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Hi all - quick testimonial here for VW Direct in Skelton. I don't work for them, am not related, didn't receive any kickbacks etc etc - just wanted to share as it can be hard to find good places. My 2014 Skoda Superb mk2 estate had issues with the clockspring/steering wheel module after it was replaced at a VAG specialist dealer near me (Manchester) following a failure. The MFD controls didn't return to working after the replacement, and my cruise control had become disabled once the new module was installed. The specialist ASSURED me they'd done everything correctly and the part had been coded, told me the issues were new and the MFD and cruise controls had suffered mechanical failures (even after I had them look at it again) and they needed to investigate replacing them. They had also thrown away the old clockspring and were not able to provide a copy of the diagnostic scan of the car so I could see what the old coding values were. This advice did not sit right with me - the MFD controls had been fine right up until the clockspring failure, and the cruise had worked without any issue after that too, right up until the new installation. I was left having to take the car back to sort it myself as they were not willing to concede it could be coding related or that they'd missed anything. I struggled to find anyone I felt could sort it until I found a YouTube video from VW Direct (https://www.vwdirect.co.uk/) showing the exact part being coded in a similar vehicle to restore the functionality. I called them up (yesterday) and spoke to Toby at VW Direct who was very reassuring and confident he could rebuild the coding without the old part or a known good scan. I drove up today (Manchester to Skelton, so a LONG way - c 130 miles). This might seem a bit much but I genuinely struggled to find garages who filled me with confidence that they could resolve the issue nearer to me after the first one failed to do so. The directions were perfect, and sure enough Toby sorted it PERFECTLY and very quickly, with no waiting. He was extremely thorough and checked everything including a super quick test drive. The pricing was very reasonable indeed and the scan and info provided give me some recourse to chase the first garage for some compensation (he proved the new module had the default coding after installation, and hadn't been recoded correctly). I would have no qualms about taking my car to VW Direct again, long distance or no - the service was EXCELLENT and I was treated really well. They put my local "specialists" in the shade! Book in with confidence! Cheers all, Paul

I returned from a funeral overseas just 24 hours before this incident collecting my parked car on level 2. I was thinking about extending my stay, lucky that my wife said no. Having driven and walked there, I have clear recollection of the layout. I can confirm the car pictured in the press, was definitely not in a parking slot but on one of the parallel access lanes and a considerable distance from the end.

Maybe it was transporting EV batteries......................................... And gas cylinders, and jerrycans of petrol, and signal flares, and kindling, and wire wool..............😀

Guilty as charged, the rambles down memory lane in the bus garage or a 60 year detailed curriculum vitae do make me skip paragraphs in the hope of finding something of relevance.

Is it just me - or has there been a huge increase in people who think they are entitled to do whatever they like, too bad for anyone else who just wants to get on with their day?

We are just missing the use of the actions of a 'Terrorist / Freedom Fighter'. Reference to the Glasgow Terminal fire in 2007 when a blazing Jeep Cherokee was used in the attack & the hero Smeato saved the day. Bound to be some crazy thinking stuff the garden heaters and gas bottles i will use an EV.

How can the car be in any shape or form remotely related to EV? How can you even drag in EV in any shape or form when it clearly is an ICE related fire. You say you are not biased against EV's. But you clearly have an agenda, or so blind you cannot bring yourself to believe multiple layers of facts being presented.

While charging my car I found out the guy who,s van I posted about during COVID for being parked for days and even weeks in charging bays plugged in is a Traffic Warden. That really was a surprise to me but really about par for the course.

2*oC. , car roof has ice on it, not the glass.

https://www.motortrend.com/features/you-are-wrong-about-ev-fires/#:~:text=With an average of 16,in 1%2C300 chance of fire. if we're serious about tackling Vhecile fires then we probably need to eliminate the use of flammable liquids

We used to have to go the the Licencing office with cars radically modified with paper work and SVA or IVA and receipts and lists of parts and Engine Numbers and stuff, then they shut the Offices, you dealt with people without a clue who changed the class of a vehicle etc. The VED or as it was Road Tax. Now you hear so little about it, actually the whole thing is the blind leading the blind. If i was still into offroaders i would have a converted one to electric.

