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I spoke to the parts department who advised that the “latest style” wheel caps will fit my wheels. For £20 I’ll give them a go. Hopefully they will last a bit longer than the chrome ones!

I have the following wheel caps on my MY20 Mk3 Octavia. The chrome finish is prone to corroding and I am already on a second set. At £18 each, £72 for the set is a bit steep however, I will be getting my Geminis refurbished imminently and begrudge putting the old caps back on in their current state. Wings SKODASKODA Decorative centrepiece of the wheel SKODAEven your SKODA deserves to be elegant at all times. In case you ever loose it, SKODA Genuine Accessories offers you a decorative wheel centrepiece with new company badge, which is perfectly identicalThe following are the “latest style” wheel caps, available at a far more reasonable £20 a set. The MY20 Mk3 Octavia isn’t listed as a compatible vehicle however. Has anybody fitted these to a Mk3 Octavia or able to advise on how the finish holds up? I’ll probably give Wings a call to clarify the compatibility and report back. Wings SKODASKODA Decorative Wheel Caps - Latest StyleBy using the wide range of Škoda Genuine Accessories you can draw individual style of your car to perfection. Fit the already attractive light alloy wheels of your car with wheel center caps. Plastic

SOLD - Selling a full set of Octavia Mk3 Travall Rubber Mats. Used for a few months throughout last winter and in excellent condition. Only selling as I’ve recently picked up a set of OEM mats at a good price. £30 collection from mid Norfolk area.

Have a look in to Das Auto in Norwich if that isn’t too far for you. They are VAG specialists. I’ve used them a couple of times in the past and intend on using them to service my car in future now that the Skoda Service plan has ended. I took the car to them recently for their opinion on a coolant drain and flush as it looked a little discoloured however they tested it, checked for a silica bag and confirmed there was no debris and that it was all good. They said the work would be unnecessary but would be happy to carry it out still if I wanted. They certainly knew more about my cars service schedule than the main dealer when discussing upcoming work too!

@Warrior193 cheers for the reply, that’d certainly make sense. How does your arm sit in the bracket, does it appear to float or is it sandwiched too?

Can someone clarify the purpose of the arm on the upper Engine Mount, shown just sticking out below the expansion tank in the following image, please? It appears that the arm just sits within the body coloured bracket on the chassis and partially encompasses the threaded bolt but doesn’t actually have any mechanical interaction. Mine, however, appears to be sandwiched in the bracket as the bolt looks to have been overtightened, squeezing the sides of the bracket against the arm. Not sure if this is correct or if the arm is supposed to float in that bracket to limit lateral movement.

@kernowalan I feel like I’m in the same boat. I get the same symptom at the speeds you described. Twice I’ve mentioned it to the Main Dealer when in for a Service/MOT. On one occasion I took a technician out for a drive, they suggested that this is down to tyre wear and even flagged it in the vehicle inspection (although they didn’t flag it the following year). The car came with Michelin PS5 fitted all around and there is noticeable “sawtooth” wear on the inside edge of both rear tyres when running your hand over them but with over 4mm tread depth remaining I’m reluctant to change them out. Having previously ran Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric 6 on my diesel vRS I switched to these on the front when they were worn and haven’t had any issues with abnormal wear. Now I’ve used up my Service Plan I’ll be using an independent however I’ll be a bit miffed if it turns out to be wheel bearings and I’m out of the 2 year approved used warranty.

A quick update on this. Booked the car in at a reputable indy for a coolant change and a check of the expansion tank for the silica bag. I was quoted around £170 which included the replacement of the expansion tank if it was found to contain the silica bag. Received a phone call a couple of hours after dropping off to say that they had done a test of the coolant and found that it’s well within the operating range. In addition they said there was no silica bag present (MY20 car) or any signs of contaminants in the coolant. I was advised that there was no need to replace the coolant and it’d be a waste of money although they were still happy to proceed if I wanted. I chose not to go ahead as, bar the noticeable colour difference, there is no evidence to warrant the change. All the fluid levels are checked regularly so I’ll follow up if there are any significant changes.

Also keen to know this too as I’d like to touch mine up when the discs/pads are due.

I also noticed drone running with Michelin PS4. I recently replaced the fronts with Goodyear Asy 6 as I had a slow puncture. I will be doing the same with the rears when the time comes as thats where the drone appears to be coming from. They currently have too much tread left to justify the change now.

@Warrior193 @varaderoguy evening both. Many thanks for your replies. I’ve certainly never topped it up with water since I’ve taken ownership. Can’t comment on what the dealer may have done whilst in with them for a service mind. If I were to top it up I’d only ever use the G12 Evo. Contacted the main dealer ref a price on draining and filling. Came out at around £170 noting that this wouldn’t be a flush which I gather involves a lot more work. I was advised that if the coolant has started to discolour then it is likely to reoccur as a result of “sediment”. First I’ve heard of this outside of the silica bag splitting however there are no signs of this. I don’t believe mine has the silica bag, I have had a good look. Did they not do away with these by MY20 cars?

Morning all, I was out having a quick clean up under the bonnet the other day and noticed the coolant sat just over the min mark. Not an issue for me as it was pretty cold, is usually around the max when hot and the car is running fine (water temp and heaters). Thought I had a bottle of G12 Evo kicking about, so I dug it out however I’ve found that there is a noticeable difference in colour between what’s in the expansion tank and the bottle. The coolant looks clean and clear with no signs of oil contamination. Dipstick looks good too. The car is a MY20 2.0 TSI with just over 40k miles on the clock. Full main dealer service history. Had the car for around 18 months. Is this a cause for concern or is it simply a case of replacing the coolant as it’s probably the same stuff from build and is 5 years old?

Can’t comment on the 235s however I’ve just replaced a worn pair of 225/40 Michelin PS5s with Goodyear Eagle F1 Asym 6s (currently £35 off for 2 and £70 for 4 at ATS) and both have a thicker section of rubber that runs around the circumference of the alloy to give some extra protection. I think most premium brands do. Never had any issues running the standard tyre size with the 18” Gemini alloy other than when the wife took the car out for the first time and properly had a go at curbing it! I don’t think any amount of protection would have helped in that scenario.

So I rang to book this in and got told that the DSG wasn’t due until 80k miles. This wasn't mentioned in previous conversations with both main dealers so kept the booking while I did a bit of digging. While doing this I discovered that the VAQ was likely due as I had no previous record of it being done. Called back to add the VAQ and remove the DSG service as it does appear the DQ381 is due at 80k miles only to be told by a different service rep that it’s 40k miles. Bangs head against wall. I’m leaving the DSG for now as all the information I can find suggests 80k miles although I will get this done a lot earlier. Currently at 35k miles. @Ootohere thanks for the information you’ve posted across the forum on this. It’s been a big help.

@vladRS I’m in exactly the same situation. I’ve been looking at the following Resonated Milltek Cat Back but it’s pricey. The non-res version is about £300 cheaper however I’d rather avoid it being excessively noisy and the drone that would inevitably come with it. After more of an OEM+ feel to the car. Unfortunately I haven’t come across anyone with either fitted for a comparison. https://www.awesomegti.com/temp/milltek-resonated-uses-oe-tips-octavia-vrs-2-0-tsi-245ps-face-lift-hatch-estate-opf-gpf-models-only/