Leaderboard

Standards of journalism went down the pan a long while ago. It's all about agenda now, articles are spun to match the target reader demographic.

Nice on delivery, I spoke to my dealer again today . The manager phoned up and they assured me they are doing what they can and still frustrated. Having looked around we still want the Elroq, the polestar 4 seemed like it could be good but a few compromises and the reason we were getting the Elroq was we wanted a smaller car then our model Y. The dealer has offered to loan us a car and thinks the Elroq should be with us in 10-14 days . I think it's a fair situation and they've done what they can to resolve it , will stick with this and see what happens

Do you mean when your light are off in the dark the dashboard is dark? The mk3 does not have backlights for the dashboard when the lights are off

Hi All - Just a bit of writing for you all to enjoy - I'm no writer but stay with me anyway - Mods if you wish to Move to another section feel free 😁 The Super B and That Trip to France Us Caddye’s are your traditional archetypical Irish family. No airs or graces with us, what you see is what you get. Two great kids, our lad, Jay is 10 and our daughter Alannah is 13 now. We have a fairly normal existence in fairness with bills to pay, places to go, activities for the kids, trying to just make life as stress free as possible – Every family is in the same boat up and down this country. When my beloved Mk1 Fabia vRS was involved in an unscheduled indiscretion with a Galway traffic light I was on the lookout for another car. I was trying to delay the inevitable “That car is way too small to fit the kids and associated bits in” conversation but alas that conversation was accelerated at 4:45am on a rainy morning in April 2024! My search ended with a reasonably tidy 3T 2010 Skoda Superb Mk2 Estate. Not only that she is an Elegance with tan leather, loads of toys, an absolutely massive boot, loads of space inside and going well. The car is an original Dublin registered car as well which is a rarity in this country as we always have low spec cars with the way that extras are taxed. Because of GDPR I will never find out about previous owners or where in the class structure they fall. Car absolutely fits our needs like a glove, cheap running, parts plentiful and mechanics know them better than they know their own wives. Mechanically Superb’s of this generation are fairly robust and reliable with very few foibles so I was ready for many years of loyal service. After this car came to us via a great chap Declan for very reasonable money we were all set for a new chapter in family motoring. The car really proved herself over the next few months and we had no concerns apart from one day I started her at work and she ran like a bag of weasels but then cleared – strange I thought but passed it off as a glitch. Another day she put a load of smoke out the back and Sinead my wife mentioned that the car put smoke out on her but then cleared, but again I put that down to a DPF regen. On cold mornings there was a bit of steam from the exhaust but this was attributed to the cold. Another thing that annoys me is the parking sensors – I park putting my arm around the passenger seat and looking back, a skill that has been passed down the Caddye generations as both my father and grandfather done likewise. The sensors on the left back were giving erroneous readings which again I put down to age related issues. Nothing to worry about. Little did I know that these little incidents were invariably linked. She was running really well and with this in mind Sinead asked me how I felt about driving in France as there was a great deal going for Domaine de Ormes which is only 200km from the Cherbourg ferry. Sounds good to me I said so let’s go for that All good and happy in the weeks leading to the trip, new tyres, a new timing belt, tensioner, idler rollers and waterpump were fitted up with Cian and a good check over. Alco testers, hi vizzys, headlight beam benders, IRL badge on the back, bulb kit, mini trolley jack, breaking bar with 19mm socket. A selection of hoses and a few tools. This would cover all foreseeable incidents and keep the French gendarmerie happy. Tuesday before the off and the heater wasn’t great in the car – Also with the expansion bottle cap off there was a few bubbles coming up – Ahh sure she probably didn’t just bleed right was the problem I told myself. I had an appointment in Galway but outside Abbyknockmoy things took a turn for the worse with loads of white smoke from the exhaust. I promptly called off the appointment and headed for Craughwell as this is where Dave and Sean are. These lads are VW specialists and really know the EA189 engine. Their diagnosis was “Bypass the water supply to the EGR cooler and see how it goes. Them coolers split and allow the exhaust gas and water to mix giving the appearance of a headgasket failure” Sean asked me had she ever locked up on startup and I said no but I had to replace the battery a few months ago as she refused to turn over… “I have never seen one of them engines need a headgasket in the 20 years I have worked on them” was a reassuring thing to hear Back to Ian’s and Cian put in an EGR cooler bypass but the smoke was still there – Thats probably still residual water in the exhaust I said – Sorry I wanted to believe. She was still bubbling in the expansion tank – Not as bad but still bubbling none the less. Jimmy was asking what