Sent just now from my Daughter, looking up from the Masai Mara, Kenya. iPhone 14 Pro, 10 second exposure: Gaz

@@Lee Lee, you seem to have access to plenty of Viz cartoon PDF's, do you have any of a Simian Semen powered Range Rover? I tried but it still looks Bronze coloured to me.

Here endeth the sermonizing!

Fixed the issue. Internal alarm siren battery had failed. Replaced with a £15 siren from a breakers yard off of a 2020 polo. All sorted.

Ken Block reincarnated!!!!!!!!

Well, done; you win a block!

LPG can be used with Diesels not just Petrol engines. Then my Diesel 110 Land Rover 4.6 V8 Auto ran on LPG only and had no petrol tank. Customs at a ferry port wanted to dip the tank i told them there was no diesel tank or engine & no petrol tank only 2 LPG ones. They wanted to open them. I never used the 'Bomb' word but never got on the Ferry. Then they started on Towing for Gain or Reward and No Tacho. I pointed out not required with alternative fuels, then it went all stupid. I asked them if they had any clue on vehicles other than tearing them apart. http://v8engines.com My cookers next to the Big LPG tank, the other one was under my bum when the bed was made up, so i had no chance to kiss it good bye.

No I can't. They are and fuel burning on the ground having run in the direction of the floor fall is exactly what it looks like, the colour of the flames also although I dont see black smoke, I am guessing that the side walls are open like many multi-story car parks or they have a désenfumage system.

Now you're really clutching at straws, Graham.

I'm not surprised. Everything will be hanging lose. Not a normal position at all. Is this a two post ramp. In which case, this will be highly dangerous.

Fair enough about it being a good idea but the 'norm' in the UK usually has to do with the Highway Code. The Hazard switch is right there to press once you check the way is clear and you want to reverse. You might not want Hazards on every time you reverse, just like Front Fogs should not be coming on every time someone selects reverse as some cars have. There is a front Fog light switch if someone needs to light the way in front when reversing. Or put full beam on. A Bleeping noise is more useful for the blind or visually impaired when a silent car is reversing like an EV or a Hybrid. There is nothing that helps those with their nose in a phone or head in earphones, a flashing beacon might make no difference.

@Houndog6105Best talk / deal with the Dealer Principal or the Finance Director if the lady is a Sales Executive and not one of those. They all want to meet their sales but the Dealership might have someone that wants the car.

There was the Jag i-pace EV recall due to battery fire risk. I searched "Range Rover fire", there is also recalls regarding fire risk. The 2 recalls are exclusively related to assembly faults that would make the ICE a fire risk. https://www.autoblog.com/2023/04/10/range-rover-fire-recalls/?guccounter=1 Swings and roundabouts. Nothing is perfect and nothing have zero fire risk.

There's no way I want to drive an ICE car with un-claimable increased running cost if my car was in the shop due to fault of someone else.

Insurance question coming soon: do you ever park in densely packed multistory car park?

What would have been the price of a sprinkler system compared to the value of the cars lost in the fire ? Sounds like circa £1M for a large car park. https://www.business-sprinkler-alliance.org/views/details/requirement-for-sprinklers-in-car-parks-an-outstanding-issue#:~:text=Initial estimates of the cost,the city as a whole. Value of cars ? Say £10k average. 1500 cars. £15M and then the cost of rebuilding the car park and its lost of revenue for months, at least, to add a few million to the cost of the cars but then the car park owners are probably not compensating the owners for the loss of the cars that will come from personal car insurance ? With 1500 cars most will be comprehensive insurance, some TPFT and some not insured at all maybe. I think most people would pay an extra 5p an hour, £1 a day to park in a car park with fire suppression systems. Question is whether water sprinkler is optimum for EVs as we know foam should work better with electrical fires.

