36 replies to this topic

[ColinD]

The respected consumer brand Which? has revealed the ŠKODA Yeti is the most reliable car in the UK.

In a survey completed by owners of 47,000 vehicles, the petrol-powered model ranked number one in the SUV/4x4 classes with a 98% reliability score. As that was the highest total of any class winner it was declared the overall champion. The ŠKODA Yeti diesel took sixth spot.

“All the owners who gave feedback in our survey said they hadn’t suffered a single breakdown in the previous 12 months, and annual repair bills averaged just £6 a year,” the Which? magazine stated.

Alasdair Stewart, Brand Director for ŠKODA UK, commented:

“Reliability is at the heart of the ownership experience because what drivers value most is a vehicle that starts every morning like clockwork. ŠKODA has worked hard to make sure its cars are the best they can be and recognition from Which? is very satisfying.”

[domhnall]

Keep up Colin, I posted a thread about that last week.  

[ColinD]

Only got the news release today from Skoda...

[robk1]

Many of the best aspects of the older breeds of Skoda now being reflected in the new models. A cracking achievement.

[Abominable]

What absolute nonsense!

If my Yeti is anything to go by there must have been some serious back-handers going on here. My Yeti is going in yet again next week for a warranty claim.

I have already driven 10% of my 41,000 in courtesy vehicles. This is a car that will be impossible to keep outwith warranty as the garage bill will be astronomical.

To date I've had:

The front doors coming loose.
Re-spray due to paint chipping along the sills
Nearside front headlight level motor failure
Re-spray of rear boot due to rust
ABS wiring harness failure
Front and rear badge 'worm' (hardly a big deal though)
Turbo failure
Mudflap fell off (not due to accident or bump)
Rattles and creaks all over the place
And it's going back in next week because now both headlight levelers are going up and down as if they are possessed by the devil.

Not to mention the string of dealer c*ck ups during servicing.

Who do they ask when they do these surveys!

My M-reg Fiat Punto run for 16 years with a fraction of these problems.

The Yeti is NOT reliable. Sorry.

[Llanigraham]

Actually what Abonimable should have said was that HIS yeti wasn't reliable.
And going through that list:

The front doors coming loose. Agreed not right, but not a reliability matter.
Re-spray due to paint chipping along the sills  As above, and corrected under warranty by Skoda.
Nearside front headlight level motor failure. Will accept that one, but no other owner has reported a problem, so not that common.
Re-spray of rear boot due to rust. Not been reported by anyone else so was this his own fault; we don't know.
ABS wiring harness failure. Never been reported by anyone else, so not common.
Front and rear badge 'worm' (hardly a big deal though) Not a reliability problem!
Turbo failure. Known problem with the engine, not the Yeti.
Mudflap fell off (not due to accident or bump) Not a reliability problem.
Rattles and creaks all over the place Not a reliability problem.
And it's going back in next week because now both headlight levelers are going up and down as if they are possessed by the devil. Fault not reported by anyone else.

[ColinD]

I think it's fair to say reliability may differ in many peoples eyes. If I'd had Abominable's Yeti I too would be counting the issues as reliability.

I want to go to my car and drive it reliably knowing it will get me from A to B not A to B via the dealer for my courtesy car, regardless the issue.

Every brand has a friday production day, these surveys are always weighted to those either happy or unhappy. On the whole with the yeti, it seems most are pleasantly happy or more with there new car. Those at the bottom are more unhappy generally or have more of a reason to complain, perhaps they paid for more expectation of a hunk of tin and rubber bits...

Issues always exist, otherwise why have a customer service team

[domhnall]

Llanigraham, on 22 October 2012 - 12:45, said:

Turbo failure. Known problem with the engine, not the Yeti.

hmm given that the survey result was specifically for the petrol yeti I would respectfully suggest that's a fair one. If I bought a car and it was a nightmare and anyone tried to suggest the fault was with the engine not the car then I'd be gently disagreeing with them.

None of the engines in Skodas are unique to the Skoda brand.Sadly those days are long gone. (I think the Felicia was the last one with a Skoda engine)

['daiking']

ColinD, on 18 October 2012 - 10:01, said:

...the petrol-powered model ranked number one in the SUV/4x4 classes...

...The ŠKODA Yeti diesel took sixth spot...

