OldBoyScout

I'm surprised at the absence of replies to this topic so far, bearing in mind that the changes are going to seriously affect how everybody should be driving. I have seen a few reports on the TV news mainly stating that many people are unaware of the changes due to a lack of recent publicity, and I also saw a discussion on Jeremy Vine earlier this week. I fear that it is a recipe for chaos starting on Saturday 29th when some people will be driving and/or cycling according to the new rules while those who are still unaware will be going by the old rules. It also seems likely that there will be misunderstandings of the new rules. The new rules state, among other things, that cyclists should at certain times ride in the middle of their lane rather than on the left, but I have seen various people including Jeremy Vine saying that cyclists should ride in the middle of the road (not lane).

To be fair this is an issue with probably any car that has rear windows that roll down and is not unique to the Octavia. This was a gripe with the previous model and should not have been carried forward to the Mark 3. Luckily it's not something that I often need to use. Sometimes they are too much of a bother, and on those occasions I prefer to do single wipes manually. Reversing camera: I have never had one before, and have been surprised at how useful it has been. An option that really ought to be standard, considering the low cost of cameras these days, which are included on pretty much every mobile phone for example. Annoyingly my reversing camera has failed to operate on a small number of occasions when I have really needed it, but has been reactivated on switching the ignition off and on again. Stop-Start: the usual gripes as reported on other threads - not unique to Octavia of course, and easy to activate or de-activate as required while driving. Satnav - most of the time works well enough for me, but sometimes the touch screen does not respond to my touch when setting out in cold weather. Regens: After being out driving for a few hours I sometimes arrive home to find a regen in progress when I switch off the engine. Seems to happen more often than I feel it should. On the plus side I have never had a DPF warning, although my pattern of use is not supposedly the best for a diesel engine. Very occasionally I get the spurious warning message "Leave vehicle only when selector lever is in position P". This issue is discussed at length on other threads. Seems it can be a major problem on some vehicles, but in my case it just flashes up briefly and goes away again. Lack of spare wheel: have managed to get by without one so far, but have now got to the point where my can of gunk is time expired, and am thinking it might make sense to get a spare wheel rather than replacing the can. Occasional false alarms from the Tyre Pressure Monitoring System, but an advance on previous cars that didn't have TPMS. Some posters have mentioned diesel engine noise. I find my current car much quieter than the previous one, a 2007 2.0 TDI 140. Recently I had a petrol Karoq loan car. The engine was so quiet I couldn't hear it at all when it was just ticking over. To me the noise level of my diesel car is perfectly acceptable. I consider all the issues above to be occasional minor irritations, and on the whole I very much like my Octavia Scout 184 DSG. It is very well equipped with top of the range standard equipment plus optional reversing camera and winter pack. I have owned this car for 6 years now and have no plans to replace it any time soon. So far I would say it is the best car I have ever owned. I had the previous Octavia from new in 2007 as my company car and bought it from the company when I retired. That car was the most reliable that I had owned until then, and the current car has been equally reliable. The Scout has received criticism for costing a lot more than the base Octavia. I was fortunate in picking up a nearly new ex demo car at a massive discount. It was just 3 months old and had less than 2,000 miles on the clock. I really like the moon white metallic paintwork which was not a colour I would have chosen myself. It contrasts well with the black plastic body mouldings. I would not have opted for the reversing camera, but am very glad to have it. Also I like the original styling better than the facelift. I like the big boot which is more than ample for our German Shepherd. I like the brisk acceleration of the 184 PS engine which is significantly faster than the 140 PS of the previous car. I like being able to easily switch between the current driving mode and Sport simply by pulling back on the gear selector lever. This makes Eco mode much easier to live with.

I have occasionally had to replace a tyre due to damage rather than wear. As this is always a risk, I prefer to keep the existing tyres so long as they are legal and the car drives OK.

Is this because you didn't reset the system after changing the tyre? Not necessarily. Resetting the system means you should get a warning of any further problems that may arise before you can get the slow puncture fixed, and it should alert you to a further drop in pressure.

That's it in a nutshell. Provided that whenever you get a warning you act on it and then reset the system immediately it is not a big problem and not really unsafe. It's a cheap way for the manufacturers to meet a legal requirement that applies to all new cars these days, and I think you will find it on most other brands too. It has its limitations, but after five years of ownership I find it is still worth having.

