cwm2g

Thanks for this, it’s very helpful. Yes, Michelin Energy Savers are those exact tyres you speak of. We won’t see a lot of snow in Glasgow (…touch wood), but these are bad even on the couple of days it’s been 6c and drizzling - and it’ll definitely be like that a lot more between now and May. The Kumho Ecstas that came with my Fabia were significantly better summer tyres IMO, and more than fine in those sorts of conditions. Since the 16inch SE Scala is a bit softer wallowy than the 17 inch SEL anyway, I figure a touch of extra sidewall stiffness might not be such a bad thing, so long as they don’t roar like the full winters I’ve driven on in some other parts of the world. As Glasgow seems to have graduated from potholes to full blown canyons lately too, any extra protection might be worth the minor drawbacks. Cheers!

Thabks Thanks! I appreciate the response. Yep, I know XLs are overkill for this car, I was just wondering given the associated durability and price upsides if the downsides of noise/ride/fuel was *that* noticeable in the real world, mainly. RE: battery, yes, good shout. I’m not sure about what warranty covers, but if the battery was not up to powering the stop/start and I’ve had the car for two weeks, should I be telling Skoda to investigate? When I first got it I had a warning on the dash that the power was low and to charge by driving it/turn off infotainment, but that message stopped after a day. I’ve seen a few of these stop/start posts on VW group forums (Polos get it a lot apparently) so not sure if it’s a known issue with the 1.0 TSI/ smaller batteries and more and more infotainment these days, or something more sinister with my particular car.

Hi all, Skoda driver since 2015 but first time poster. I’ve just changed from a 2019 Fabia to a 2020 Scala 110 TSI SE (so 16 inch wheels). All good so far, but I have a question about tyres. Basically, although it is used, the Scala only has 2.5k miles on the clock (I gather it was a press car sitting in a locked down shopping centre for most of 2020) which is a hilariously low number of miles to think about changing tyres. But: It came with Michelin energy savers which I *hate*. The grip is poor in almost all Scottish conditions, and I wouldn’t even say they’re whisper silent or so good on MPG that it remotely makes up for it…but this is based on 210 miles of driving. I was looking around, and I can get the latest Vredestein Quatrac (not to be confused with the older Quatrac 5s or Pros) all seasons in XL for £64 a tyre, or the non-XL Goodyear Vector 4 Seasons gen 3 for £73, both of which is *much* cheaper than they would have been in the Fabia Colour edition’s size. It’s fairly mild around here, but Scottish winter can throw you a curveball, and 5c wet days at least are common. Like most cities, there are a load of potholes here too, plus we sometimes head up a hill in winter for some walking. So I’ve pretty much concluded all seasons are enough, as I’m in an apartment with no place to store dedicated winters, but I was wondering your opinions on whether the XLs (stiffer and more durable, but with alleged noise, comfort and fuel economy trade offs) are worth it? XLs are usually more expensive, but this XL set is £35 cheaper and the reviews of the two brands/models are comparable - but XLs usually only *required* for cars much heavier than this. Clearly putting up with significantly increased harshness for several years is a bad deal, but if a pothole or two costs me £75 every six months, the marginal fuel savings will be long gone. Some people say they can’t notice XLs being noisier or harsher to ride on, others apparently can. Thoughts and opinions gratefully received! PS: As noted, I’ve only driven this around a city for 200 miles so far, but the start/stop won’t engage citing ‘high power consumption’. Has this happened to anyone? Was fine on the Fabia. I figure the battery may not be optimum if it didn’t turn a wheel for so long, but it was serviced by an approved used dealer a week before I took ownership, so not sure if a fault… Thanks in advance etc etc