Just thought that needed high-lighting

[domhnall]

For sure but I'd still class an engine problem as part of the carv:rolleyes:

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[Yeti_Man]

IM sure theres even an unreliable Lexus LS430 out there....  possibly... ;-)

All 'good' cars will unfortunately have a few bad 'uns roll off the production line Its a statistical fact - out of the 2,000 turbo units they fit in a day - one of them is bound to contain a faulty component or have an assembly/quality control issue - as a made up example! Cars are massively complex nowadays, with multiple ECU's and high pressure injection systems... im surprised they are actually as reliable as they are sometimes!

Also, I'd be be lying if I said I wouldnt be fairly well 'put out' if the above car with all of those failures was mine. Thats an unreliable and problematic car in my eyes - to suggest that a turbo failure isnt a failure of the car but specifically the engine is totally laughable. Its his car, its let him down, its caused him inconvenience in having to get it fixed. A part of the vehicle failed causing it to be unusable. Thats a vehicle reliability issue right there.

[Abominable]

Llanigraham:

If the front doors come loose then they are UNRELIABLE
If the headlight level motor fails then it is UNRELIABLE
If paint chips heavily through normal use and only 2 years motoring then the paint is UNRELIABLE
If the boot rusts (my fault - are you having a laugh!?) then the boot (or protective material) is UNRELIABLE
If the ABS harness fails and I am stranded miles from home then it is UNRELIABLE
If the badges develop a worm - frankly I don't care!
If the turbo fails when I'm on a remote Highland road then the turbo is UNRELIABLE
If a mudflap falls off without accident or external cause then it is UNRELIABLE
If the car rattles and creaks then I am reliably annoyed
If the headlight level motor fails a second time then the headlight level motor is VERY UNRELIABLE

I don't give a damn who makes the engine, if it is unreliable it is UNRELIABLE.

All in all the Yeti I know is VERY UNRELIABLE.

The only RELIABLE thing about the Yeti is the appalling dealer service and that it RELIABLY breaks down!

I used to go of my way to promote the Yeti (it IS great when it is nowhere near a Skoda dealership) but now I go out of my way to warn people off.

As you can tell I am a RELIABLY unhappy Yeti driver.

[Llanigraham]

Yes, but you are only ONE owner, and compared to all the other happy owners in the Yeti section apparently a very small minority.

Whilst your Yeti might have had a few problems does not mean that ALL Yetis are the same.

[domhnall]

Abominable you seem to have really drawn the short straw. Not only is your car abnormally unreliable but skoda dealers are normally known for the level of service they provide.

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[robk1]

From what's been said I think Abominable has suffered a very unfortunate range of problems with his Yeti & I would hope that he can get  them resolved to his satisfaction. All models, old & new, can suffer varying degrees of issues and some are often recognised as being quite characteristic to a particular model, as I'm sure we all know! If Abominable's example was typical to the Yeti quite rightly there would be a lot of disgruntled owners and sales would suffer as a result.

Not something that I need to consider as can't afford one, but the older Skoda's are more my cup of tea anyway & if we're talking reliability

Good luck Abominable

[domhnall]

Yup, I've had an estelle, and 2 favorits, a felicia, 5 octavias and a yeti, I have never broken down. The yeti sunroof was leaked but all was sorted and a new interior was fitted inside a week.

Small comfort abominable but your car does seem highly unusual

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[Abominable]

Just don't get me started about the standard of service I've had from the dealers...beggars belief.

I sincerely hope the car starts to behave though, because it is exceptional when it's not playing up. Right now there is no way I could afford to run this car outwith warranty, so something will have to give.

Let's see how I get on with round two of the headlight leveling problem.....

[domhnall]

Different dealer? Escalate to skoda UK?

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[viccot]

Went to the dealers the other day to order a Yeti and they informed me it would be up to 6 months for delivery. If the backlog of orders is this big can't be much wrong with the car unless they are taking short cuts to speed up production. Mind you there is someting seriusly wrong with Skoda management if they ca't sort the problem out.

[kibby]

Llanigraham using a bit of twisted logic....on his viewpoint if the engine dropped out it wouldn't be a reliability problem.

i take the Yeti as I find it and i wouldn't rate it as particularly reliable or free of build, equipment and finish faults. Too many trips back to the dealer.
A fair proportion of posts relate to problems so at least a snapshot of owners experiences.. not all favourable.

[Abominable]

More problems, but finally some solutions......

