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Quick shot in the field, i did drag my sideskirts on the ground just a bit 😁

Thanks for the replies all. After a month I finally got the second key, which meant I had to go back to the garage, a trip of 83 miles, so it could be co-ordinated in, took an hour. Free of course. I had to chase them a bit but all's well in the end.

UPDATE: took off drivers side wheel and arch liner. Saw the latch cable in the gap behind the headlight. Fished it out and gave it a good yank and it popped the bonnet/hood. The junction box of cables had come apart. Closed it in place and it seems to be working now.

Car was MOT'd this morning. Passed with no advisories. 😁

Getting back to the truth about electric cars,If you are fortunate enough to have a driveway, solar panels, and battery storage, you have essentially won the system. You get to fuel your car for next to nothing, and some people can even brag about getting paid to use their electricity. But out in the real world, this setup is creating a massive economic divide, and it is driving a deep, stubborn resistance to abandoning petrol and diesel cars. The current strategy focuses entirely on throwing money at discounting expensive new cars, but that misses the fundamental problem. Having vehicles that are only cheaper to fuel for the relatively wealthy does not encourage mass sales. Think about the actual running costs. If you can charge at home on a smart overnight tariff, you are paying a fraction of what it costs to run an ICE car. But for the millions of UK households with no off-street parking, like people in terraced houses or flats, home charging is impossible. They are forced to use public rapid chargers, which makes an EV significantly more expensive to run than a standard petrol or diesel car. To make it even more unfair, the government charges full VAT on public electricity but only a reduced rate if you plug in on your own driveway. Before anyone replies saying "but there are public night-time tariffs" or "you can find slow kerbside charging that equates to diesel price," that completely misses the point of how people actually use cars. A working family or a commuter without a driveway shouldn't have to wander the streets at midnight or leave their car plugged into a slow lamp-post three streets away just to match the cost of diesel. For a mass transition to work, we need rapid charging that is easily available for all, everywhere, at an acceptable price. Expecting people to jump through logistical hoops just to achieve price parity with an ICE car is unrealistic. When normal working people look at the current setup, they don't see progress. They see an elite lifestyle choice that is financially toxic for them. Seeing wealthy owners boast about free fuel while rapid public charging remains extortionate just creates resentment and a stubborn determination to stick with ICE cars. Instead of targeting money at discounting new cars, that funding should be spent bringing the price of rapid public charging down to fair levels. If government money was used to subsidise and cap public charging tariffs so they actually matched home rates, the economic argument to switch would become undeniable for everyone. It would also instantly spark life into the second-hand market where normal people actually buy their cars. Until we fix the running costs and accessibility for people who don't have a driveway, the mass EV transition is going absolutely nowhere.

Yep, I never thought I'd change from an RS, but my car has passed the 3 year boundary and will soon want an expensive service, discs and all sorts of TLC. Throw in the increasingly expensive fuel, VED and the fact that I'm getting older, I've now lost my parents and dog I've decided to have a change and go electric! I'm not leaving the Skoda fold though, I'm getting a Elroq Sportline 85 instead, had a test drive and I was very impressed with it, it was smooth, comfortable and airy. Also it's going to be cheaper to "fuel" at home and with a broadly similar range to what I get from my RS now it was a no brainer for me. My RS leaves me at the beginning of December.

It’s a slippery slope. Then when you’ve exhausted the cheap parts you move on to more expensive projects! I’m fast heading towards the only thing left to do is order an eibach pro kit and lower it! Then I’ll have to convince the Mrs she needs things for her kodiaq!

Been having no luck trying to capture the lightning and finally got one!

As others have said the bushes may pass an MOT but they really only fail when they tear, so overtime they degrade and crack and become soft (much like me it seems), refreshing the bushes is a good place to start. There are so many on these cars I would start with ARB bushes and then look at things like swing arms etc. I had mine on the ramp recently and I was looking at the state of the bushes and thinking I should probably start a refresh as they are looking a little worse for wear after 11 years.

Lovely light just before sunset this evening And a clear sky now

First time ŠKODA owner here. Went all the way to Colchester from our home by Loch Ness to pick up a Octavia diesel estate which was pre registered with 31 miles on it. It had the premium winter pack which I really wanted as handy up here in the cold weather. Hope to get a few tips on getting the most out of the car. First impressions are really good. Great quality and drives really well and averaging almost 70 mpg on a run. Martin 👍🏻

Best I could manage with a cheap Amazon cardboard and plastic solar filter And the sunset after the moon made way

Seriously - being in the industry - you must be stark raving bonkers to think that full self driving vehicles are 'the near future' for much of the population. Yes there are a few places where they are being trialled but not without faults / problems and only in very small geographical areas. Whilst the industry (and certain well known billionaires) are prone to make extravagant claims they don't currently stack up and don't reflect reality. There is then the issue of interior cleaning / sterilisation etc. between users (eg the drunk coming home from the pub who throws up int he back, or the person going to the hospital with a contagious disease). Add to the above a human being's natural self preservation instinct and lack of trust, plus the differing nature of many parts of the UK (many don't live in cities which are where full self drive will be commercially viable) and we're decades away from it.

