birchy

Yes Ade, I phoned the 3 I know are "OK" to deal with but they only sell 2 and 3 year guarantee batteries and said "dunno where you'd get Varta or Bosch round 'ere mate". TBH, I've decided to change the battery anyway because this is not the first time it's played up and I have a bit of a history of buggering batteries due to short winter journies. All I need now is confirmation of what Varta Silver is equivalent to the OEM 1J0 915 105 AC. Halfords reg number checker thingy reckon I need an 096, but most other battery sites are suggesting an 027 for my make/model/year. I'd be inclined to trust Halfords on this one, but don't wanna buy the wrong battery...

Thanks Ryan. I think I'll just buy another battery and have done with it. At the end of the day, it IS 5 years old and I've given it a hard life of short journies and heavy demand. Varta Silver 096 is £76 with free delivery on eBay. Can anyone please confirm this is the corect model before I buy?

Just tried this, says:"Invalid Promotional Code The promotional code you have used has either expired or does not exist". :(

I think the battery is dead to be honest. It's never been the same since it first went flat about 3 years ago. But it's certainly got worse over the last month or so, not helped by short journies and winter mornings with heaters, lights, etc running. I can check for a drain by disconnecting the negative and connecting an ammeter in series, but what current is "normal" with car parked and locked? Local garages don't seem to sell anything decent (i.e. Varta/Bosch), but plenty available online, probably at much less cost anyway. The OEM battery is an AKUMA 1JO 915 105AC, 12V 60AH 280A/480A. As far as I can tell, it's an 096 size. Can anyone confirm please?

Thought I may as well hijack this thread seeing as I have battery troubles. I have a 2007 Octavia VRS with the OEM battery. If left for a few days, the voltage drops to around 11.8V. Have charged it a few times over the last month....although it will reach around 12.8V after a day or two on charge, it quickly fades away once stood. Could be a battery drain (not checked), but I think it's more likely the battery as I had to charge it around this time last year and it was fine all summer. Sooo my question is...do I take it to a local garage and get them to fit a new battery and dispose of the old one for me, or do I buy one and do the job myself (and take the old battery to the tip??). If I do it myself, what precautions do I need to take when disconnecting? The user manual has a couple of standard things like resetting the electric windows, etc, but I can't find any info about the radio code? I have no after-market equipment, so everything is OEM.

Just had a look. I assume it's the uncovered serpentine belt on the L.H.S. of the engine looking from the front as it drives several things, two of which look like an air con compressor and an alternator. If so, the belt is fine. The whining noise stopped when I heard the thump and the compressor is turning without any wobble so I assume the shaft hasn't broken. Should this type of fault show up on the diagnostics?

Found some MK I pics via Google and it looks like you're correct. I don't remember seeing any warning lights on the dash board, so it could well be the compressor. :(Last year I copped the ESP/ABS sensor fault, this year its the air con. Bloody thing is falling apart and very poor considering the mileage. And genuine as well...I bought the car brand new. Should use it more but I never need to drive far.

My 07 VRS had an oil service and MOT today at a local garage. Car's only done 6K miles. On my way home, I noticed a whining noise that corresponded with the air con being switched on. Just before I got home, I heard a thump (like a belt snapping) and the incoming air went from cold to outside temperature. Also of interest, when I switched the air con on one day last week, it was only pumping warm air for the first 5 minutes or so, then it suddenly went cold. I assumed a seal or valve or something was sticking because I've not had it on cold for a few months, however I normally use the air con when warming the car in the winter as I read somewhere that it should be used regularly to prevent drying up of the seals. Will ring garage tomorrow, but in the meantime, do you guys think it was just the belt or am I looking at a hefty bill for a new compressor? Where is the belt located so I can check it?

Probably too soon yet, seems to occur on the 4th birthday. So March 2012 will be D-Day...

Just a quick update for anybody else who finds this thread. Final bill (including VAT) was as follows: ABS repair kit (genuine VW): £154.68 Brake fluid: £5.76 Labour: 2.5 hours = £102 TOTAL: £262.44

The repair kit is sold by VW and presumably Skoda/Audi/Seat/etc dealers. I believe they now fit the repair kit rather than replacing the whole ABS unit.

Probably more like £250 - £300 with the dreaded VAT...I was only guesstimating based on an interim service and MOT which came to £158 total. They charge £34 an hour but seem to have mastered the art of working fast AND doing a top quality job. What I like about them is they never try to bull**** or create work. As I said, they've ordered the repair kit but apparently there's a 2 or 3 week waiting list at our local VW garage. As the mechanic said: "looks like you're not the only one with this fault". Does anyone know if the repair kit has been modified/upgraded or can we expect to replace it again in 4 years' time? Surely there should be a product recall if this fault is so common?

Well I live in Hereford. As the story goes, my local dealer was Bay Horse Motors who lost the franchise about 18 months ago and ceased trading. They later restarted in the original garage as a "Skoda Specialist" but had partnered with a Mitsubishi dealership. At the time they went bust, I had been waiting for several months to get the leaky front door seals repaired and had finally got it booked in. My warranty ran out the same week and so the job never got done. My nearest Skoda franchise is about 25 miles away, so took the car to local VW dealer last year. Dunno what to do to be honest?

Have had the car serviced and MOT'd today at an independent garage. They read and reset the VCDS for no charge. I mentioned the possible pressure sensor fault when I took the car in and they confirmed the error code and have ordered the repair kit for £130 + VAT. They're saying about 2 hours for fitting which will include replacing the brake fluid (wasn't done today due to fault), so approx £200 all done. Would Skoda UK refund if I get the work done and save the invoice or will it have to be done by a Skoda garage?

Thanks, that is VERY helpful. I wasn't too keen on buying anything from eBay/China as you never know for sure what you'll get. For less than 100 quid, it's gotta be worth buying, especially with my local skoda dealer being very well known for finding and repairing (and charging for!) faults that didn't exist.