lastgasp

If I may comment - this thread has become somewhat confused and self-contradictory. It was posted in the Kamiq forum. Gumdrop raised a question, presumably relating to his 1.5 petrol DSG Kamiq. It has now drifted onto aspects of the auto-hold and e-brake of the Karoq.

There is plenty of space for a second horn behind the liner. There are two wires/terminals to the horn, connected by a shaped, moulded connector that is possibly unique to the model or to Skoda. Fortunately there is a fair amount of wire accessible ahead of the connector, so I chose simply to bare a short section of each wire and to solder a spur onto them , rather than remove/change it. The two spurs go to crimped spade terminals that fit to the extra horn. (Not wishing to be pedantic, but I am sure you are aware, there is no such thing as an 'earth' on a simple 12v system. One wire is the positive - the other is the negative, and polarity doesn't matter for a horn, so they are interchangeable.

That's weird - I've just done it today. That's the way I did it, removing the headlight/bumper is a helluva job, and I'm not sure that it would give very good access because of the location of the horn, - but the wheelarch liner is an absolute doddle to remove. Jack the car up, remove the left wheel, undo all of the visible torx fixings from the top, twelve o'clock position of the liner down to where it is angled underneath the bottom edge - about a dozen in number - give the liner a bit of a waggle and pull it towards the hub/disc. The horn is then visible, in the rear of the wing space, tucked in between the screenwash reservoir and the liner. It's literally just a few minutes' work. I simply added a second horn, a deep-noted one, that I had bought from the local motor factors to repair my wife's car and then did not need to use. In an other thread someone has mentioned that the specs of the horn relay and fuses are more than adequate for a second horn and I can vouch for the wiring being quite hefty, none of that weedy canbus stuff. It really was a very simple job to do and I now have a 'dignified' tone, not the weak peep of the original horn. I should perhaps have taken photos, but it really is such a simple job that it never occurred to me.

Quick update. Car was in dealers yesterday for an oil--change and a look at the electronics. Turns out that it was due for some sort of software up-date, and when that was done the issue had disappeared. Certainly now everything seems to be functioning as it should.

Bit of an odd one. For the last few days, each and every time I turn the ignition on, the central display, between the dials has started to show the line drawing of the car - normally used to indicate a door open. Yet no door is open! I have to press the rotary switch on the wheel to get it to revert to driving data which is the usual default display. It then stays on there until I next switch off, - then when I switch back on it's back to the car drawing. I didn't see it as any sort of real issue, just an irritant, but then today I started up, re-set the display to get rid of the car drawing and then, as normal, I switched off the stupid lane-assist before pulling onto the road. About twenty minutes later I became conscious that I was struggling a bit to steer, looked at the instruments and found that the effing lane-assist was back on! I had definitely disabled it on the infotainment screen, and yet it had re-activated. So I turned it off yet again - and promptly booked the car into the dealers! One electronic issue is a minor glitch, two is the start of something sinister!

distrnc - Thanks for that. I think that must be a recent addition to the Kopacek site because I never spotted it when I checked there for something else. It's a good find - both because the price is fairly good and because I know from past experience that they only sell stuff that is of proven quality. I had been researching kit that I could buy cheaply from various suppliers - I know the size of struts needed, it was then just a question of sourcing the necessary additional bits for attaching the struts to the hinges etc. but I got side-tracked by other, more pressing issues. For convenience I may well go with the Kopacek offering - so thank you for the info.

Thanks, all. It looks as though nobody has taken the plunge yet, so I think I'll do a bit of research to find what might work. Roottoot, I think I must be getting weaker then. The bonnet on my Kamiq looks a much smaller unit than my old Octavia, so it was a surprise to find that it was weightier than I expected. Fitting gas struts to the Octy made a big difference so I was hoping that there was already an established solution for the Kamiq. I never thought of checking on Amazon/Ebay - doh, so obvious! Their offerings so far seem a bit pricey compared to the modest cost I paid for the Oct kit, so I'll see what I can find. If I come across something that works, I will report back.

I've searched, but couldn't find anything. Has anyone fitted gas struts to their Kamiq bonnet? Is it possible? Obviously if anyone has, I'm interested in a link to a supplier of suitable struts.

Yes, I agree. Part of the problem, of course. is that once you've got your hand in there, it then obscures any view of what you are trying to do. I managed to substitute a fuse with a piggyback so I could power the dashcam by using very slender long-nosed pliers, but it was a helluva fiddle. Hopefully I won't need to go back in there ever again.

I was reluctantly thinking it was about time to bring myself to part with old faithful and had just started sniffing round the dealers in a very half-hearted way. Then a quick succession of events forced my hand. Can't say any more. I'm still a bit shell-shocked. From the test drive I think the engine/transmission will be fine. So far I have only driven it back from the dealers about forty miles away along back roads - but I got nothing from that experience because I was totally preoccupied with trying (unsuccessfully, as I had no specs to read the manual) to turn off the bloody stupid lane assist, which was trying to kill me.

It’s a long and boring story, that I won’t inflict on people, but I am now without my lovely Octavia, despite it never being planned that way. Instead, I find myself the owner of a Kamiq - a somewhat bemused owner as until ten days ago I hadn’t even heard of them! FFS, who though that was a suitable name for a car? Even worse, having driven diesel for forty years or so, it turns out it’s a bloody petrol! No surprise then that in addition, I’ve gone the whole hog and got a DSG. I need to take time to reflect on the error of my ways, but this post is simply to thank the various people on this forum who over a number of years have added to the enjoyment of Octavia ownership by freely sharing their knowledge, experience and great expertise, all of which has been of considerable help to me and, I know, to many others. Obviously I am now heading off to the Kamiq forum (I’m sure it must be busier than it seems at first sight), but many thanks and best wishes to all here.

