davejay

Sorry for the delay in replying, but.... I've now done 1,500 miles in the Octavia - the classic mix of town, country and motorway. Plusses: The driver's area is plenty big enough for a six-foot me and there's been no complaints from my wife or 89 year old mother about accessing or legroom in the front passenger seat. The boot may lack the Narnian dimensions of a Superb but it was plenty big enough for our holiday baggage. The ride is firmer and a lot easier over speed humps. The 2 litre diesel is about 15-20% more economical than the equivalent Superb. It's £100 a month cheaper to lease. Long distance driving is just as easy, or as similar as makes no matter. Parking and city driving are a lot less stressful both for my co-pilot (she doesn't drive) and I. I feel like I'm in control of the car rather than the other way round. Minuses: A couple of things aren't as big as I'm used to - central console, rear view mirror, that sort of thing. One or two bits of finish (especially the door handles) make you realise that the Superb now really is executive standard. There's a lot more clinking than solid thudding. The infotainment centre is of the "It wasn't broke so why mend it?" variety that's taking me forever to understand. In particular I can't get rid of that bloody woman's voice forever asking what me what I want to do. It doesn't look anywhere near as impressive as a Superb. Overall: It's a nice car, it's a lot cheaper and it's probably at the same level now as my first 12-plate Superb. They're both, in their way, great cars to own & drive. You pays your money, you takes your choice.

The medical has been completed, the personal terms agreed and I can now complete my free transfer to the Octavia forum after taking delivery today. Thank you for all the help and advice you've given me over the years. I've had four Superbs; three were as near perfect as makes no difference and the fourth was still the fourth-best car I've ever driven. They're just too big now for me to drive round town (and especially park) comfortably and the Octavia is also a lot cheaper. I hope it lives up to its predecessors.

Very good.

And breeeeeathe. i've managed to finally get the stuck-in bit out. What I thought were two metal retainers or similar was part of the plastic from the old clip - a trick of the light made it look metallic and it was in exactly the right (or wrong) place. Thank you once again for all the advice and trouble you've gone to; I really appreciate it. You can also see if you didn't know already how totally illiterate I am when it comes to anything mechanical. Now, if you have any suggestions for an appropriate punishment should I ever come across the scrote who stole the original...

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Again, thanks for all the help - that's the part I have. My worry is that what looks like two screws in the bit that's left of the clip aren't on the replacement.

Update - I've tried pliers but while it can move a bit, it still can't be removed.

No, I can't see anything like that on the new one. All I have is the cover - does it need the extra lugs, or does the replacement not need them? Thanks for the prompt reply.

Sorry to return to this, but the replacement cover arrived today and trying to fit it is problematic as there's something in the top left bracket causing an obstruction. If you can't see it properly, it's a piece of plastic with what looks like two screws but it's not being held in place. I can't see what's keeping it in there; it can move from side to side but not be taken out. I don't know whether it should be there and there should be others in the other brackets or it was part of the housing that was stolen and has to be taken out somehow, but either way I don't want to force it as I'm worried that the sensor itself will get damaged. I've tried removing the washers above but they don't seem to be doing anything other than covering two holes. I'd be very grateful if anyone has any ideas.

They quoted me half as much again for a replacement as Kopacek are selling them for.

Thanks for the information received. Are Kopacek reliable?

They definitely didn't take the sensor. The wires that are exposed was just the last fraction of an inch running into it. The screwdriver marking by the side of the radiator grille would indicate that they were either disturbed or else couldn't get that off and decide to take what they could easily steal.

It's still there and luckily seems fine.

Thanks. I've just had a bit of a traumatic afternoon whereby I was told that I might be worst-case scenario looking at a new radar sensor, plus radiator grille, for a total cost upwards of four figures. Luckily there seems to be no other damage so it's 'only' going to be the cost of the cover. Apparently there's been a spate of similar incidents as the sensors are £600 plus to replace and thieves not being the brightest don't realise that they're unusable in any other than the original car.

Yesterday afternoon i had the not-so-pleasant surprise of finding that the centre of my 2018 Superb radiator grille has gone missing - just the couple of inches square in the middle, which seems to be clipped/glued in and exposes a couple of wires. I've looked all over Google trying to find a replacement to no avail. Does anyone have any leads that wouldn't mean buying the entire grille and if so, how easy is it to put back in place? Suitable punishment suggestions for whoever took it would come in handy as well.

