant. Of course I need to qualify this with more information but my overall impression is that I made the right choice with this car and model and there’s very little I’d change about it overall.

What did it cost brand new and what did you get for it?
I got the car new for a total of about £13,000 all in, it’s an ice -silver metallic (a ~£400 option at the time) and it’s the sportrider 1.2 TSI 3DR SC model. At the time it was just as the new facelift Ibiza’s were coming out so the price of the older model was negotiable. The sportrider model was the one I wanted as it sported the then-new 1.2 TSI engine, and it was the 105hp version of the engine too for more poke. It happened to come with a spec list as long as my arm (and far better than the new “FR” models that came in just afterwards with the same engine – just sportier styling)

Spec list included: Climate control, cruise control, parking sensors, automatic headlights and front wipers, electric folding mirrors, auto-dimming rear view mirror, front fog lights, cornering spots, darker tinted rear windows (though not THAT dark!), Bluetooth stereo (though only for phone connectivity for calls, NOT for streaming music annoyingly and it has NO speakers in the rear of the car), 17” alloy wheels, sports seats, sports suspension, start-stop, emergency braking assist, ABS, electronic stability control, regenerative braking and probably things I’ve forgotten, suffice to say it’s a high spec car for the time. Also it’s a low tax band (C I think) which means it’s only £30 a year to tax… woo hoo! In the ice-silver colour it looks fantastic IMO, the crease lines on the side look great and show up well in the silver colour, it looks quietly sporty without the go-faster bits of the FR and I prefer it like that.

What’s it like to drive?
Well I came from a 2004 Ibiza 1.4 75ps so the performance is night and day in comparison. The 1.2 TSI 105 engine is a hoot to drive, it’s no hot-hatch of course but it’s warm and has enough power to take a few bigger cars by surprise. The 0-60 time is sub 10 seconds but it’s the torque that the turbo petrol engine has that is the best thing about it. No need to rev the engine so hard to get it going, it goes well from just under 2000 rpm where my old NA Ibiza would need at least 4000 to even start to think about going. It’s MUCH easier to drive in traffic also, I can sit in first and crawl along with barely any input on the throttle or clutch, it doesn’t take as much input to stop it stalling and if you do stall the start-stop will often restart the engine for you before you realise what’s happened (and a few times I’ve turned the engine back off again when I have gone to manually restart and turned the ignition key).

Handling is better than my old 5Dr Ibiza, it feels solid, a bit better on cornering than my old one, which always felt a bit vague and had more body roll. The sports suspension probably helps but with the 17” wheels it also increases the harshness of the ride, it’s pretty firm, and on the bumps you feel them. Not a problem for me but long journeys on bad roads can take it out of you a little but I prefer it like that than being softer. I’m no sports driver but I do like to push it sometimes and the handling is fine, I’d say it could be better and feel more grippy but I’m no expert. The 17” alloys are also a bit of a liability for kerbing damage, I have had some sidewall tyre damage and obviously kerb damage to the wheels as it’s easier to scrape the wheels on the lower profile tyres but they do look pretty.

What’s gone wrong?


Well a year into my ownership I had a breakdown where the car went into crawl mode on Christmas eve. The AA cleared the error and I drove home no problems. The engine management light and EPC light came back on a bit later and I took it to the dealer. It turned out to be a turbo fault and they had to replace the turbo. Over Christmas period it was difficult so I was loaned a Mii for 2 weeks until my car was sorted.
Since then I’ve had one more major issue (still under warranty) which was again the EPC light and the engine juddering everywhere, I called the AA who couldn’t diagnose a fault and trailered the car back to the dealer. Thankfully that time it was just a dodgy HT lead (not sure why the AA didn’t sport that) rather than another more major fault and it was replaced and I was back on my way.

Other than that I have had the timing chain and tensioner replaced at about 60,000 miles as it was starting to make noises. The independent SEAT/AUDI experts I took it to said that the tensioners are made of chocolate and don’t last as long as they should. I also had the brake pads replaced for the first time at 60,000 but I’m still on the original discs all round and only ever had one rear tail light bulb replaced.

At my 70,000 mile service the garage could find no issues with the car except some corrosion to the exhaust but it “Might last a year or three who knows” and the MOT a bit later also found no faults and no advisories. In all I’d give the car an excellent rating for reliability. Sure I had an issue at the beginning but since the HT lead was replaced it’s been excellent and still drives as well as it ever did. I’ve had no problems with suspension or anything like that like I did on old Fiesta’s etc.

Conclusion

When I bought this car I wanted something a bit special, something with a bit of “go” and that looked quietly sporty without being too “boy racer” and I think the 2011 sportrider really has matched my expectations and surpassed them. It looks good, drives well is VERY well equipped and has been easy to live with. I am considering selling in the summer and going to something a bit different but I hope I’m not going to regret that decision as there’s every reason to believe that this car would go on for a few more years being just as dependable as I’ve found it in the last few years (initial niggles aside!). I love it.
 