was going on and we told him. His reply I would keep hearing at least 3 times a day for the next 8 days “Under no circumstances take that car to France” So the following Thursday I went to work with the car and no water usage and no smoke – Great I thought that’s her ready now. Friday I used the car for work again and no problem. I was now confident that all was within limits. Friday evening, I loaded the car and checked her over, put on the IRL and put on the headlight beam benders. Lifted the bonnet and checked the oil, perfect then checked the expansion bottle and to my horror it was low, so low in fact it was on the point of triggering the alarm. I tried to think of a way out, but it was too late – She was going to Dublin and Dublin is 200k away. If she uses a bottleful of coolant every 150k that will be doable ….. I have a full 5 litres of coolant in the shed and I have an empty one so I put 2.5 in one and fill the 2 with water – 10 litres is the whole system filled twice so that should do it. I pack the 2 jars in at the tailgate edge for easy access. Here we go. I am a small bit worried and try not to show it, its too late to pull out and we definitely need the Superb as Sinead’s beloved FN2 Honda just doesn’t have the boot and isn’t booked on the boat. This has to work – I’m that far in that there is no way back now. Kids are all excited and bringing this and that – I am quiet thinking the worst. Saturday 31st May 2025 I phone the Insurance to see how we are fixed if it goes south in France – I can get recovered to a local French mechanic and a few other bits. Our travel insurance will get us home but the car will have to stay “Ahh sure I’m sure nothing will happen – Don’t worry about it” said the chirpy girl at the other end. If you only knew what I know now I was thinking. I googled every car place, every recovery outfit, and every train station between Cherbourg and Domain de Ormes – Get ready, if this goes tits up then both mine and our Super B’s reputation would be irreparably damaged. Everyone is ready and I suggest that we set off early as we are all geared for the off. This has to work, and I can’t say anything. The temperature gauge and the low coolant level warning cannot be seen from the passenger side which is one small comfort. We set out and drive through Clonberne as the road to Creggs is closed. We call to Ian – Cian isn’t there and I say my bye byes and say everything is okay. Ian says “Cian is a bit worried about the car” I told him she will be sound. I am driving steady watching the gauge – 90degC all the way. We stop at Killbeggan and I disappear to check the bottle – At the level so all good. Feeling not too bad. M4, M50, Port Tunnel and traffic is heavy, Temp is perfect no warnings. We land at the ferry terminal and I am happy enough. Stage 1 of 4 complete. We go up the boat ramp of the WB Yeats and the low coolant warning comes on to which I remark that the sharp incline has put on the warning. Right 150k has now been set and that is do able. You would be taking a break at that distance anyway so its definitely within the realms of possibility that this will work Sunday 1st June 2025 After a fairly restless night I’m in a tizzy to get to the deck to get the car topped up and I hurry on to the deck and get all the bags in, bonnet pulled expansion bottle topped up and then the nervous wait – Everyone quiet. Is it a leak or the headgasket? – No coolant on the deck. Please let this work. Perfect startup and no smoke, not too bad. We roll up on a French passport control officer and the kids are giving him whatever French they have picked up and he is delighted but just as he says “Bon Voyage”, the dreaded alarm for low coolant blares again … Oh f**k this can’t be, please not here, not now, – No where to stop and check. It can’t be gone already …… Please no, not in France and not on a Sunday. On a Sunday the French rest, no exceptions. I hear Jimmy’s warning once again “Under no circumstance take that car to France” I say to myself throw caution to the wind and just push on, no petrol stations, then there are signs for lorry’s not to overtake, and you guessed it that means climbs. A Superb Estate is 1550kg and has about 500 kgs of people and luggage on board so no big lifts or putting any pressure on the car. Then the temp gauge starts to climb off the 90…. No please – I check the oil temp and its saying 114 – Not overly high – If it gets to 125 – 130 you are on thin ice. Temp gauge is at over 105 now and the low-level coolant warning is flashing… I know the EA189 is strong but can it take that sort of abuse? The road starts to level off, the temperature levels off and my stress levels off. We travel about 150k and Sinead suggests a stop off at a services Aire Vallee De La Vire – Thank God. Kids get a feed, we get a feed. The Superb gets a rest and a cool down. We sit for 45mins and Sinead announces we are only 60k to go. I say im going to check the car. The pressure in the expansion bottle is enormous and I start to fill the bottle again. Nearly 2 litres she takes. I decide to run the engine to circulate the water, which I didn’t and couldn’t do on the boat. She fires up no problem and I go under to check – Where’s the cap ?