I'm coming to the end of my fourth Superb lease but prices have shot up and so has the size of the Superb over the past nine years. I'm thinking about getting an Octavia (probably the 2.0 diesel, same as my Superbs) and was wondering if anyone has done a similar downsize and if so, what did they find? I do about 10k miles a year, usually a 67/33 split between round town on my own and longer journeys with one passenger and sometimes luggage.

I've had the same problem now for the past couple of mornings on my 18 plater - I park on a slope and get the warning but not afterwards when it's been parked on the level for anything between ten minutes and eight hours. The coolant level seems fine, it's done just over 13,000 miles and it's about 14 months old. Has anyone else had a similar problem?

It doesn't have the NAV button so it seems that Skoda have kindly, but pointlessly, sent me a useless SD card. As I said in my earlier posts, it was my own fault for not checking, and assuming that a Superb like my previous one would have the same spec. You live and learn even if you do get annoyed at the assumption that everyone now wants downloads and Bluetooth and the like instead of physical product that you don't have to pay a premium for. This, the niggles I mentioned previously and a very annoying rattle that develops at around 35 mph in fourth (approx 12-1500 rpm - does anyone else have the problem and if not, is it something i should get checked out?) all add up to my first disappointing Skoda experience and a nagging, if traitorous, feeling that I should have had a look around at other options rather than just going for the same again.

I finally got the second key and with it, after a bit of wrangling, a gratis Amundsen SD card. Now, can someone explain to a total computer illiterate who just about managed to get the card out of the box what I do now, preferably as if speaking to your octogenarian grandmother who's just asked you how what this downloading thing means an d can she get the Archers on it?

Ah, well. The satnav issue is typical of a tendency that's a particular bugbear of mine; you get something functional that works perfectly well and there's the option to upgrade if you prefer, then it gets changed so you either have nothing, or can pay for a state of the art gizmo which will do much more than you ever need. Removing CD players was the same - I don't want to download, I want to play the music I've bought in a way I'm happy with. I've never got the hang of downloading or syncing or whatever the current phrase is and I don't like using my phone to do anything except the job it's intended for. The whole thing seems to go against the very ethos of Skoda and to be honest if I'd known about it - and I'm still amazed that the issue wasn't brought up in any review I saw - I would probably have looked elsewhere. After driving for the first time, most of the other stuff is a pain as well. I still don't like the screen, the seat adjustment that worked well before has been replaced by a cheap-feeling handle and the whole plastic area around the seat lets down the feel of the car - it was always a bit of a weak spot but now it looks cheap and flimsy. The trim also seems cheap and not as hard-wearing as previously. On a positive note. the seats are better, my wife likes the suspension and the roadholding is the best since my old, unreliable, but to wonderful to drive Saab. And as I'm stuck with it for three years I'll take whatever positives I can.

i'e just taken delivery of a 2.0 TDi SE 150 on lease. As this is my fourth consecutive Superb with barel l a second's problem previously I didn't bother checking the small print of the spec, just went for the best deal. And I have to say I'm not happy. I don't like the trim, the manual seat adjustment seems cheap, I really don't like the computer screen, there's only one key (the lease company say Skoda sometimes post the second one on; i'll be pleasantly surprised if that happens without lengthy wrangling) and most gob-smackingly of all there's no sat nav. A 24 grand car with no sat nav - it's such a basic thing now that it never occurred to me to check that it would be included. Is this right, or have I been in some way shafted? Either way, for the first time ever I'm very disappointed in Skoda.

Thanks to everyone who replied. I'll be test driving, although there's no test that can match long-term personal experience. I'm thinking about an Octavia because after three Skodas I know a good manufacturer when I see one. At the moment I'm paying around £250 a month with three months down on a two year lease. A few weeks ago there were some good deals going but I can't get anywhere near those sort of prices now. In another month or so the situation might have changed but for now I'm still looking round.

I currently drive a superb 2.0 SE 16 plate. The lease runs out soon and while I'd like another, there's no deals available at anywhere like what I'd like to pay but there are a few very affordable Octavias with a similar-sized engine. I do about 10k miles a year, less than quarter of that is motorway or long distance and there's only the two of us so size isn't really an issue. Would it feel like driving a shoebox after what I'm used to or does the difference make no matter? I'd appreciate the thoughts of anyone who's been in a similar position.

It's not been serviced at all yet (less than 12 mionths old); I've been lax in regular checks but the levels have always seemed fine prevously.

No further loss this morning after a couple of hours steady motorway driving. I'll keep an eye on it from now until it goes in on Tuesday.