Mate saying goodbye to his 89 year old 500 bhp Ford Tudor: Off to a new home and owner. I'd always marvelled that there was enough room between the tyres (ran at 18psi) for an axle and a diff. 😎 Gaz

We went to Nymans, near Haywards Heath, this afternoon. I was watching bees busying themselves, and took this snap, which I quite liked: Gaz

The bushes may look ok and get through MOT but overtime they get worn out with too much play. Did my old volvo years ago as it was like driving a boat. New bushes all round and it was like new again. Went for standard rather than poly mainly due to cost. Maybe start with antiroll bushes and take it from there. Alasdair

So I've had the car four weeks now. Replaced the leather sides of the DSG knob as they were worn with some Ali Express specials. Sorry no photos but they fitted fine. Also replaced the door puddle lights with some LED units, bit chavy but hey-ho. Had to take the passenger door card off as someone had previously been there before and the cable was way too short. Sorted now though.

Got the blind spot project to 95% complete this afternoon. All wires run in and loomed up to protect them. Boot trim came out to run cables and all power and indicator lights connected up and all working well. Not the most elegant finish just yet but this is proof of concept stage. Final bits to finish this bit is to tap in to the rear light feeds so the BSD indicators flash at you if you are indicating whilst something is in your blind spot. Just waiting on some posi taps to come for the connection points. Then if I’m happy with how it operates , next step is some experiments with the multimeter to check how the standard LEDs operate and then see if they will run the OEM BSD indicator LEDs. If they do then wires will be run in to the doors and OEM LEDs installed in the mirror housings so that it looks standard.

# ECE 2026.06 29.2 Gb version":{"major":1167955,"minor":26030,"build":1},...,"catalog_version":52 261E0 Škoda portal: https://updateportalmaps.blob.core.windows.net/maps/OI_P177_EU_202630_Offline_Update.zip Files inside: 2026.05.27 Downloadable: 2026.08.19 Published: 2026.--.-- # ROW 2026.06 - - - Previous threads: -> 2026.02 -> 2025.02-06 -> 2024.06

New MHI2 P470 (2027) maps were released by VW. The content.pkg contains the following FECs/FSCs: 02300040 (Audi), 09300002 (VW), 08300002 (Skoda), 07300040 (Seat), 06300040 (Porsche), 03300040 (Bentley). This also means they'll run on Skoda no problem, as per usual. Link to the maps on the VW servers: https://navigation-maps.volkswagen.com/vw-maps/Update_25_26/P470_N60S5MIBH3_EU.7z

Comparison shots of Gandalf evolving over the years - from brand new to now.

Couple of shots from today. Revisited a railway bridge previously snapped and went up to the firth of fourth.

Finally, it lives. First start and test drive complete no obvious leaks and its does feel better to drive. Something we both noticed was previously the engine was hunting and canting back and forth a bit, that’s all gone as is an odd noise it was making. I feel like that could well have been the head lifting and gasses escaping so something to look out for. First drive and everything was working getting heat in the cabin and all seems well. Left it at the shed last night on the 4 post to just confirm no leaks but all being well it’ll be back on the road and with luck all my issues will be resolved and I shall close out the thread at that point. IMG_9100.mov

Just in case anyone is interested. I took my key to my local Timpsoms, they wanted £220. Went to a local locksmiths, who put me in touch with a local auto tech place, where they cut a new key, provided a new case with my “inners” inside it, for £50. So quite happy with that.

More progress, sump off and new wet belt for the oil pump fitted, new crank seal and sump back on. Head refitted and rocker cover fitted, all new gaskets for the rocker cover and cam shafts etc. Turbo refitted with new gaskets and new seals for the return and feed lines. Dpf and egr cooler fitted with exhaust, all with new gaskets. New engine mounts fitted. Cam belt and pulleys refitted and timed up. Still got quite a bit to get through but all progress.