…. Please no… where will I get a cap in the middle of France on a Sunday? I look and its down by the alternator. I left it on the engine cover and then started her up. Any more I put it on the scuttle panel – A lesson learned….! We load up and head out – No warnings and temp normal. I just cruise along with a lorry at 90km in the right lane. Everyone thinks that this reduced speed is just a factor of us being in a strange land. Its all about mechanical sympathy and preservation after the heating she has endured over the previous 100 or so miles. We come off the dual carriageway just as the temperature hand starts to stir and with the reduced pace it levels again. We roll up to the campsite and check in. Special stage 2 out of 4 is now complete. Alannah remarks “Daddy the car is smoking a bit” I pass this off as a DPF regen and don’t say anymore. We have made it – Now we have a sick Superb and we are 500k from Patch – That’s quite a problem for me only as everyone else is oblivious – Lets keep it that way Monday and Tuesday 2nd and 3rd June 2025 Rest days and I post on the Briskoda.com forum but just ask if there any harm in bypassing the EGR cooler? I don’t disclose that we are in bother in France. I just don’t want to jinx the whole deal. I know there is a small independent old school garage just down the road about 8km away - Staff Auto in Saint-Benoît-des-Ondes, Should I take the car there and see what they can do? What if I say I’m just going a nosey but If I do that the mask is well and truly off, everyone will be anxious and the holiday will be ruined. An answer comes from Breezy Pete from the Briskoda forum who says its good troubleshooting to bypass the EGR and no harm to drive it but get it sorted sooner rather than later. https://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/532688-skoda-superb-mk2-cbbb-coolant-leakegr-advice/#comment-5951782Thinking back its now obvious the head gasket has gone or the head is cracked and there is no way that will be fixed here. The engine has got a fair heating and the head is probably warped – As long as she does not hydrolock as water will not compress and could break a connecting rod or piston – With the pressure in the system the water is leaking into one of the combustion chambers – Every cold startup will be a nerve-wracking experience from here on Wednesday 4th June 2025 We go to an open air Zoo and Castle Bourbansais, La Bourbansais, which is 23km away. It’s all rural roads and speed is slow. Car runs great no issue, No smoke, no warnings, steady temperature. Its all easy pace and the car behaves impeccably. When we get back, I check the expansion bottle – No coolant loss, Say nothing and keep saying it Thursday 5th June 2025 We intend to go to Dinan and a few places roundabout– We load up and I hit the key. The starter motor just clicks. This is the dreaded hydrolock. I keep trying and Sinead asks if the battery is down – I say maybe it is and eventually the engine turns over and fires into a rough run in a cloud of smoke – My biggest fear has now been realised – It’s the headgasket and make no mistake about it. We drive through the campsite with smoke eventually clearing – Nobody looks behind, everyone is oblivious to the situation but at this stage I’m now thinking of how we are going to get home and we aren’t going until Sunday. Some of the route is dual carriageway – I take it nice and handy but still the dreaded temperature starts to creep up again. I keep looking in the mirror for smoke but none appears. I nurse the car on the pretext that I’m being careful, The reality is one big stress and the engine will go full Chernobyl leaving us stranded. Friday 6th June 2025 We decide to go to Mont san Michele which is 30 or so km away. The heater now doesn’t work and its ****ing it down. I have to run the fan to keep the windows clear and its Baltic inside the car. Again its nice and easy pace and no hydrolock today. There is a complaint that it is really cold in the car and “We could all catch a dose” I grunt and say the heater matrix is likely blocked. Saturday 7th June 2025 Another hydrolock on first startup – Seans question earlier about the engine refusing to turn over on the starter now becomes relevant – Very relevant. We go to Dol de Bretagne for the market but again all I can think about is tomorrow and the trip to Cherbourg – We come back to the car after 2hrs and the car fires straight up – We go and refuel – We spy another LHD Superb Estate in dark blue – This one is on an 11-KE plate – I wonder what the story is there? Sunday 8th June 2025 Its D-Day and im not talking the Normandy Landings here. We will be passing by if we make it that far. I sit in the car and ask her nicely “I know you are very sick but please do your best and I promise I will get you fixed up properly and you will have your forever home with us” I check the oil for signs of water. The oil filler has a small layer of mayonnaise just under the cap. I didn’t see that. We load up the car with all our gear – Again I make the suggestion we leave early. Everyone aboard and its time. Here goes – I hit the key and The Super B fires up immediately without smoke and we take off – Sinead checks out and we are headed for Cherbourg – 209kms to go. Its overcast and cool. Perfect conditions, I think. For the first 60kms the temp needle is steady 90degC, no warnings. First climb and the needle starts to creep. The climb is steep, we are loaded to the hilt and I keep glancing down. The road levels off and the temp needle does likewise. This routine continues over the next 4 or 5 climbs. The needle doesn’t seem to be raising as high as the previous week. We stop in the same services and things aren’t as bad as the outward journey. I’m quietly