Try using 99 octane fuel and see if it improves, also check your spark plugs.

Most people don't know their engine code. That usually doesn't affect their lives too much, but when asking questions of a technical nature on a car forum it can be very a useful thing to be able to mention. Why? It gives a more specific, precise definition of the engine in question than any other description you might otherwise use. Why is that important? 1. Information in parts catalogues, particularly for anything even slightly engine related, is often different depending on which engine code is being looked for. 2. Information (relating to the engine at least) in factory wiring diagrams is split up into sections by engine code. If you don't know the engine code, there might be a number of different diagrams with significant differences which could lead you astray if you pick the wrong one. 3. Questions concerning diagnosis of a fault should often vary depending on the engine code. If you have a 1.2 litre 3-cylinder petrol engine for example, it might have an EGR valve if it has certain engine codes, and not if it has others. It is very likely to even have a different number of camshafts and valves depending on which code. EGR faults are very rare on cars that don't have one! 4. If you know your engine code, you can put it into ebay as a search term (e.g. "AZQ engine") and you will see listings of ones for sale. These can be very useful for finding things on the engine or working out how to get to them, as they often include good photos from several angles of engines on pallets, with varying numbers of ancillary items fitted. Much easier to see what's what than from more or less any angle while the engine is in the engine bay. How and where can I find this code? On cars up until about 2018, there tended to be a paper sticker on the boot floor, often near the spare wheel well. Duplicate could often found at the front of the service book. That includes a certain amount of info about the vehicle, including engine (and gearbox) codes, paint code, all sorts. Example (engine code in red square, gearbox code in blue): Many cars also have a barcode sticker on the upper cambelt cover, like this one: The engine code is the letters (in yellow box) just ahead of the engine number: See also Nige's reply below about finding the engine code on your V5c. Letters ahead of the engine number. Consider adding this engine code to any info you may have already put in your profile and or signature, and keep it updated if you change cars.

Morning! Looking to buy some briskoda stickers for my Octy but they're all sold out. The store doesn't seem to be updated so wondering if this is a permanent thing or if there's a thread or post as to why or an expected date when they'll be back. Thanks all

Very common on Vauxhalls where the oil pressure switch failed, forced oil up the inside of the wire and insulation and into the engine ecu. I’ve also seen a bmw do it with coolant via one of the external water pumps, made a right mess!

I'm only blaming you for having the ability to link a non electrified diesel vehicle fire to EV. Having hallmark of battery fire does not mean it is battery fire. But you insist it is relatable to EV's. Please elaborate. As opposed to your open mind and your belief in an alternative reality? 🤪 Has it occurred to you the driver/owner of vehicle were at the scene and may have already given statement to the authorities? What more do you need to have it confirm it's not EV?

Yes! We have eye witnesses. We have videos from different angle. We have statement from fire department. What more can you possibly want? That everyone is in on a cover up?

I'll take it off your hands for a oner guv'.

From what I can tell, once approved, you take it to a local metals recycling centre with the V5, they issue you a certificate of destruction and issue a cheque - all done within 5 mins. And it's just a payment, no conditions in the letter saying you have to buy anything with it. I bought a Mk1 vRS estate 2-3 months ago so my Mk2 1.9l has just been sitting outside costing me money in temporary monthly insurance and advertising!

All go for the Fire & Emergency services in Perth this week. First floods then fire so what next plaque. http://bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-tayside-central-67053127

You need to speak with your dealer. If you've only recently ordered the car and you have a kind dealer, they may be able to order it before it goes thru the system. But in general, if the contract you signed makes no mention the deposit is refundable then the only way you'll get your money back is if there's a problem with the order outside of your control. If you've simply changed your mind then it's likely the deposit isn't refundable. £2000 is an awful lot of money for a deposit to secure any mainstream car. Typically I'm asked to pay £100 - £200 if I'm at the dealership when I order or double that if I've ordered the car thru a broker and then speak with the dealer over the phone / email. I've seen the odd occasion where if you add certain optional extras, the deposit may go up to £1000. ( presumably the car will be harder / may take longer to sell if the dealer is unable to cancel it )