Cropped pic of the best one I took. Thankfully the magnetic ND filter kit from K&F I ordered last week (Aug 3) arrived just in time. I started with all 3 filters, but ended up with 10 and 6 stop (plus Hoya CPL). Exif data, if you're interested

6.1.3.(b)(i), apparently: MOT inspection manual: cars and passenger vehicles - 6. Body, structure and attachments - Guidance - GOV.UK

Hello, greetings from the Czech Republic. I managed to buy a 65/100 originally from GB. Octavia is in good hands, it will gradually improve. I use google translate, so hopefully everything is understandable.

A few from earlier at Attenborough Nature reserve.......... And this evenings sunset............

No further trouble with alarm, roof blinds were gaffer-taped together for a while. Now fixed a little better, but still a bit bodgily with hotmelt glue fixing the four magnets in their correct orientation. Front two shown here: This has had the extremely welcome bonus of eliminating a very irritating buzzing/rattling that seems to have been the result of these magnets being loose under their plastic rivet fasteners. This has made me very happy.

What he said ^ You accepted the terms at the point of sale. I’m not saying you don’t have an argument, but I highly, highly doubt they’re going to take the car back because of a missing key. Have you contacted them? That’s probably what I would do. It’s easier for them to sort a problem when they know they have one to fix.

All the 5s on the Octavia. Unfortunately, I missed it with the Vauxhall Omega.

