The Octavia (1.6 tdi estate 2yrs and 2 months old) has once again been stretchered off to the dealers behind an RAC van. Last time it turned out to be a break in the wiring loom, this time it is thought to be some sort of turbo failure.
Add in the failure of the number plate lights because of corrosion, the intermittent DRL failure, random alarm activations and coming to the car to find the windows open, it's going to be a different manufacturer next time (not until December, unfortunately)
It was top choice last time, relatively low BIK and reasonable economy (51 mpg over the last 47000 miles) but the Kia Ceed SW was a very close second
And is in prime position as a replacement.
But is there anything else that fills the slot ?
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My Ceed estate is now two years old, and is totally faultless, (up to now). It is now fully loosened up and is the quietest and smoothest diesel I have owned, (its my tenth). :-)
EDIT:- If it breaks it still has five years manufacturers warranty left. :-))))
Last edited by: Old Navy on Sun 19 Feb 12 at 18:25
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It would be interesting to know what the build date of the car was.
You mention corrosion in the number plate lights. I was surprised when going through the paperwork of my wifes lease car which goes back end of March. It was first registered in late 2008, the build date was Nov. 2006.
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The X1 was built a month before it was registered......
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I so want them to do a special edition called the B'udgie.
Last edited by: Humph D'Bout on Sun 19 Feb 12 at 18:36
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>> I so want them to do a special edition called the B'udgie.
>>
or the Onan ?
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Or the jaffa...
(work that one out folks)
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>> Or the jaffa...
>>
>> (work that one out folks)
>>
Tee Hee, as AC has been known to say
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>> Kia Ceed SW was a very close second
>> And is in prime position as a replacement.
>> But is there anything else that fills the slot ?
The Hyundai i40 Tourer looks very nice IMO.
Sorry to hear of the patchy performance of your Skoda, I was a real zealot for my Octavia estate but that was over a decade ago now.
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>> coming to the car to find the windows open,
My Mazda6 did that a few times. And my Passat CC once. And my neighbours BMW. I know why mine did it - key on pocket and accidentally press the unlock button for a few seconds which opens the windows. It can be turned off in the Passat - probably can in the Octavia too. Worth trying?
I know my Passat CC was built a few weeks before it went to the dealers in July - I knew the build week and it had to be factory ordered because (a) the demand for the cars this past year and (b) the options I choose as factory fit. Same happened for my last two VWs. And my Mondeo was the first of the Euro IV diesels built in 2003.... on the other hand my Mazda6 was built early 2007 and I got it in the October.
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It probably not a fault but to do with the global opening "feature" on the Octavia which allows you to open all the windows by a long press of the lock button on your remote control. If you inadvertently press the button in your pocket this will unlock the doors and open the windows. If none of the doors are opened within a set period (40 secs I think) the doors re-lock but the windows will remain open.
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>>
>> It probably not a fault but to do with the global opening "feature" on the
>> Octavia which allows you to open all the windows by a long press of the
>> lock button on your remote control.
Er......what on earth for?
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It's quite useful in the summer to open all the windows and get some fresh air in the car before you get to it
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I doubt it - I am aware of it, It's a long press of the unlock to open them, which I would not be doing, but also the windows were all open differing amounts. Bit of a pain, because it was chucking it down
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>> >> coming to the car to find the windows open,
>>
>> My Mazda6 did that a few times. And my Passat CC once. And my neighbours
>> BMW. I know why mine did it - key on pocket and accidentally press the
>> unlock button for a few seconds which opens the windows. It can be turned off
>> in the Passat - probably can in the Octavia too. Worth trying?
Friend has just bought a nearly new Touran. Complained to me that she had found the windows slightly open on a couple of occasions, so had booked it into the dealers.
Dealer identified the fault.................as driver error. Button being pressed and windows coming down. They disabled this feature for her :-)
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>> They disabled this feature for her :-)
On mine it's possible to change window opening in the MDF. Either all off, only driver door or all enabled. Mine is still set to the latter. I wouldn't spot only a driver window open from the house.