You've undoubtedly worked it out for yourself by now - but if anyone else looks here for the answer........ the miniature gloveboxy thing is what Skoda means by 'the tray'. If you look up at the top edge, you will see it is prevented from dropping down completely by a protruding piece of plastic. This plastic is bendy - bend it so that you free the 'tray' and it can pivot further on its hinges, almost turning upside down. Now it is in the correct position to be pulled clear of its hinges. Don't be scared of damaging it - the hinge mechanism is quite robust - just give it a strong pull out horizontally towards the drivers' seat (actually in the direction shown in the handbook). Access to the fuses is then quite good,

Free to good home (just pay the postage - £3.10) For Skoda Octavia Mk3 A7 5E Dynamic LED Turn Signal Blinker Mirror flasher Light 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 Ignore the years shown above. I think this is for post-FL models only. Bought from Aliexpress, cheap as chips - Shop912186481 Store - but it is the wrong fitment. I’ve just replaced the damaged indicator repeater on my pre-FL Octy III with an OEM part. The electric lead plugs into the light on my model. However, this pair are different – they have their leads and connector already attached, so I think this is the fitment for the post-FL models. Comes complete with a trim tool and the correct torx bit. No use to me, but if someone covers the postage they can have them.

An update, if it helps anyone in the future who looks at this thread and if - like me - they are not especially interested in the Audi dynamic aspect, but simply want a replacement for the indicator repeater for a pre-facelift Octy III that a) fits correctly, b) is MOT compliant and c) provides the tell-tale in the mirror frame, then this link www.ebay.co.uk/itm/203478861117 is for an OEM replacement (right side) from an Ebay outfit trading as IIIParts. It seems that it comes from India - it took about three weeks for delivery - and I was a bit dubious, but to my delight it is an exact match for the original, in VW Skoda India packaging and has the identical part numbers. It cost £31.99, which is not much to pay for the genuine thing.

PetrolDave Thank you for summarising the current situation for me. I've been pre-occupied with other matters for some time now and worrying about a replacement car became a low priority, so I haven't looked in there for a while. Obviously little has improved since I did last look. I'll just have to keep my old bus running until Skoda sort their **** out. P.S. I have now read the thread you linked to. What a tragedy for Skoda fans. People were choosing Skodas on merit, in preference to Beemers and Mercs, but now Skoda have thrown it all away with a poor product and total indifference to their customers.

Interesting. Originally I was planning to have changed to the Mk 4 by now, but I have been seriously put off by the reported serious glitches with the electronics and left it alone for the time being. Do you happen to know how recent the courtesy car was? Presumably they have now sorted out the issues. (I assume that everything was working as it should).

skomaz has it right. The holes are there - just cunningly camouflaged.

Just replaced my battery with another Varta AGM from Tanya. Ordered a.m Thursday, delivered a.m. Friday for £109.99 plus £6.50 delivery. Really good value.

Vahids That's great.

Me too. I have the same problem - caught the extreme tip of the repeater strip on the garage door-frame and shattered it - doh! Mine is the pre-FL model. SuperSkoda only seem to offer the Audi dynamic jobby that they claim is suitable for all Mk IIIs and I was quite happy to go for that, but the comments on here imply that it may not be MOT compliant. So I would also be very grateful if anyone can point me towards a satisfactory replacement.

As far as I'm aware, this is perfectly normal. When in daylight and the DRLs are in use, the instrument lights are out. They illuminate when you switch on the headlights. I hope you are not implying that you are in the habit of driving around on sidelights, which are only intended for use when you are parked. If this is the case, perhaps you should consider leaving the switch permanently on Auto, which will allow the car to decide what lights you should be displaying.

Wondering if anyone has any relevant experience. My tow-bar has had very little use, never in the wet, still clean as new and with original grease visible in the mechanism. (Housing always had the stopper in it and was clean and unobstructed.) Problems started last time I tried to mount it – it wouldn’t engage properly, the knurled wheel didn’t rotate the full extent, red marker stayed midway in the green sector, the wheel was still 5mm clear of the base and with barely any clock-wise pressure it would immediately dis-engage. I gave it umpteen attempts with the same result – about to give up in despair and then finally it locked into place, with the usual solid ‘clunk’. However I also definitely heard an unusual metallic ‘ping’ noise. After towing, I tried to remove it – absolutely no-go! The key rotates fully and goes in and out, but the knurled wheel will not turn at all (it still pulls out the normal 5mm, but that makes no difference to anything). So - its totally stuck in situ. Not the end of the world, I know, but annoying for something that, although five years old, is still in as-new condition. Before I try to look for a Westfalia dealer, has anyone had a similar experience or, if familiar with the breed, can make any useful suggestions?

I had one at the front that was quite loud and I thought should have been easy to detect which side, but none of the usual methods could pin it down. In the end the only way the tech at the dealership could find it was by running it in gear on the ramp and listening with a stethoscope.

Since no-one else has responded, allow me to welcome you. Bone questions are the speciality here! The forum has a number of "stickies" at the top which cover many of the recurring issues - and the search function at the very top, although a bit hit and miss, can with perseverance produce results on most things. These cars are 7/8 years old now, so most issues have been addressed over time.

I've seen similar comments on here a couple of times in the past, and it's not my experience. I use DAB almost exclusively and I find it gives perfect reception all around England and Wales. Only time I bother with FM is in France. I guess there must be some units that are simply faulty or perhaps antenna problems.. As far as dashcams go, I have a NextBase 322GW permanently wired thro a piggyback, with a couple of ferrite thingies, and it has no effect on reception.