Wile7

Tempting…

I’d like to upgrade my Columbus unit too. It works fine (TV tuner, radio, CD, SD card etc.) but I’d like DAB radio and apple car play. Alibaba Express looks a good bet, but I’d be interested to see what other folk think/advise.

Hi Oblong. I had a similar issue (stopped working but in a closed position). It was the sunroof motor (situated above courtesy light and sunroof open/close panel). Bought a working used unit off eBay and took an hour or so to fit. Job done. Thankfully, actual slider mechanism/chassis frame was not seized….

Hi Dave! Apologies for delayed reply 😬🤷‍♂️ The tuning was by Swiss Skoda dealer Embrach (www.embrach.ch) and was done from new. Sachs shocks and KE springs. K&N filter and some upgraded arb bushes plus a freer flowing manifold exhaust. No chip I don’t think (none for 3.6 I believe) just a remap. Only chip mod you can get is a throttle enhancer (sharper response). I am still saving for a free flow exhaust and that should liberate some bhp. A top end rebuild (cans etc.) abd a modded ecu can get you Passat R36 plus power (320 bhp +). You can also go full Porsche spec (its the sane lump as the Cayenne and early Panameras) which could be a giggle…but expensive!! That would push you towards 360bhp+). I think 🤔🤪😬🤷‍♂️ Dave

Great choice! Looks lovely. Skoda no longer the butt of jokes by a large margin. Better than most audi/vw’s/bmw’s and certainly a brisk, comfortable and reliable car. Enjoy (and hope your wife likes the boot space 😂👍🏻). Dave

Hi there Bejam. How old is this version of the XLR please? (and would you consider posting to Switzerland possibly?). Many thanks. Dave

I have had this go on mine (airbag light on). As someone has said above, the wiring in the door panel becomes brittle and breaks with age, especially in hot/cold climates’. We get -28C to +28C and it plays havoc on door looms. (within the door and at the point where it goes across the door to the front wing panel). Mine is a 2010 car and loom broke bang on a decade. Happened on my wife's Lupo back in the day too. Its easy to fix (door disassembly aside) as it is a plug in/plug out bit of the loom. Good luck with it.

Well, after my post above I have now had to put four summer tyres (goodyears) onto my 17” winter alloys as I discovered one of my 18’s was buckled 😫🙄. So now down in size with decent rubber. To be honest, it drives rather sweetly on the smaller rims and aesthetically it looks okay (car is lowered so that probably helps a bit to fill the arch gaps). Tyres were cheap(er) too as a smaller size….what a pain though. I do want my 19’s back on as soon as I can source a replacement rim (or fix it). They look great.

It’s been a while since I posted photos of Wile7 - he has had some new paint after a garage pillar mishap, and I’ve had to move to 17” rims and new summer tyres (Goodyear) for now as I buckled both 18” and 19” rims on ****ty French roads at Christmas. Car now has fresh MFK (Swiss mot) which was a bit painful (new front shocks, rear bump stops, two fog/driving lights, two tie bars and four tyres…at £180/hr labour 😳😱😫🤷‍♂️). Still, I changed the front and rear emblem badges as I’m a tart 😂 and gave him a decent wash. The chap scrubs up well and still looks great for a 2010 (had him since 2014) 3.6 awd estate with 194,000kms under the belt….

Hi TheDempsey. I had a similar thing at around 100,000 kms. Do a search on here for my threads (wile7 - 3.6 Superb) and you’ll find quite a bit of info. Although I changed my timing chains, it was one of the tensioner pullies that failed and made that rattle noise. Not expensive. I also had the mechatronic gearbox bit that simply needed a service as it was noisy too. Of course, yours might not be related, but worth a check. Also, check air con pump and hoses for that whoosh sound…could also be a vacuum pump hose. Good luck with it 👍🏻 The 3.6 is a great, pretty bullet proof, engine on the whole. Ancillaries can be annoying on occasion…

I have Halford bars and a norauto (French Halfords kind of place) top box and its a good combo. St Moritz Swiss to Taunton UK and back without issue. Quite quiet too (and these are not the aero bars, just standard ones). Pic below.

Thanks buddy. Ride is firm but not harsh. It was converted from new onto sachs shocks and kw springs. About 15mm too low to be honest as it scrapes on occasion (speed bumps, car park incline etc.). I have a set of 18” rims for summer currently as I damaged one of the 19’s unfortunately….to be fixed.

Hi Mullerbrar. Not done it yet but I reckon its coming soon…be interested to see the replies here. Good luck with it. Dave

I found this was a perfect tool…stretched the casing enough to release module without affecting the interference fit. Perfect. Don’t tell the wife please 😁 #spatula