confident. I check the expansion tank and again the pressure is big and the level is low enough. We have covered only 60kms at this stage. Another 110km to Cherbourg and them awful climbs to go. Next sign Cherbourg 78km, Cherbourg 46km, Cherbourg 23km – We go past the reenactment of the Normandy Landings – There are loads of people along the roads. The traffic is a bit slow which suits us just fine. We can see the coast as we come downhill into the port itself. We are early there with about 1 and a half hours in hand. As long as this car gets aboard the WB Yeats we will be home free. Every startup is faultless and we board the ferry. Stage 3 out of 4 is now complete. I am nearly celebrating. If the engine caves now then that will be grand – I will get pushed off and recovery can come and get us in Dublin Monday 9th June 2025 We awake early and have a light breakfast. I am thinking of the startup – Expansion bottle filled again – Sinead has booked us priority exit from the boat so to avoid mayhem we have to get going – Please do not hydrolock at this late stage. She fires up without incident, no smoke no rough running, passport check a chat with the customs and onto the Port Tunnel, M50 and M4. Homeward bound, Temperature steady, no alarms, Nice and calm pace. Im now getting confident that indeed we are going to make it. A stop off at Maccy D’s outside Athlone and bottle filled – She then hydrolocks again and again she eventually turns over, starts, runs rough and clouds of smoke. I don’t really care as we are very close now and the damaged engine is getting steadily worse but even if the engine goes bang now then Ian can come up with a trailer and get us – She runs rough, is suffering but eventually we struggle home – We have made it Stage 4 out of 4 complete. Tuesday 10th June 2025 We have to go to Limerick for a bed for Alannah – I am really chancing it now. We stop at Ian’s Garage. Ian, Cian and Jimmy are at the door of the garage as I pull in. I step out with the two arms aloft and with the victory fingers on both hands smiling like a cheshire cat. Jimmy is the first to speak exclaiming “I have to hand it to you – You have balls” I tell the above story and everyone says we were very very lucky to get away with such a journey We did get to Limerick and back and the following Thursday I come back from work with the car belching out clouds of steam. Sinead asked me “Is your car working okay?” I said “Well its working but its not okay” “OMG was it like that in France?” “Yes it was – Did you enjoy France and did you have any concerns about the car?” “Yes and No” “ Well all I saw of France was a temperature gauge, a low level warning light and an empty expansion bottle” – I drove the car on for a further 3 weeks to the point I had to release the built up pressure in the bottle every time I stopped the car before she eventually cried enough and the engine refused to start. The EA189 will always be remembered for its association with the VW Dieselgate scandal but no other engine would have stuck that sort of abuse for as long as it did or maybe it was the little chat I had on the morning before we took off for the homeward leg. A car is an innate object incapable of showing any emotion but I like to think that they do indeed have a heart, soul and a personality. All my workmates knew that the trip was in jeopardy as I was telling them of my troubleshooting capers the week previous – Usually you would get a “How’s the holiday going?” text but they knew that it was on a knife edge and any mention of it would have put the kybosh on the trip. I never contacted anyone either for the same reason! Thinking now about the whole trip, the well worn adage from the SAS is fitting in this story “He who dares wins”. The car could have blew up on the way to Dublin or worse still outside Cherbourg on the climbs or halfway to Mont san Michael but it didn’t but it was close. There was too much at stake to surrender. The Super B has received another full engine so she does indeed live to fight another day. She is going great – No oil/water loss and no tsunami in the expansion bottle. There was a fair few bits we got with the new to me engine. Did you know that the bare EA189 is identical no matter what engine code it has? Nor did I – The difference in engine codes is in the injectors and turbocharger only. Well I made a promise that our Superb will never see another owner if she held up her end of the bargain, which she did so it’s up to me to honour my promise!! Many a 15-year-old car gets unnecessarily scrapped when a problem like this occurs being classed as uneconomical to repair but I believe that if you have a small bit of DIY knowledge you can easily keep an older girl maintained and roadworthy giving you years of loyal service. My car has many dings and marks and is no show pony but as transport she excels. I laugh every time I see a new SUV as I am looking at €500 every month in repayments and then the car isn’t even yours for you have to stump up €20k in a balloon payment – I don’t give a toss how bad an old 2010 Superb is going but she won’t swallow a monkey of cash every month. Fact. We made it to France - Outside Domaine des Ormes Outside the Lodge Boot full with Cooler Box and the Vital Coolant in the Right side We Mad ethe Cherbourg Ferry - Now that's a relief 3 Weeks and finally she has given up - Fair play to the Brian James Trailer Sun is shining on an empty Bay Like a big Jigsaw - She has come back Dol de Bretagne

