DSL

Did someone say “winter tyres”? 😃 Conti winters doing their thing today keeping us on the black white stuff. Been driving on fair amount of snow and ice recently and Skippy hasn’t put a foot wrong.

Agreed re 17”ers, original fit on mine and wouldn’t change. Presently with Conti full winter tyres fitted.

It’s -11c atm but I’m in a nice warm living room with the fire going nicely, cheeky little bottle of red Vino Collapso being consumed. Going back out is deffo above and beyond. Will have a look tomorrow, though due to be warmer and snowing.

At -8.5c it was hitting the screen and staying liquid just fine, the wipers did their thing and all was good. At -9c no idea re freezing on the screen as the stuff wasn’t putting in an appearance.

OK, first properly cold time this winter but even with virtually neat screen wash the nozzles were still freezing up. Up to approx -5c I’d have screen wash from both sides, all good and green screen wash doing it’s thing. Colder than that from just the passenger side, meant relying on the LHS wiper shunting enough screenwash rightwards to clear enough of my screen. Below -9c absolutely nothing, coldest seen -10c. And it is decent screen wash that, with the concentration in the washer bottle, should be fine, as witnessed by the rear screen scoosher happily doing its thing like a hippo marking its territory. And finally cutting to the chase, can heated nozzles be retro-fitted to a car (bog basic SE Karoq) that doesn’t have the “winter pack” fitted? Obviously I’d hope that it was just pull off the the “old ones” and put on the heated nozzles with the electrical connector just sitting there. But I live on Planet Earth so I know that wouldn’t be an option. Thoughts?

Watch lower back pain, especially when breathing in. I had that just over a year and put it down to pulling something opening my garden gate. It was only when I started coughing up blood that made me call the docs and long and short of it was I had a blood clot in my lung. They couldn’t pin it on anything specific so I’m on blood thinners for life, not a problem. Just don’t dismiss back pain as bad seating. It might be, it might not. 👍

Shhhhhhhh re washing. Mine has been washed twice in almost 3 years, both times by the dealer when in for camera fitting then for a service. Both times against my express instructions! 😠

Aircon for me is always on. 👍

No problem closing with the load cover in place. The load cover does make contact with the wheel but closing the boot door holds it perfectly in place. 👍 I initially carried the spare in the “proper” place with the styrofoam fillers and some wood to support the sides of the floor but that wasted way too much space so tried the side mounting route and suits what we do much better. With the type of long haul journeys I do anything other than a full replacement wheel isn’t an option, if I have a puncture (and I’ve had a few over the years) I want to change the wheel, crack on to where I’m going then sort it out at my leisure once there. And, from the numbers of cars I clocked on a long haul yesterday and today stuck at the side of the road with a puncture, that’s not a view I’ll change. I know the risk is small but it’s the old risk vs consequences - minimum risk but total PITA consequences. 👍

Here’s my solution to carrying a full sized spare in our 4x4 Karoq. Works for me, might not be for everyone. 👍 And it’s amazing how much “stuff” can be carried behind the wheel.

Unfortunately when the work is needed my car will be in the south of the country so no chance to nip across to Aberdeenshire. She’s now booked in for Haldex change, MOT and brake fluid change. 👍 Not looking to take out any warranty with this car so will think about what I want to do going forward. Considering I’m only doing a few thousand miles a year I may do what I so with Mrs DSL’s Jazz and just put her in the shop every 3 years or so and get everything done at once, MOT obviously annually. Not planning to sell her until she starts falling apart so not too worried about spotty service schedule.

OK, sorted. I set SWMBO on the case, she volunteered to phone up and play the helpless “I’ve got this message coming up and I don’t understand” role. Long and short, it’s normally ignored as it’s the same as an oil change/inspection without changing the oil. They’ll remove it when it goes in for MOT, BF & Haldex change. I had a look at what’s involved and most of it I can quite happily do, plus is unlikely to come up with something that will be a warranty claim. Curiously, re the Haldex oil being changed, that has a question mark on the booking. It didn’t come up on their service menu so think it may a sealed unit. They’ll have a look when it goes in. Booked in late Nov. 👍

I’m quite happy with oil change at 2 years. Most of my mileage is long haul rather than pottering around town, for that we use SWMBO’s 15 year old Jazz that might get an oil change ever 3 or 4 years. If it’s lucky! 🤣 Getting a straight answer from Skoda’s website is impossible, all the info is aimed at fixed annual servicing. I can’t find anything at all on variable servicing. Re Haldex it just has it in the “3 years or 30k”, which I’m reading as “whichever comes first” but it is as clear as treacle.