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MDF should have been MFD - Multi Function Display. :-)
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o..an interesting start to the day
by mid morning, Skoda were adamant that the car had been left at the agreed dealers, and the dealer was adamant there was no car of that reg left at their premises at the weekend (*)
the callbacks that were promised from the car hire company 'within 5 minutes' at 8am, 9am and 9:30 didn't materialise until after 11, and the car that was promised '10 oclock probably, no later than 10:30' turned up at one oclock. All the calls from Skoda were adamant that I needed to have both parts of my licence ready, and give the hire car company a credit card number but it would only be used in the case of damage. The bloke who delivered it spent 10 minutes explaining the (expletive deleted) electronic handbrake, without explaining the strating mechanism (electronic key in slot, depress clutch to start
engine). He didn't even ask for my licence, but was insistent they would debit a £50 fuel deposit
Anybody out there know how to change the display on the computer on a brand new passat - it's just showing range at the moment, I'd like so see what it thinks the fuel consumption is
(*) Parkside Skoda and Parkside Daihatsu - 200 meters apart - why would you leave a Skoda at the Daihatsu garage ?
Last edited by: borasport on Mon 20 Feb 12 at 15:35
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...o..an interesting start to the day...
Mmm, seem to recall lots of posts in my company car thread extolling the virtues of hassle free motoring. :)
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This kind of thing makes my blood boil. Is it too much to expect a simple call back when promised, for things to go smoothly when more than one party is involved, or to simply have a a job done, or process followed with a basic level of competence?
This is also the kind of thing that turns a failure on a car from a mild inconvenience that you'd probably shrug off into a major incident that grates, and is likely to taint your view of the whole brand.
It staggers me in this economic climate that manufacturers and dealers cock this kind of thing up.
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>> It staggers me in this economic climate that manufacturers and dealers cock this kind of thing up. >>
Perhaps these "manufacturers and dealers" are employing too many people with the wrong attitude to work and customer service. Perhaps these employers are the kind who are not quick to fire the bad workers because they don't want to treat them as numbers. Perhaps these employers allow their employees to take as much time off sick as they like.
;-)
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>> Anybody out there know how to change the display on the computer on a brand new passat
Use the 4 way controller on the right hand side of the steering will. Up and down to go through the stats on fuel consumption, range, etc. Left and right go from the statistics screen on the MDF, settings, bending lights (if you have them) radio/media playing, phone (if it's got Bluetooth hands free phone) etc.
Don't forget it will have auto hold on the Passat but that is only engaged when you have your seatbelt on. Likewise the electronic parking brake will only automatically disengage if you are wearing the seatbelt and the auto hold feature is on. Otherwise you have to press the foot brake and then manually release it.
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All that only happens if there is an R in the month and you have a degree in advanced rocket science.
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autohold
wazzat ? the delivery man didn't mention it, and needless to say, there is no handbook in the car :-(
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Think it's called that. You come to a stop and the car will hold itself without you putting on the electronic parking brake. It works for rolling forward or back. You can feel it's done it because if you take your foot off the brake and then press it again there is full pressure and the pedal won't move. If you engage the parking brake then the pedal then goes back to normal.
Auto hold only works when you have the seat belt on. It's also this that engages the electronic parking brake when you stop the car and turn off the ignition or take off your seatbelt.
I didn't think I'd like an electronic parking brake - wasn't fussed in an Insignia or Pug 3008. The VW system works well.
www.volkswagen.co.uk/technology/parking-and-manoeuvring/auto-hold
But if you're reverse parking in the DSG car, touch the brakes and auto hold engages.
Last edited by: rtj70 on Mon 20 Feb 12 at 18:13
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Repair of Skoda being delayed, i've rather got the hang of the electric brake and auto-hold, but there have been at least two occasions when it hasn't operated. Also there have been a number of occasions when the stop/start didn't stop, sometime with messages to say it hadn't stopped, and sometimes with !
anybody know what the knack is with shutting the boot ? It seems to take an average of > 2 attempts to get it to lock each time.
