Faults:

Nothing mechanical other than a minor rattle coming from the passenger side dashboard that only pops up extremely sporadicly, and the steering wheel was slightly askew when I picked it up from the show room, but the dealer fixed the problem with an alignment and steering wheel adjustment.

General Comments:

I'm an American student studying in Poland. I just started my schooling this year, and it will last 3 years. After selling my baby (06 WRX wagon) in the states, I wanted to buy a economic, versatile, and cheap to operate car in Poland. After reading about the great reliability and practicality most Skodas have in Europe, I started talking with Auto-Wimar Skoda in Warsaw about a Roomster. We negotiated a fair price, 53.000 pln or about 17.000 USD, and I picked up my brand new Roomster the next day.

I chose the Roomster due to the fact that I love the out doors, and I needed a versatile vehicle that was big on the inside and small on the outside (Warsaw is really crowded).

The performance from the engine is more than adequate. On the expressway I average about 4.5 to 5 l per 100 km driving at about 110-130 kmh. The fastest I have ever taken her was 180 kmh, and she was very stable considering it's a tall vehicle.

The in town performance is pretty good as well; the engine has enough torque, and I have never seen her burn more than 7.5 l per 100 kms (this was bumper to bumper traffic).

The rear parking sensors also make it a breeze to park.

The front halogens are way better than on my old WRX, and the higher mounted rear lights mean your vehicle is more visible in bad weather conditions.

The interior is plain, but very very practical. It is easy to keep clean, and has a HUGE amount of room in the back that is easily adjusted by the folding rear seats that are also reclining (they are a little cumbersome to take out, but it's not a nightmare to do so).

The handling and stability, while not sports car like, is impressive. The only two things I would change with this car would be adding a sixth gear and better brakes, and that's it.

This car is inexpensive to run and insure. It is the perfect car for 90% of people out there. I know it looks a little weird, but if you drove one for a day you would fall in love with the simplicity, efficiency, and versatility of the vehicle.