I thought it might be useful for others to have this information all in one place. I do not claim to be an expert but this is just my bumbling process of adding front parking sensors to my Superb. Parts list: Wiring harness, sensors and brackets - Kit is for LHD and the 18pin plug was missing - seller refunded the cost of replacement plug Tool for cutting holes in bumper (18mm) Cable to extend wiring harness (0.35mm2) - I ordered 3m of each of the 6 colours for the loom to keep it consistent, if you label them well you can do it all in the same colour 18pin plug (was missing from the kit) 5Q0972718A - This is available cheaper from Ali but I bought it from a UK supplier for speed of delivery. 8k Parking module 5QA919294B - sourced from eBay - find one where the donor car matches yours as closely as possible in terms of age and spec, and it shouldn't need any parameterisation. Parking sensor switch (Find the part number for what you have currently plus the parking sensor button. Mine was electronic boot only originally so part number is 3V2927132Q) Colour Matched Spray paint - I had some left over from painting badges. Find your paint code for the perfect match. Cloth loom tape Heat Proof Conduit Possibly not necessary but I used some as a precaution. Wiring Diagram - Superb 3 8k Front parking sensor Wiring Diagram.pdf If you are not experienced in reading these, watch this to help understand them. @JR RS Guide to removing the front bumper Removing Front Bumper.pdf Seat Cupra guide to a similar retrofit Mostly similar but some coding is different. Firstly I laid out the wiring loom. This kit included the 26 pin plug (Which is part of the standard Rear only set up so is not required) but not the 18 pin plug for the front sensors. Some wires were already pinned into this plug. To remove them, slide the flat end open nearest the wires, then slide out the connector block. You remove the individual pins by pressing onto the silver part with a gentle tension on the cable. You have to do it twice as the pin comes out of the block. This kit also inlcuded some CAN wires, and the plug for the switches including some extra wires for that too. I removed the wires from that plug as I was going to add the wires I needed into the existing one. On this one there is a flap that opens (Under the warranty sticker) and it’s the same process for removing the wires. None of the cable colouring in this kit matches the wiring diagram. So I carefully traced which wire was which by looking at the pin positions on the plugs. I printed out the wiring diragram and relabelled it with the wires corresponding to my loom. As this kit is intended for LHD, I knew I would need to extend some wires. I used sleeve crimp terminals to extend the engine bay section of the loom (The one in the plastic conduit) and used the pins from the plug kit to terminate them. I continuity tested the wires with my multimeter before continuing just to be sure the connections were good. Then I wrapped the extended wires in loom tape. (In hindsight I could have fitted everything in reverse, so that the loom went down the drivers side of the engine bay, and I probably wouldnt have had to extend it, just pin the signal cables into the plug in reverse, or I could have ordered another male/female plug kit and just plugged it in to extend it) Next I painted the sensors. Rather than masking them up, I used the cutting tool to cut holes in a small cardboard box and taped them into position using masking tape. Be sure not to lay the paint on too thickly. Just three light coats and a couple of clear coat is plenty. Now to the install. As not all the parts had arrived, I installed everything before testing the kit in the blind hope that everything worked! First, remove the front bumper according to the guide above. The OEM positions for the sensors are clearly marked on the inside of the bumper. Drill a 9mm hole at the marked cross in the centre of the circle. Then use the cutting tool (pulling from the painted side inwards) to cut the neat holes. Fit the sensors with the sealing rings and clip them into the brackets. Offer them up to the holes. My outer two didn't sit quite flush, but in hindsight I may have put them on upside down! I found the AliExpress brackets had extra tabs on that needed cutting off for the brackets to sit flush. Finally, clean up the inside of the bumper with some brake cleaner or rubbing alcohol so that they are nice and clean. Peel off the backing from the sticky tape on the brackets and carefully position in to place. Be sure to get them as level as possible and give them a firm press so they stick well. Connect the wiring onto the sensors, making sure to push them until they click, and then push in the little tab to secure them. There is cable management moulded into the bumpers and the plug should end up near the plug for the temperature sensor. Note the colours of the wires for each sensor, and make sure they match to how you have labelled your wiring diagram. Now I started to route the next section of the loom through the engine bay, starting with the plug near the other half of the temperature sensor plug. I threaded it up past the washer bottle and along the side of the ECU. I made sure to avoid crossing closely to any large red cables in case of interference. I like to rebuild as I go, so at this point I got the front bumper back on and the car back on the ground. This is the point where I then struggled to find somewhere to get through into the cabin. There is a couple of grommets on the passenger side but I couldn't find my way through them. As my car is a DSG, I knew there would be a grommet in the drivers footwell where the clutch would be mounted. I pulled the grommet out and fed some stout wire up behind the heat shield to come out just under the scuttle. This is where I ran the cables through some heat proof conduit as they are crossing the back of the engine bay near to the exhaust. There is some convenient cable management clips that it slotted in to. Once in the footwell, I then routed the cables up and over the steering column area to emerge next to the PDC module which is mounted just above the accelerator pedal. Now to pinning the plugs. Remove the small storage tray from next to the steering wheel for better access. I removed the existing 26 pin plug from the module (Push the button then the lever pulls down) Cut the cable tie, and slide out the connecting block. On these connecting blocks, the pin positions are numbered at each end of each side, and its a case of counting along to the right position. To this plug, you add the wires for the front beeper to pins 2 and 10, ensuring you get them the right way round according to how they are pinned on the plug that goes into the beeper. You also add the two cables to go to the button, to position 16 and 17. Make sure you know which way round you have positioned them so you can put them into the corresponding positions in the plug for the switch. From here I routed the wire up and over the steering coloumn under the dash, and around the side of the centre console (One torx under a little cover towards the front, and then pull down on the panel to remove). Then its just a case of prising up the surround around the gear shifter, and releasing the red plug on the original switches, and the row of switches then pushes out from behind. Add your new pins to the plug to positon 4 and 5 (16 to 4, 17 to 5), slot the switches in, plug in and put the trim all back together. Now you can pin the 18 pin plug with the wires from the front sensors. Be careful to follow the wiring diagram carefully as the 18 and 10 are very difficult to distinguish and I wired it backwards initially. Then plug both the 26 and 18 pin plugs into your 8k controller. I got some errors initially as there is some coding required. Some was already correct but I checked the following were activated: Module 10 - Byte 2, Bit 0 Module 10 -Byte 1, Bit 5 Module 17 - Byte 13, Bit 0 (Thanks to @Cairus for guiding me to this one) Clear fault codes and all was well. No further dataset or parameterisation of the module was needed. (I initally bought a newer module from an iV that gave me all sorts of errors, hence the tip above of finding one as similar to your car as possible) The last thing to do was tidy up the wiring with a few cable ties, mount the beeper somewhere up under the dash, and swap the modules. Removing the plastic pins used to mount the module was one of the hardest things of this project. I had to use a fine screwdriver to push the centre pin out from beind, then pull out the outer pin. But finally all was in place, closed up and working well. And looks good from the outside too.

Update for any interested parties... Finally got somewhere with Skoda UK. They offered me 20%, £650, towards the repair cost. Better than a kick in the balls !! I feel it would have been more for less mileage and closer to warranty expiry. Thankyou to everybody who helped me with this....

PS 92 pence a kWh. Ultra rapid up to 160kW. "No parking" just charging in bays.

Yes, the new slide pins slide in and out. I used some BTAS ceramic brake lubricant. I made sure I cleaned the face of the hub etc. I picked up a new hub today, so shall fit that tomorrow, fingers crossed this fixes it!

No they weren't. Musk's Tesla were about 100 years late to the party.

Good choice as you can't beat an old school PD engine as with annual oil changes they run forever, I got rid of my PD140 at 200k and it was still running strong.