Hello Everyone, I just wanted to introduce myself quickly. I am Oma, owner of a fine little Octavia 3 vRS TDI in Rallye Green Metallic, love the car, love the fun color and love the fuel of satan. :) Looking forward to chatting with all of you here.

I was actually quite hesitant when i bought the car, but once a few days passed, totally in love with it :)

No worries. I don't know the why's and wherefores of it. Probably accountants. They're mostly aesthetic anyway IMO with minimal sound suppression.

Thanks.

They've done away with engine covers on lots of models now.

I'll concentrate on the damage first like you did and then move on. Thankfully my leather isn't perforated which makes it a tad easier!

That has not been my experience, even if it was me in the car, I feel much more at ease in the Superb than I have ever felt in smaller cars, Polo, UP, Golf, Mondeo, Passat, Octavia, Audi A4, Mercedes Benz C class, etc. I say only me, because I could comfortably drive and have driven all of them and more besides but on loads of them my seat would so far back that not nobody could seat behind me. I'm not in the slightest bit bothered about being the first one away from traffic lights, or all out speed. What I require from a car is that it is comfortable so I can do a longish drive and get out still feel fresh. If I can't drive from London to Telford for a all day business meeting then the car is not suitable. It has to be big enough that my family can be accommodated with enough performance to get me out of trouble if ever required and be safe with predictable handling. The Superb did all of that with aplomb.

I've got the standard black ordered. It's not massively expensive so worth a shot. I'll report back.

Hi guys, I'd like to publicly thank @pab567 ; I sent him my MIB2 and in less than 24 hours he sent it back to me updated with the latest firmware version (408) and with all the functions activated and working. I've already installed it in my 2016 Octavia Scout and everything works perfectly.

Old thread revisit - here’s photos of the inside of an £85 headlight switch: The black bit on the bottom is rubber with blue plastic pins pressing on the PCB when you push a button. I now know why the switch was unrepairable. That’s a lot of stuff crammed into a small PCB. Just thought I’d share.