I think that there may be some confusion going on here. If I am reading his post correctly, the OP has replaced his car battery with a like for like new battery and is having a problem starting his engine and is thinking that the keys and the immobiliser have gotten out of synch. This is not the same thing as the keys failing to unlock the doors remotely for which the other posters seem to be offering solutions. As far as I know it is not normal for the transponders in the key fobs to go out of synch with the immobiliser when batteries are changed whether it is the batteries in the key fobs or the main car battery. Certainly I didn't have the immobiliser go out of synch when I replaced the main battery in my 2007 Octavia. I have a spare key that will not lock or unlock the doors remotely, but it will still unlock the driver's door manually and start the engine. My main key works correctly in every way. (I have tried various procedures to restore remote functionality to the spare key but without success, and the local dealer has also failed to fix it). If there was a problem with the immobiliser, I would not expect the engine to start at all, rather than cutting out after a couple of seconds as reported by the OP, though I may be wrong about this. Therefore I am inclined to suspect that the OP's starting problem lies elsewhere. I have seen somewhere in these forums that some coding may be required on newer models when the main battery is replaced, but couldn't say whether or not this would apply to a 2011 car. Unfortunately cold damp weather conditions and being parked up during lockdown are not good for car batteries or the rest of the electrics. I hope these comments are helpful, although I don't know enough to be able to solve the OP's problem.

You can check the number plate with Transport For London, but If it is on a 65 plate I think it must be Euro 6. https://tfl.gov.uk/modes/driving/check-your-vehicle-35896 I have the silicon bag in my 2015 Scout, so there is a good chance it will be in the cars that you are looking at. Provided it has not ruptured, it is not a big thing to sort out.

Cars first registered before September 2015 would probably be Euro 5 and may or may not have received the so-called fix for Dieselgate. Cars from September 2015 (65 plate) were required to be Euro 6 so not included in the emissions scandal. Euro diesel 6 cars comply with the ULEZ (London Ultra Low Emission Zone) whereas Euro 5 diesels do not. It is possible that the earlier car is Euro 5 and the later car is Euro 6.

She was a Fifth Gear TV presenter for 14 years from 2002 to 2016, and comes from a racing family background. I preferred Fifth Gear to Top Gear, as it was a motoring show about the cars, whereas Top Gear became more a show about the presenters.

The silica bag is also a matter for concern due to the risk of the bag rupturing and clogging up the cooling system. Some people have removed the bags and some have changed the expansion bottle. There are other threads about this.

Ban on new petrol and diesel cars in UK from 2030 under PM's green plan https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-54981425 Ban now brought forward to 2030 from 2035, but some hybrids will still be allowed.

Yes, I have had this happen many times on both my Octavias over the years, probably due to keeping the keys in trouser pockets. Has not happened again since I started keeping the keys in small Faraday pouches.

It is actually showing 100% + 1%. That should tell you that it isn't really full. I was under the impression that at least some of the ash came from burning the soot, although I am also aware that low ash oil should be used. My understanding is that a very high temperature is required for a passive regen, and it may not even happen on a motorway run, depending on distance covered and engine revs I guess. I have been using my late 2015 2.0 TDI 184 mostly for short distances in the city for over 4 years and the DPF light has never come on. It is reassuring to have the VAGDPF app so I can see that all is well with the DPF. I usually go for a longer drive at the weekend, so that probably helps. I have never felt that my pattern of driving is particularly suitable for a diesel, but the car just looks after the regens with no worries.

On the Golf thread it says: "this silicon bag is only found in cars with climate control fitted from the factory"

If light is still on it will probably need fixing before next MOT.

That is not necessarily a DPF warning. I got it on my 57 plate MK2 which doesn't have a DPF. As far as I know it is an engine management warning and could relate to various issues. In my case it was a rogue electrical connection involving a home repair to the lighter socket using a piggy back fuse. Took a few days at the local dealer to figure it out, and probably something else in your case When a regen is interrupted, you get a burning smell and noise of fans running for some time. The smell comes from excess diesel being burned, and the fans are to cool it all down. If you left it parked with the engine turned off, my understanding is that the regen was no longer in progress despite the smell and noise. 95% seems like a very high amount, and doesn't allow much of a margin if a regen fails and has to be started again. From memory I think a regen should be triggered when the soot gets to 45%. Procedure for vehicles with diesel engines from Owners Manual: › Drive at a speed of at least 60 km/h at engine speeds of at least 2000 rpm. If the filter is cleaned successfully, the indicator light goes out . If the indicator light does not go off within 40 minutes, the filter was not cleaned. › Continue driving, exercising appropriate caution, and seek the help of a specialist garage.