SNR

Blimey! Curious to know (if you're willing to say) which independent you have used, as I am in the same area but not tied to dealer servicing.

Pretty sure it's not available - I tried to find one last year, and in discussion with the parts manager at my dealer concluded that the structure of the driver's side boot interior is different so there is nothing for it to attach to. He couldn't find a part to order either. A pity as it would be really handy! I'm hoping that at some point it will be possible to get one of those boot bags shaped for the recess, as made for the mk2.

Another vote for the seat height adjustment lever, especially if this only occurs when the seat is empty. Easy to check, see if the rattle occurs when you bash the back of the seat.

Thanks all - I also doubt it is the tyres as the noise varies a bit with wind speed / direction, but not with road surface. May have a bit more of a play with the tape, plastic thingy and wing mirror, and possibly also check in with SUK customer services in case they have heard of it (or can at least confirm it is not normal). I agree it rather stands out from an otherwise quiet cabin ( on a good road surface at least). Re the Passat and Golf, it's a good thought. I have come across some reports of wing mirrors making this kind of noise on an older Passat model ( and going away when mirrors are folded back), though these are presumably quite a different shape.

Thanks - well it sounds like the dealer might be right then! You'd have thought that given how much money goes into designing a new car this kind of flaw might have been spotted and ironed out......

I noticed a few months back that my Combi is making an annoying 'whistling' sound from somewhere around the driver's door / wing mirror area at motorway speeds, and dependent a bit on wind direction. It is not that loud and music can drown it out, out but it is annoying. I have played with the plastic bits at the bottom of the windscreen and tried tape in various places on the door seal and mirror, but to no avail. The only thing that seemed to make any difference was part-folding the door mirror - so whether that's making the noise or moving it is just changing the airflow I don't know. The mirror itself seems fine and everything looks properly clipped together. Dealer has road tested the car when it went in for its first service and the technician says wind noise is audible but is also on other Octavias he has driven. I am not 100% convinced they are listening to the same thing, but maybe I am being too picky. Has anyone else had the same issue and if so did you find a solution?

Glad it's not just me who does this, though more in the car park than at a junction. It does take some pressure to push the gearstick down but not a whole lot - and I too have been glad of that reversing sensor beep!

Same as mine - only ever seen it read 80%.

Same issue with USB - by contrast the SD card is consistently reliable. Hopefully something a firmware update can resolve at some point.....

Looks to be available again.

Hi Barnaby My experiences closely mirror your own - right down to the rattle you've written about in this month's mag. I managed to trace the cause myself and stuck a bit of felt on the seat behind the adjustment lever - job done. The issue has been discussed on here a few times, and I'm a bit surprised it took the dealer so long to twig. Overall the car is excellent: - the load space (I have a combi) made Christmas with the in-laws a breeze - they really couldn't believe that everything stacked up in their hallway had come out of the boot of our car! I would have liked a flat floor in the back like my old Civic, but you can't have everything. - the 1.4TSI engine is simply a joy (if a bit of a price hike over the 1.2) - the interior is unfussy and the dash excellent - I was put right off a number of alternatives by their bizarre attempts to look "innovative" and "different" in that department. There are some great little touches like the very accessible isofix points in the back. - the kit levels are (in my view) quite well-judged. I have the SE and just added cruise control and the multi-function steering wheel for a spec that is pretty much spot on for my needs. (I would have added the fold-flat passenger seat, but it was not in production when I ordered, despite being featured in all the PR material.) The flies in the ointment for me are exactly those you have identified - a rather unyielding ride and quite a lot of road / suspension noise on all but the very finest road surfaces. I also agree with your assessment of the different kinds of noise / boom problem people are having. One unfortunate consequence of the road / suspension noise is that it rather overwhelms the bass frequencies from the stereo, which sounds great at rest but nowhere near as good when the background noise kicks in on the move. I believe this specific point was picked up in a Telegraph road test writeup, and is probably one reason a number of people have expressed disappointment with the quality of the standard audio setup. On the noise front, it does feel a bit like Skoda have gone all out to save weight (with associated performance and economy benefits) when perhaps a few more kilos of soundproofing would have delivered a more refined car. It will be interesting to see if they do anything about this when the car gets its first facelift. Or maybe VAG still want to sell some Golfs! Simon

Might be the passenger seat height adjustment lever? If so a small piece of sticky felt between the lever and the seat sorted it on mine.

I was also initially pretty unimpressed with the standard Bolero system on my SE - I thought it sounded very harsh and lacking in bass. But it seems to have improved noticeably with a few months' 'running in' - a bit more bass and noticeably less harshness at the top, to my ears at least, and I am now much happier with it. (My current settings are around plus 4 on bass and minus 2 or 3 on treble.) So maybe worth giving it a bit more time, you might also feel it improves. I have noticed that the bass seems to be susceptible to being masked by the frequency of road noise at speed on poorer surfaces, which might be another factor when it sounds harsh (I seem to recall one press review commenting on this).

Thanks TP - gives me an option to consider. Simon

Hi all - first post here so apologies if this has been answered somewhere else. I am being quoted £190 (by four different delers) for the standard spare wheel and toolkit, or £145 for the wheel / tyre alone. This seems a bit steep compared to prices quoted on here. Probably a silly question but is there any reason I can't just get my local independent tyre place to order me in a steel wheel and budget tyre and drop them into the wheel well (I have the Combi SE with standard 16" alloys)? Thanks Simon