You have unit A5. You can Code the Lane Assist

The Paris weight triggering of extra parking charge gave EVs a massive 400 kg weight concession over ICE. As a multiple EV owner I am happy to have parity with ICE on charge weight either for extra parking charges or VED. German and German derivative cars ie SEAT, CUPRA and Skoda do appear heavy compared to French, Chinese, Korean and US EVs of tge same class. I am being kind if I said that it is because of their extra quality and proper to cars tgat could be driving at over 160 kph on Autobahns. Or they could be just designed without weight reduction being an important facet to VAG etc.

If your Aux. belt and tensioner are inhibiting correct battery charging - or are allowing battery voltage to drop too low, this could affect the electro-mechanical power steering - but this would also adversely affect starter motor operation, which you do not mention.

I agree just swap headlights. There easy to remove and replace as long as the release lever isnt seized like mine was. Keep hold of the old ones in case you need to drive in uk. Alasdair

When we imported our car to France I just bought some European headlights off eBay. Swapped them over and job done.

The article appears to be geared towards people favouring VED by weight ahead of the budget in November. Get the public on-board by saying it's for those nasty heavy cars like Range rovers and evs over 2400kg. So the majority still in ICE will think it's a good idea. What's missing is the details that the 2400kg is to allow Evs to be upto that weight in the future when higher VED could be introduced on vehicles above 2000kg with evs having the extra allowance upto 2400kg. They write what they think you want to hear and ignore what is probably actually being discussed in the Government think tanks. It's to gauge public opinion. A system will have to replace the previous emissions based taxation. At the moment emissions fees are taken equivalent to a few years in advance at registration then all cars the same from year two. This will become unsustainable as more evs are chosen Sometimes in an article you need to look at what is not said. Or implications of what is.

Cheers! We're in Braunschweig, the home of VW! The factory is just across the road from my father in law... we drive past it all the time! lol All best!

Moin moin! From a smidge north of Hamburg. You're brave taking a Skud into strong VeeDub territory Welcome to Briskoda @Crai

I'm not so sure about that. My Cupra Born 59kWh is 1841kg including driver apparently and as far as I know is built on a dedicated EV platform. My Superb diesel 4x4 is quoted as 1687-1859kg including driver (no idea why such a big variation, presumably down to what options are specified). The 2WD version is about 80kg less. I don't think I need to explain that the Superb is a much larger car. It's over half a metre longer. And for reference the 79kWh battery version of the Born is 1977kg.

Wow, no doubt this is all due to the steering knuckles being aluminium alloy, and was me thinking that I'd change the weeping/leaking front dampers on my older daughter's 2019 SEAT Leon Cupra - which like the VRS will have alloy knuckles! I'm still recovering from this horrible "steel bolts in aluminium parts" after replacing too many bits on my 2011 Audi S4, a truly horrible job that got bigger and bigger and bigger - and so a lot more expensive ending up with me throwing the towel in with a car "now off the road" due to a seized then shearing lower pinch bolt on one upright, a rusted wheel bearing assembly that was eating ABS sensor on the other upright - that annoyingly, I had managed to get the lower pinch bolt out of the other upright before this - so wallet took a hammering in and I just ordered in 2 new uprights. I've still got the original aluminium uprights in the garage for when I feel up to the challenge of convincing the really really nasty long pinch bolts that they should just come out - really now just an exercise for me proving that given time, I can do it. Getting the wheel bearings out is also a tricky job, but I have now removed one of them, again just to prove that I could do that - and putting into use tools bought specifically to do that job on the car. I used a lot of PB Blaster, used blu tac to create bunds to hold/store PB Blaster around the affected areas, using an induction heater a few times, used an air hammer a lot, used a Mapp Gas torch as well, a long and not very satisfying job during the summer months - really leaving a lot of time for the PB Blaster to do its job in between the air hammering, induction heating and gas torching. One point, blu tac, after being in contact with PB Blaster is horrible stuff to handle and once the PB Blaster breaks through your blu tac barrier due to poor application, nothing much will seal it back up other than removing the blu tac and applying a lot more new stuff! One problem with the pinch bolts, I think, is, they are all very low strength bolts, so 8.8 as they only get torqued up to a very low figure to do their job - this ends up being a bit annoying when you need to get them out from aluminium lumps that have corrosion in these bolt holes, I used aluminium grease on all the new bolts and tried to seal up or close the pinch areas to try to hold back future corrosion. Luckily for me, the pinch at the bottom of the front dampers on B8 Audi S4 and others is steel, so easy to remove that pinch bolt tap it out and open the pinch area with the usual VAG "hub expander" without worrying about cracking any aluminium parts - same when working on Polo and Ibiza. @Richard80945, One bit of advice when handling aluminium knuckle pinch areas, maybe a good plan to make up shims from halved washers to fill the existing pinch gap - doing that should stop you ending up cracking the aluminium "lugs" of the knuckle. If I had known or experienced what I have now concerning this job, I would have headed straight to the stage where I bought in 2 new uprights, yes very expensive but I would not have felt the need to buy an induction heater, new hub puller/slide hammer, new gas torch or new hub press tool - but really, after you've had time to reflect - where is the fun in doing it that way? Mind you it would have freed me up to do many other household maintenance jobs and use my S4 to go away with my wife! Edit:- I did try drilling into the soft sheared bolt - sheared off cleanly exactly where the shank changes to the threaded section which was exactly inline with the "lug" that the threaded portion passes through before exiting to where the nut gets screwed onto. While the Audi B8 S4 upright was still on the car, access was tricky, made worse by the fact that this model of car does not have "free to rotate" struts, the front suspension is 4 unequal alloy arms with bonded bushes, so the tendency is for the steering to self centre rapidly when you take you hand off the steering wheel, not very handy/helpful when working on this model of car!! I ended up needing to buy longer drill bits and try to drill through "from the other end" using the sheared off bolt with a pilot hole drilled down through it as a guide - well that did not help me achieve what I needed to so drill wandered off and so my new set of "easi outs" did not get used - my plan was to use "easi outs" instead of normal bolt extractors so that I would be applying an "unscrewing" action to the sheared off part of that bolt, but not getting the holes perfectly in the centre obviously destroyed that plan and an upright!