RUM4MO

Active Member
Jun 4, 2008
7,784
983
South Scotland
I'd reckon that if you had the newer or revised versions of the chain and tensioners fitted then that is one problem area of that engine cleared out of the way.

By comparison, I am looking after my daughter's late 2009 Ibiza 1.4 16V SC and it is okay to drive with the revised 85PS version of that old 1.4 16V 75PS engine that was horrible, the other thing is the older 6L Ibiza/9N Polo etc were all a bit heavier than the 6J Ibiza/6R & 6C Polo etc, so they drive better anyway. My wife has a 6C Polo 1.2TSI 110PS SEL and that is a dream to drive when compared with her old 2003MY 9N Polo 1.4 16V 75PS.

The rear springs needed replacing a couple of years ago on the late 2009 Ibiza at roughly 40K miles - as ECP did not list these springs yet, and it was an MOT failure, I had to let the testing garage sort it!! It was just about an inch that had snapped/rusted/cracked off the bottom of one spring in a car that is never ever loaded - so I missed spotting that prior to MOT time. That late 2009 Ibiza has had the front brakes replaced, the pads were worn down quite a bit but I seem to remember that the discs had started to rust up on their inner faces, so I just replaced them with ECP sourced Pagid bits. It is still a good clean looking car, I needed to re-seal one rear light cluster outer part - I think that that was a common failure and some cars got new light clusters under warranty, certainly lots of Leons did! Only other issue is an unresolved battery drain issue which hopefully will go away after I get a software update to J519 (the BCM) later this week!!
 
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lil3520

IBIZA 1.9 TDI SPORT 08
Nov 26, 2006
3,001
21
ALCESTER, WARWICKSHIRE
I bought a mark 5 Ibiza 1.2 Tsi 5 Dr 2014. Bought in may last year.
Very pleased with it.

Still got my old mk 4 Ibiza 1.9 TDI sport. Bought it new 2008. 146,666 on clock.still goes like a bomb.

Andy
 
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Scratchman

Active Member
Nov 9, 2016
33
1
Very interesting read. We bought out Sportrider last September at 4 years old and 43000 miles. So far I've been very impressed with the amount of urge its got for a 1.2 and the economy too. We averaged just under 50mpg on a 700 mile drive from West Scotland down to York and back.

My only worry is that the timing chains on these seem to be an issue. Ours makes a bit of a rattle for a few seconds on starting but then calms down. I think I'll just bite the bullet and get it changed at 60k unless it starts to get more noisy in the meantime. Does this seem like a reasonable precaution or am I being paranoid?
 

loonymoon

Full Member
Very interesting read. We bought out Sportrider last September at 4 years old and 43000 miles. So far I've been very impressed with the amount of urge its got for a 1.2 and the economy too. We averaged just under 50mpg on a 700 mile drive from West Scotland down to York and back.

My only worry is that the timing chains on these seem to be an issue. Ours makes a bit of a rattle for a few seconds on starting but then calms down. I think I'll just bite the bullet and get it changed at 60k unless it starts to get more noisy in the meantime. Does this seem like a reasonable precaution or am I being paranoid?

Sounds reasonable, that's the mileage I did my timing chain at.
 

Scratchman

Active Member
Nov 9, 2016
33
1
Will listen out for a rattle.
Is this when you start the engine ?

Andy

The problems seem to be with the petrol TSi engines. I see yours is a diesel so, not sure if it's an issue for you. Timing chains should be longer lasting than belts. My old diesel Rover 75 CDTi (BMW M47 engine) didn't need timing chains until 250000 miles.
 

Scratchman

Active Member
Nov 9, 2016
33
1
Hi,
Sorry I have 2 SEATS !!!!
Bought a mk 5 Ibiza 1.2 Tsi Fr 5 Dr last year. 2014 plate.23,000 on clock.
Just had a 30,000 mile service.

Andy

From another thread on the subject. It appears that 2014 is "on the cusp" of the change from Chain to belt so it's worth checking:

"Watch out there, not the complete picture:- the early 1.2TSI 8V engines with the turbo fitted to the front of the engine, had a chain driven camshaft, the later 1.2TSI 16V engines with turbo mounted at the rear of the engine had a belt driven camshaft. So if that car is 2014 check to see which it is, if it is earlier it will definitely be a chain, if it is 2015 it should be a belt, but check which side of the engine the turbo is fitted as that defines which it is."

Hope that helps. Ours makes a little rattle on start and then goes quiet; I'm amazed what a quiet little lump it is.

Yes, when I mentioned the timing chain to the service guys at Arnold Clark, they told me it didn't need changing.
 