Also I have inadvertantly got the display to display memory 2 - how do I switch it back ?
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It got fixed, three weeks ago. That's three weeks in the garage, under warranty, and it's been back on the road three weeks. Until today. Back in the garage, probable/possible EGR failure.
Two questions
1 - the hire car is a Toyota Avensis automatic - any cluse for driving an auto, I've never had one before but I managed to get it the 70 odd miles home without issue
2 - favourite for the replacement, budget permitting, would be a Volvo V50, but the recover man had a downer on Volvos in general - one of the most unreliable cars around at the moment, 'we take loads of them away, all the lighs on the dashboard come on at once and thats in, you just take then away' - any experience here to confirm that, or was it just mis-informed rubbish ?
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>> 1 - the hire car is a Toyota Avensis automatic - any cluse for driving
>> an auto, I've never had one before but I managed to get it the 70
>> odd miles home without issue
Select D, point steering wheel in general direction and press the throttle, relax and let all thoughts of breakdown and incompetent dealers who haven't a care for their customers disappear into the mists of bad memories, then remember that good feeling when you come to buy another car...;)
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but does one stuff it into neutral every time one stops, (rather clunky) or sit there with a foot on the brake (I'd rather not thank you), and I'm not sure where the ahappy medium is in stop/go motorway traffic
And I have ambivalent feelings about the people repairing it under warranty, we didn't buy it from them after all (the supplying dealer was 200 miles away, andcompany policy would source a car from Argentina right now if it was cheapest) - tey aren't good at remote communication, but face to face, I can talk to the man who's going to work on the car
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>> but does one stuff it into neutral every time one stops, (rather clunky) or sit
>> there with a foot on the brake (I'd rather not thank you), and I'm not
>> sure where the ahappy medium is in stop/go motorway traffic
Likely to be reasonable stop, say up to 2 minutes just leave it in gear, if the delay is likely to be longer slip it into neutral, its a Toyota it won't mind what you do to it within reason.
Stop go traffic is what proper autos are designed for, just let the car do its thing.
Be aware though nice autos are addictive..;)
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Just reminded me of the nice 320 Touring auto I was given as a courtesy car 0 black alloys apart it was a peach.
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>> Be aware though nice autos are addictive..;)
>>
I'll let you know - current estimates are that I should have the Octavia back by wednesday, which on current experience means the back end of May...
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but does one stuff it into neutral every time one stops...?
This bothered me too, but as I ponder buying my first automatic I've done some looking up and the consensus is no, one doesn't. Selecting N causes the torque converter to stop spinning in its pot of gloop, then selecting D to move off requires it to start up again. Leaving it engaged, turned only by the minimal torque of an idling engine, is kinder to the transmission and shouldn't be enough to break the hold of the handbrake.
Or something like that. How'd I do?
Last edited by: WillDeBeest on Mon 2 Apr 12 at 21:57
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Leaving the transmission in drive for normal periods of time in traffic does the transmission no harm at all. If you're going to be stopped for 10 minutes or more, you would probably switch off anyway.
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- the hire car is a Toyota Avensis automatic - any clues for driving an auto,
I've never had one before but I managed to get it the 70 odd miles home without issue
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>> Select D, point steering wheel in general direction and press the throttle,
As you have probably found out there is far less engine braking on the overun so be prepared to brake more.
Is there still a little button under the selector head? if so it is jolly useful to drop down one gear from top to help acceleration rather than stamping on the gas.
The usual advice to an infrequent auto user is to tuck the left foot under your seat.
Enjoy!
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>>As you have probably found out there is far less engine braking on the overun so be prepared to brake more<<
Dat's where a Tiptronic comes into its own, y'all can switch to manual in certain situations for greater control of the car.
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>> The usual advice to an infrequent auto user is to tuck the left foot under
>> your seat.
