aj_cheesy

Thanks for the responses so far. The car is an estate, 2.0L TDI (148). I think the 4wd system adds just over 100kg, and with some additional drag, which would have an impact upon fuel efficiency, just wouldn't have thought that much. I just worked it out, It's doing approximately 34.5mpg (8.18L/100km). This is the non VRS and I am driving it sensibly on decent non-motorway runs, still doesn't seem quite right, considering the Average mpg is quoted at 57.6mpg for this vehicle. I know these figures are Unicorn numbers that all manufacturers magic up from traffic free, glass surface motorways in the vacuum of space... I'd still be expecting to get at least 45mpg when driving sensibly. Also, I know I can turn off the ASR (mine doesn't have any ESP, ESR or additional control over 4x4 or differentials). I don't want to have to do this every time I sit in the car though, my mentality on things like that has changed a lot over recent years. Suppose I've bought myself a newish second hand car and want it to be right. And from my experience, I've never had to lift off the accelerator to regain normal driving mode in any other car... I just didn't know if Skoda had taken a step backwards with ASR and put a system in place that forced the driver to remove all power before proceeding, after the car thought it had lost even the smallest amount of traction. So, would the general consensus be that Skoda probably need to have a look at it?

Hello all, Complete Newbie here and first post, so please be gentle. So factors in my life dictated that I had to grow up... I had to sell my Nissan 350z 313ps and my Mitsubishi Pajero Mini Monster Truck. I needed something economical, efficient, practical and roomy and decided on the Octavia Estate. Wasn't a huge fan of the Scout, so decided to get the 4x4 in the Octavia. Since having it, I really have started to think that there are some problems with it and wanted to know if anyone could shed some light. First issue is the ASR. I've owned German cars with ESP and ASR before and like they should, they either kill power or compensate for lost traction with braking. Once the traction is regained, they go back to sleep and you can drive normally again. My current Octavia acts a little differently, even when I could be 99.999% certain I haven't lost any traction, certain corner combinations like chicanes, S shapes in the road or exiting roundabouts, the ASR start flashing at me, and as it should I loose most power. To add to this though, the light remains flashing at me until I have completely removed my foot from the accelerator for a few seconds and wait for the light to stop flashing. So simplistically, I could navigate a left and right at 20mph in the dry without losing any traction, the ASR comes on, and even on the straight road after the bends where I can only continue at 20mph due to the power loss the light would keep flashing for an eternity with no traction loss until I have removed my foot from the accelerator and then placed the power back on. I really don't want people to think this is me even pushing the car, I usually have my little girl in the back and I'm driving as if I'm driving Miss Daisy. Then second problem is when I start the car up and navigate out of a parking spot or perform a slow speed manoeuvre with both reverse and forward gears. When I do this, with steering lock on or even in a straight line, the car seems as if there is some sort of differential lock up taking place, as the wheels will skip. This is usually more prevalent when the car is first started. To add to this, I used to have a 1.6d MK2 Octavia and used to get phenomenal miles out of a tank, like, over 600 miles. This is the 2.0L (148bhp), so maybe not quite as economical but I can't get any more that 400 miles out of a tank. I haven't yet worked out the mph sorry, but it just doesn't seem quite right. So, I'm starting to wonder if these may all be correlated... Is the differential / 4x4 system causing the wheels to be fighting each other? Not only would this have an impact upon economy and manoeuvring in tight spaces, but also tricking the ASR into thinking I'm losing traction when I'm actually not? Any help on this matter would be much appreciated. I fear that it's one of those problems that Skoda themselves could or would never want to diagnose and put right. If you've made it this far, then I commend you. Sorry for rambling. Kind Regards, Alex.