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RUM4MO

Active Member
Jun 4, 2008
7,784
983
South Scotland
I think that what your SEAT dealer said boils down to "it is not a service item" - ie it will only get replaced if it starts to cause trouble, which I think means getting noisy or stretching. I also don't think that any VW group main dealer is helping things along by asking a customer with chain problems, if they want the cheap fix which will only last so long, or what seems to be taken to be the unofficial proper fix, which might be more suitable for some owners that want that problem "put to bed" and keep that car for a few years.
 

Scratchman

Active Member
Nov 9, 2016
33
1
I think that what your SEAT dealer said boils down to "it is not a service item" - ie it will only get replaced if it starts to cause trouble, which I think means getting noisy or stretching. I also don't think that any VW group main dealer is helping things along by asking a customer with chain problems, if they want the cheap fix which will only last so long, or what seems to be taken to be the unofficial proper fix, which might be more suitable for some owners that want that problem "put to bed" and keep that car for a few years.

I guess the cheap fix is just do the tensioner rather than replace chains, guides, sprockets and tensioner?

I've just priced the full kit up on ECP and it's £279.99. They actually list 2, the other is £99.99, but appears to be for a different engine code; the 3 cylinder perhaps.
 

RUM4MO

Active Member
Jun 4, 2008
7,784
983
South Scotland
You would need to find out what work has been done on that engine form when it was new and if any of these "fixes" had already been implemented into the engine at initial factory build.

Really if you are being serious about sorting that engine out, you would need to read up all about this, and take it from there.

Roughly speaking, it went something like:- replace chain with better chain > replace chain with better chain + change chain cover + maybe tensioner > replace chain with proper wider chain + replace all chain sprockets + maybe a different chain cover + maybe new tensioner.

From these "if's" and "maybes" you need to work out what really did happen and buy individual parts to make up your own kit if deviating from the "quick and easy and cheap" way of sorting this out.

Also, once you have found the part numbers of all that is needed, you would need to compare that with what ECP is selling to make sure that they are selling their version of the real stuff and not just some alternative manufacturer's expensive version of the VW group early kits.
 

Scratchman

Active Member
Nov 9, 2016
33
1
You would need to find out what work has been done on that engine form when it was new and if any of these "fixes" had already been implemented into the engine at initial factory build.

Really if you are being serious about sorting that engine out, you would need to read up all about this, and take it from there.

Roughly speaking, it went something like:- replace chain with better chain > replace chain with better chain + change chain cover + maybe tensioner > replace chain with proper wider chain + replace all chain sprockets + maybe a different chain cover + maybe new tensioner.

From these "if's" and "maybes" you need to work out what really did happen and buy individual parts to make up your own kit if deviating from the "quick and easy and cheap" way of sorting this out.

Also, once you have found the part numbers of all that is needed, you would need to compare that with what ECP is selling to make sure that they are selling their version of the real stuff and not just some alternative manufacturer's expensive version of the VW group early kits.

Ah, splendid. :(

ECP sell the FAI kits which correspond with my engine prefix. I think I may have to try and track down the cars service history. I have the Book, Seat dealer in Leicester for the first 3 years then Uncle Arnie Clark when it came north. I'll make an educated guess that the bare minimum has been done in the last 2 years.
 

Tricksc

It's Tricky
Dec 29, 2011
388
0
Sheffield
I have got a sportrider it is the 1.4 16v sc in white bought it in july 2011 brand new. it has been a good car coming up to 6yrs old got 41000 miles on the clock only problems I have had with it is the power steering went December 2015 cost £1100 & driveshafts seals july 2016 when car got serviced all belts done 2 new tyres cost £800.
 

RUM4MO

Active Member
Jun 4, 2008
7,784
983
South Scotland
I have got a sportrider it is the 1.4 16v sc in white bought it in july 2011 brand new. it has been a good car coming up to 6yrs old got 41000 miles on the clock only problems I have had with it is the power steering went December 2015 cost £1100 & driveshafts seals july 2016 when car got serviced all belts done 2 new tyres cost £800.

Both of these failures are a bit bad for a car of that age, so far my daughter's late 2009 Ibiza 1.4 SC has only exhibited a rear wheel bearing issue that should really have been sorted out under warranty - if it had been discovered then!
 

Tricksc

It's Tricky
Dec 29, 2011
388
0
Sheffield
Both of these failures are a bit bad for a car of that age, so far my daughter's late 2009 Ibiza 1.4 SC has only exhibited a rear wheel bearing issue that should really have been sorted out under warranty - if it had been discovered then!

It is bad to spend nearly £2000 in 7month on repairs but nothing went wrong in the first 4 & half years. also had the sump replaced in july 2016 as well as that was rotted, so to protect underneath of the engine I have put a full size under tray of a audi a1 as the Ibiza only come with a half size one on them.
 
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