Could be a defective new caliper (not common but not impossible) although might be pads that are tight in the carrier. Have had some that were slightly too large and were very stiff. Slight file of the edges and sorted it. Make sure area the pads sit in on carrier is clean and free from rust etc and check pads arent too tight. Also check the rear wheel bearing for roughness and play as well and make sure the discs are running true and not binding at some point. If the bearing or disc isnt running true it can cause disc to bind and heat up/wear pads Alasdair

Same here with a Seat Mib2 high running on the Seat FeC this time.... so Xmas comes early.

Meant to add that the fact he hasn't disclosed its a cat N would worry me. Alasdair

Its called Agrivoltaic farming and has been happening for many years. Grapes seem to be a favourite crop to work with but I have seen others. Below Youtube vid is a specific example. Dozens of others throughout thew world and 15 commercial ones running in the UK as per the link at the bottom... 4 million Euro investment with 6,000 solar panels to protect and enhance his grape crop which are for Cognac production. The Times of IndiaA French winemaker spent €4 million on 6,000 solar panels...A cognac grower in western France has voluntarily given up the right to call his wine cognac, all so he could build a solar canopy over his vineyard. David Moreau planted four hectares of ugni blanc gSolarPanelsForFarms.ukAgrivoltaics UK 2026 | Solar Grazing, Crops + SFI ExplainedAgrivoltaics in the UK — solar panels plus sheep grazing, pollinator strips or crops. ~15 commercial projects operate today.Agrivoltaics — also called solar sharing or dual-use solar — is the practice of designing a solar PV installation so the land beneath the panels remains productive for grazing, pollinator habitat or even compatible crop cultivation. It is the most credible answer to the food-vs-energy land debate that has politicised large UK solar farms since 2023, and it has become commercially attractive for UK farmers in 2026 thanks to Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) payments that stack on top of solar generation income. Is agrivoltaics actually used in the UK?Yes — and the evidence base is now solid rather than speculative. A CMS Law expert guide (2025) reported around 15 commercial operational agrivoltaic projects in the UK, most of them small at roughly 1–5 MW. Sheep grazing under panels is the most-evidenced use-case: a 2025 Applied Energy study (Neesham-McTiernan et al.) treats UK solar grazing as already deployed and models national land potential for dual-use solar. The national-scale picture is just as supportive. University of Sheffield research (February 2025) found agrivoltaics could help the UK hit its solar PV targets without sacrificing farmland, naming East and South-East England (Cambridgeshire, Essex, Lincolnshire) as optimal regions. The gov.uk Solar Roadmap (June 2025) explicitly recognises dual-use and agrivoltaic solar as part of the route to the UK's 2030 solar ambition.

Thats one very strict MOT place. Glad I didnt put my old octavia in there. Alasdair

Missed this evenings sunset although a pleasant sky just afterwards

In case anyone finds this looking for an answer. Having changed the IAT sensor and other things the P0111 fault returned along with start-stop error. I thought the next thing to try was the battery, as I read somewhere that low voltage could cause P0111.. So, I replaced the battery with a new one and unfortunately the EPC fault returned. I was about to give up and take the car to a garage when I found a Polish YouTube video that showed that on the 1.0 TSI there are actually two air temp sensors; one on top of the engine and one on the side towards the battery. I had changed the one on the top and it had made no difference. Hence, I refitted the old sensor there and fitted the new sensor (same part number) to the side of the engine. Since then, the EPC P0111 fault and stop start error have not returned (2 weeks). I hope this helps someone.

Hello everyone. Firstly I apologise if I have posted this in the wrong section 😞. My name is Owen I'm 53 and from North west England. I've just become the proud owner of a 2012 Octavia Vrs Dsg petrol . It's done 120k but it's been fastidiously maintained by it's previous keepers . I was given a huge ream of paperwork with the car . It's a hatch and it's blue . Not sure of the exact manufacturer colour name yet . The car is completely standard but I'm planning on a remap for both engine and box . I'm not going too far with it (honest!) I'm looking at revo for the map as I'm told there are switchable maps available. I try to do my own work on my cars but ill health has been making this a struggle recently. As I said apologies if I've posted this incorrectly, perhaps a mod could assist. I look forward to chatting with people and solving those problems that communities like this are great at . Best wishes Owen

As far I'm aware none of the car manufacturers advertising TMC as part of navigation system when you add it to your car while placing order, instead they offer free trial of online services which are paid after free trial period.

They are worth quite a bit of money, those things. They look and sound tremendous on the rare occasion I've seen one. Well done to the owner for not parking it up in a garage as an investment

Hissing is often an indication of low refrigerant quantity.

One minute I was toddling along minding my own business, and then this stopped me: Gaz