OK, just trying to get this straight in my mind so apologies if asked before but still not sure. Car will be 3 years from first reg towards mid December so I deffo have to get an MOT. Also according to the service schedule I also need brake fluid change and 4x4 oil change. So far so good. However, the car should be on flexible servicing, it had its first “proper” service back in Nov ‘21 and has only done about 4k miles since then. I’m now getting the “inspection in 27 days” message on the start up screen. Now my understanding of this is my next inspection or oil change type service (with the mileage I do) should be in Nov ‘23. When I picked up the car from the service last Nov the servicing menu had been set to “oil change due in ~365 days” so took it back and said “oi, that’s wrong”, it then got changed to “inspection due in ~365 days”. When I questioned the service chap re this I got a very vague statement along the line of “it’ll need something in a year’s time”, I was running late and didn’t have the energy to argue so headed home. Needless to say no plans to darken their door again. As I understand it, this imminently due inspection is incorrect on flexible servicing. Have I got this right and there is no oil change or inspection due between the two “services”? With the miles I do I have absolutely no issues with the oil being changed or the car inspected every 2 years. Thoughts? Many thanks.

Shhhhhhh, she’ll hear you!! I’m ok with the 150bhp output, plus really appreciate the 4x4 side, with full winter tyres, through full-on Highland winters. And really enjoying total reliability after almost 30 years inhabiting the driver’s seats of LRs. Re my 50mpg, that’s a result of prob 90% of my miles being on long Mway hauls at 60 - 65mph. 👍

You just have to be nice to her, with lots of whispering sweet nothings in her ear. 🤣 Saying that, expect my mpg to tank as I haven’t sat in Skippy, or whispered anything to her, since the last refuel at the end of July as now on a 3 month trip in Canada. She’s not going to be happy! 😁

Re 2.0 TDi 4x4 DSG mpg, this is just over 2 years of real world (fuel in vs distance done) figs. 👍

Saw one one in the flesh today, deffo more like an Ateca than Karoq, mostly from the rearmost side window. Didn’t get a good look, was in the back if a minibus as it passed going the other way. Will keep eyes peeled when back in drivers seat from tomorrow onwards. Getting bored with mentally ticking off Canadian province and US state plates. 👍

Seen a good few VWs over here, mix of Tiguans, bigger VW SUVs and “normal” cars, but only few Audis. Really rare, but out there, would be modern Volvos. Lots and lots and lots of Far Eastern, incl our Corolla hire car, and almost as many Yank Tank pickups & SUVs. Deffo no Skodas. Strangely enough also seen one UK car, an old defender, a Dutch campervan and a Swiss pickup/camper pod combo. Hmmmmmm, wonder if Skippy would like a long ferry ride.

Seen a few adds here in Canada for the VW Taos. Wasn’t really paying attention but first thoughts were “hang on, Skoda doesn’t sell here” as if looks so like a Karoq apart from the front end styling. Karoq in a VW frock or something different?

Look on the bright side, with senior moments comes senior discounts. 👍

One of the reasons I went for the specific Conti winter tyres I have is that they not directional so the spare can happily go on either side. It significantly narrowed down the tyre types available but more than happy with the choice and they have performed brilliantly in 2 Highland winters, one of which was proper wintery. 👍

I regularly(ish) do journeys that start at ~4am and are ~550 miles in total. If I have a puncture at the start of that journey (think A9 in winter) and I can’t sort it out quickly (DIY, not waiting hours for a breakdown chap) it means adding an overnight stop to that trip. If I have an identical spare I can just press on regardless, plus no 50km/50mph limits of a skinny wheel. I know the chances of needing the spare are low but it’s the old risk vs consequences, low risk but PITA consequences. Most of the tyre swaps I’ve had to do have been on my drive when I find I’ve got a near flat tyre so it can go in the boot to get sorted next time I’m passing a tyre place. Plus the tyre that has been put on stays on and the repaired tyre becomes the spare. Also if I have to use the spare when on the road I’m not at all worried re driving around on the spare with the dead tyre in the boot to sort out at my leisure, chances of needing another spare that week should be about zero. I wouldn’t bother with full sized spare if I just pootled around locally but driving from one end(ish) of the country to t’other my perceived needs are somewhat different from most peeps. To the point of having an identical spare for both summer and proper winter tyres. You can never be too paranoid! LOL.

There is another option to the standard space saver kit, full sized alloy in cover mounted to the side of the boot. Bit left field but works a treat. Makes a deeper but narrower boot and lots of stuff can be stashed behind the wheel (jack, tools, etc). No piddling around with space savers or different tyre sizes. Not for everybody but works for me.

This has prob been asked may times, maybe even by myself, but is there any easy way to tell which gearbox a particular Karoq has? Mine’s a 2.0 TDi 4x4 and I think it’s a DQ381 from previous discussions but is there any way to actually check? My car will be 3 years old in Dec so will get the Haldex oil changed then, even though it will have only done ~16k miles by then.