I escalated the problem to Skoda UK and changed my garage to West End in Edinburgh (from using Arnold Clark in Inverness) - what a transformation in service!

So;

• The headlight levelers are still playing up, and have still not been diagnosed by the garage: I appreciate it not easy to fix such an intermittent problem so am happy to monitor it for a while longer.
  
• A knocking sound from the offside front suspension was traced to a worn drop linkage: replaced under warranty
  
• Front drivers seat skirt came loose: the garage tightened it up with no charge
  
• I pointed out some corrosion of the alloys and all four alloys were replaced under warranty: a pleasant surprise!

In recognition of the ongoing saga, the quantity of problems I've had and of the poor service from the dealer network (particularly from Arnold Clark), Skoda UK have provided a further years warranty out of goodwill, which I see as a fair and reasonable response. This will give me the confidence to go forward with the car without the fear of massive bills. Let's hope next years Yeti motoring will be more trouble free.

[yetifabia]

Glad to hear that things are improving.  If my Scottish geography is right, aren't you having to drive a very long way to get to your new dealer?

[domhnall]

Abominable, on 05 February 2013 - 22:55, said:

More problems, but finally some solutions......

I escalated the problem to Skoda UK and changed my garage to West End in Edinburgh (from using Arnold Clark in Inverness) - what a transformation in service!

So;

• The headlight levelers are still playing up, and have still not been diagnosed by the garage: I appreciate it not easy to fix such an intermittent problem so am happy to monitor it for a while longer.
  
• A knocking sound from the offside front suspension was traced to a worn drop linkage: replaced under warranty
  
• Front drivers seat skirt came loose: the garage tightened it up with no charge
  
• I pointed out some corrosion of the alloys and all four alloys were replaced under warranty: a pleasant surprise!

In recognition of the ongoing saga, the quantity of problems I've had and of the poor service from the dealer network (particularly from Arnold Clark), Skoda UK have provided a further years warranty out of goodwill, which I see as a fair and reasonable response. This will give me the confidence to go forward with the car without the fear of massive bills. Let's hope next years Yeti motoring will be more trouble free.

West End are known for their top service, which is why they were "asked" by Skoda to take over the Edinburgh and Dunfermline operations. Glad to hear you got it all resolved (or are on the way to that point). Shame Arnold Clark couldn't do all this locally for you. Seems odd that you have to travel that far South to get it fixed.

[Abominable]

yetifabia, on 06 February 2013 - 10:43, said:

Glad to hear that things are improving.  If my Scottish geography is right, aren't you having to drive a very long way to get to your new dealer?

Yes, 3hrs and 160 miles drive each way! Fortunately I make this drive regularly so it's not big inconvenience. And for the improved service - a joy!

[M12MKD]

Nice to see Skoda are taking the Honda approach with customer service. The customer is right lets fix it and make them happy.

Every car is or can be unreliable its how its dealt with that makes the difference.

[Iann-]

Abominable, on 05 February 2013 - 22:55, said:

I escalated the problem to Skoda UK and changed my garage to West End in Edinburgh (from using Arnold Clark in Inverness) - what a transformation in service!

No wonder it was never getting fixed, it was Arnold Clark, never had a good experience with them, regardless of where, can't fault West End though as that's where my car is currently being fixed, they seem to be picking up a lot of the mess that Chathams have left behind...

[Abominable]

MOT done at West End. Good service again. All issues taken care of.

They even re-programmed the key-opening function so that the car's windows don't all go down when the 'unlock' button on the key is pressed and held down. I'd found the car in the morning a number of times with it unlocked and all windows down! Something must have pressed on the 'unlock' button when the keys were in my pocket during the evening. Amazingly nobody stole anything - must've looked too good to be true!

[Silverline]

So, what defines a "reliable" car, presumably one that does not fail whilst its been driven? I assume that's the definition a lot of people would use but that clouds the issue because it could easily refer to a vehicle that has had numerous faults that did not actually bring it to a halt but at the same time had never actually broken down.

[Abominable]

BROKEN DOWN AGAIN!!!

The engine management came on again today, car into limp home mode. Engine thuddering at low revs. Then the ABS/ESP light and the ECP light came on.

This really is the worse car I've ever driven in terms of reliability. Utter rubbish.

[domhnall]

You need to be having a serious word with skoda UK. This really is not typical

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