But the GVW includes load capacity the amount of available cargo and luggage load capacity is 650 lbs. (1400-750 (5 × 150) = 650 lbs.)

15.3.653834 solved the issue.

Ha, indeed. The early osteopaths of America were known as such 👍 The blue colour has already received comments. Very happy with the car overall. Only bug bear is the start/stop.

Ordered the module yesterday, will arrive in couple of days. I know th swap is piece of cake, will do as soon as it arrives.

Best I can think of is to use the app. It can show average over a year, and swipe back over previous years; it also shows the mileage for that year. Mine goes back to April ‘23, so with a bit of maths can work out the overall average.

NOPE NOPE NOPE, throttle body flap or TPS was not the problem. The wastegate actuator was stuck, used penetrating oil and got it moving again, seems to have fixed these issues.

Spotted a few (relative) rarities earlier.......

A few from Clumber Park this morning - great to see so many Swans (Avian flu decimated the population a few years back)

My post was a reply to a post that appeared to suggest that cambelt replacement interval was still 5 years regardless of other issues with water pump.

After two days of rabbit holes, I finally managed to activate both Android Auto and Apple CarPlay on my MIB2 for €0. Along the way I hit several obstacles that aren’t clearly explained anywhere online, so I’m sharing what worked for me. Disclaimer I’m not a technician. This is based on personal testing. Proceed at your own risk and make backups where possible. My setup MIB2 Technisat (MST2… ending with “T”) SD card slot available (glovebox) Green Engineering Menu accessible OBD2 adapter (Carista; any reliable ELM327 v1.4 should work) A lot of guides are incomplete or assume different hardware. I consolidated the bits that actually mattered on my unit, including the parts that commonly trip people up (GEM version, Toolbox structure, patch selection). Steps I followed Confirm compatibility: Software train starts with MST2 and ends with T (Technisat). Enable Green Engineering Menu (GEM): Via adaptations and OBD app. Prepare SD card: FAT32, copy MIB toolbox to root. If GEM < 4, copy the cpu folder from toolbox/gem/ to SD root as instructed. Install Toolbox via Software Update: Run update from the head unit; expect 2–3 reboots. Run the patch: In GEM → mibstd2_toolbox → Tools → select “Patch tsd.mibstd2.system.swap and generate EL.” Toggle features: In adaptations, activate Google GAL and Apple DIO (if not already active). Reboot and verify: Check MirrorLink menu; Android Auto and Apple CarPlay icons should appear. Use a compatible cable. Common snags I hit (and fixes) GEM version below 4: Needs the extra cpu folder copied as above. Single SD slot: Temporarily remove the maps card. Toolbox not detected: Reformat SD (FAT32), re-copy files, ensure correct directory structure. Adapter issues: Make sure your OBD2 dongle truly supports ELM327 v1.4. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JOUWVIDEOID

Hello @bonesetter and welcome to Briskoda. Tis indeed a lovely colour that Curious as to your handle mind; job related?