Are the very high cost of repairing Accident Damage not involving the Battery or Motor / motors but still requiring special checks over and above the Electrical Checks that ICE should have but often not the real story. Is it the repair of the TESLA, Porsche, Audi, Mercedes and prestige EV,s bodywork that is the issue rather than the common cheaper ev,s body repairs? Approved body repairers. Is it having to put EV drivers into EV Courtesy cars? If the price rises are because the perceived or predicted higher costs coming rather than actual claims and pay outs now, so the risk even though this has not come to pass yet. Or is it really just another 'cunning stunt'. Higher value cars parked on drives are often high price insurance claims from slates coming off roofs and such damage. Now the risk is maybe the property burning down. That will be the Building & Contents Insurance affected then as the Vehicle insurance, as lots of instances if there are EV fires at a home when parked at it the Polices might be with the same families.

Another video emerged from a different angle, showing license plate: https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1712232395049422942 The paint on the ground match Luton airport promo page I posted earlier. The vehicle is a 2014 diesel, not hybrid of any kind. Looks like it's just been abandoned whilst driving. Very unfortunate to have happened in middle of the car park. Would not have been on the news if it were at side of the road.

SFD and coding device manufacturers are all in the same boat, it's a hand shaking protocol between Vag and the manufacturers of these devices. A message goes to Vag from the supporters of your device that says I need a token, token comes back, yes you can do that. No license, no token. There is a diagram on the net when it was first introduced. The one click people pay for it via the micro payment apps, the big boys that do coding via the a license payment. Obdeleven covers both bases, the micro payment apps which challenge the Carista market / similar devices and the Pro side that change the coding VCDS side. Added to this fun Obdeleven have the Ultra product which gets users to do their work for them by writing the coding for the micro payment apps. That is crowd sourcing of generating the apps. They pay for the privilege of that. Reality is the safest coding is to do it yourself not via micro payment apps and fork out for VCDS type laptop solutions or Obdeleven Pro. A standard Obdeleven device becomes a Pro by entering the license code. The one click apps and devices are for chancers that like things simple.

It’s a pain how sensitive the button is. my main key I opened the circuit board up and desoldered the button for it. was sick of my boot being open at all times of the day cause I’ve sat on the key!

Try getting the abs sensors checked happened to mine twice changed the dodgy sensor and a presto should show up on diagnostic exactly same warning lights came up

Yep, the thread I saw most recently was coolant inside ECU connector, traced back to wetness inside CTS connection. Mk1 Fabia I'm fairly sure. Maybe 2 or 3 years ago.

You should ask for an aluminium rather than polystyrene tray. You really wont do yourself any good eating takeaways on a regular basis especially those containing flammable liquids.

Exactly that. The Boomtown festival I mentioned in 2016. Very few, if any, EVs. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/boomtown-fair-music-festival-fire-hampshire-evacuated-80-cars-destroyed-a7189156.html This video was originally about breaking the transmission of Corona but I guess it could equally apply to cars catching fire in close proximity to each other. Snapinsta.app_video_754C3BB044ACB73BEFC63CD2A4FD7E96_video_dashinit.mp4

Proximity spreads the fire, but the key word is "flamethrower" which strongly suggests some Li based batteries aggravated the fire.

These are just the trailers for the main feature. I read a chap coming in to land saw two tenders dealing with one car and then... no car park, so that means either bad firefighting or something they could not put out. Question, how long before EV's are banned from multi story car parks? Fiasco coming to a town near you soon.

It isn’t a Skoda problem, it is a VAG wide Schaeffler group problem brought on by weight saving machining around the mounting which is just too thin but hey, the CO2 reduction of the weight saving is “saving the planet” 🙄

5w 30 FS III or if you want 0w 30 FS III to VW 504 00 / 507 00. About the age of your TSI & later than yours has 0w 20 FS IV as the recommended oil by VW / Skoda VW508 00 / 509 00