>>
Cue the man in the hat from The Other Place screaming that left-foot braking is de rigeur in an automatic.
I have to say that neither of mine make a habit of setting off into parked vehicles while my left foot is sitting on the footrest. I guess my cars must be better behaved than the ones he's used to.
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>> 2 - favourite for the replacement, budget permitting, would be a Volvo V50, but the recover man had a downer on Volvos in general - one of the most unreliable cars around at the moment, 'we take loads of them away, all the lighs on the dashboard come on at once and thats in, you just take then away'
any experience here to confirm that, or was it just mis-informed rubbish ?
Most cars are like that these days - most with a fault get dragged in.
In days gone by, many faults would allow the car to limp to a garage, now due to everything being controlled by various ECU's its game over.
Fault finding can be fun also, the diagnostic machines are not as good as many would have you believe. Some is down to the tech not understanding what the fault codes really mean, but if the ECU wont talk to the diagnostic machine then what?
is it the ECU?
is it the wiring to the ECU?
many hours can be spent trying to get to the root of a problem......
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Ah BS a thought occurs just before i pop off to bed...not as you are in my bedtime thoughts you understand..;)
I presume your hire car is the latest shape Avensis, presumably the auto handbrake function is working OK they usually do, cos otherwise i was wondering how you got on with the electric handbrake (why did you spoil this otherwise excellent car with that hellish contraption Toyota?), unlike every other car i've ever driven you push for manually setting the handbrake on and pull to release, always had me thinking twice when they were in 'transit' mode at peculiar angles.
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It's certainly got an electronic handbrake, whether or not that has an auto function I don't know. Certainly, in drive with my foot off the gas, the car will creep forward
I know I cursed the lack of a manual on the last rental car but I don't know if I'll have time to read all 650+ pages of the car manual and 250+ pages of audio/satnav manual before the Toyota goes back
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Hrumph.
In out Merc, if we're stopped for any length of time (more than a minute), I always put the transmission in park. I'm just aware that the E has a massive high level brake light, that is pretty dazzling for any poor folks behind. Is that wrong then??
Ta,
Alex.
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I usually put my auto into N with the handbrake on if say the t/lights have just gorn red,
I wouldn't dream of putting it in P though.
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Well, I can just slip the lever into neutral with my finger, and ditto back into drive,
but to put into park requires engaging my brain.
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Sounds like you've a complex bit of kit there dog ;-)
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Its just force of habit really sooty, and why make work for ya self ;)
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Different autos require divers combinations of finger on trigger and foot on brake to move into or out of P or N. The Volvo one is especially nannyish, insisting on the brake to select anything but D, or even to get out of N and into D. That means a flash of brake lights before you move off - hardly conducive to looking smooth and in control, but better than the reversing lights some autos flash.
The Mercedes auto is better in this respect. It would be perfect if the brake hold feature extinguished the brake lights once engaged.
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>>The Mercedes auto is better in this respect. It would be perfect if the brake hold feature extinguished the brake lights once engaged<<
That's another reason I'll slip her into N while stationary - I feel I'm doing 'my bit' to help save the planet.
:)
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The Avensis went back on Tuesday evening, back in the Skoda. Worked from home yesterday as it seems a better option than a trip across the M62, and today was a days holiday...
To take SWMBO's dad, who's not very well, out for the afternoon
Bit of a bu..er then that we hadn't taken him far before the warning light starts flashing again, just short of a motorway junction, so drop of the junction to head back in the direction of home and the car drops into sdo called 'get you home mode' -not at 30 mph max on a motorway, it dont !
praise to Mr M, who came to take away the wrinklies
to the RAC, who turned up quickly, and agreed to take the car to the repairing garage without too much argument
to the reparing garage, who aren't the supplying dealer, but have provided a loan car
bad cess to Skoda fro producing such a heap of. ..............
ant to Skoda Replacement Vehicles, who couldnt source a replacement car
this saga will go on and on - unitl the warranty runs out, and that will be a whole other ball game
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another 'what next' - Old Navy