Swapping out sensors without knowing what you're doing is never a good idea. First you have to determine the actual fuel pressures, both the low pressure side (between tank and high-pressure fuel pump) and the high pressure side (in the common rail). Both can probably be read by VCDS. If you know which sensor has the faulty reading, you replace it with a different meter. If it still reads too low, you know what the problem is. But remember, when a fuel pump does not produce enough pressure, the fault does not have to be in the pump itself. It can also be a problem in the wiring or the control of the pump.

Hello everyone, I managed to remove the cp protection, I have another problem now, which is that it does not save the parameters in the brain and gives me error B200500, how can I fix it? So that I can proceed with programming the unit? Thank you very much

Welcome back folks. It's been a little while away. It's been running okay for me. Not brilliant, however. Work really is needing done (see below), and it needs some time away to get that sorted (with my mate, also called Ryan). All plans are in place for the car to spend a wee while down there. This is how it's sitting at the moment, with the Team Heko grille on to try and let it warm up quicker (there is some difference, in my not-so-scientific tests at least). The good news is that I finally got around to booking @Tech1e to fit my cruise control, and it has seriously improved the driving experience of this car. I wasn't too sure how cruise would be on the small 1.2 12v, but it's competent enough when I need it. Issues I've noted so far: - Rear axle isn't looking too clever, up for replacement with a disc conversion since the other Ryan will be in there. - Front end shake, it's got a wobble up front and doesn't feel stable at speed. Same way it felt before the wishbone bushes were done. - Knackered balljoint (probably related) on the driver's side front, as well just having the arm replaced at the same time. - Struggling to get up to and stay at the correct temperature, suspected thermostat. - Sort out wiring for electric rear windows to communicate with front. - Interior light wiring. If the interior light is on, it turns off as the front passenger door is opened. - Rear right tweeter beginning to fail. (I'll sort this myself) I think that's all. I'll take it out tomorrow and probably find the rest of the issues. All in all, it's not bad for a car nearing 19 years old and 110k miles. It's doing well considering what I've thrown at it. Hopefully I can keep it going for a while yet - it might be end of life in the eyes of many, but I'm not one for giving up.

I did a shock change this morning and had same problem with seized pinch bolt, smacking it with a hammer didn't do anything ended up heating up with blow torch and using impact driver on the torx end manage it get it free.

Not needed the rear demister to be on on any of our Skuds for the heated mirrors to function 🤷

Just buy a car appropriate for your needs.

Some excellent tyres are always a good investment for improving your car's performance. As @nta16 suggested, absolutely tip-top servicing and good-quality fuel will also help you get the best out of your car. For performance, reduce weight if at all possible, and keep your car super clean. Then I suggest you lean-into the low power. With a low-power car you can used all the available engine power more of the time. Conservation of momentum and maintaining speed is important, so you'll learn to drive better, finding the best line, when to brake, how much to brake. You won't inflate your insurance cost (Morning Dan!), and you won't knacker your car by over-stressing components. And when it comes to sell the car, all you've done to it is service it perfectly, kept it clean and used great tyres & good fuel, so you'll get the most money back on the car when it comes to replace it. Seriously, embrace the low power as a feature, not a problem. Don't tune the car, use the car to tune yourself. 👍 (Of course I expect you to completely ignore this advice and fit an induction kit and a noisy exhaust, but that's cool. 😄)

Yes a Oil & filter service, @ 3 years / 30,000 miles or sooner. Hard use @ 20,000. & now for a VAQ with a Mk4 it is @ 2 years / 20,000 miles.

Maybe they would think twice about a 400v cable if it was also live?